- The individual needs of the human being
- Primary needs
- Secondary needs
- The role of society in individual needs
- Money and needs
- References
The individual needs of the human being are all those actions that a person must perform in order to develop a normal life.
Needs are usually classified as primary and secondary, the primary ones corresponding to numerous physiological processes such as sleeping or breathing.
Beyond the elementary needs that a human being requires to live, there are other factors, both physical, mental and even social that can be called needs.
Concepts such as self-esteem, friendship and even love are accepted as necessary for a person to lead a full life.
The individual needs of the human being
It is possible to break down the individual needs of the human being into several quite marked groups.
However, the most common classification encompasses primary and secondary needs, although there are other economic, social and esteem needs.
Primary needs
They can be understood as primary needs (sometimes called physiological) of the human being to various processes of the organism or external activities without which a person could not survive.
Some notable examples are breathing, feeding, hydrating, urinating and defecating, sleeping, or bundling up. Without primary needs, human life is not sustainable.
Except for the natural processes of the body, the basic individual needs of the human being are considered in many countries as rights.
In this way, practically all the constitutions of the world recognize that all people have the right to food and decent housing.
Some social and secondary needs also fall within the rights established in legal frameworks.
Secondary needs
Human beings have many needs that go beyond simply survival. As thinking and social creatures, there are a great number of activities without which a person can feel empty.
Studying, having a job, freedom of thought, confidence, self-esteem and many others capable of generating pleasure or happiness, are considered secondary needs.
Secondary needs can be of the mental type, corresponding on many occasions to intangible concepts that are easy for anyone to understand, be it love, friendship or the feeling of security.
The role of society in individual needs
Although individual needs are oriented to a single entity, on several occasions secondary needs involve a group of people. For this reason, an individual need is not necessarily considered collective.
Friendship or the feeling of acceptance between peers is one of the needs that make the human being who he is.
It is obvious that for this class of examples an individual can never be satisfied by himself, that is when the role of society comes into play.
Money and needs
Food, hydration and shelter are fundamental needs for any human being, however a large number of people in the world do not have access to them due to lack of money.
Due to the great capitalist currents that rule society today, money has become a good without which almost no need, whether primary or secondary, can be satisfied.
From a philosophical point of view it is possible to consider that money has made work an obligation rather than a necessity.
References
- Chip Richards (March 22, 2016). What are the Basic Human Needs? Retrieved on November 14, 2017, from Uplift.
- Types of needs (nd). Retrieved on November 14, 2017, from Types of.
- Jason Chavis (October 8, 2014). Five Basic Survival Needs of Human Beings. Retrieved on November 14, 2017, from Bright Hub.
- The needs of humankind (sf). Retrieved on November 14, 2017, from Time for change.
- Individual needs (nd). Retrieved on November 14, 2017, from Educativa.