
Full Answer
How many types of desires are there?
But most desires fall into only eight basic categories. Here is how we must interpret them and take them to fruition. Desire is an intrinsic part of human life. We all wish for a variety of things; many are materialistic and some emotional. We want health, wealth, comfort, good relationships, success, good progeny and fame.
What are the 8 desires of human life?
The 8 desires of human life Desire is an intrinsic part of human life. We all wish for a variety of things; many are materialistic and some emotional. We want health, wealth, comfort, good relationships, success, good progeny and fame.
What are the 16 basic desires?
After conducting studies involving more than 6,000 people, Reiss has found that 16 basic desires guide nearly all meaningful behavior. The desires are power, independence, curiosity, acceptance, order, saving, honor, idealism, social contact, family, status, vengeance, romance, eating, physical exercise, and tranquility.
How many basic desires did Reiss discover?
As a part of his work, Reiss conducted one of the first large and cross-cultural research surveys on motivation. From four continents, he assessed 6,000 people and discovered 16 "basic desires" (or psychological human needs).

How many human desires are there?
2. The Human Desires Map. There are four basic Desires that define us as humans: Power, Attraction, Comfort and Play.
What are the 5 desires of humans?
Maslow's theory was that people progress through five general stages in the pursuit of what they want: physiology, safety, belongingness/love, esteem, and self-actualization.
What are the types of desire?
Desire motivates us in many important ways: physical desire, for example, is called hunger or thirst; intellectual desire is called curiosity; sexual desire is called lust; economic desire is called consumer demand.
What are the 3 main human desires?
At our emotional core, we all want safety, belonging and mattering. To influence anyone, we must influence emotionally.
What are the 5 worldly desires?
The five hindrances are sensual desires, ill will, apathy & laziness, anxiousness and doubt. Let's look at these hindrances individually.
What is the deepest human desire?
“The deepest desire of every human heart is to be known and to be loved,” Father Joe Campbell said in a Feast of St. Joseph the Worker homily Saturday. “This desire reaches its fullness in the desire to be known by God Himself.”
What are your desires in life?
We want health, wealth, comfort, good relationships, success, good progeny and fame. There are also spiritual desires - we have a desire to know about life after death, about how to remain detached and equanimous under all kinds of circumstances and we want to be at peace.
What is a personal desire?
a longing or craving, as for something that brings satisfaction or enjoyment: a desire for fame. an expressed wish; request. something desired. sexual appetite or a sexual urge.
Where do our desires come from?
For psychologists, desires arise from bodily structures and functions (e.g., the stomach needing food and the blood needing oxygen). On the other hand, emotions arise from a person's mental state.
What are people's biggest desires?
The desires are power, independence, curiosity, acceptance, order, saving, honor, idealism, social contact, family, status, vengeance, romance, eating, physical exercise, and tranquility. "These desires are what drive our everyday actions and make us who we are," Reiss said.
What do humans desire most?
Once we have food, water and shelter we must feel safety, belonging and mattering. Without these 3 things humans crave we can not get in their smart state.
Where do human desires come from?
For psychologists, desires arise from bodily structures and functions (e.g., the stomach needing food and the blood needing oxygen). On the other hand, emotions arise from a person's mental state.
What desire is it fulfilling?
What desire (s) is it fulfilling? This is the big question for leaders focused on attracting and keeping customers. If you can focus on one or two key desires and ensure your teams are aligned around the meaning of this desire and are all making decisions to create tons of value and fulfil this in the best possible way for your audience then you will be on a sure footing for building a long term, sustainable business that will thrive.
What to do if you don't know what your brand desires?
If you don't know what desires your brand is fulfilling then you may need to get out there and ask. If you are seeking to fulfil too many desires it might be time to simplify and focus so you can become famous in your audience's minds for fulfilling one or two desires really well, rather than fulfilling eight or nine in an average way.
What are the 8 desires of human life?
The 8 desires of human life. Desire is an intrinsic part of human life. We all wish for a variety of things; many are materialistic and some emotional. We want health, wealth, comfort, good relationships, success, good progeny and fame. There are also spiritual desires - we have a desire to know about life after death, ...
What are spiritual desires?
There are also spiritual desires - we have a desire to know about life after death, about how to remain detached and equanimous under all kinds of circumstances and we want to be at peace. But these myriad wishes arise from some basic human desires.
Can a Guru provide us with freedom?
To remain a dependent or under the shelter of a Guru can provide us real freedom.
Is beauty only externally extant?
Beauty should not be seen as only externally extant but must manifest as an inner magnificence. And immortality should be interpreted not just by the measure that we are alive. The quality of our thoughts and our contribution in adding to the vitality of the world during a lifetime also lend to our immortality.
