Abstract
A hypothesized need to form and maintain strong, stable interpersonal relationships is evaluated in light of the empirical literature. The need is for frequent, nonaversive interactions within an ongoing relational bond. Consistent with the belongingness hypothesis, people form social attachments readily under most conditions and resist the dissolution of existing bonds. Belongingness appears to have multiple and strong effects on emotional patterns and on cognitive processes. Lack of attachments is linked to a variety of ill effects on health, adjustment, and well-being. Other evidence, such as that concerning satiation, substitution, and behavioral consequences, is likewise consistent with the hypothesized motivation. Several seeming counterexamples turned out not to disconfirm the hypothesis. Existing evidence supports the hypothesis that the need to belong is a powerful, fundamental, and extremely pervasive motivation.
Keywords
BelongingnessPsychologyInterpersonal communicationSocial psychologyVariety (cybernetics)Interpersonal relationshipCognitionEmpirical researchCognitive psychologyEpistemology
Affiliated Institutions
Related Publications
A field experimental test of the moderating effects of growth need strength on productivity.
The literature on growth need strength (GNS) as a moderator in organizational research, particularly the job characteristics model of work motivation, is reviewed. This review r...
Job Characteristics and Internal Motivation: The Moderating Effect of Interpersonal and Individual Variables
This research examined: (a) the relationship between the internal work motivation of employees and their job performance; and (b) the moderating effect of individual growth need...
Interpersonal attraction, social identification and psychological group formation
Abstract Two perspectives on the nature of the social group and psychological group formation are discussed. The traditional social cohesion approach traces group formation to p...
Guilt: An interpersonal approach.
Multiple sets of empirical research findings on guilt are reviewed to evaluate the view that guilt should be understood as an essentially social phenomenon that happens between ...
Evidence for Altruism: Toward a Pluralism of Prosocial Motives
Psychologists have long assumed that the motivation for all intentional action, including all action intended to benefit others, is egoistic. People benefit others because, ulti...
Publication Info
- Year
- 1995
- Type
- article
- Volume
- 117
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 497-529
- Citations
- 20649
- Access
- Closed
External Links
Social Impact
Altmetric
PlumX Metrics
Social media, news, blog, policy document mentions
Citation Metrics
20649
OpenAlex
Cite This
Roy F. Baumeister,
Mark R. Leary
(1995).
The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation..
Psychological Bulletin
, 117
(3)
, 497-529.
https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.117.3.497
Identifiers
- DOI
- 10.1037/0033-2909.117.3.497