One of a series of instructional booklets designed to introduce adult education program planners to the basic concepts integral to and alternative strategies for conducting needs assessments, this instructional booklet serves as an introduction to the needs assessment process in general as well as to the remaining booklets in the series. Covered in the booklet are the following topics: stimulus for the instructional series, definitions for the instructional series, purpose of instructional series, target audience for the instructional series, content of the instructional series, use of the instructional series, and benefits of the instructional series. (MN)