Humanistic Approach

• Overall assumptions:

  every individual is unique;

  • psychology should not aim to generalise findings to explain large groups of people's behaviour
  • humanist psychologists propose idiographic methods of research where we learn about individuals in detail

  everyone has free will;

  • we are all in control of our own behaviour
  • it is not determined or caused by any other factors outside of our control
• Overall assumptions:

  people should be viewed holistically;

  • it is important to consider every individual as a whole
  • for example, rather than considering an individual's aggressive behaviour as simply a product of biological factors; consider their social interactions, their cognition, their education and as many different factors as possible

  subjective experience is more important than objective measurements;

  • humanists believe that a person's subjective experience and conscious understanding of the world is of greater importance in understanding the person than objective measurements
• Self-actualisation:

  the humanistic approach is known as a person-centred approach. Each part of the approach that we look at focuses on the self and how to help an individual meet their potential
• Self-actualisation:

  • self-actualisation is the innate drive to reach our potential
  • it concerns psychological growth, fulfilment and satisfaction in life. These vary from person to person for example, being your true self and setting and achieving goals in line with your own aspirations
  • self-actualisation is the ultimate goal of every individual
  • it is the final stage of Maslow's hierarchy of needs
• Maslow's hierarchy of needs:

  • the hierarchy of needs contains the five basic needs that a person has to meet (physiological, safety, love/belonging, esteem, self-actualisation)
  • if the need before has not been met, then you cannot achieve higher needs
  • each stage in the hierarchy is not permanent, we are constantly moving up and down the hierarchy
  • the ultimate goal is to achieve self-actualisation
• The focus on the self (Rogers):

  • rogers had a focus on the self
  • he identified two selves; perceived self and ideal self
  • the perceived self is the self that you feel you are. It is similar to self-esteem and is affected by your own self-acceptance
  • the ideal self is the self that you wish to be. It is who you are aiming to be
• Congruence:

  • congruence is the consistency between the perceived self (how you see yourself) and the ideal self (the self you would like to be)
  • the greater the gap between the perceived self an the ideal self, the greater the incongruence
  • self-actualisation will occur when a person is congruent
• Congruence:

  in order to achieve congruence;

  • a person needs to close the gap between the perceived self an the ideal self
  • the gap can be reduced by developing a more healthy view of yourself, or having a more achievable and realistic ideal self
• Conditions of worth:

  • psychological issues are thought to arise as a direct result of conditions of worth, these are requirements that an individual feels they need to meet in order to be loved
  • these conditions can be real or perceived by the individual
  • if love is given freely, without conditions (unconditional positive regard), then people develop a healthy sense of self-worth, recognising their abilities and difficulties
• The influence on counselling psychology:

  • this is where the individual is at the centre of their own therapy in solving their own problems
  • the client is encouraged to develop a positive self-regard to overcome the incongruence between the perceived self and the ideal self
  • Rogers said that this can be helped through receiving unconditional positive regard, which is where an individual is loved and respected by another without any expectations in return. This can come from parents, family or significant others. It can also come from a therapist/counsellor
• The influence on counselling psychology:

  • therapists encourage clients to focus on the present rather than the past (in contrast to the psychodynamic approach)
  • client centred therapy is mostly used to treat mild conditions such as anxiety and low self-worth
• Evaluation of the humanistic approach:

  S - practical application

  W - not scientific

  W - ethnocentric

  S - evidence to support from Harter et al (1996)