A worldview (or "world view") is a set of assumptions about physical and social reality that may have powerful effects on cognition and behavior. Lacking a comprehensive model or formal theory up to now, the construct has been underused. This article advances theory by addressing these gaps. Worldview is defined. Major approaches to worldview are critically reviewed. Lines of evidence are described regarding worldview as a justifiable construct in psychology. Worldviews are distinguished from schemas. A collated model of a worldview's component dimensions is described. An integrated theory of worldview function is outlined, relating worldview to personality traits, motivation, affect, cognition, behavior, and culture. A worldview research agenda is outlined for personality and social psychology (including positive and peace psychology).

The conventional description of Abraham Maslow's (1943, 1954) hierarchy of needs is inaccurate as a description of Maslow's later thought. Maslow (1969a) amended his model, placing self-transcendence as a motivational step beyond self-actualization. Objections to this reinterpretation are considered. Possible reasons for the persistence of the conventional account are described. Recognizing self-transcendence as part of Maslow's hierarchy has important consequences for theory and research: (a) a more comprehensive understanding of worldviews regarding the meaning of life; (b) broader understanding of the motivational roots of altruism, social progress, and wisdom; (c) a deeper understanding of religious violence; (d) integration of the psychology of religion and spirituality into the mainstream of psychology; and (e) a more multiculturally integrated approach to psychological theory.

What we may call the transhuman/inhuman critique states that transpersonal psychology is centered on cosmic issues rather than on human ones and so is not a human psychology at all. Abraham Maslow's statements to the effect that the transpersonal is "transhuman, centered in the cosmos rather than in human needs" are considered evidence of this position. Analysis of Maslow's lesser known writings indicates that Maslow, somewhat like J. Huxley, used "transhuman" to indicate the essentially human capacity to desire universal values like justice and truth over the satisfaction of purely personal needs. Thus, the transhuman/inhuman critique is based on a misreading of Maslow. The transpersonal is not inherently unpsychological or divorced from human concerns; rather, it represents an extension of psychology's vision of the human.

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