**L12 - Humanistic Approach (Focus on the Self) Flashcards
what did ROGERS claim about people’s basic needs?
ROGERS claimed that people have TWO BASIC NEEDS, POSITIVE REGARD from OTHER PEOPLE and FEELINGS OF SELF WORTH (i.e valuing ourselves)
when do feelings of self worth develop?
feelings of self worth DEVELOP IN CHILDHOOD AS A RESULT OF THE CHILD’S INTERACTIONS WITH PARENTS.
Further interactions with SIGNIFICANT OTHERS in ADULTHOOD (friends, spouses etc) also have an influence.
what is CONGRUENCE and INCONGRUENCE?
when there is a SIMILARITY between a person’s PERCEIVED SELF (how they view themselves) ad their IDEAL SELF (how they would like to be) a STATE OF CONGRUENCE EXISTS.
However, if there is a DIFFERENCE between the PERCEIVED SELF and IDEAL SELF, the person EXPERIENCES A STATE OF INCONGRUENCE.
The CLOSER THE PERCEIVED SELF IS TO THE IDEAL SELF, the HIGHER OUR FEELINGS OF SELF WORTH
is CONGRUENCE common?
it is RARE for a COMPLETE STATE OF CONGRUENCE to exist; most people experience SOME DEGREE OF INCONGRUENCE.
However, most people see themselves in ways that are LARGELY CONSISTENT WITH THEIR IDEAL SELF.
what are the two types of positive regard?
The POSITIVE REGARD GIVEN BY OTHER PEOPLE may be UNCONDITIONAL (unconditional positive regard) when a person is ACCEPTED FOR WHO THEY ARE, or CONDITIONAL (conditional positive regard)
what is CONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD?
when people experience CONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD they DEVELOP CONDITIONS OF WORTH. These are conditions which they believe HAVE TO BE MET IF THEY ARE TO BE ACCEPTED BY OTHERS.
An individual will only experience A SENSE OF SELF-ACCEPTANCE if they MEET THE EXPECTATIONS that others have set as CONDITIONS OF ACCEPTANCE
what did ROGERS claim about CONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD?
ROGERS claimed that an INDIVIDUAL’S PSYCHOLOGICAL PROBLEMS were a DIRECT RESULT of the CONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD they RECEIVE FROM OTHER PEOPLE.
He believed that, with COUNSELLING, people would be able to SOLVE THEIR OWN PROBLEMS in CONSTRUCTIVE WAYS and move towards being a MORE FUNCTIONAL PERSON.
Instead of acting in A DIRECTIVE WAY, HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGISTS regard themselves as GUIDES TO HELP PEOPLE UNDERSTAND THEMSELVES and find ways to ENABLE THEIR POTENTIAL for SELF ACTUALISATION.
What do the therapists do?
therapists PROVIDE UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD, expressing their ACCEPTANCE and UNDERSTANDING.
They are therefore able to PROVIDE A SUPPORTIVE ENVIRONMENT to HELP DISSOLVE the client’s CONDITIONS OF WORTH.
This results in the client moving towards being more TRUE TO THEMSELVES (i.e being able to behave in a way that is TRUE TO THE PERSON they are, RATHER THAN WHO SOMEONE ELSE WANTS THEM TO BE)
- free will
- HUMANISTS BELIEVE IN FREE WILL. However, science believes that ALL BEHAVIOUR IS CAUSED BY SOMETHING (it has been determined). DETERMINISM IN SCIENCE allows for GENERAL LAWS and PREDICTABILITY OF BEHAVIOUR and so there is LIMITED APPLICATION OF THE HUMANISTIC APPROACH
- lacks SCIENTIFIC RIGOUR
- HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY LACKS SCIENTIFIC RIGOUR; it proposes that we SHOULD STUDY THE WHOLE PERSON because EACH INDIVIDUAL IS UNIQUE, however science RELIES ON REDUCTIONISM - reducing behaviour into its SIMPLEST COMPONENTS so that they can be STUDIED OBJECTIVELY
- lack of operationalisation
- humanists propose concepts such as SELF ACTUALISATION where definitions LACK OPERATIONALISATION. There is NO OBJECTIVE MEASURE of whether SOMEONE HAS SELF ACTUALISED leading to a LACK OF EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE TO SUPPORT ITS CLAIMS
- product of the cultural context it was developed in
- many of the ideas that are CENTRAL TO HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY, such as PERSONAL GROWTH, would be MORE READILY ASSOCIATED WITH INDIVIDUALISTIC CULTURES in the WESTERN WORLD (e.g the united states).
COLLECTIVIST CULTURES (e.g in china) which EMPHASISE THE NEEDS OF THE COMMUNITY, MAY NOT IDENTIFY SO EASILY with the IDEALS and VALUES of HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY.
Therefore it is possible that this approach is the PRODUCT OF THE CULTURAL CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH IT WAS DEVELOPED
- overly idealised and unrealistic
- some critics argue that the HUMANISTIC APPROACH presents an OVERLY IDEALISED and UNREALISTIC VIEW of HUMAN NATURE.
People are NOT AS INHERENTLY GOOD or GROWTH ORIENTATED AS THIS APPROACH SUGGESTS, in fact this approach IGNORES PEOPLE’S CAPACITY FOR PESSIMISM and SELF DESTRUCTION
