Objective:

To show that while needs are important, there is more then one way to discuss the needs of people. Maslow's way of looking at needs may explain why people of different status act in different ways.

Preset Activity:

Have students discuss the hidden needs that were taught the previous day. Do they think any of these needs are more important then others. If so, which ones are more important? If they are all the same, explain how something like ego gratification would be just as important as emotional security.

With Packard's hidden needs we learned that everyone has underlying needs that they search to have met. If we are looking to have the same needs met, then why do people act differently? The answer is that they may be at different levels of development in their search for needs. Maslow classifies needs in levels. He states that it is very hard to fulfill a higher level need when lower level needs haven't been met. This may be why some people are seeking to have their ego's stroked while others are searching to have security in their lives. The people who are more concerned with their egos have already fulfilled their security needs. The lowest levels of needs have to be fulfilled before a person is able to fully immerse themselves into the next level. This doesn't mean that once a level of need has been completed that a person wont go back to that level of need.
 
According to Maslow the structure of needs is as follows:

Highest, level 5
• Self-Actualization - Seeking ones own true potential. This is when we seek greatness in ourselves and in accomplishing those things we have set out to do.
level 4
• Esteem Needs - Seeking to have a meaningful impact on those around us. We want to be seen as an important member of society.
level 3
• Belongingness and love needs - Once we know that we are accepted by our family and immediate friends, we might look to join other groups or associations. We will look to have others to do things with.
level 2
• Safety and Security - These can be things from having a job so we can pay for things to wanting to protect ourselves from thieves. We might also want to be secure in our ability to interact with others.
Lowest, level 1
• Basic Physiological needs - food, sleep, things we need to stay alive and well. A person that is starving is unable to think about how well they will do on a test, they are preoccupied by their basic needs.

Activity: Have students write a reflective paper explaining how they fulfill these needs in their own life.

• What are things they have done to fulfill these needs, and how do they plan to fulfill them in the future.
• Which of Packard's needs do they think would fit into each of these categories?
• Can you fit Rokeach's Belief Hierarchy into these categories?
• Where would a primitive belief fit in, how about a derived belief?

Reflection: Have students select one of the needs that a person in a certain situation might have trouble overcoming. Explain how they could help that person realize this need.
(This project gives students the opportunity to look at those around them and realize something they have that others don't. It also gives them the opportunity to explore how people with different needs have different concerns, and what they can do to even the playing field for everyone.)