Murray's psychogenic needs
Encyclopedia
This is the list of needs identified in Explorations in Personality, edited by Henry A. Murray in 1938.
| Need | Definition |
|---|---|
| Abasement | To surrender and submit to others, accept blame and punishment. To enjoy pain and misfortune. |
| Achievement | To accomplish difficult tasks, overcoming obstacles and becoming expert. |
| Affiliation | To be close and loyal to another person, pleasing them and winning their friendship and attention. |
| Aggression | To forcefully overcome an opponent, controlling, taking revenge or punishing them. |
| Autonomy | To break free from constraints, resisting coercion and dominating authority. To be irresponsible and independent. |
| Counteraction | To make up for failure by trying again, seeking pridefully to overcome obstacles. |
| Defendance | To defend oneself against attack or blame, hiding any failure of the self. |
| Deference | To admire a superior person, praising them and yielding to them and following their rules. |
| Dominance | To control one's environment, controlling other people through command or subtle persuasion. |
| Exhibition | To impress others through one's actions and words, even if these are shocking. |
| Harm avoidance | To escape or avoid pain, injury and death. |
| Infavoidance | To avoid being humiliated or embarrassed. |
| Nurturance | To help the helpless, feeding them and keeping them from danger. |
| Order | To make things clean, neat and tidy. |
| Play | To have fun, laugh and relax, enjoying oneself. |
| Rejection | To separate oneself from a negatively viewed object or person, excluding or abandoning it. |
| Sentience | To seek out and enjoy sensual experiences. |
| Sex | To form relationships that lead to sexual intercourse. |
| Succourance | To have one's needs satisfied by someone or something. Includes being loved, nursed, helped, forgiven and consoled. |
| Understanding | To be curious, ask questions and find answers. |