(2027 Exams) Humanistic Psychology (A2 only)

Test yourself on (2027 Exams) Humanistic Psychology (A2 only)

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Humanism

The humanistic approach emphasises individual experience and personal choice. It takes a generally positive view of human behaviour, assuming that people have the potential to develop and improve themselves.

Humanism

Humanism is a perspective within psychology that emphasises the potential for good that is innate to all humans.
The approach is very individualistic, and does not just focus on observable behaviour, but also looks at a person's feelings.
Free will is an important factor in humanism and forms the basis for the theory that people have choice over their actions.

Free will

Other approaches in psychology examine the cause-effect relationship of behaviours - whether it be genetic, biological or external causes.
The humanistic approach looks at free will, which is that humans choose how to behave.

Self-actualisation and congruence

Self-actualisation is the concept that humans strive to fulfil their potential.
A person will see themselves in two ways: the way they are currently (self-concept) and the way they want to be (ideal self).
A person who has fulfilled their potential and is their ideal self is said to have achieved self-actualisation. They are congruent.
If a person has a disconnect between their self-concept and their ideal self, they are incongruous.

Conditions of worth

Conditions of worth are when people are rewarded for behaving in a specific way.
- An example of condition of worth is when a child is rewarded with an allowance for doing chores.
Conditions of worth can affect self-concept if a person feels they must meet others’ expectations instead of acting freely.

Unconditional positive regard

Unconditional positive regard is when a person receives love and support no matter how they behave.
Unconditional positive regard encourages the development of a positive self-concept.

Abraham Maslow

Abraham Maslow (1908–1970) was an American psychologist who is best known for proposing a hierarchy of human needs in motivating behaviour.
Maslow is one of the most well-known proponents of humanistic psychology.

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs

Maslow proposed a pyramid of human needs that shows that some needs are more important, and those must be fulfilled to get to higher levels.

Tiers of the pyramid

At the base of the pyramid are all of the physiological needs that are necessary for survival.
These are followed by basic needs for security and safety, the need to be loved and to have a sense of belonging, and the need to have self-worth and confidence.
The top tier of the pyramid is self-actualisation, which is a need that essentially equates to achieving one’s full potential.

Self-actualisation

Self-actualisation can only be realised when needs lower on the pyramid have been met.
To Maslow and humanistic theorists, self-actualisation reflects the humanistic emphasis on positive aspects of human nature.
Maslow suggested that this is an ongoing, lifelong process and that only a small percentage of people actually achieve a self-actualised state.

Characteristics of self-actualised people

Maslow identified 15 characteristics:
- They perceive reality efficiently and can tolerate uncertainty
- Accept themselves and others for what they are
- Spontaneous in thought and action
- Problem centred (not self-centred)
- Unusual sense of humour
- Able to look at life objectively
- Highly creative
- Resistant to enculturation, but not purposely unconventional

Self-actualised characteristics

Concerned for the welfare of humanity
Capable of deep appreciation of basic life-experiences.
Establish deep satisfying interpersonal relationships with a few people
Peak experiences
Need for privacy
Democratic attitudes
Strong moral/ethical standards

Interaction of levels

According to Maslow (1943), one must satisfy lower-level needs before addressing those needs that happen higher in the pyramid.
So, for example, if someone is struggling to find enough food to meet his nutritional needs, it is quite unlikely that he would spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about whether others viewed him as a good person or not.
Instead, all of his energies would be geared toward finding something to eat.

Criticism of Maslow's theory

Maslow’s theory has been criticised for its subjective nature and its inability to account for phenomena that happen in the real world.
Other research has more recently addressed that late in life, Maslow proposed a self-transcendence level above self-actualisation - to represent striving for meaning and purpose beyond the concerns of oneself.

Examples of self-transcendence

There are many real life examples of self-transcendence.
For example, people may make self-sacrifices to make a political statement or to try to improve the conditions of others.
Mohandas K. Gandhi, a world-renowned advocate for independence through non-violent protest, went on hunger strikes on several occasions to protest a particular situation.
People may starve themselves or otherwise put themselves in danger, displaying higher-level motives beyond their own needs.