Humanistic Approach

• Assumptions of Humanism?


  • humans are self-determined, meaning we choose our behaviour, biological and environmental factors still have an influence but we ultimately have free-will
  • Humans are unique and should be studied subjectively
  • People are motivated to self-actualise
• what did Maslow say regarding his Hierarchy of Needs?

  Humans have an innate drive to reach our full potential, meaning we are motivated to self-actualise
• What are the levels of Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs? (bottom to top)

  1. Psychological Needs - basic needs for survival (e.g food, water) without meeting these it is hard to focus
  2. Safety Needs - people seek safety and security, includes physical safety, financial stability and health
  3. Love and Belongingness - people want relationships and a sense of belongingness e.g friendships, family, social groups
  4. Esteem Needs - feeling good about oneself e.g recognition, respect
  5. Self-Actualisation - need to realise one's full potential and personal growth
• Carl Rodgers and path to self-actualisation

  path to self-actualisation comes from congruence between self and ideal self
• what did carl rodgers say incongruence causes?

  • low self-esteem
  • an inability to self-actualise
• What did Carl Rodgers say causes incongruent adults?

  incongruent adults grew up with conditions of worth being placed on them e.g I only love you if...
• What did Carl Rodgers say causes congruent adults?

  Adults with congruence grew up with unconditional positive regard
• What is Person-Centred Therapy (aka Client-Centred Therapy)


  • type of therapy that focuses on individual's own understanding of their situation
  • It is non-judgemental and non-directed
  • It aims to reduce incongruence by improving self-worth, helping them become a more fully functioning person
  • Assumes clients are the best judge of their conditions
• Three core conditions that a therapy in client-centred therapy must provide?

  • Genuineness
  • Empathy
  • Unconditional Positive Regard
• Mnemonic for Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs?

  Please Stop Loving Snacks
• What are examples of conditions person-centred therapy can be helpful for?

  Anxiety and Depression
• Humanism Evaluation - Non-Reductionist

  Non Reductionist

  • compared to other approaches it views behaviour holistically (looks at the whole person)
  • reductionists aim to 'reduce' behaviour to 1 simpler explanation
  • Meaning humanism is more applicable to real life situations, so its more valid

  Counterpoint

  • Humanism isn't scientific
  • Scientific experiments isolate variables and test their individual effect on their dependent variable, uncontrolled variables are named as extraneous
  • since humanistic values are interconnected, it cannot be studied scientifically
• Humanism Evaluation

  Positive Approach

  • it doesn't dwell on past experiences and it doesn't take a fatalistic approach to life
  • It believes we have free-will and are able to self-actualise, giving people a more positive perspective

  Limited Application

  • critics argue that the humanistic approach is a loose set of abstract ideas and is not a cohesive theory, so it has limited usefulness
  • However the influence of humanism on counselling has been extremely useful
• Evaluation of Humanism - Western Culture Bias

  Western Culture Bias

  • humanism only applicable to people from individualistic cultures (e.g UK and US) and not to people from collectivist cultures (e.g Japan)
  • Individualistic cultures value achieving one's own potential and self-growth (in line with self-actualisation)
  • Collectivist cultures focus more on belonging to a group (e.g family) and that groups needs above their own (not in line with self-actualisation)