Lecture 12 – Humanistic Psychology: Vocabulary Flashcards

Vocabulary flashcards covering key terms, theorists, and concepts from Lecture 12 on Humanistic and Existential Psychology.

Psychoanalysis

Freud’s approach that centers on the unconscious mind, instinctual drives, and psychosexual development.

Behaviorism

Psychological school (Watson, Skinner) that studies observable behavior while disregarding inner experiences.

Humanistic Psychology

Perspective emphasizing personal meaning, self-awareness, growth, free choice, and fulfillment.

Existential Psychology

Approach exploring how people face freedom, isolation, death, and meaninglessness to live authentically.

Third Force

Label for humanistic psychology, viewed as an alternative to psychoanalysis and behaviorism.

Abraham Maslow

Humanistic psychologist who proposed the Hierarchy of Needs and popularized self-actualization.

Carl Rogers

Developer of client-centered (person-centered) therapy, stressing empathy, genuineness, and unconditional positive regard.

Rollo May

American psychologist who fused existential ideas with psychotherapy, highlighting freedom, responsibility, and existential anxiety.

Ludwig Binswanger

Swiss psychiatrist who integrated existential philosophy with psychoanalysis and created Daseinsanalysis.

Martin Heidegger

German existential philosopher focused on the ‘question of Being’; major influence on existential psychology.

Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow’s motivational pyramid ranging from physiological needs to the pinnacle of self-actualization.

Self-Actualization

Innate drive to realize one’s fullest potential; the highest need in Maslow’s hierarchy.

Client-Centered Therapy

Rogers’ nondirective therapeutic method in which clients lead the process within a supportive climate.

Unconditional Positive Regard

Accepting and valuing a person without judgment or conditions; essential for healthy self-concept.

Congruence

Alignment between inner feelings and outward expression; also the therapist’s genuineness in Rogers’ therapy.

Actualizing Tendency

Inborn inclination toward growth, healing, and fulfillment unless hindered by negative conditions.

Phenomenological Field

Each individual’s unique, subjective perception of reality that shapes experience and behavior.

Holistic View

Humanistic stance that people must be understood as integrated wholes—emotionally, socially, and spiritually.

Free Will and Personal Responsibility

Belief that individuals make conscious choices and are accountable for their own development.

Peak Experience

Brief, intense moment of joy, insight, and unity often reported by self-actualizing individuals.

Daseinsanalysis

Binswanger’s existential analytic method focusing on a person’s ‘being-in-the-world.’

Existential Anxiety

Normal anxiety arising when confronting freedom, isolation, or death; considered part of authentic living.

Fully Functioning Person

Rogers’ term for someone open to experience, living congruently, and continually growing.

Self-Concept

Overall sense of identity and self-worth, including real, ideal, and perceived selves.

Incongruence

Mismatch between real, ideal, or perceived self that can cause anxiety and low self-esteem.

Reductionism

Critique of analyzing people as isolated parts; humanistic psychology opposes this tendency in earlier schools.

Empathy (Therapeutic)

Accurate understanding of a client’s feelings from their viewpoint; cornerstone of client-centered therapy.

Positive Psychology

Modern field influenced by humanistic ideas that studies strengths, well-being, and optimal functioning.