Basic Needs

What people sometimes forget, is that Media Studies has a lot to do with psychology. To make a successful advert, we first need to understand how people think. One of the most important people to find out about is a famous psychologist called Abraham Maslow. The work done by Maslow in working out why people think the way that they do has been so important that his theories are used by big businesses, schools, the police and, unsurprisingly, advertising agencies.





Maslow had the idea that you could break a person's mind down into a list of 'needs'. Each person, according to Maslow, has a set list of things that they 'need' in order to be a fully functioning, happy person. This is particularly useful for advertisers to convince their audience that they 'need' to buy a particular product.




Below is a list of how Maslow's 'needs' are used in the world of advertising:



How advertisements use human needs

· Need to survive – used by advertisements for food, drink, housing, etc.


· Need to feel safe – advertisements for insurance, loans and banks promise security and freedom from threats.


· Need for affiliation or friendship – adverts that focus on lifestyle choices like diet and fashion use people’s desire to be popular. They may also threaten them with failure to be liked or fit in.


· Need to nurture or care for something – advertising which shows cute animals and small children brings out this out in the viewer.


· Need to achieve - advertisements that are linked with winning, often promoted by sports personalities, tap into the need to succeed at difficult tasks.


· Need for attention – advertisements for beauty products often play on the need to be noticed and admired.


· Need for prominence – advertisements for expensive furniture and diamonds may use people’s need to be respected and to have high social status.


· Need to dominate – advertisements for products like fast cars offer the possibility of being in control through the product.


· Need to find meaning in life – advertisements for travel or music may appeal to people’s need for fulfilment.





Put simply, Maslow has made a list of all the different ways that we can manipulate people into doing what we want and buying our product. You will find that most advertisements and magazines appeal to more than one of these needs.



Activity One:




Look closely at the cover of this magazine.


Paste it into a word document. Title: Maslow's Needs


1. Write out which of Maslow's needs this magazine cover is appealing to.


2. Say how it is appealing to those needs.




Activity Two:



When you have finished your own coursework advertisement, I want you to write around 250 words describing which of Maslow's needs you are appealing to.