How did Reiss come up with the 16 basic desires?
How did Reiss come up with the 16 basic desires? He and Susan Havercamp, a former graduate student, generated a list of more than 300 statements that refer to specific desires people might have . Subjects in their studies were asked how much they agreed or disagreed with statements such as "I love learning new skills," "I must avoid pain" and "I would rather lose my life than lose my honor." After testing more than 2,500 people, the researchers used a mathematical technique called factor analysis that grouped the responses into 15 fundamental desires. After testing about 3,500 more people a 16th desire (saving) emerged from the factor analysis.
How many people did the factor analysis test?
After testing more than 2,500 people, the researchers used a mathematical technique called factor analysis that grouped the responses into 15 fundamental desires. After testing about 3,500 more people a 16th desire (saving) emerged from the factor analysis.
Why is it important to understand individual differences?
The failure to understand individual differences causes problems in everything from marital relationships to co-worker interactions. "People know that other people have different values and pursuits, but they cannot understand how this can be. Self-huggers waste enormous effort trying to change people who do not want to be changed."
Who said there's nothing wrong with workaholics, non-curious schoolchildren and timid people?
COLUMBUS, Ohio - Professor Steven Reiss says there's nothing wrong with workaholics, non-curious schoolchildren and timid people.
Is it okay to be non-curious?
Reiss said parents of non-curious children should realize they will never be able to change their child's fundamental nature. "It's OK to be non-curious.
Do all desires have a genetic basis?
Reiss said at least 14 of the 16 basic desires seem to have a genetic basis. Only the desires for idealism and acceptance don't appear to have a genetic component. "Most of these desires are similar to those seen in animals, and seem to have some survival value," Reiss said. "This indicates they are genetic in origin."
What are the different types of desires?
Desires can be grouped into various types according to a few basic distinctions. Intrinsic desires concern what the subject wants for its own sake while instrumental desires are about what the subject wants for the sake of something else. Occurrent desires are either conscious or otherwise causally active, in contrast to standing desires, which exist somewhere in the back of one's mind. Propositional desires are directed at possible states of affairs while object-desires are directly about objects. Various authors distinguish between higher desires associated with spiritual or religious goals and lower desires, which are concerned with bodily or sensory pleasures. Desires play a role in many different fields. There is disagreement whether desires should be understood as practical reasons or whether we can have practical reasons without having a desire to follow them. According to fitting-attitude theories of value, an object is valuable if it is fitting to desire this object or if we ought to desire it. Desire-satisfaction theories of well-being state that a person's well-being is determined by whether that person's desires are satisfied.
What is a desire?
Desire. For other uses, see Desire (disambiguation). Desires are states of mind that are expressed by terms like "wanting", "wishing", " longing " or " craving ". A great variety of features is commonly associated with desires. They are seen as propositional attitudes towards conceivable states of affairs.
How are desires related to agency?
Desires are also closely related to agency: we normally try to realize our desires when acting. It is usually held that desires by themselves are not sufficient for actions: they have to be combined with beliefs. The desire to own a new mobile phone, for example, can only result in the action of ordering one online if paired with the belief that ordering it would contribute to the desire being fulfilled. The fulfillment of desires is normally experienced as pleasurable in contrast to the negative experience of failing to do so. But independently of whether the desire is fulfilled or not, there is a sense in which the desire presents its object in a favorable light, as something that appears to be good. Besides causing actions and pleasures, desires also have various effects on the mental life. One of these effects is to frequently move the subject's attention to the object of desire, specifically to its positive features. Another effect of special interest to psychology is the tendency of desires to promote reward-based learning, for example, in the form of operant conditioning.
What are the theories of desire?
Theories of desire aim to define desires in terms of their essential features. A great variety of features is ascribed to desires, like that they are propositional attitudes, that they lead to actions, that their fulfillment tends to bring pleasure, etc. Across the different theories of desires, there is a broad agreement about what these features are. Their disagreement concerns which of these features belong to the essence of desires and which ones are merely accidental or contingent. Traditionally, the two most important theories define desires in terms of dispositions to cause actions or concerning their tendency to bring pleasure upon being fulfilled. An important alternative of more recent origin holds that desiring something means seeing the object of desire as valuable.
How is well being determined?
They state that a person's well-being is determined by whether that person's desires are satisfied: the higher the number of satisfied desires, the higher the well-being. One problem for some versions of desire theory is that not all desires are good: some desires may even have terrible consequences for the agent.
How does desire play a role in action?
