Humanistic approach Flashcards
what are the 4 basic assumptions of the humanistic approach?
-every individual is unique
-free will
-people should be viewed holistically
-the scientific method isn’t appropriate to measure behaviour
what is meant by ‘every individual is unique’ as an assumption?
all people are different and should be treated as such, no point trying to generalise
(idiographic)
what is meant by ‘people should be viewed holistically’ as an assumption?
-there is no point in trying to look at just one aspect of a person, as things might be missed
-don’t agree with looking at childhood experiences in therapy, as they believe the whole life course is important
why do humanists argue that the scientific method isn’t appropriate for measuring human behaviour?
says the scientific method is too objective, but humans have a subjective way of thinking, so it ignores the subjective experience
what do humanists have to say about free will?
-unlike most other approaches, humanism argues we have free will over our behaviour
-hard to prove, but proof isn’t important to humanists
-means the legal system is correct in holding people autonomous
-acknowledge that there are constrains on the choices available sometimes, so we can’t always act the way we want
what is self-actualisation?
an innate drive to reach your full potential
-rogers and maslow
-measured with the personal orientation inventory (Shostrum)
what is the theory of flow?
-developed by Csikszentmihalyi
-‘flow’ is a state when someone is completely caught up in a task/sport/ activity eg running
-seen as increasing personal growth because the person is driven to improve their performance
how does attitude relate to self-actualisation?
-an outward positive attitude means self-actualisation is more attainable, as they see things in a better light
what is Maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
-a series of stages that lead to self-actualisation
-if all 5 aren’t met a person cannot achieve self-actualisation
what are the 5 stages of maslow’s hierarchy of needs?
1-physiological needs (food, sleep etc)
2-safety needs (shelter, security etc)
3-belonging and love needs (friends, partner etc)
4-self-esteem needs (status, self-respect etc)
5-self-actualisation needs (realising full potential)
research on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs
-Maslow 1950 - examined personality structure of 60 friends and historical figures that had reached self-actualisation, finding 15 characteristics necessary for self-growth eg autonomy
-Yates 2011 - data from p’s in 150 countries, found the happiest were those who fulfilled various levels
what is the focus on the self?
-Roger
-we have three selves that need to integrate to achieve self-actualisation
-a person must be fully functioning to achieve self-actualisation (not something that occurs by chance)
what are the three ‘selves’ put forward by roger?
-the self-concept (what you feel you are, similar to self-esteem and affected by it)
-the ideal self (who you wish to be eg ‘i wish i was…’)
-the real self (who you actually are, subjective and difficult to demonstrate, so its problematic as an explanation)
what is congruence?
-part of the theory of the self
-necessary for the self-concept and the real self to be the same for self-actualisation (or very similar)
-difficult to achieve
-unconditional positive regard is essential for congruence (someone has to be loved for who they are by someone else)
what is the role of conditions of worth?
-conditions of worth = requirements an individual feels they need to meet to be loved (also called conditional positive regard)
research on Roger’s focus of the self
-Akrivou 2013 - reviewed research, found evidence that congruence between elements of the self positively correlated with higher psychosocial development
-Flannagan et al 2015 - over time levels of unconditional positive self-regard predicted changes in personal growth and increases well-being in p’s who had trauma
what is the influence of counselling psychology?
-rogers client-based therapy
-client-therapist relationship is important to make sure client feels accepted (unconditional positive regard)
-feeling accepted leads to total honesty, helping them realise potential barriers
how has humanistic psychology in counselling been used over the years?
-extensive use throughout the 1960’s-70’s
-declined in the 1970’s
-returned in the 1990’s
-decline was due to the establishment of psychology as a science, and humanist approach doesn’t see it as scientifically measurable
research on counselling psychology
-elliot 2002 - meta-analysis of 86 studies, found humanistic therapies prompted a significant improvement
evaluate the humanistic approach
-argument that everyone’s unique is supported by research that finds differences within a group to be greater than differences between groups
-Hyde 2005 - differences within groups of men vs women were bigger than differences between men and women
-can’t measure scientifically (although humanists don’t see a problem with this)
-subjective experiences are difficult to test, but acknowledges the effect it has on behaviour
-vague concepts
-criticised for being culture-specific, doesn’t relate to collectivist cultures
-allows for personal development and acknowledges we can change due to out environment
nature or nurture?
doesn’t see the debate as valid, as it tries to make generalisations to large numbers
useful?
practical applications in counselling
reductionist or holistic?
holistic
doesn’t believe in reducing behaviour to specific elements
deterministic or free-will?
only approach to fully advocate free-will, choosing our own path
scientific?
no
doesn’t believe you can measure behaviour scientifically
idiographic or nomothetic?
idiographic
sees no merit in trying to generalise behaviour
extrapolation?
no
doesn’t believe in measuring scientifically
