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Loading ...There is an old saying that states, “necessity is the mother of all invention.” But if that were true would we be experiencing an explosion today in information technologies that seem superfluous to many? It seems like new technologies are coming at us at a rate so fast it is impossible to assimilate them all. So I ask, why are we seeing so many inventions these days that take up tremendous amounts of our time and resources; time and resources that are considered by many to be wasted? Ask yourself, do we need be able to play video games on our cell phones? Do we need to be able to connect with and throw virtual sheep at people all over the world we will probably never even meet? Do we need to read books online? If the answer is no, then why are these things being invented? If the answer is yes, what is about these technologies that we “need” so desperately?
In 1943 a psychologist named Abraham Maslow wrote a paper titled, A Theory of Human Motivation. Maslow’s theories were surprisingly new at the time. Previous psychologists focused on mental abnormalities, rather than what constituted a normal state of mental health, as Maslow did. Maslow developed what he called the Hierarchy of Needs. In brief, this pyramid shaped theory states that human needs can be broken down into 5 levels. The lowest level (1) is the need for air, food, water, sleep, and sex; physiological needs. The second level is the need for personal safety and security. Third is the need for belonging, the need to be accepted and loved by a group or family. The fourth level is the need to feel competent or gain recognition. And the fifth and final level is the need to maximize your potential.
Using this theory of human needs what can we say about inventions of the 20th and 21st centuries? And what do these inventions say about us as the humans inhabiting this time period? I would surmise that answers to these questions could occupy volumes. In fact, this could be the subject of an excellent thesis. Perhaps it already is. But there are a few poignant observations one can make by applying Maslow’s ideas to today’s inventory of inventions.
It is safe to assume that most people who are reading this blog are receiving the requirements of the first and second levels - food, shelter, safety. But what about the third, fourth and fifth levels? Do we feel that we belong, are competent, and are reaching our maximum potential? I had a friend once who said that the world’s largest problem is the lack of self-esteem. This absence of self-worth makes people lash out at others in all kinds of aggressive and harmful ways. If we do not feel loved or that we belong we do not feel good about our selves and generally do not feel accepted. Which in turn subjects us to intense loneliness and a great deal of social anxiety. Generally people feeling this way do not feel competent or that they are making all they can of themselves.
Could it be that these new information technologies - that all incorporate some type of communication - make us feel like we belong, relive some of the loneliness the world feels today, and therefore creates more self-esteem and competence? Have you ever run to check your email to see if there is anything in your inbox and been relieved to see that someone out there cared about you enough to write to you? Or do you check your Facebook page to find to your delight that someone has written something on your wall or sent you a gift? Does it make you feel just a tiny bit happier that you are connecting with someone - even on a non-physical level? My personal favorite is getting a text message. Just a small outreach from someone I love makes me feel that I do belong and am part of a relationship…no matter how superficial it might be. In turn I feel a little better about myself and work a bit harder to accomplish my tasks.
Maslow talked about two versions of esteem needs, a lower one and a higher one. The lower one is the need for the attention of others. But the second is the need for achievement, which takes us up to the fifth level. This is the kind of self-esteem that comes when we accomplish something - or invent! Perhaps this human need is the reason that we are constantly striving to make new things, design phones that can manage our entire lives, add more widgets to Facebook, improve open-source code. Some things are invented purely for the purpose of doing. Or showing the world that you can “do.”
The pessimist would say that the need for these new technologies that allow us to communicate with everyone at every time is a sad commentary on the state of our society and how we interrelate. Maslow did say that if you don’t have enough of something — i.e. you have a deficit — you feel the need and have to fill it. But he also stated that if you get all you need, you feel nothing at all! And we are certainly creatures who want more than anything to experience emotion.
Why philosophize on Marketing Conversation about of this? Well, understanding and reaching the customer is the key, right? It may be a long time before we comprehend the effects of this technological revolution…but it is certainly interesting try to interpret it while it is happening.
Filed under: Abraham Harrison LLC, Information Technology, Technology, Technology Strategy
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