Desires play a central role in actions as what motivates them . It is usually held that a desire by itself is not sufficient: it has to be combined with a belief that the action in question would contribute to the fulfillment of the desire. The notion of practical reasons is closely related to motivation and desire. Some philosophers, often from a Humean tradition, simply identify an agent's desires with the practical reasons he has. A closely related view holds that desires are not reasons themselves but present reasons to the agent. A strength of these positions is that they can give a straightforward explanation of how practical reasons can act as motivation. But an important objection is that we may have reasons to do things without a desire to do them. This is especially relevant in the field of morality. Peter Singer, for example, suggests that most people living in developed countries have a moral obligation to donate a significant portion of their income to charities. Such an obligation would constitute a practical reason to act accordingly even for people who feel no desire to do so.
Why is desire considered one of the causes of woe?
Because desire can cause humans to become obsessed and embittered, it has been called one of the causes of woe for mankind.
Who are the few people with desires?
Out of these come the geniuses: great scientists like Madame Curie and Albert Einstein, great musicians and poets, great humanitarians and political leaders. These individuals have very few desires, and thus they will make their mark in whatever fields they commit themselves to.
What is the definition of desire in philosophy?
Western philosophers, on the other hand, have generally viewed desire as fundamental to human life. To be human is to desire what we do not have. Desire motivates us in many important ways: physical desire, for example, is called hunger or thirst; intellectual desire is called curiosity; sexual desire is called lust;
What does Kabir say about people?
The vast majority of people, Kabir says, are born with countless desires—too many desires to pursue any one of them with conviction or dedication. Most concern the superficial aspects of life, such as personal appearance or personal possessions. People who have many desires are the poorest of people, Kabir says, ...
What is devotion in mystical tradition?
In the mystical tradition, devotion lead s to the discovery of the self. Simply put, as we move from having countless desires, to having many, to having few, to having one, and as we move from emotion to passion to devotion, we discover who we really are, and what really matters to us. One way of paring down the list, as Kabir noted, is meditation.
What is Kabir's emotional development?
Kabir also describes a pattern of emotional development that corresponds with the decrease in the number of desires. People who have many desires, he says, often have volatile emotional lives. Their emotions go up; they come down. They get upset easily; they calm down quickly. None of these emotional conditions lasts very long, however; one of the great advantages of being superficial is that you are never upset for very long because the things that upset you aren’t important. But neither are your satisfactions important or enduring. Nothing lasts long, because nothing matters much.
What is the Christian view of desire?
The Christian tradition generally takes a dim view of desire, mainly because it tends to focus on the ephemeral satisfactions of this world—variously termed the lust of the flesh or the pride of the eye—rather than the eternal rewards of the next world. Western philosophers, on the other hand, have generally viewed desire as fundamental ...
Who is born with some desires?
There are other people, Kabir goes on to say, who are born with some desires, and these are usually people who lead what are considered successful lives. No matter what field of endeavor they choose, they manage to accomplish at least modest goals, because they are able to focus on only some desires.
What is a desire and how does it affect us?
A desire is anything that you want. It might be something material, like a new car, or it could be something intangible such as feeling more at peace with yourself and less stressed in your life than before.
How to recognize when we have a desire
There is no set way of knowing if you have a desire because it can be difficult to figure out what they all are. However, some common indicators are feeling restless or anxious and thinking about the desire over and over again.
Why did our desires evolve?
The problem is just that: our desires evolved ‘merely’ to promote survival and reproduction. They did not evolve to make us happy or fulfilled, to elevate us, or to give life a meaning beyond them. But today, survival is no longer such an issue, and with eight billion people putting pressure on the planet, reproduction can seem almost irresponsible. Yet here we still are, with impulses and desires adapted to another age.
Why should we seek to control our desires?
If desire is life, why should we seek to control desire? —For the simple reason that we seek to control life, or, at least, our life, to make it more pleasant or less painful, and more constructive or less destructive.
How do advertisers exploit these notions?
Advertisers exploit these notions by sowing the seeds of desire into our unconscious mind, before supplying our conscious mind with some kind of rationalization by which to ‘legitimize’ our desire. Schopenhauer compares the conscious mind, or intellect, to a lame man who can see, riding on the shoulders of a blind giant.
How does Schopenhauer anticipate Freud?
He anticipates Freud by equating the blind giant of will to our unconscious drives and fears, of which our conscious intellect, the lame man, is barely cognizant. For Schopenhauer, the most powerful manifestation of the will is the impulse for sex.
Why does our intellect evolve?
Even our intellect, in which we have so much faith, evolved to assist us in the pursuit of survival and reproduction. Its primary purpose is not to help us resist our desires, and still less to transcend them. On the contrary, it is in thrall to our desires, even though it fools us that it is in charge.
What is the meaning of "without this continuous stream of desiring"?
Without this continuous stream of desiring, there would no longer be any reason to do anything: life would grind to a halt, as it does for people who lose the ability to desire. An acute (short-term) crisis of desire corresponds to boredom, and a chronic crisis to depression.
