LYCOS RETRIEVER 
Humanistic Psychology: Persons
built 613 days ago
Humanistic Psychology is a contemporary manifestation of that ongoing commitment. It's 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 behavioral and social sciences.
Source:
Humanistic psychology evolved in the 1960s as a reaction to psychodynamic psychology and behaviorism. Humanists objected to the pessimistic view of human nature advocated by psychodynamic psychologists who saw the selfish pursuit of pleasure as the root of all human behavior. They ... felt that the behaviorists' beliefs that all human behavior is the product of environmental influences reduced people to the status of machines and did not adequately explain the human experience. Humanists faulted both psychodynamic psychologists and behaviorists for viewing human behavior as governed by factors beyond personal control. In contrast, humanists emphasize people's innate potential, and the ability of people to determine their own destinies. The ultimate goal for the humanistic psychologist, therefore, is to help people realize their full potential and live up to their abilities.
Source:
As mentioned by Clay (2002) Humanistic psychology tends to look beyond the medical model of psychology in order to open up a nonpathologizing view of the person. This usually implies that the therapist downplays the pathological aspects of a person's life in favour of the healthy aspects. A key ingredient in this approach is the meeting between therapist and client and the possibilities for dialogue. The aim of much humanistic therapy is to help the client approach a stronger and more healthy sense of self... called self-actualization (Aanstoos, Serlin & Greening, 2000; Clay, 2002). All this is part of Humanistic psychology's motivation to be a science of human experience, focusing on the actual lived experience of persons (Aanstoos, Serlin & Greening (2000).
Source:
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 ... emphasizes 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.
Source:
Marc Pilisuk leads off the "Contemporary Themes" section with two cutting-edge presentations on humanistic psychology and ecology (with co-author Melanie joy) and humanistic psychology and peace. Pilisuk and Joy (Chapter 9) and Pilisuk (Chapter 10) challenge the assumption that humanism has little to contribute to either the community or the environment but ... equally, that humanism can stand alone within these contexts. They suggest that whereas humanistic psychology offers a keen personal angle on peace and the environment, there are broader issues at play. For example, when many people think of humanistic applications to peace, they immediately flash on that poignant moment when President Jimmy Carter connected personally with Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat at the Camp David peace conference. When they think of humanizing the ecosystem, they envision beautifying a city housing project or pausing to marvel at a sunset. But the authors show that, in addition to these moving applications, humanistic psychology also must scrutinize the government policies that lead to the need for peace conferences and the corporate policies that eventuate in beautification projects.
Source:
The Association of Humanistic Psychology is a worldwide community of diverse people promoting personal integrity, creative learning, and active responsibility in embracing the challenges of being human in these times. Founded in 1962, AHP is grounded in the application of the tradition in psychology.
Source:
MORE ABOUT
Persons