Authors: Douglas T. Kenrick, Vladas Griskevicius, Steven L. Neuberg and Mark Schaller
Title: Renovating the Pyramid of Needs : Contemporary Extensions Built Upon Ancient Foundation
Publication: Perspectives on Psychological Science 2010 5: 292
Abstract: Maslow’s pyramid of human needs, proposed in 1943, has been one of the most cognitively contagious ideas in the behavioral sciences. Anticipating later evolutionary views of human motivation and cognition, Maslow viewed human motives as based in innate and universal predispositions. We revisit the idea of a motivational hierarchy in light of theoretical developments at the interface of evolutionary biology, anthropology, and psychology. After considering motives at three different levels of analysis, we argue that the basic foundational structure of the pyramid is worth preserving, but that it should be buttressed with a few architectural extensions. By adding a contemporary design feature, connections between fundamental motives and immediate situational threats and opportunities should be highlighted. By incorporating a classical element, these connections can be strengthened by anchoring the hierarchy of human motives more firmly in the bedrock of modern evolutionary theory. We propose a renovated hierarchy of fundamental motives that serves as both an integrative framework and a generative foundation for future empirical research.
Another good resource, for thinking about self-interest in group dynamics is work by Jonathan Haidt:
This paper, is a good starting point:
Author: Jonathan Haidt
Title: The New Synthesis in Moral Psychology
Publication: Science 18 May 2007: Vol. 316 no. 5827 pp. 998-1002
Abstract: People are selfish, yet morally motivated. Morality is universal, yet culturally variable. Such apparent contradictions are dissolving as research from many disciplines converges on a few shared principles, including the importance of moral intuitions, the socially functional (rather than truth-seeking) nature of moral thinking, and the coevolution of moral minds with cultural practices and institutions that create diverse moral communities. I propose a fourth principle to guide future research: Morality is about more than harm and fairness. More research is needed on the collective and religious parts of the moral domain, such as loyalty, authority, and spiritual purity.
Though the following is more comprehensive (and significantly longer):
Authors: Haidt, J., & Kesebir, S. (2010).
Title: Morality.
Publication: In S. Fiske, D. Gilbert, & G. Lindzey (Eds.) Handbook of Social Psychology, 5th Edition. Hobeken, NJ: Wiley. Pp. 797-832.
you can request a copy from his main home page.
Best,
Ali