KS3 DT - Design and Technology Practice Test: Needs and Likes — Flashcards

In the world of Design and Technology, you must understand people's needs and likes so as to be able to meet them. It's no good creating something that no-one needs or likes! Meeting needs means that whatever is designed must do the job for which it is designed. But that's not enough. For people to buy it, a designer will need to consider the aesthetics too.

The first part of meeting needs and likes are the 'three S's' - Something for Somebody in a Situation. In other words, if someone is in the situation of needing to repair a broken zip fastener, it might be handy for them to have a special tool. A designer would then look at the problem and come up with a solution. But to make sure that it is a good solution, they would do a checklist to identify the Physical needs, Intellectual needs, Emotional needs and Social needs.

Needs are requirements, whereas likes are preferences. What makes something beautiful? Not everyone agrees - it depends on our individual taste and our culture. Designers work with a number of visual elements to arrange them into a single, harmonious whole. Colour, texture and form are all carefully considered in order to make a design appeal to as many people as possible.

Designers, including advertisers, know that colour can have a subconscious influence on how people feel about an object. Different colours have different effects on people, for example red is an 'aggressive' colour but green is a 'calm' colour. A designer would used red when they want to create a sense of excitement about their product or green if they want to convey the impression that their product would reduce stress. Colours can be chosen from colour wheels to be either contrasting or complementary.