Who said man can do what he wants but cannot want what he wants?
In the words of Schopenhauer , ‘Man can do what he wants but he cannot want what he wants.’. Conversely, it is possible for the intellect to rebel against the emotions and reject a highly motivated terminal desire. But the master is stronger than the slave, who risks being whipped back into his den.
1. Impact Play
Impact play means spanking, flogging, paddling, and other forms of consensual striking. Spanking is often an easy and safe BDSM entry point that leads to exploring more, such as purchasing a crop to use with a partner. Impact play can range from a light slap on the bum to a crack of the whip.
2. Role-Playing
You don't have to stop playing make-believe when you grow up. Role-playing means acting out a sexual fantasy with your partner (s), either once or as part of an ongoing fantasy, Renye tells Allure. While it can be a fetish or kink within itself, it's also a healthy way to act out other fantasies.
3. Foot Fetish
A foot fetish involves a desire to worship feet through acts such as massage, kissing, and smelling. As professional dominatrix Goddess Aviva previously told Allure, it's an extremely common fetish.
4. Anal Sex
You don't need to have an anal fetish to engage in anal sex, but plenty of people do specifically get off on butt stuff. Anal play can range from adding a finger in the ass during penetrative vaginal sex to using butt plugs to having anal sex with a penis or a dildo.
5. Lingerie
Renye says that one of the most common fetishes centers on something that may be sitting inside your dresser right now: lingerie. " [This] may show up in sexual play between and among individuals who may not even consider themselves kinky or to have a fetish (or two or three)," she says.
6. Group Sex
Group sex is getting it on with more than one person. If you've ever swiped on Tinder, you're likely aware that many couples are searching for a third, although group sex can mean more than just a threesome.
7. Sensation Play
Sensation play can refer to a huge range of activities based on the receiving or withholding of different stimuli. For instance, one partner may blindfold the other to deprive them of their sense of sight, a form of sensory deprivation, or they may drag an ice cube along their skin, a form of sensation play known as temperature play.

Overview
Formation and passing away of desires
Both psychology and philosophy are interested in where desires come from or how they form. An important distinction for this investigation is between intrinsic desires, i.e. what the subject wants for its own sake, and instrumental desires, i.e. what the subject wants for the sake of something else. Instrumental desires depend for their formation and existence on other desires. For example, Aisha has a desire to find a charging station at the airport. This desire is instrumental because i…
Theories of desire
Theories of desire aim to define desires in terms of their essential features. A great variety of features is ascribed to desires, like that they are propositional attitudes, that they lead to actions, that their fulfillment tends to bring pleasure, etc. Across the different theories of desires, there is a broad agreement about what these features are. Their disagreement concerns which of these features belong to the essence of desires and which ones are merely accidental or contingent. T…
Types
Desires can be grouped into various types according to a few basic distinctions. Something is desired intrinsically if the subject desires it for its own sake. Otherwise, the desire is instrumental or extrinsic. Occurrent desires are causally active while standing desires exist somewhere in the back of one's mind. Propositional desires are directed at possible states of affairs, in contrast to object-desires, which are directly about objects.
Roles of desire
Desire is a quite fundamental concept. As such, it is relevant for many different fields. Various definitions and theories of other concepts have been expressed in terms of desires. Actions depend on desires and moral praiseworthiness is sometimes defined in terms of being motivated by the right desire. A popular contemporary approach defines value as that which it is fitting to desire. Desire-satisfaction theories of well-being state that a person's well-being is determined b…
In philosophy
In philosophy, desire has been identified as a philosophical problem since Antiquity. In The Republic, Plato argues that individual desires must be postponed in the name of the higher ideal. In De Anima, Aristotle claims that desire is implicated in animal interactions and the propensity of animals to motion; at the same time, he acknowledges that reasoning also interacts with desire.
Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679) proposed the concept of psychological hedonism, which asserts t…
In religion
In Buddhism, craving (see taṇhā) is thought to be the cause of all suffering that one experiences in human existence. The eradication of craving leads one to ultimate happiness, or Nirvana. However, desire for wholesome things is seen as liberating and enhancing. While the stream of desire for sense-pleasures must be cut eventually, a practitioner on the path to liberation is encouraged by the Buddha to "generate desire" for the fostering of skillful qualities and the aban…
Scientific perspectives
While desires are often classified as emotions by laypersons, psychologists often describe desires as ur-emotions, or feelings that do not quite fit the category of basic emotions. For psychologists, desires arise from bodily structures and functions (e.g., the stomach needing food and the blood needing oxygen). On the other hand, emotions arise from a person's mental state. A 2008 study by the University of Michigan indicated that, while humans experience desire and fear as …