The hierarchy ultimately reaches “self-actualisation”, which includes seeking liberty of choice. When Maslow first introduced the concept of a hierarchy of needs for all people in 1943, he named his paper “A Theory of Human Motivation”. According to Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, security comes under both the most essential of “physiological” needs, such as shelter, and the second level of needs under “safety”. Undoubtedly, how liberty or security is defined varies from person to person and from country to country. However, the collective safety and freedom from Covid-19 are more important than the perception of freedom by a small minority.
While the majority of people have accepted wearing a mask when in public, a small but vocal minority refused based on an argument that their freedom would be curtailed. The need to stay healthy, and to keep communities safe, has meant giving up a number of freedoms, including the freedom of movement at various junctures. Since the start of 2020, the question of liberty and security came into sharp focus because of Covid-19. People need both liberty and security, but often there has to be a trade-off. It is one of the most discussed dichotomies in the world.
