We don't think about it all the time, but belongingness is the third most fundamental desire on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs. Just above safety and physiological requirements is our need to feel safe as part of a tribe. My guest this week is Geoffrey L. Cohen, the author of Belonging: The Science of Creating Connection and Bridging Divides. Geoff is a professor of Psychology and Organizational Studies at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California.
In this conversation, he and I talk about what it means to belong to a place, an organization, a family, or a movement. We explore how belongingness and identity are intermixed, and what implications that has for discussing politics and other beliefs with people who have differing points of view. We talk about how to design diversity training so it doesn't alienate half the room (maybe we should call it “Belongingness Training”). We also talk about what groups you'd rather not belong to, because while belongingness is important, some tribes are better than others!
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