Ask HN: Does Maslow's hierarchy break apart with the unemployed?

2 pointsreactreflux13y ago2 comments

Scenario: you are long term unemployed, your immediate needs differ from the employed. Health insurance, and some welfare, might be taken care of with some outside (usually government) assistance. But, you are more likely in a worse motivational state to be very effective at finding work.

A highly popular view is that self-improvement should come before a job offer. If you have to emphasize esteem and social belonging to optimize your chances in being employable, but you also need the job to satisfy financial and physical needs, doesn't that turn some of the pyramid on its head?

Among almost everything people do, finding work is more optimized for people who are well-connected, confident, and respected. These traits are associated with middle-upper tiers of the pyramid, but are also often treated as recommended prerequisites to getting a job more quickly- something that most people need to satisfy physical and financial safety needs. At least in the way most job markets are set up.

2 comments

ggm3y ago

Maslows hierarchy is at best a sketch model. That said, the instability of the bottom layers for longterm unemployed people bring need/want distinctions into sharp focus.

I am told that care kits for street people have varying responses by sex and age. My company does a lot of flying and we generate a lot of airline socks and small lotion and hygiene surplus. We're told a lot of homeless and rough sleeper women appreciate them, a few men, and that mostly they look to opportunistic ways to convert any non immediately useful, non food items to cash. I take this as a strong indication that poverty alone is the true fundamental here.

During lockdown almost all rough sleepers in my town were housed, grossly inadequate housing, but given shelter, and were given enough funds to do things like basic dental and glasses or shoes which fit. I am told for many it was transformative.

When sound advice is to remove teeth and avoid future cost, maslow changes. When fixing teeth is transformative maslow changes.

29athrowaway3y ago

The problem when trying to optimize resource usage while unemployed is decision fatigue.

In the end, after stressing out about every little expense, you just give up and make very suboptimal and irrational decisions.

And, there's an entire industry built around people in that state of mind. Get money now, worry later... with rewards modeled using hyperbolic discount.

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