Treat Needs, Not Behavior: Maslow for the Millennium

In this blog post, Patricia Lemer discusses why parents should treat needs instead of behaviors, according to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.

Mental health professionals and schools often depend on a behavioral model to address emotional and learning issues. Programs such as 1-2-3 Magic, discrete trial training, time out and even tutoring reward positive behaviors and attempt to extinguish less desirable ones.

The Example of Emily

An alternative way to approach problematic behaviors is to look for the underlying needs that drive them. Let’s visit a third grade class, where I observed Emily, a mainstreamed nine year old with PDD-NOS (autism).

Emily wiggled and squirmed, walked to the water fountain, took a long drink, sharpened her pencil and sat down. She tucked her foot under her leg, which dangled above the floor, chewed on her pencil, tapped it on the desk, and twirled it in her hair. She stared hard at the visitor. “Teacher, teacher!” she called. No answer. Emily glared again, and then tried to make an arithmetic sentence using 8, 3 and 5.

“Ooo…ww,” she wailed suddenly. Her classmates rolled their eyes. The teacher stared. “Ooo…ww,” Emily cried louder. Finally, she jumped from her seat. “OOO…WWW,” she screamed.

I couldn’t help thinking of psychologist Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs. Obviously, Emily’s basic needs for water and recognition were competing with her teacher’s need for her to learn mathematics. Are there any solutions, I wondered, that meet both Emily’s and her teacher’s needs?

Coincidentally, the same day I discovered the book, The Irreducible Needs of Children, by Drs. T. Berry Brazelton and Stanley I. Greenspan. Each of the needs they describe applies to Emily. Four needs are analogous to Maslow’s.

Maslow

Biological

Safety

Security

Knowledge

Brazelton & Greenspan

Experiences tailored to individual differences

Physical protection, safety and regulation

Ongoing, nurturing relationships

Developmentally appropriate experiences

Maslow believed that only after children’s most primitive biological needs are met should adults address the higher level needs for safety, security and knowledge. Unfortunately, in today’s schools, many teachers put acquisition of knowledge first. Emily and others have basic biological, safety and security needs that must take precedence. Her behavior shows us what these needs are.

Biological Needs: Water Nourishes the Brain; the Mouth Organizes it

Emily’s brain, like everyone’s, needs water to function. According to Carla Hannaford, author of Smart Moves: Why Learning Is Not All in Your Head, optimal hydration enhances the brain’s ability to process information efficiently. The mouth is also key to a well-organized brain. Both sipping water and chewing on a pencil are calming. Emily unconsciously did both to get focused.

Ideas

Provide everyone with a water bottle. String plastic tubing on a cord for chewing. Hydration and oral-motor work will increase focus for all students.

Safety Needs: Children Struggle to Look/Listen When Underlying Senses Are Inefficient

Feeling “safe” means more than being out of range of gunfire. Emily has sensory processing and regulatory problems that cause her much anxiety. When children fear unexpected movement, touch and sounds, they become hyper-vigilant, as Emily’s staring suggests. Emily simply cannot pay attention to staying seated and do her math problem simultaneously.

Ideas

Provide Emily with occupational therapy to normalize her regulatory and sensory processing dysfunction. Put a fidget toy in her pocket to provide appropriate touch and pressure as needed. Do Brain Gym activities before lessons. Allow movement breaks at least every 20 minutes.

Security Needs: Ignored Needs Don’t Go Away; They Become Stronger and Undermine Nurturing Relationships

Being posturally/gravitationally secure helps a child to feel emotionally secure. Emily’s desk and chair are ill-fitting, and her dangling feet, disconcerting. Emily tucks her leg to feel more secure, but the total sensory experience of two ungrounded legs puts her “over the edge.” Her teacher ignores her, hoping to extinguish her outbursts, but Emily’s need to be heard overtakes her need to learn.

Ideas

Provide Emily with a footstool, a cushion or seat wedge and a chair with arms. Pair her with another student, so that they can work together and Emily has someone who might listen.

Knowledge Needs: Children Learn and Remember Lessons When They Are Developmentally Ready

Emily’s math lesson makes no sense to her. She cannot make number families because she still doesn’t know that eight is more than five.

Ideas

Use manipulative materials and story problems to give the mathematics lesson some meaning. Have Emily use the manipulatives while her partner makes the number sentences.

A combination of behavioral therapies and sensory-based, developmentally appropriate activities are best for young children with autism, PDD-NOS, ADHD, Sensory Processing Disorder and developmental delays.

About Patricia S. Lemer LPC MEd

Patricia S. Lemer is a licensed professional counselor, holding a Masters of Education in counseling and learning disabilities from Boston College and a Masters in Business from Johns Hopkins University. She practiced as an educational diagnostician for over 40 years.

She was a co-founder and served as Executive Director of the international non-profit organization Developmental Delay Resources (DDR). After DDR merged with Epidemic Answers, she became Chairman of the Board. When she retired from the board, she became an emeritus board member.

Patricia Lemer MEd LPC

She is the author of three books, the most recent of which is Outsmarting Autism, Updated and Expanded: Build Healthy Foundations for Communication, Socialization, and Behavior at All Ages (North Atlantic Books, 2019).

Lemer wrote over 50 editorials for "New Developments," the quarterly newsletter of Developmental Delay Resources (DDR), from 1995 - 2009. When DDR wound down, she wrote an online blog, "After the Diagnosis, Then What?" from 2009-2017. Her articles and blogs have been updated and archived on the Epidemic Answers website.

Since 2019, Patricia Lemer has recorded a bimonthly podcast, "The Autism Detective." In these hour-long shows, she interviews parents and professionals about their experiences in maximizing the potential of individuals on the autism spectrum. Over 100 episodes are available on Spotify and other online platforms. To learn more, go to PatriciaLemer.com and OutsmartingAutism.com

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Resources
Books

Brazleton, T. Berry, et al. The Irreducible Needs Of Children: What Every Child Must Have To Grow, Learn, And Flourish. Da Capo Lifelong Books, 2001.

Hannaford, Carla. Smart Moves: Why Learning Is Not All in Your Head. ‎Great River Books, 2007.