humanism

Question 1

What is humanistic psychology?

Answer 1

-a perspective that emphasises looking at the whole person and the uniqueness of each individual
-it begins with the existential assumptions that all humans have free will and are motivated to achieve their potential and self-actualise

Question 2

Why did humanism reject the assumptions of the behaviourist approach?

Answer 2

-behaviourist approach- too deterministic
-focused on reinforcement of stimulus response behaviour
-heavily dependent on animal research

Question 3

Why did humanism reject the psychodynamic approach?

Answer 3

-deterministic
-unconscious, irrational and instinctive forces determining human thought and behaviour

Question 4

What are three areas that humanism can be understood by?

Answer 4

1) It offered a new set of values for approaching an understanding of human nature and the human condition.
2) It offered an expanded horizon of methods of inquiry in the study of human behaviour.
3) It offered a broader range of more effective methods in the professional practice of psychotherapy.

Question 5

What are the assumptions?

Answer 5

1) behaviour must be understood in terms of the subjective experience of the individual- phenomenological viewpoint (how they see the world)
2) the way we act is not determined by past actions or present stimulus- free will