Need & Greed

'Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's need, but not every man's greed.' (Mahatma Gandhi)

How does the industry changes our needs into desires, which overwhelm our thoughts and make us purchase things beyond what we really need? Are we simply victims of the greediness of the industry? For understanding a bit of the theory behind my project, I will share in the coming posts some theoretical background I came across during my readings.

Through planned and aesthetic obsolescence the industry encourages fast changing fashion cycles (Burns, 2010). Every year, the fashion industry runs between 30 to 50 trend-driven fashion seasons which result in a very high resource depletion (SiegleI, 2012). They emphasis low prices per item, which is provoking a rather poor product quality. 

Clothes Collecting Center: Clothes collected during 2 days (image by the author)

For understanding the basic actions and motives of the consumer, we need to go way back, and follow the main drive and motivation for their behaviour. At the beginning are human needs, which are for example defined by the American psychologist and philosopher Abraham Maslow and Manfred Max-Neef, a Chilean economist.

Needs are motivators for actions of acquiring something. Humans have specific needs, which are independent of our nationality, religion or culture. “Needs cannot be programmed by society or modified by the will of the conscious mind. (Ekins and Max-Neef, 1992, 182)”

Maslow categorized all human needs in a pyramid of five levels. This pyramid is widely known as the Maslow's hierarchy of needs. He divided the levels into physical needs like water, food and air to breath. The next level build safety and security needs e.g. shelter, form one section. On top of the pyramid are social needs, ego needs and self-actualization needs. In the western world, where most of the physical and safety needs are provided, consumption is mainly driven by ego, social or self-actualization need.

image from: ontaria.ca

Manfred Max-Neef accomplished an extensive research study in Latin America. They were researching on the connection of human needs and economic development. In the resulting research publication “Human Scale Development” he identifies those 9 needs as subsistence, protection, affection, understanding, participation, idleness, creation, identity and freedom. Those again can be clusters into material (physical) and nonmaterial (psychological) needs.

Max-Neef is explaining the possibilities of satisfying different needs with according satisfiers. He categorizes them into five sections, namely: violators or destroyers, pseudo-satisfiers, inhibiting satisfiers over-satisfy, singular satisfiers which satisfy only one given need and in the best case scenario, one satisfier is able to satisfy several needs at the same time: a synergic satisfier. At its best, fashion can become a synergetic satisfier and satisfy physical and psychological needs.

Kate Fletcher suggests, that Max-Neef's taxonomy of human needs, can build a base when designing for value and social sustainability. Designers can use it as powerful tool to analyze and identify potential ideas, strengths and weaknesses towards social responsible design. (Fletcher and Grose, 2012)

References:

Brian Burns in Tim Cooper (2010) Longer Lasting Products: Alternatives to the Throwaway Society, 'Re-evaluating Obsolescence and Planning for it.” UK: MPG Books Group, pp. 39-61

Kate Fletcher and Lynda Grose, (2012), 'Fashion & Sustainability – Design for Change', London: Laurence King Publishing

Paul Ekins and Manfred Max-Neef, (1992) 'Real Life Economics: Understanding Wealth Creation', Routledge, London

Manfred Max-Neef, (1991) 'Human Scale Development – Conception, Application and further reflections', New York: The Apex Press

Lucy SiegleI, 'H&M the new home of ethical fashion?', The Guardian, April 07, 2012

http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/apr/07/hennes-mauritz-h-and-m, accessed: 25.07.2012