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Compare humanistic approach vs psychodynamic
Differences between theories of personality
Psychodynamic therapy and humanistic therapy alike
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Compare and contrast the usefulness of humanistic and psychodynamic therapies in a social care context. The objective of this essay is to outline the usefulness of humanistic and psychodynamic therapies. The author will identify and compare both therapies and the similarities and differences between them. The psychodynamic approach mainly focuses on the unconscious mind and how this effects our behaviour. The psychodynamic approach trusts that the majority of our behaviour is determined by things which we are unaware of e.g. repressed childhood. Humanism studies the conscious mind and how our thoughts impact our behaviour. Humanism focuses on the fact that human beings are deliberate, this means that they seek meaning, value and creativity. (Glassman & Hadad (2008)). . The similarities between humanistic therapies and psychodynamic therapies are very slim. They are almost completely opposite, both therapies are very effective as they help people. They both look at the past and past experiences to view why people behave in a certain way. Both are linked to social care. Both figure out resolutions to …show more content…
people’s problems. The two therapies look at past experiences to try and find a resolution to the problem there clients are facing.
The Humanistic approach and psychodynamic approach look at past experiences for two very different reasons. Freud the founder of the psychodynamic approach based his approach on early childhood experiences and how it crucially effects an individual later on in their life. (Malim & Birch(2010)). While Maslow & Rogers the founders of the humanistic approach looks at past experiences but focuses more on the here and now rather than anything else. The Humanistic approach believes that the present is more important than the past as it believes that an individual shouldn’t let their past effect their future. (Glassman & Hadad (2008)). Freud claims that the past is very important as behaviour is determined by the unconscious mind and childhood
experiences. Both approaches use different methods to aid their clients. Humanistic approach treats their clients by letting the client be the expert over their own life while in the psychodynamic approach Freud himself would have been the expert (Malim&Birch2010). Freud’s theory would help the client by using a therapist to solve their problems while the humanistic approach puts the client in control over figuring their own problems out. Both approaches are used to aid their clients and there is several ways in which the approaches help people. The founder Fritz perls(1893-1970) created Gestalt therapy which is part of humanism to highlight the unity of mind and body by showing the client how to get in touch with bodily awareness and emotional feelings long hidden from consciousness (Martin etal.2010) The psychodynamic approach uses Play therapy which was founded by Melanie Klein to treat disturbed children. Both approaches work very differently on their clients. Gestalt therapy works by making the client deal honestly with their emotions, they usually do this by using the empty chair technique in which the client would imagine they were talking to someone from there past who had made a huge impact on their life. Gestalt therapy can be used on everyone but play therapy is only used on children, Play therapy is used to get inside a child’s unconscious mind and to help them resolve their problems from the childhood. Through play sessions a child would act out their problems in a safe environment and the therapist would determine the problem from this (Martin.etal.2010) In conclusion it is clear that humanistic and psychodynamic therapies are both useful in a social care context. The humanistic approach is believed to be better as it gives people control over their own life, although there is no proof that either one is more beneficial to people. The humanistic approach is far more optimistic than the psychodynamic approach as it believes that behaviour is free choice and free will while Freud suggests that behaviour is determined.
This approach emphasizes the importance of the potential of humans and sought to make up for the missing component of conscious in the psychodynamic approach. The humanistic approach oriented psychologist has the belief that human behavior is guided by intent and the individual’s set of values (Association, 2014). Those who subscribe to this orientation believe there are both an unconscious and a conscious element to determining behavior. The unconscious element is considered to be the individual’s application of learned norms and experience, while the conscious element is applied by making deliberate choices and decisions. A humanistic oriented practitioner will use differing types of therapy such as client-centered therapy, Gestalt therapy, or existential therapy (American Psychological, 2015). Client-centered therapy or person-centered therapy was developed by Carl Rogers and places the client as the leader of the therapy. This approach allows for the growth and better understanding of self within the individual, as they solve their own problems, while the therapist is there to provide empathetic support (Australian, 2010). Gestalt therapy focuses on the responsibility of the individual for their current situation and considers relationships, environment, and social experiences occurring, and influencing behavior (Polster & Polster, 2010). This process consists of the practitioner acting as a guide and offer advise in helping the client to deal with their current issue. Existential therapy consists of allowing an individual the ability to live with their issues within their own existence (Price, 2011). This means a therapist uses this type of therapy to assist clients with understanding what the present problem is and learning to deal with the consequences of that issue in their every day life. With
Humanistic Theory is based on the ability for individuals to be able to separately diverse with our own prospective on life. Maslow’s theory speaks to the potential and to positive outcome of human motivation and believes that every individual can and will strives to be more.
Shelder (2010) describes seven distinguished features of Psychodynamic approach compared to other available therapy forms in his review: focus of effect in relation to client’s express of emotions; understanding resistance in terms of avoidance of important topics and/ or distracting behaviors in therapy sessions; exploring client’s patterns in terms of behaviors, reasoning, emotions, experiences, and connections to others; bringing in the client’s past; examining relational factors and dealings; highlighting the importance of therapy, and bringing in dreams, wishes, or fantasies for exploration.
