Sense of belonging and belongingness is about relationships. It is about relationship with others, as well as relationship with objects, events, thoughts, plans, and life in general. We tend to want to belong to something bigger than ourselves. A religion, a purpose, or family and friends.
It is a human emotional need to be accepted or be part of a group or part of something bigger. Belongingness is about connectedness, a sense of achievement, a goal, sense of being part of community. This deep connection helps us to be part of a bigger and more important whole. It is about being part of something that is shared with others to some degree.
We belong and connect in following ways:
- Intimate: Friends and family are in this category
- Personal: This is what is of personal significant to us
- Social: This is about our relation with other we want to experience belonging with
- Public: This is about the macro level of relationship with others and something important
There are various dimensions to belonging:
Belonging needs nurturing and flourishing – meaning it needs to be present (something we can feel and think about at present), welcomed (something we want to happen and strive for), supported (Something that is acceptable and has depth), befriended (This means that it is known to us and we have full awareness) and loved (This is transformative, and it is needed deeply by us).
Levels of belongingness can be at a macro or micro level, this doesn’t mean that one has precedent over the other but it means that depending on the needs of the individual at any point of time, the levels and their importance may vary. Therefore the individual need to try his/her best to overcome challenges (Internal or external) faced towards achieving sense of belonging in any level.