humanistic approach Flashcards
how does humanistic psychology differ from other approaches?
by focusing on conscious experience rather than on behaviour, on personal reeponsibility and free will rather than on determinism, and on discussin of experience rather than on use of the experimental method
who was it developed by?
Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow
when was it developed?
the 1950s
what topics are humanistic pscyhology concerned with?
topics that are meaningful to human beings and emphasises the importance of the individuals striving toward personal fulfilment
FREE WILL
what do humanistic psychologists emphaise people have?
free will
what is free will?
the idea that people have full conscious control over their own destiny
what are we subject to that affects free will?
other forces, including biological and societal influences
what do humanistic psychologists believe we can do with the constraints imposed by these forces?
mae significant personal choices
MASLOW’S THEORY
when did Maslow develop his theory
1943
what was Maslow interested in?
finding out what could go right with people
what does the hierachy of needs emphasise?
the importance of personal growth and fulfilment
what is the motivatinal theory often displayed as?
a pyramid
what is represented at the bottom of the pyramid?
the most basic, physiological needs
what is represented at the top of the pyramid?
the most advanced needs
how can a person move up to a higher need?
each level must be fulfilled
what does Maslow argue what happens when a need is more basic?
the more powerfully it is experienced and the more difficult it is to ignore
what are the 5 needs in the hierarchy?
- physiological
- safety
- love/belonging
- esteem
- self-actualisation
what are 7 physiological needs?
- breathing
- food
- water
- sex
- sleep
- homeostatis
- excretion
what are safety needs?
security of body, employment, resources, morality, the family, health and property
what are 3 love/belonging needs
- friendship
- family
- sexual intimacy
what are 5 esteem needs?
- self-esteem
- confidence
- achievement
- respect of others
- respect by others
what are 6 self-actualisation needs?
- morality
- creativty
- spontaneity
- problem solving
- lack of prejudice
- acceptance of facts
SELF-ACTUALISATION
what happened to people who achieve self-actualistion?
they were more creative, accepting of other people and had an accurate perception of the world around them
what did Maslow believe inviduals experienced self-actualisation in the form of?
peak experiences
what are peak experiences?
movements of extreme inspiration and ecstacy during which they felt able to leave behind all doubts, fears and inhibitions
FOCUS ON THE SELF
what is the self?
how we perceive ourselves as a person
what are the two basic needs Rogers claimed we have in 1951?
positive regard from other people and a feeling of self worth
what is self-worth?
what we think about ourselves
when do feelings of self-worth develop?
in early childhood
what are feelings of self-worth developed as a result of?
the child’s interactions with parents and further interactions with significant others e.g., friends, spouses
what did Rogers say is how we think about ourselves and our feelings of self-worth is important in determining?
our psychological health
what makes our self-worth and psychological health greater?
the closer our self-image to our ideal ideal self
CONGRUENCE
when does a state of congruene exist?
when there is a similarity between a person’s ideal self and how they perceive themselves to be in real life
what is incongruence?
where there is a mismatch or difference between a person’s ideal self and their self image
what makes our congruence and feelings of self-worth grgeater?
when our self-image and ideal-self are close to each other
how do most people prefer to see themselves?
in ways that are consistent with their self-image
why may they use defence mechanisms?
in order to feel less threatened by inconsistences between how they would like to be and how they really are
what is an example of this?
if you are a smoker even if you don’t agree with smoking and are aware that it’s bad for your health
CONDITIONS OF WORTH
what is unconditional positive regard?
when the love and acceptance given by others is unconditional and a person is accepted for who they are, or what they do
what is conditional positive regard?
when a person is accepted only if they do what others want them to do
what happens when people experience conditional positive regard?
they experience conditions of worth
what are conditions of worth?
the conditions that they perceive significant others put upon them, and which they believe have to be in place if they are to be accepted by others and see themselves positively
when may an individual experience a sense of self-acceptance?
if they meet the expectations that others have set as conditions of acceptance
what is an example of this?
if a student wants to do well in GCSEs because they think their parents want them to do A-levels
THE INFLUENCE OF COUNSELLING PSYCHOLOGY
what did Rogers (1959) claim that an individuals psychological problems were a direct result of?
their conditions of worth and the conditional positive regard they receive from other people
what did Rogers believe that people would be able to do with counselling?
solve their own problems in constructive ways, and move towards becoming a more fully functioning person
what do humanstic psychologists regard themselves as?
‘guides’ or ‘facilitators’
what do human psychologists do?
help people understand themselves and to find ways to enable their potential for self-actualisation
what do therapists provide?
empathy and unconditional positive regard, expressing their acceptance and understanding, regardless of their feelings and attitudes the client expresses
what kind of environment is the therapist able to offer by doing this?
an appropriately supportive environment to help dissolve the client’s conditions of worth
what does this result in the client doing?
moving towards being more authentic and true to self ie. be able to behave in a way that is true to the person they are, rather thn the person others want them to be
2 strengths of the humanistic approach
- the approach treats people as individuals and takes the whole person into account, rather than reducing individual behaviours to cause and effect responses
- research in this approach gathers qualitatative data which is rich in detail. Rogers recorded many of his therapy sessions so they could be analysed making it possible to observe the success as a result of the therapy
2 weaknesses of the humanistic approach
- lacks objectivity as it is largely based on feelings and subjective reports, so it’s hard to test in a scientific way. it also features things that are hard to measure, such as self-actualisation
- the approach is idiographic, meaning it doesn’t create generalised laws which can be applied to everyone, making it a less scientific approach
