Defining Need
Defining Need
Two meanings of need
- A gap between a desirable norm and the learner’s actual status: what is, versus what should be.
- A psychological tension that must return to equilibrium for a healthy organism.
Prescott’s classification of needs
- Physical: food, water, activity.
- Social: affection, belonging, status, respect from the group.
- Integrative: to relate oneself to something larger; a philosophy of life.
The study of learners turns on one word: need. A need is not a want or a wish. In curriculum work it has a precise meaning: the difference between a desirable standard or acceptable norm and the present condition of the learners. A need is a gap, the distance between what is and what should be.
The two meanings of need
The word carries two meanings, and a developer should keep both in view.
The first meaning is the gap just described: the distance between some conception of a desirable norm, a standard of philosophic value, and the learner’s actual status. To use it, you state the norm, find the learner’s present status, compare the two, and the gap that appears is the need. This is the meaning most directly useful for setting objectives.
The second meaning comes from psychology. Psychologists identify tensions in an organism that must be brought back into equilibrium for the organism to stay in a normal, healthy condition. On this view, a need is a tension pulling toward balance. Studies of this kind of need are conducted by dynamic psychologists.
| Meaning | A need is… | Studied by |
|---|---|---|
| First | A gap between a norm and present status | Comparison against standards |
| Second | A tension seeking equilibrium | Dynamic psychologists |
A gap between norm and present status, and a psychological tension seeking equilibrium
The first compares what is with what should be, and is most useful for setting objectives. The second, from dynamic psychology, sees a need as a tension pulling the organism back to balance.
The dynamic organism and Prescott’s three needs
The psychological meaning rests on a picture of the human being. In the view associated with Prescott and Murray, a human is a dynamic organism, an energy system normally in equilibrium between internal forces, produced by the energy of food, and external conditions. The system stays in equilibrium as long as certain needs are met; disequilibrium results from tensions. A person is continually meeting needs and relieving the forces that cause imbalance. Education is required to channel the means by which these needs are met, so that the result is socially acceptable behaviour.
Prescott sorts human needs into three kinds:
- Physical needs: food, water, activity, and the like.
- Social needs: affection, belonging, status, and respect from one’s social group.
- Integrative needs: the need to relate oneself to something larger and beyond oneself, including the need for a philosophy of life.
In the final analysis, all children have similar needs. It is the duty of the school to help children meet these needs in a satisfying way, so they develop socially and personally significant behaviour.
Physical, social, and integrative
Physical: food, water, activity. Social: affection, belonging, status, respect. Integrative: relating oneself to something larger, including a philosophy of life. All children share similar needs.
How was this article?