Humanistic Perspectives

who are some influential contributors to humanistic psychology?

Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers, George Kelly

What are the eight elements of humanistic psychology?

1. Humanistic: study of humans, not animals

2. Holistic: human system is greater than the sum of its parts

3. Historic: whole person from birth to death

4. Phenomenological: focus on interior, experiential, and existential aspects of personality

5. Real Life: person in nature, society, and culture (not the experimental lab)

6. Positivity: joy, fruitful activities, virtuous actions and attributes

7. Will: Choices, decisions, voluntary actions

8. Value: a philosophy of life that describes what is desirable

Describe a brief history of why humanistic psychology emerged.

Emerged as a movement in the 1950s because the founders felt that core aspects of human experience were being left out of account by the psychology of the time

conscious awareness (phenomenological approach)

rather than analyzing a person as an external observer, humanistic psychologists work to understand people from the standpoint of the people themselves (subjective - how people experience the world themselves)

phenomenology

the study of conscious experience as it exists for the person

basis of free will, at the center of humanity

central insight: phenomenology is psychologically more important than the world itself

construal

a way that people perceive, comprehend, and interpret their world that forms the basis of how you live your life

free will is achieved by choosing your construal

introspection

examination of one’s own thoughts and feelings

existential

related to human experience

existential philosophy

asks questions like what am I doing, where am I going, what is the meaning of life?

existentialism

a reaction against rationalism, science, and Industrial Revolution that works to regain contact with the experience of being alive and aware

asks questions like what is the nature of existence, how does it feel, what does it mean?

how are existentialist and humanistic theories similar?

both focus on phenomenology, believe in free will, believe meaning is important, and emphasize the uniqueness of each individual

how are humanism and existentialism different?

Humanists think human nature is basically good; existentialists don’t believe in “human nature” or see it as containing good and evil

Humanists are more optimistic; existentialists are more pessimistic

what are the three parts of experience?

1. Biological experience (Umwelt)

2. Social Experience (Mitwelt)

3. Psychological experience (Eigenwelt)

dimensions are interwoven

thrown-ness

idea that people are ‘thrown’ into the world

important basis of your experience, particularly difficult to be thrown into modern society

angst (existential anxiety)

chronic state of discomfort or fear regarding existence

anguish, forlornness, despair

living in bad faith

act of denying one’s own freedom and authenticity by conforming to societal expectations and roles leading to a life of self-deception and inauthenticity

optimistic toughness

existential courage; required to face our moral imperative of facing thrown-ness and angst

what problems does bad faith cause?

1. living a cowardly lie

2. unhappiness

3. it is impossible

How does Sartre view bad faith?

it is inauthentic to assume that our existence is controlled by forces external to ourselves

people living in bad faith displace responsibility onto others, think of self as helpless

what is the alternative to bad faith?

authentic existence: allows us to be aware of our freedom which gives us dignity; takes moral courage

will not relieve loneliness and unhappiness, the essence of human experience is understanding that you must die

anatta

Eastern alternative to existentialism

all people are interconnected, immortality, believes the illusion of a separate and independent self is harmful (no-self)

anicca

nothing is permanent, all things are in a state of change

enlightenment

achieved by understanding Anicca and that the well-being of others matters as much as your own

leads to universal compassion

Nirvana

a serene, selfless state

what are the basic assumptions of existential therapy?

1. the primacy of experience: every individual is unique

2. isolation: we are born alone and die alone

3. self-awareness: live in the here and now

4. free choice: people can choose what they become

5. freedom: people fear freedom because it comes with choice and responsibility

6. responsibility: we are responsible for our own lives

7. personal meaning: what is the purpose of living?

who are important psychologists in optimistic humanism?

Rogers and Maslow

what assumptions operate under optimistic humanism?

phenomenology is central

people have free will

people are basically good

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs

how human motivation is characterized (lower needs must be met first)

the ultimate need is to self-actualize

what are the levels of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

1. physiological: breathing, water, food, homeostasis, etc.

2. Safety: security of body, employment, health, resources

3. Love/Belonging: friendship, family

4. Esteem: self-esteem, confidence, respect of others

5. Self-Actualization: morality, creativity, problem solving, acceptance of facts

deficiency based motives

needs lower in Maslow’s pyramid; arise from deprivation and satisfying them means escaping unpleasant conditions

growth based motives

higher levels of Maslow’s pyramid; self-actualization; seeking of growth

self-actualization

become the person you are capable of being

According to Maslow, everyone has the potential to self-actualize and the intrinsic desire to do so

what are some critiques of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?

little evidence to bear the model’s hierarchical aspect; cultural bias; starving artist; little proof that people only gratify one need level at a time

How did Rogers view personality development?

It centers on one’s self-concept and one’s opinion of oneself and the way they are treated by others

actualizing tendency

actualizing tendency

the idea that people automatically evaluates its experiences and actions to tell whether or not they are actualizing

if not actualizing, gain a sense that something is not right

positive regard

people have a strong motive to be accepted and to have love, friendship, and acceptance of others

unconditional and conditional (unconditional leads to self-actualization)

self-concept

the set of qualities a person views as part of himself or herself

actual self: what you think you are as a person now

ideal self: who you want to be

how does self-concept develop?

gradually over time; heavily dependent on the attitudes of those who constitute the individual’s significant others

conflicts emerge between the need for positive regard and the actualizing tendency

incongruence

disorganization, breakdown in the unitary sense of self

people use defenses (denial, distortion of experience) to maintain consistency when there is incongruence between self concept and experience

what is a fully functioning person?

someone who is clearly aware of reality and themselves; faces the world without fear, self-doubt, or neurotic defenses

what is the role of the therapist in client-centered therapy?

a genuine, authentic person rather than an authority figure

what techniques are used in client-centered (Rogerian) therapy?

empathy and unconditional positive regard, perspective taking and reflection

focuses on understanding the subjective experience of the person

process of non-directive counselling

used in client centered therapy

search for underlying meaning and values

clients gain a more effective understanding of themselves

what is the job of the therapist in psychotherapy?

help the client perceive own thoughts and feelings, make the client feel appreciated

what are the goals in psychotherapy?

allow insight, remove conditions of worth

*very time consuming

what are some criticisms of efficacy research?

both real and ideal selves change with therapy; having closely aligned real and ideal selves is not always a good measure of psychological adjustment

personal constructs according to Kelly

based on how one’s cognitive system assembles various construals of the world into individually held theories; help to determine how new experiences are constructed

each person has a unique set

role construct repertory (rep) test

1. identify three important people and then identify how two of them are similar and different from the third

2. repeat with ideas, traits, etc

3. how things are discriminated can reveal someone’s constructs

chronically accessible constructs

mental representations that are consistently activated in one’s cognition

sociality corollary

meaningful interpersonal relationships are formed when individuals share a significant degree of cognitive understanding

constructive alternativism

individuals have unique perspective of reality and no single one is completely correct

what implications for science does constructive alternativism have?

scientific paradigms are frameworks for construing the meaning of data; importance of being aware that other paradigms exist and are equally plausible

Self Determination Theory

people are motivated to grow by 3 needs:

1. Autonomy: finding own way and making own decisions

2. competence: finding something you are good at and becoming better

3. relatedness: establishing meaningful and satisfying ties to other people

positive psychology

investigates the traits, processes, and social institutions that promote a happy and meaningful life