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Humanistic Psychology is a contemporary manifestation of that ongoing commitment. Its message is a response to the denigration of the human spirit that has so often been implied in the image of the person drawn by behavioural and social sciences. During the first half of the twentieth century, American psychology was dominated by two schools of thought - behaviourism and psychoanalysis. Neither fully acknowledged the possibility of studying values, intentions and meaning as elements in conscious existence. Although various European perspectives such as phenomenology had some limited influence, on the whole mainstream American psychology had been captured by the mechanistic beliefs of behaviourism and by the biological reductionism and determinism of classical psychoanalysis.
"The science of behaviour" (in Abraham Maslow's later terminology, "The First Force") systematically excluded the subjective data of consciousness and much information bearing on the complexity of the human personality and its development. "Second Force" emerged out of Freudian psychoanalysis focused on the dynamic unconscious - the depths of the human psyche whose contents, they asserted, must be integrated with those of the conscious mind in order to produce a healthy human personality . The founders of the depth psychologies believed (with several variations) that human behaviour is principally determined by what occurs in the unconscious mind. So, where the behaviourists ignored consciousness because they felt that its essential privacy and subjectivity rendered it inaccessible to scientific study, the depth psychologists tended to regard it as the relatively superficial expression of unconscious drives.
By the late 1950's a "Third Force" was beginning to form. Abraham Maslow and Clark Moustakas discussed several themes - such as self, self-actualisation, health, creativity, intrinsic nature, being, becoming, individuality, and meaning - which they believed likely to become central concerns of such an approach to psychology. In 1961, with the sponsorship of Brandeis University, this movement was formally launched as the American Association for Humanistic Psychology. They questioned why the two dominant versions of psychology did not deal with human beings as "uniquely human", nor with many of the real problems of human life. They agreed that if psychology were to become more than a narrow academic discipline limited by the biases of behaviourism, and if it were to study human attributes such as values and self - consciousness that the depth psychologists had chosen to de - emphasise, their "Third Force" would have to offer a fuller concept and experience of what it means to be human.
"Human psychology" those qualities that are unique to human life and that make possible such essentially human phenomena as love, self - consciousness, self - determination, personal freedom, greed, lust for power, cruelty, morality, art, philosophy, religion, literature, and science. Maslow developed a hierarchical theory of human motivation which asserted that when certain basic needs are provided for, higher motives toward self - actualisation can emerge. Rogers introduced person - centered therapy, which holds that intrinsic tendencies toward self - actualisation can be expressed in a therapeutic relationship in which the therapist offers personal congruence, unconditional positive regard and accurate empathic understanding. Thus Maslow and Rogers embraced self - actualisation both as an empirical principle, and an ethical idea. Their vision of human nature as intrinsically good became a major theme of the "human potential" movement, but was criticised by some other humanistic psychologists as an inadequate model of the human experience.
Rollo May represented the European currents of existentialism and phenomenology that became influential in humanistic psychology and emphasised the inherently tragic aspects of the human condition. His books provided an enduring philosophical perspective and much - needed insight into questions involving the enduring presence of evil and suffering in the world, the nature of creativity, art and mythology, and the value of the humanities as psychological resources. Humanistic psychology can be understood in terms of three major areas -
1). It offered a new set of values for approaching an understanding of human nature and the human condition.
2). It offered an expanded horizon of methods of inquiry in the study of human behaviour.
3). It offered a broader range of more effective methods in the professional practice of psychotherapy.
Humanistic psychology is a value orientation that holds a hopeful, constructive view of human beings and of their substantial capacity to be self - determining. It is guided by a conviction that intentionality and ethical values are strong psychological forces, among the basic determinants of human behavior. This conviction leads to an effort to enhance such distinctly human qualities as choice, creativity, the interaction of the body, mind and spirit, and the capacity to become more aware, free, responsible, life-affirming and trustworthy.
Humanistic psychology acknowledges that the mind is strongly influenced by determining forces in society, and in the unconscious, and that some of these are negative and destructive. Humanistic psychology nevertheless emphasises the independent dignity and worth of human beings, and their conscious capacity to develop personal competence, and self respect. This value orientation has led to the development of therapies to facilitate personal and interpersonal skills, and to enhance the quality of life. Many humanistic psychologists stress the importance of social change, the challenge of modifying old institutions, and inventing new ones able to sustain both human development, and organisational efficacy. Thus the humanistic emphasis on individual freedom should be matched by a recognition of our interdependence, and our responsibilities to one another, to society and culture, and to the future.
Humanism explains that we are all unique, and have feelings that can and do get hurt. When this happens, it reflects on how we view ourselves, and other people, including the world around us. This could, and does affect our environment, and may also cause us to pass the same behaviour onto our children. With respect to Mr. Maslow, his youth was spent battling between two parents who were unable to fulfill parental roles in the manner in which we have come to expect, therefore, an understanding of why he wanted, or perhaps needed to bring about a "third force", becomes more evident. The two previous "forces" had many elements that worked, but both forgot to empower the whole person.
Behaviourism was effective because it desensitised you to issues that happen within the human lifespan, and assisted the individual towards working past them - it promoted the ability of learning to deal with issues in the event the behaviour manifested itself again, but was unconcerned with how and why the behaviour began in the first place. Psychodynamics dealt with emotional states, and tended to attempt getting to the root of the problem, although therapy was in many cases, stretched over many years. Other cases, the issue may never healed, or does not fully go away, and a possible dependency occured between the therapist and client, leaving the client unable to fully self - actualise.
In either case, there was no empowerment, whereas within humanistic psychology, the main attribute is making an attempt to empower the individual. One can learn to courageously overcome any obstacle, and otherwise get through very deeply - ingrained issues within the human psyche that otherwise remain lodged within the unconscious mind. Humanistic psychology is best known as a "body of theory", and is a system of psychotherapy, but it is also an approach to scholarship and research, informed by a strong sense of purpose. The purpose is to provide a level of understanding that can promote the power of personal choice, and the care and effectiveness of social groups.
Copyright ~ Silver Rainbolt 2006 ~ All Rights Reserved You may not legally copy any part of this document without prior written consent of the author. Doing so infringes upon copyright, and is punishable under the law.
Copyright 2006 held by Silver Rainbolt/In Medias Res, and Damien Daville/Vampire Church
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