This document presents a typology of 13 fundamental human needs for human-centered design developed by Desmet and Fokkinga. It discusses limitations of Maslow's hierarchy of needs model and introduces the 13 needs typology as an alternative framework. The needs are grouped into categories like enjoyment, attachment, meaning, and health. Fulfilling these needs through design can contribute to human well-being. The document also provides examples of how understanding fundamental needs can inspire new design opportunities and solutions.

1. 1
Design for Well-being: Typology
of Thirteen Fundamental Need
for Human-Centered Design
为了幸福感而设计
Design Aesthetics-week 8.1
Meng Li (李萌)
Desmet, P., & Fokkinga, S. (2020). Beyond Maslow’s Pyramid: Introducing a Typology of
Thirteen Fundamental Needs for Human-Centered Design. Multimodal Technologies and
Interaction, 4(3), 38.

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“Much recent design has satisfied only evanescent
wants and desires, while the genuine needs of man
have often been neglected. The economic,
psychological, spiritual, social, technological, and
intellectual needs of a human being are usually more
difficult and less profitable to satisfy than the carefully
engineered and manipulated “wants” inculcated by
fad and fashion”
----Victor Papanek, 1971, Design for the Real
World: Human Ecology and Social Change
www.atomike-studio.com/

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What are human needs? --人的需要
“Human needs specify innate psychological
nutriments（营养） that are essential for ongoing
psychological growth, integrity, and well-being”
（ Deci and Ryan, 2000 ）
– Needs are the fundament of our motivation system, and
all human activity is essentially fueled by the aspiration (意
愿) of need fulfilment (Ford and Ford, 2013)
– Individuals can only fully develop if all their basic needs
are satisfied, and none can be neglected without
significant negative consequences (Tay and Diener, 2011)

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Importance of human needs-需要的重要性
• A positive relationship was found between need
fulfilment and enjoyable experiences with artefacts
(Hassenzahl et al., 2010)
• Human needs provide a solid fundament for
positive experience
• A direct relationship was found between the
emotion and the degree to which these products
enable that person to satisfy his/her needs (Desmat,
2012)
Further reading: Desmet, P. M. (2012). Faces of product pleasure: 25 positive emotions in human-
product interactions. International Journal of design, 6(2).

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Maslow’s Motivational Theory- understanding
positive behaviour
1) Human behavior is motivated. Behavior cannot be explained as mere reactions to
external events and conditions.
2) A person's motivation is driven by their needs. Individuals strive to fulfil their
needs and to avoid need dissatisfaction.
3) A broad diversity of behavior can be explained with a relatively small set of
fundamental needs.
4) Fundamental needs are inborn and universal; they apply to all humans across ages
and cultures.
5) For a human to survive, function, and flourish, all needs should be fulfilled, at least
to some degree.
6) Only needs that are not yet satisfied motivate behavior; when a need is satisfied,
it ceases to be a motivator.
7) Needs are organized in a hierarchy, addressed in an order, from basic to complex.
8) When a lower-order need is gratified, this will prompt the activation of a next-level
need. Next-level needs remain dormant until lower-order needs are satisfied.

6. 66
Maslow’s Pyramid of needs, visualized by Charles McDermid (1960)
自我实现
自尊/自我（Ego）
社会
安全
生理

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Rethink about the Hierarchy of Needs-重新审
视需求层次
• Contribution 1: Human Needs are Universal
• Contribution 2: Fulfilling Fundamental Needs Contribute
to Well-Being
– Propositions 1 to 5 have withstood the test of time.
• Limitation 1: Hierarchal Order
• Key Limitation 2: The Problem with Self-Actualization
– Propositions 6 to 8 have proven faulty.
• In general, Maslow’s motivational theory is limited due
to its heavy focus on the individual.

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Developing a set of fundamental needs for
design—基本需要/目的需要

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1: Strengthen Current Needs 2: Introduce New Needs 3: Reduce Need Harm
Design Opportunities

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Case Analysis
3D printed component makes
snorkel mask useful for medics
Unmask the masks Testing of masks

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The ‘13 Chairs---13 Need’s Poster

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The Inspiration Card Deck -- ”Wake and Smell the coffee”

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Reflections on 13 fundamental needs
• The typology reduces the infinite complexity of the human biological,
psychological, and sociocultural systems.
• The salience of needs change throughout the life-span (Rudolph, 2016).
• An individual’s repertoire of goals, values, drives and other motivations
are influenced rather than determined by their fundamental needs
(Brandtstädter, 1998).
• This reductionist theory represents but a corner of the space of
opportunities to design for meaning contributions to the dynamic, and
ever-evolving holistic reality of any human being.
• A person’s subject well-being is not only determined by the extent to
which their individual needs are fulfilled, but also by the extent to which
the needs of other people and society are fulfilled (Tay and Diener, 2011)
• The value of balanced needs: all fundamental needs ought to be
satisfied to a certain degree. Each need contributes distinctly to a
person’s well-being and cannot be substituted by another need.

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Fundamental needs to design
• “If designers do not know which fundamental
needs their design satisfies, they probably need to
redesign it.”
----Marc Hassenzahl

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A list of fundamental needs and 52 sub-needs

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Five criteria for fundamental psychological
needs
Baumeister and Leary, 1995
A need is fundamental when it…
1) is universal, that is, it applies to all people, transcending cultural boundaries;
2) Is not derived from another need;
3) Lead to (physical or mental) well-being (that goes beyond momentary
pleasure) when fulfilled, and to pathology (medical, psychological, or behaviour)
when unsatisfied;
4) Motivates behaviour in a wide variety of situations (not only in specific
circumstances);
5) Affects a wide and diverse assortment of behaviours

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Homework
• Review of Aesthetic Preference Model
• Review of Aesthetic Pleasure Scale
– What’s your experience of using them?
– What are the benefits?
– What are the limitations?

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The last course
• Critical analysis of artistic styles:
– Gothic, Renaissance, Barco, Rococo
– New Classic, Romantic, Avant-garde
– Expressionism, Cubism, Dadaism,
– Pop Art…