Advertisers and Needs

Parents are being obligated by media campaigns to see luxuries as necessities for their children even when human needs have not changed throughout history. According to the theory of Abraham Maslow and his hierarchy of needs proposed in 1943 in his book A Theory of Human Motivation, necessities are classified in five categories: physiologic needs, which are food, oxygen, water, sleep, among others; safety needs, related to security in life including financial stability and protection; social needs linked to friendship, affection, and relationships in general; esteem needs referred to respect from others, fame, glory, reputation and so forth; and last the self-actualization need, in this level people do what they want to for personal-satisfaction, as artists and philanthropists. This theory states that each level must be satisfied in order to continue to the next: one person who is hungry cannot think of taking care of his or her financial problems or worry about fame until hunger is satisfied. This can be altered by good manipulating advertisers. Children and young people can influence their parents to the point of forcing them to jump the theory’s consecutive list of categories to a different one.
Most business develop goods and services based on Maslow’s hierarchy, but marketing campaigns are based on the exploitation of sense of social need that prevails especially in the segment of children and young people , in order to sell their products. Video games are an excellent example of this social need that is not necessary to live a healthy life but among young people with financial stability and protection provided by their parents are since the 1980s essential to make new friend and to feel as part of their local social segment. It is unthinkable for youth not to start a conversation with other boys without talking about the new video game launched from Xbox, PS3 or Wii; even, when their parents’ salaries are below the standard level. Simply, kids who do not...