Humanistic approach

Question 1

What does the humanistic approach suggest?

Answer 1

That we all have free will and are active agents who determine our own development

Question 2

What kind of experience does the humanistic approach want to study?

Answer 2

The subjective experience

Question 3

What is the definition of ‘Free will’?

Answer 3

The notion that humans can make choices and are not determined by biologicial or external factors

Question 4

What are Maslow’s hierarchy of needs? - from top to bottom

Answer 4

1. Self actualization
2. Esteem needs
3. Belonginess and love needs
4. Safety needs
5. Physiological needs

Question 5

What is self-actualization?

Answer 5

Achieving one’s full potential

Question 6

How can personal growth be achieved?

Answer 6

An individual’s concept of the self must have congruence with the ideal self

Question 7

What happens if the gap between the self and the ideal self is too big?

Answer 7

The person will experience a state of incogruence and self-actualization will not be possible

Question 8

What is the aim of client-centred therapy?

Answer 8

To reduce the gap between the self-concept and ideal self

Question 9

What does Maslow believe causes low self-esteem?

Answer 9

A lack of unconditional love in childhood

Question 10

What is the main role of the therapist in client-centred therapy?

Answer 10

To provide clients with the unconditional positive regard they failed to recieve as a child

Question 11

What are the ‘Conditions of Worth’?

Answer 11

Constraints an individual believes are put upon them by significant others that they deem necessary too gain positive regard (I will only love you if…)

Question 12

What damage do ‘Conditions of Worth’ do to an individual?

Answer 12

Lowers their self-esteem and prevents them from reaching their ideal self and self-actualising

Question 13

A strength of the humanistic apporach is that it is not considered as reductionist. - Explain this point

Answer 13

• Reductionist approaches suggest that behaviour can be broken down into smaller components.
• For example, biological psychologists reduce behaviour to physiological processes.
• However, humanistic psychologists advocate holism, the idea that subjective experiences can only be understood through studying the whole person.
• Therefore this suggests that this approach has more validity as it considers human behaviour in real world context.

Question 14

Another strength of the humanistic approach is that it is optimistic. - Explain this point

Answer 14

• Humanistic psychologists bring the person back into psychology and promote a positive image of the human condition.
• Freud claimed that all of us were somewhere between ‘common unhappiness and absolute despair’.
• However, humanistic psychologists see all people as good and in control of their lives.
• This suggets that humanistic psychology presents an optimistic alternative to other approaches.

Question 15

One limitation of the humanistic approach is that it is culturally-biased. - Explain this point

Answer 15

• Ideas such as freedom and personal growth are more associated with individualist cultures.
• However, Collectivist cultures emphasise the needs of the group and community.
• Therefore, some cultures may not associate with the ideals of humanistic psychology.
• This suggets that this approach can’t be applied universally.