Humanistic Approach Flashcards
Who created the humanistic approach?
Maslow
Which approach was the humanistic approach in response to?
The behaviourist approach
What are the key assumptions of the humanistic approach?
- Humans have free will
- Everyone is unique and should be viewed holistically
Outline how free will can link to behaviour.
The humanistic approach views behaviour as a choice, rather than a response to a stimulus, (as stated in the behaviourist approach)
* This means that our behaviour is not environmentally or biologically determined
Does the humanistic approach believe that we can generalise the results of experiments?
No, because it believes that all people are unique
Does the humanistic approach believe we should reject the scientific method?
- Yes
- This is because, the humanistic approach says that Psychology must focus on what makes us human, which cannot be done through the scientific method
What are the different kinds of needs in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
- Physiological needs
- Safety needs
- Love and belonging
- Esteem
- Self actualisation
Explain Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
- Maslow believed that all humans had a hierarchy of needs
- And that once you progressed through one stage, you move on to the next
Give 3 examples of physiological needs according to Maslow.
- Food
- Water
- Warmth
Give 2 examples of safety needs according to Maslow.
- Safety
- Security
Give 2 examples of love and belonging according to Maslow.
- Intimate relationships
- Friends
What is the primary example of esteem needs according to Maslow?
The feeling of accomplishment
Self-actualisation
It has two differenment meanings
Give them both + Say which researchers the meanings correlate with
- To Maslow self-actualisation refers to fufiling our human potential and reaching the highest level of the hierarchy of needs
- To Rogers, self-actualisation refers to when our self-concept is congruent with our ideal self, because we have no conditions of worth
Give an example of something humans desire in order to achieve self-actualisation.
Knowledge/Education
What are the three broad types of needs outlined in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
- Basic needs
- Psychological needs
- Self-fulfillment needs
What type of needs are physiological and safety?
Basic needs
What type of needs are love, beloning and esteem?
Psychological needs
What type of needs are ones which allow us to self-actualise?
Self-fulfillment needs
Outline the theory of self.
- Self-concept = What you think of yourself
- Real self = What others think of you
- Ideal self = Who you would like to become
Rogers believed that if someone’s self-concept was congruent with their ideal self then an individual would feel fufilled and self-actualised
Who came up with the theory of the self?
Rogers
If a person’s self-concept doesn’t match their ideal self, then what may they benefit from?
Humanistic counselling
What were Rogers beliefs on conditions of worth?
- Rogers believed that if you had conditions of worth would prevent someone’s self-concept from being congruent with their ideal self
Conditions of worth
Things that we think we need to change or achieve in order to have self-worth
What is one of the main features of humanistic counselling?
Unconditional positive regard
Unconditional positive regard
The process by which humanistic counsellors remove a clients conditions of worth, allowing their self-concept to become congruent with their ideal self
(Meaning that they can self-actualise)
What things would you include in a 16 marker on the humanistic approach?
Be very broard
- Humans have free will
- Everyone is unique
- How it rejects the scientific method
- Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
- Rogers’ theory of the self + conditions of worth
- How humanistic counselling can remove conditions of worth, allowing people self-actualise according to Roger
Referring to two assumptions of the humanistic approach, explain why humanistic psychologists have rejected the scientific method. [4 marks]
All humans are unique and should be viewed holistically
* Scientific explanations often try to reduce behaviour down to single variables *Scientific method tries to be reductionist
* If humanists believe we should be viewed holistically then the scientific method is not suitable - Doesn’t account for dispositional variables
Humans have free will
* If humans have freedom to make choices then we cannot simply predict behaviour or why behaviour occurs
* Some experiments try to do this by establishing cause-and-effect relationships
What are the evaluation points for the humanistic approach?
Strengths
* Positive applications towards therapy
* Unique approach, as it adopts holism, unlike the cognitive, biological and psychodynamic approach
Limitations
* Unscientific approach
* It doesn’t account for biological factors, which could influence behaviour
AO3 - Unscientific Approach - Limitation
- Based on vague and abstract concepts that cannot be studied scientifically
- Ex: Self-actualisation is not a dependent variable which can be operationalised, meaning it can’t be studied using the scientific method
- Concepts are unfalsifiable, (Popper’s hypothetico-deductive model of science)
AO3 - Doesn’t account for biological factors influencing behaviour - Limitation
- Can be linked to being holistic
- The more holistic the approach is the more factors it will include
- This can lead to less emphasis being placed on each reductionist explanation - (As all of them are being considered holistically)
- Due to the limited emphasis on biological factors, the approach is unlikely to have applications to treating disorders caused by biological factors, (Ex: OCD)
AO3 - Unique due to holism - Strength
- Humistic approach is holistic
- Cognitive, biological and psychodynamic approaches are all reductionist
- Humanistic approach therefore provides a more refreshing and innovative approach to explaining behaviour
+ Statistically - The more factors considered, the more chance that the approach will be able to accurately explain behaviour
AO3 - Practical applications to therapy - Strength
- Rogers’ client-centred therapy and humanistic counselling have had positive impacts on Psychology
- They have, (using unconditional positive regard), removed pateitns conditions of worth, allowing them to self-actualise
- Humanistic counselling emphasises that behaviour is down to free will
- This matters, because it can make patients feel optimistic about changing bad behaviours and self-actualising as they know behaviour is not environmentally or biologically determined
