Unit 6 - Chapter 17 - Humanistic (Third-Force) Psychology

Question 1

a) According to third-force psychologists, what was missing from the other two forces in psychology?

b) Describe the role of the concept of subjective reality in third-force psychology.

Answer 1

a) missing information that would help already healthy individuals reach full potential.

b) most important cause of behaviour is subjective reality.
- humans choose their own type of experience.

Question 2

Describe the origins and historical antecedents of third-force psychology including phenomenology and the views of Brentano and Husserl and Merleau-Ponty.

Answer 2

phenomenology
- focuses on experience as it occurs.
- create bridge between objective and subjective world.

Brentano
- concept of intentionality

Husserl
- proposed pure phenomenology

Merleau-Ponty
- outlined existential-phenomenological alternative

Question 3

Define intentionality and ontology

Answer 3

intentionality: belief that every mental act refers to something outside itself.

ontology: the study of existence.

Question 4

Who are Jean-Paul Sartre and Albert Camus and why are they important.

Answer 4

Sartre
- “hell is other people”.
- social behaviour and existentialism

Camus
- concept of the absrud –> its our task to create meaning

Question 5

Briefly describe the life and work of Martin Heidegger (1889–1976), including (a) his concept of Dasein

Answer 5

Dasein indicates that a person and the world are inseparable.

• relationship between person and the world = “being-in-the-world”.

Question 6

Briefly describe the life and work of Martin Heidegger (1889–1976), including (b) authenticity and inauthenticity in life

Answer 6

authentic life
- freely chosen and not dictated by values of others.
- awareness that life is finite.
- involves becoming: person is always becoming something other than what they are.

inauthentic life
- lived in accordance with values other than those freely chosen.
- involves guilt.

Question 7

Briefly describe the life and work of Martin Heidegger (1889–1976), including (c) guilt and anxiety, d) thrownness

Answer 7

c) guilt; experienced if we dont exercise our personal freedom.

anxiety; results when one confronts the unknown.
- required to live an authentic life.

d) thrownness
- circumstances that characterize a persons existence that are beyond the persons control.

Question 8

Briefly describe the life and work of Ludwig Binswanger (1881–1966), including his notion of (a) modes of existence

Answer 8

three modes of existence to which individuals give meaning through their consciousness;

1) umwelt
- “around world”.
- our environment.

2) mitwelt
- “with world”.
- interactions with other humans.

3) eigenwelt
- “own world”.
- inner subjective experience.

Question 9

Briefly describe the life and work of Ludwig Binswanger (1881–1966), including his notion of (b) the ground of existence

Answer 9

ground of existence
- conditions under which one exercises personal freedom, involves being-beyond-the-world

Question 10

Briefly describe the life and work of Ludwig Binswanger (1881–1966), including his notion of (c) existentialism as therapy, and the importance of meaning in one’s life (including the experiences of Viktor Frankl).

Answer 10

both believed that finding meaning in negative experiences can lead to personal growth.

Question 11

Briefly describe the life and work of Rollo May (1909–1994), including his concepts of (a) the human dilemma

Answer 11

human dilemma
- paradox that results from the dual nature of humans as obejcts to which things happen and as subjects who assign meaning to their experiences.

Question 12

Briefly describe the life and work of Rollo May (1909–1994), including his concepts of (b) normal and neurotic anxiety

Answer 12

anxiety is daimonic –> the right amount is normal, too much = neurotic.

neurotic anxiety
- results from fear of freedom.
- leads to conformity.
- involves shut-upness (defensiveness) and self alienation.

Question 13

Briefly describe the life and work of Rollo May (1909–1994), including his concepts of (c) the importance of myth

Answer 13

Myths serve 4 functions;
1) provide sense of identity

2) provide sense of community

3) provide support for moral values

4) provide means of dealing with mysteries of creation.

Question 14

Briefly describe the life and work of Rollo May (1909–1994), including his concepts of (d) the applicability of science to humans.

Answer 14

said methods of physical sciences overlook unique human attributes

suggested creation of new science specifically designed to study humans.

Question 15

Briefly describe the life and work of George Kelly (1905–1967). Describe (a) his concept of constructive alternativism, b) similarities between the views of Kelly and Vaihinger, and c) fixed-role therapy.

Answer 15

a) constructive alternativism
- people can interpret events in an infinite numbers of ways based on their construct systems.
- people are similar if they have similar construct systems.

b) influenced by Vaihinger’s “as if” philosophy.
- emphasized propositional thinking –> experimentation with ideas to see where they lead.

c) assign role for clients to play that was distinctly different from their self-characterization.

Question 16

Briefly describe the life and work of Abraham Maslow (1908–1970). Describe (a) the basic features of humanistic psychology

Answer 16

1) little can be gained by studying nonhumans

2) subjective reality is primary guide for human behaviour

3) study individuals not groups

4) discover things that enrich human experience

5) research should seek info that will help solve human problems

6) goal of psych should be a complete description of what it means to be a human being.

Question 17

Briefly describe the life and work of Abraham Maslow (1908–1970). Describe (b) the hierarchy of needs

Answer 17

physiological –> safety –> belonging & love –> esteem –> self-actualization (full human potential).

Question 18

Briefly describe the life and work of Abraham Maslow (1908–1970). Describe (c) features of self-actualizing people

Answer 18

• perceive reality accurately.
• spontaneity & naturalness.
• have peak/mystic experiences.
• concerned with all humans.
• have only a few friends.
• strong ethical sense, but dont always accept conventional ethics.
• well developed sense of humor.
• creative.

Question 19

Briefly describe the life and work of Abraham Maslow (1908–1970). Describe (d) transpersonal psychology.

Answer 19

stresses the relationship between the individual and the universe, focuses on the mystical and spiritual aspects of human nature.

Question 20

Briefly describe the life and work of Carl Rogers (1902–1987), including his theory of personality.

Answer 20

organismic valuing process
- internal guidance system

need for positive regard
- need for positive responses from the relevant people in childs life.
- unconditional positive regard = become fully functioning.

conditions of worth
- conditions child must meet to gain acceptance or positive regard.
- they replace organismic valuing process resulting in incongruent person, can lead to mental disorders.

Question 21

Compare existential and humanistic psychology.

Answer 21

• humans have free will & are responsible for their actions.
• use phenomenology to study humans.
• humans are unique.
• best to live an authentic life.

Question 22

Contrast existential and humanistic psychology.

Answer 22

humanists
- assume people are basically good
- more optimistic
- motive in life = actualizing tendency
- dont dwell on death

existentialists
- view humans as neutral
- more pessimistic
- motive in life = creating meaning
- acknowledgement of death

Question 23

Identify the commonly cited criticisms & contributions of humanistic psychology.

Answer 23

criticisms

• criticizes other domains even though they have made significant contributions
• throwback to psychology past
• minimized animal research

contributions

• expansion to positive psychology.
• show that mental health is more than absence of mental illness.