Psychology 3051 Psychology 305A: Theories of Personality Lecture 20 1

Papers are due on Thursday, November 29, You must submit your paper during class. If you are unable to attend class on the day the paper is due, please have someone hand it in for you at the start of class. Optional Paper Submission 2 2 Late papers and papers left in mailboxes or submitted via will not be accepted.

In addition to submitting your paper in class, you must submit your paper electronically to TurnItIn. The electronic copy submitted to TurnItIn must be identical to the hard copy submitted in class; do not change the content or format of the document. 3 3 Your paper will not be graded if you do not submit it to TurnItIn by 11:59 pm on November 29, 2012.

Psychology 3054 TurnItIn is a plagiarism detection system that scans and compares your paper to online content (e.g., other students’ papers, websites such as Wikipedia). It provides an “originality report” that documents the overlap between your paper and online content. It indicates the source of plagiarized content (overlap is acceptable if it is properly cited—see APA guidelines). What is TurnItIn? 4 4

Psychology 3055 Go to To create your own account, click on “Create Account” in the upper right hand corner of the screen. You will need the following information to create your account or add this course to your existing account: TurnItIn Instructions Class ID: Password: personality 5 5

Psychology 3056 Step-by-step instructions are available in the “Student Quickstart Guide” at support/guides_manuals.html. 6 6 You may view your originality report before submitting your paper to address any concerns regarding plagiarism. Please contact your TA if you have any questions or difficulties submitting your paper to TurnItIn.

7 1. Is self-actualization universally achieved? 2. According to Rogers’ person-centered theory, what is a fully functioning person? 3. How does a person become fully functioning? 4. What therapeutic approach did Rogers develop to help people become fully functioning? 7 The Organismic Perspective

8 1. identify the correlates of high versus low levels of self- actualization. 2. explain why self-actualization is rarely achieved. 3. define the term “Jonah complex.” 8 By the end of today’s class, you should be able to: 4. describe Roger’s notion of the “actualizing tendency.” 5. identify the characteristics of a fully functioning person.

6. identify the conditions that are necessary to become fully functioning. 7. define the term “conditions of worth.” identify defense mechanisms that are used by individuals who are not fully functioning. 9. describe the 3 conditions that are necessary for therapeutic change in client-centered therapy.

Psychology Is self-actualization universally achieved? The questionnaire that was administered in class is the Short Index of Self-Actualization (SA): 10

Psychology Alpha reliability coefficient:.65 Test-retest reliability coefficient (12-day interval):.69 Mean (university students) = (SD = 5.57) Mean (nominated as nonactualizing) = (SD = 4.89) Note: Means may be negatively skewed because the samples were comprised of university students. Mean (nominated as actualizing) = (SD = 4.37) 11 Maximum score = 60

Psychology Research has shown that people with high SA scores:  are “time competent.”  are higher in extraversion and openness.  are “inner-directed.”  have an internal locus of control.  report greater satisfaction with school.  have higher self-esteem and fewer “neurotic symptoms.” 12

Psychology Maslow believed that a relatively small proportion of North Americans—1%—achieve a self-actualized state. 13

Psychology Maslow (1971) wrote: “We fear our highest possibilities …. We are generally afraid to become that which we can glimpse in our most perfect moments, under the most perfect conditions, under conditions of greatest courage. We enjoy and even thrill to the godlike possibilities we see in ourselves …. And yet we simultaneously shiver with weakness, awe, and fear before these very same possibilities.” 14

15 According to Rogers’ person-centered theory, what is a fully functioning person? Rogers believed that humans are driven by one “master motive,” the actualizing tendency. The actualizing tendency subsumes all other motives: 15

“There is one central source of energy in the human organism … and it is perhaps best conceptualized as a tendency toward fulfillment, toward actualization, toward the maintenance and enhancement of the organism” (Rogers, 1963). 16

17 Rogers described the “fully functioning person” (FFP) as an individual who is engaged in the process of self-actualization. This individual need not be fully self- actualized. Rogers (1961) maintained that the fully functioning state is “a direction, not a destination.” 17

18 How does a person become fully functioning? Rogers believed that humans have an innate need to be accepted and receive love and affection from others. He referred to this as the need for positive regard. Rogers theorized that, in order to become fully functioning, an individual must receive unconditional positive regard—acceptance, affection, or love that is given freely, without conditions. 18

19 Rogers argued that an individual who receives unconditional positive regard in the formative years develops unconditional positive self-regard—an ability to view her- or himself favorably under all conditions. 19

20 An individual with unconditional positive self-regard is able to accept diverse experiences, trust her or his own judgments, and act in accordance with his or her own desires and wishes. Accordingly, the individual with unconditional positive self-regard develops the attributes necessary to engage in self-actualization and be fully functioning. 20

21 Rogers believed that an individual cannot become fully functioning if s/he receives conditional positive regard—acceptance, affection, or love that is given only under certain conditions. Rogers referred to conditions put forth by significant others for earning positive regard as conditions of worth. 21

22 Rogers argued that an individual who experiences a multitude of conditions of worth in the formative years develops conditional positive self-regard—an inability to view her- or himself favorably under all conditions. 22

23 An individual with conditional positive self-regard distorts personal experiences, disregards her or his own judgments, and acts in accordance with the desires and wishes of others. Accordingly, the individual with conditional positive self- regard develops attributes that prevent him or her from engaging in self-actualization and becoming fully functioning. 23

24 What therapeutic approach did Rogers develop to help people become fully functioning? Rogers suggested that most people encounter incongruities or discrepancies between their self- concept and their experience. These incongruities produce anxiety—an “uneasiness or tension whose cause is unknown” (Rogers, 1959). 24

25 The FFP reduces incongruities by incorporating new experiences into her or his self-concept. The individual who is not fully functioning reduces incongruities by employing defense mechanisms: denial and distortion. In an effort to minimize this anxiety, people try to reduce the incongruities that they experience. 25

26 Rogers developed a therapeutic approach to help people who are not fully functioning: Client-centered therapy. Client-centered therapy is also referred to as “nondirective therapy” because the therapist does not interpret the patient’s problem or provide a specific course of action. Instead, the therapist creates an environment in which the patient can solve his or her own problem. 26

27 Rogers maintained that a therapist must satisfy 3 conditions in order to create an environment in which a patient can solve her or his own problem: 1. Therapist congruence 2. Unconditional positive regard 3. Empathetic understanding 27

28 “I have found that it does not help … to act as though I were something that I am not …. It does not help to act calm and pleasant when actually I am angry and critical. It does not help to act as though I were permissive when I am really feeling that I would like to set limits …. It does not help to act as though I were acceptant of another person when underneath that exterior I feel rejection.” With respect to therapist congruence, Rogers (1959) wrote: 28

29 1. Is self-actualization universally achieved? 2. According to Rogers’ person-centered theory, what is a fully functioning person? 3. How does a person become fully functioning? 4. What therapeutic approach did Rogers develop to help people become fully functioning? 29 The Organismic Perspective