Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs in Detail

In short, Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs is a theory in psychology proposed by Abraham Maslow in his paper "A Theory Human Motivation" in Physiological Review published during 1943. Typically, there are five sections in this hierarchy of needs proposed by Maslow, The lowest value at the bottom is physiological needs which are the most basic of needs for living, including food, water, breathing, sleep and things like that. Next, above that value is safety which accounts for the security of things such as the body, health, employment, and resources required for an adequate life. The third value of Maslow's Hierarchy of needs is love & belonging, with things such as friendship, love and sexual intimacy falling under this category, in other words this category encompasses people's social needs. The fourth value, which is the second highest is the esteem category which include things to keep people's esteems adequate including confidence, self-esteem, mutual respect from people, achievement and so forth. Finally, the fifth and highest part of this hierarchy of needs is the Self-Actualization category which encompasses the desire for a person to reach the maximum potential of what they can do. Things such as creativity, luxury, morality, acceptance of facts, problem solving, lack of prejudice and so forth.

Advertisements for example can fit into one or sometimes multiple of these categories. For example an advert reminding people to breathe (ridiculous yes but just an example) would come under the bottom category of basic needs to live. A public safety advert, reminding people to check their fire alarms would come under the second category of safety, as it is reminding people to do something which will hopefully keep them safe, or at least help to keep them as such. An advert selling condoms would come under the middle category, specifically the sexual intimacy part of it, for obvious reasons. A school advert/message reminding people to be tactful and respectful to each other would come under the esteem category due to it mandating that the students should keep each others esteems adequate. And an advertisement for some art equipment would come under the self-actualization category as it is appealing to people's desire to reach a good potential or stock up on goods which contribute towards their hobby.

Different stages on this hierarchy appeal to various different classes of people. Generally speaking higher up on the hierarchy will appeal to upper and middle class people more whilst the working class will probably be more drawn to the middle and lower parts. Of course there are exceptions, but roughly speaking it's likely this is the case overall due to middle and upper classes having more currency to spare, thus they can indulge themselves whilst the working and lower classes will be more concerned with the essentials such as keeping a roof over their heads and manage to feed themselves affordably. Conversely, the upper and middle classes will likely be drawn to advertisements on the lower to mid section of the scale, for example a smoke alarm advert so they can keep their luxurious items safe, as well as their essentials. Meanwhile lower and working classes will likely be drawn to adverts higher on the scale, such as adverts for holidays, so they can get a break and enjoy a good time.

Breaking away from classes of people, different advertising styles and needs will mostly appeal simply to different types of people. For example people satisfied and generally happy with life will generally be drawn to adverts higher up the hierarchy, as all their essential and basic needs are already met thus only advertising higher up the scale will really work for them that well. Conversely again, people unhappy and dissatisfied will likely be drawn to adverts higher up on the chart as due to their dissatisfaction, they are looking for an escape and an improvement of their lives. However people down on their luck may too be drawn to adverts lower on the chart so that their needs can begin to be met, as they currently are not.