SACE Stage 1 Psychology Practice Exam 2025 – Complete Study Resource

Self-actualization is a key concept within Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which is a motivational theory in psychology proposed by Abraham Maslow. In this framework, human needs are structured in a hierarchy, often represented as a pyramid. The lower levels consist of basic physical needs such as food, water, and safety, while higher levels include social needs, esteem, and ultimately self-actualization.

Self-actualization represents the fulfillment of one's potential and the desire to become the most that one can be, reflecting personal growth, self-awareness, and realization of one's abilities and talents. This idea suggests that once lower-level needs are satisfied, individuals can focus on higher-level psychological needs, culminating in self-actualization.

In contrast, other psychological frameworks do not prioritize this concept in the same way. Behaviorism focuses primarily on observable behaviors and the effects of the environment on actions, while cognitive theory emphasizes mental processes like perception and thinking. Psychodynamic theory, rooted in the works of Freud, centers on unconscious motivations and conflicts rather than a structured hierarchy of needs. Therefore, the identification of self-actualization as the pinnacle of needs distinctly aligns with Maslow's hierarchy, confirming it as the correct answer.