One of the first steps in program development is assessing needs. When the team is aware of the needs of a target population they can develop programs that meet those needs. In this post, we will look at the different types of needs that are found and also look at the types of needs assessments that can be performed.

Types of Needs

Normative needs are needs that exist because the conditions people are experiencing are below what is considered acceptable. An example of this would be how in most parts of the US living without a car is considered unacceptable. The reason behind not having a car is a normative need is because owning a car is almost a given and an expectation.

Felt needs are needs that are based not on societal norms like normative needs but rather on personal needs. If owning a car is a normative need in the US a felt need would be a large family needing a large car rather than a small one. If the family received a small car it would help but it might not be possible for everyone to ride in the car at the same time. The normative need is met but the felt need of a larger car is unmet.

Expressed needs are the ways and methods people use to fulfill their needs. For example, if a family needs a car they might save some money and apply for a car loan when trying to purchase a car. Such an effort as this will help to address the need for a car.

Comparative needs are needs in which a person’s situation is worse than other people on average. People who live in poverty are more likely to not have access to a car which indicates a comparative need for transportation compared to middle and upper-class individuals.

Needs Assessment Types

In addition to types of needs, there are also different types of needs assessments. Sometimes needs are assessed through talking to key informants. These are individuals with unique knowledge of the context in which the program is going to be placed.

The social indicators approach uses statistical data to develop insights into the target population. Often the data is demographic and involves a large amount of descriptive statistics.

The community forum assessment uses a town hall approach to collecting information about needs in the local community. People come to the town hall and provide the program leaders with needed data for the development of the program.

The community survey approach involves quantitative and qualitative data collection from the target population for developing contextual knowledge. How this is different from other approaches is that the grant team collects primary data scientifically rather than looking at secondary data or informal non-scientific data collection that is used in other approaches.

A Focus group is a group of people who get together with a researcher to share information about a topic. The dynamics of a small group can often elicit responses that may not happen in other settings.

The rates-under-treatment approach is used to predict service needs in the future. This often involves looking at the documentation to assess the current use of resources and identifying trends.

Conclusion

Any combination of needs and needs assessments can be experienced or felt. People might have several types of needs and a team can use several combinations of needs assessments. The point here is to be familiar with the available tools