1. Humanist Approach Chapter 11

2. Rebelling Against Negativity  Psychoanalysts – struggle to control primal urges  Behaviorists – mechanical beings; actions shaped by rewards and punishments  Humanists – stress our relative freedom from instinctual pressures and our ability to create and live by personal standards

3. Key Concepts  All human beings strive for SELF- ACTUALIZATION  Realization of our potential to be unique  Emphasizes the WHOLE person  Accepts people as INDIVIDUAL HUMANS with all kinds of good qualities

4. Carl Rogers  Studied to be a minister  Had trouble with the idea that people are sinful  Believed that we are all basically good

5. Rogers Cont.  Biggest struggle is living up to our ideal self  As close to perfection as one can get  Come into the world ready to become this person  Positive Regard: approval received from important people  Conditions of Worth: verdicts you accept for yourself in order to receive positive regard

6. Rogers Cont.  Unconditional Positive Regard  Being valued for what you are  The way you naturally present yourself  Fully functioning individuals  Ultimate goal in life  United what we should be with what we are

8. Abraham Maslow  Humans have deep need for beauty, goodness, justice, and feeling of completeness  Everyone inherited something unique  If environment cooperates, we can be great

9. Self-Actualization  Being great = bringing to life our personal skills  Fulfilled person is self-actualized  Can be accomplished despite personal problems  Abraham Lincoln – suffered endless bouts of depression  Still self-actualized  Albert Einstein and Eleanor Roosevelt too

10. Self-Actualization cont.  Perceive reality accurately  No prejudice or wishful thinking  Accept themselves  Do not deny shortcomings  Avoid changing things we don’t like about ourselves

11. Assessment of Humanism  Very upbeat; makes us feel good  Positively encourages us to take charge of our fate  Emphasizes what goes right  Theory is too simple and vague to fully account for great variety seen in human personality