Matt Smallbone

I have been dreading today. I only have a handful of friends left and I think that I have been harder to live with than usual since starting this 5-part series on “Who is better… Australia or America”?

Ten days ago, I decided to answer this question using Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs as a framework. I got a B minus in PY101 at the University of Queensland, and I have felt out of my depth for most of the time. In fact… every time I try to spell ‘hierarchy’ my auto spell-check kicks in. (I before E except after C doesn’t count here). I have discovered that discerning which country is better in this manner is kind of like dancing to architecture.

I have received many emails from people who were laughing, crying and enraged (some all at the same time) at the debate. There have been suggestions of foul play and cluelessness. One fired up Canadian who joined the discussion late in the game described the piece on ‘esteem’ as ego-stroking. She said:

“It’s great that you have achieved so much and I’m sure God is nearly as impressed as you are with the DVD sales but dude… Introspection, is that what you call it?”

Ouch. (As an aside… I hope God is proud of my meager attempts to honor him… but this is for another day).

The four sub-headings that we have discussed so far (physiological, safety, social and esteem) are what Maslow described as ‘deficiency needs’. With the exception of the lowest (physiological) needs, when ‘deficiency needs’ are not met, the body gives no physical indication but the individual feels anxious and tense.

The final level of the pyramid is self-actualization. Maslow suggested that maybe 2% of people achieve this status. (Most of today’s nerdy info comes from wiki).

Maslow taught his students two ways of understanding self-actualization:

1) To be free of the good opinion of others.

2) To do things not simply for the outcome but because it’s the reason you are here on earth.

This level of need pertains to realizing an individual’s full potential. Maslow describes this as ‘the desire to become more and more what one is, to become everything that one is capable of becoming’. It is kind of like being comfortable enough with yourself that you can say  “I am who I am”. (Which is also for another day…) When applied to individuals the need is specific. For example one individual may have the strong desire to become an ideal parent, in another it may be expressed athletically, and in another it may be expressed through art.

In order to reach a clear understanding of this level of need, one must master the lower needs of physiological, safety, love, and esteem. Below are Maslow’s descriptions of a self-actualized person’s different needs and personality traits.

(Skip to **** if/when you get bored).

Acceptance

A self-actualized person “can accept their own human nature in the stoic style, with all its shortcomings, with all its discrepancies from the ideal image without feeling real concern”. This means that a self-actualized person can clearly see human nature in all its good and evil without the distortion from false social norms.

Self-actualized people tend to be good and lusty folk, hearty in their appetites and enjoying them mightily without regret or shame. This involves a basic acceptance of nature and the way things are rather than trying to change things (for example: disgust with body functions or having a food aversion) to suit one’s neuroses. This doesn’t mean these people lack morals, guilt, shame, or anxiety; it means that they have the ability to remove all unnecessary forms of these processes.

Problem Centering

Most people, when thinking of problems in their life, focus on what affects them and their own problems and issues; this applies particularly to insecure people. Self-actualized persons focus not on themselves, but for some greater good. These people attack problems as a “task they must do” and are concerned with “the good of mankind in general”.

The need for privacy

The self-actualized can be solitary, with no human contact, and do no harm to themselves. In fact most of the self-actualized like “solitude and privacy to a definitely greater degree than the average person”^. This gives them a level of detachment and an ability to remain calm and aloof even in situations where a personal problem or misfortune arises.

Morality and discrimination between means and ends

Maslow found that those who are self-actualized are very strong ethically. They have definite moral standards and do not experience the daily chaos of discerning right and wrong like most common people. When dealing with means and ends they have the ability to clearly distinguish between the two. Maslow found that they enjoy the means to an end. For example, driving to a destination annoys most people but a self-actualized person would enjoy the drive, the experience of travel. It is also in their ability to take the most trivial and mundane activities or objects and turn them into a game.

Sense of Humor

Maslow discovered that most self-actualized people do not have the same sense of humor as the average person. For example: they do not laugh at hostile humor (hurting someone to laugh), superiority humor (laughing at someone’s short comings), or authority-rebellion humor (laughing at unfunny, smutty jokes). A self-actualizing person’s sense of humor relates to philosophy and finding humor in humans who forget their place in the universe or when they act foolishly. It doesn’t attack people, rather states a message that happens to be funny. Self-actualized people don’t merely tell jokes to laugh, but to send a message or educate; “akin to parables or fables” ^[ .

Imperfections

Maslow also discovers that, in the view of normal society, self-actualizing persons can appear quite ruthless. He attributes this to their strength and this makes it possible to make cold calculated decisions based on logic. For example a man who found his life-long, trusted friend was actually dishonest would end the friendship abruptly without any regret or any other emotional pangs. This may seem brutal to the common man, but it just exemplifies the strength of the self-actualized person at work.

**** So, as I read through this list, I realize that the point of this whole discussion is moot, as I am one of the 98% of folk who have failed to self-actualize.

I sometimes laugh at jokes about the Irish, my political and religious understandings are colored by my upbringing, I am frustrated by the journey, I live in a grey world, I hate being alone and I don’t like when people fart on the tour bus.

But, you scream… which country is better?

I have no answer to this question.

I realize that this may seem like a political move to appease my mother and employer… but it is not. Both appreciate honesty.

In Maslow-vian terms, as nations, both the USA and Australia allow me to be well-fed, safe, have a sense of belonging and self-respect. The Australian Government is maybe a bit more involved in helping with some of the lower level needs, but ultimately both countries allow opportunity for the child to be raised safely and securely by their family. My failure to self-actualize is on me.

In 2006 I won the Green Card lottery which allowed my family make a go of life in the USA. It has been an incredible opportunity and one that I believe I have taken with both hands. I also love that I can be Australian, and enjoy our slightly more laid back approach to life… a place where ‘no worries’ is a lifestyle choice for many.

We have the opportunity to apply for American citizenship in 2011… and we are still unsure of the path that the future holds. We have a child who was born in the USA and all three have been raised here. They are safe and healthy thanks to this fine nation. I pray that they will outdo their old man and self-actualize one day… be it in Australia or the USA.

My attempt at making a science of this has been a resounding failure. However, I have been reminded of one thing because of  this process that has made it all worthwhile:

An Australian living in the USA is the most blessed person you will ever meet.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 10th, 2010 at 12:51 pm and is filed under Australia. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response or trackback from your own site.