How can basic needs be met through the built environment? Illustration: Peter Exley, FAIA, RIBA, Co-Founder, Architecture Is Fun, Chicago, IL
Can we create a design hierarchy, riffing on Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, that will remind us that the architecture and interiors we create cannot be successful unless it meets basic needs? Designs have the power to wow us, but we know that they must function as intended, as needed–otherwise design cannot satisfy higher level needs.
American psychologist Abraham Maslow, in his 1943 “A Theory of Human Motivation,” proposed the idea of a hierarchy of needs in humans.
Many challenge the hierarchy as it doesn’t really account for charity, bravery, selflessness, or spirituality. However, including Maslow’s Hierarchy or shaping your own can be a provocative device in your design toolkit.
Starting at the base of the triangular-shaped diagram, the needs are as follows:
Physiological Needs – what we need for survival, including shelter, clothing, comfort, etc.
Safety Needs – what is required to meet physiological needs, including well-being, security–financial and physical, order, and protection from the elements.
Belonging Needs – these are about socialization and include companionship, friendship, love, a sense of community and feeling like we belong.
Esteem Needs – these include self-esteem, feeling worthy, recognition, mastery, independence, and responsibility.
Self-Actualization – relating to becoming more than we are, which can come from knowledge, self-fulfillment, realizing personal potential, and personal growth.
According to Maslow, needs must be filled in order or our place in the hierarchy is unstable. Therefore, psychological needs must be met first (the sturdy base of the triangular diagram) as they serve as a foundation for higher-level need fulfillment.
We created our own visual version that allowed us to think about Maslow’s Hierarchy in ways that help us communicate a project’s potential success.
Many challenge the hierarchy as it doesn’t really account for charity, bravery, selflessness, or spirituality. However, including Maslow’s Hierarchy or shaping your own can be a provocative device in your design toolkit. We created our own visual version that allowed us to think about Maslow’s Hierarchy in ways that help us communicate a project’s potential success. It allows us to ask if what we are designing in the built environment will help us meet our basic and personal growth needs? Will it be safe and secure? Will it foster socialization and be a place where we feel we belong? Can the interiors create places where we can be recognized and where we can take responsibility? Lastly, can our project be a place that supports learning and play?
Pedagogy and design are both iterative. Looking back at foundational theories like Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs can help educate our design thinking. After all, we know that basic needs can be met through the built environment. We believe our built environment can help support our personal growth and forward thinking. Naturally, our spiritual growth is an extension of this. Let’s use design to satisfy this, and our higher-level needs.
