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Essay / The humanistic approach to personality
The two historical contexts that marked the beginning of the development of the humanistic approach were the need for another aspect in psychology focused on learning to behave in simpler terms and the philosophical idea in Europe of existentialism. Some psychologists disagreed with other approaches such as behaviorism and psychoanalysis. Behaviorism focused too much on data and did not study the whole person. These psychologists also believed that psychoanalysis was too fixed and negative. The humanistic approach was a new perspective that formed to focus on a more positive approach to people. Existential philosophy addresses questions such as: the meaning of our existence, the role of free will and the uniqueness of each human being (Burger, 2014, p. 278). Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay The humanistic approach to personality is directly related to human behavior. The main distinction between the humanistic approach and other personality theories such as behaviorism and psychoanalysis is that people are assumed to be largely responsible for their actions (Burger, 2014, p. 277). In general, humans choose what they do despite environmental factors and are mostly conscious beings. Two humanist theorists who have had an impact on this theory of personality are Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. They believed that the way a person subjectively perceives the world is better than the objective reality of the world. The humanistic approach encourages that behavior is not limited to what we can observe. When thinking about my personality and my relationships with the world, the humanistic approach is the most relevant, as opposed to behaviorism and psychoanalysis. According to Jerry M. Burger (2014), the humanistic approach has four key elements. The first key element of the humanist approach is personal responsibility. Unlike the behavioral approach, which states that humans respond based on things they cannot control, humanistic personality theory asserts that people shape their own lives (Burger, 2014, p. 279). People also possess the freedom to change which can only be limited by physical constraints. The second key element of the humanist approach is its emphasis on the here and now. This approach focuses on what a person is feeling "here and now" instead of trying to understand what happened in the past that led a person to these kinds of feelings. Humans cannot fully function until they focus on their lives as they unfold. The third key element of the humanist approach is the experience of the individual. This theory would argue that the objective reality of the world is less important than the subjective reality of the person. This individual experience makes it more difficult to study the objectivity of behavior since it relies on a person's subjective reality. The last key element of the humanistic approach is personal growth. This is sometimes called "full functioning" by Carl Rogers and "self-actualization" by Abraham Maslow. We are all motivated to progress toward an ultimately satisfying state of being (Burger, 2014, p. 281). Fulfillment in life is a fundamental human motive that concerns psychological growth and life satisfaction. The humanist approach has strengths and limitations. One of the main strengths of this approach is that it encourages that behavior is not limited to what we can, 41(6), 863-870.