By its nature, psychodynamic approach recognises that experiences in childhood have an influence throughout our lives without the person being aware of it. It provides an important framework for judging one 's personality and behaviour. For example, the reason for a person committing a murder may be the fact that his violent father has always physically-punished him since childhood. Though, behavioural approach argues most of the human behaviour is mechanical, and one 's personality is simply the product of stimuli and responses. Therefore, the psychodynamic approach acknowledges everyone can suffer mental illnesses and conflicts without their
It helps many people to find their strength and to help them use those strengths to better themselves. This group of people often refers to Maslow’s “Hierarchy of Needs”. They can see breaks in the pyramid, which can cause the hardships of anxiety. The pyramid works step by step up the pyramid starting at the lowest point, being physiological needs. It then continues up the pyramid through safety, love and belonging, ones self esteem, and ending at self-actualization. The humanistic view, in full can be described as a “crucial opportunity to lead us to our own healthy path”. In a humanistic therapy session the therapist uses a lot of empathy and hard listening. This allows the client to voice their concerns without the pressure of answering questions. But the therapists do help a lot too. With the help of humanistic therapist, the individual will learn to add or find positive experiences in their life. It can help those individuals find a sort of peace with who they are and with what
The psychoanalytic approach, proposed by Sigmund Freud, is based on the idea that childhood experiences significantly influence the development of later personality traits and psychological problems. In addition, psychoanalysis emphasizes the influence of unconscious fears, desires and motivations on thoughts and behaviors. The humanistic approach, presented by Abraham Maslow, emphasizes self actualization and free-will. It is based on the belief that each person has freedom in directing his or her future.
To start, we are taking a look at Humanism. I drew this mask green because humanistic psychologists believe that people are basically good. humanistic theorists focused on the ways people strive for self-determination and self-realization. They look for the potential for healthy personal growth. According to humanistic psychologists we are searching for self-actualization and self-transcendence. Ultimately, we want to fulfill over full potential with purpose and meaning. They assess people's personalities by having conversations and discussions about intimate subjects. They believe that this leads us to learn more about each other by understanding other's experiences.
Sigmund Freud’s Psychodynamic Theory suggests that human behavior and personality is influenced by unconscious motives. In the early 1900s, Freud proposed this theory, stating that the personality consists of the id, the ego, and the superego. Psychodynamic psychologists see behavior as a compromise between the three areas of our psyche. These psychologists study human behavior by looking for deeper meanings in peoples’ thoughts and actions. Today, many of Freud’s ideas have been criticized for being too abstract and objective, but that does not mean that his work is without merit. The Psychodynamic Theory has redefined patient-therapist relationships and our understanding of thought processes and response patterns.
Description of the Psychodynamic Theory The thought process that drives the psychodynamic theory is that our histories greatly influence the people we turn out to be. Psychodynamic theory emphasizes the importance that relationships, especially those developed in the early stages of life, have on our development. This theory is also motivated by the assumption that our emotions or states of mind are the driving forces behind our actions (Dean, 2002). This theory focuses on childhood trauma, and how this can influence the way a person acts for the rest of his or her life.
Psychoanalysis gives an understanding of the unconscious mind of human beings while behaviorism is the study of behaviors of individuals in different environments. The theory of humanistic theory emphasizes on the potential of every person and focuses on the benefits of self-actualization and growth. The humanistic theory focuses on the belief that individuals are internally good and that social and mental problems are because of deviations from the norm (Arnaud & Vanheule, 2013).
Features of the Psychoanalytic and Humanistic Perspectives Outline the key features of the psychoanalytic and humanistic perspectives, and briefly compare and contrast their views on conscious experience, a person as an integrated whole, and the role of therapists in arriving at changes. Answer In explaining and predicting animal behaviour, different schools of psychology are of different perspectives; e.g. cognitive approach focuses on the mental processes, behaviourism is based on external stimuli and reinforcement, biological approach is concerned with the relationship between the mind and body and the influence of heredity. However, they are only cope with a specific part of people, but neglect human as a whole.
Humanistic approach focuses on human existence, where people have unique qualities that include creativity, freewill or freedom, potential and personal growth. People like Carl Rogers who have brought about person-centred theory and Abraham Maslow who has developed a hierarchy of needs, where he emphasized on self-actualization. There is an evaluation on both Rogers and Maslow theories, on how they are based on their own assumptions and views, and I apply Maslow’s theory of self-actualization into my own personal life.
Psychoanalysis is more humane with its focus on talking as opposed to drugs, shock therapy or brain surgery. It also has the power to enhance our understanding of ourselves and from the number of people who testify how it has helped them in their own lives. In conclusion, the psychodynamic model is useful as it is still being used today by professional psychiatrists and works with many people.
Some perspectives assume that in our behaviour exists genetic basis that we inherit and they are the result of our conduct and actions. On the other hand, the nurture believes that the behaviour is learnt by experiences and are divided between social and physical influences. According to Psychodynamic perspective believes in nature and nurture by the fact that psychodynamic believes that our behaviour is in the brain structure and hormones but at the same time is related to past experiences. for example, a child diagnosed aggressive within school, his mother replies that the child 's father had the same aggressive behaviour and troubles with the police however, the child never met his father therefore, the child inherited his father 's behaviour. Behaviourist perspective argues that everything comes from experiences and rewards. for example, a mother who is teaching his daughter to be tidy through her behaviour and reward his daughter depends on her
In the centre of the humanistic approach stands the subjective experience of individuals, the emphasis is that humans rather choose how to behave based on their free will (Derobertis, 2013). The approach rejects that behaviour is bound by past or current circumstances or ruled by uncontrollable forces, but rather believes that humans make decisions regarding their actions based on their own choices and that people are generally good (Glassman & Hadad, 2009). The main dominator of personality development is the self-actualization (Rogers, 1959). The pioneers of the humanistic approach are Carl Rogers, Abraham Maslow and George Kelly. Carl Rogers named the person seeking treatment a client and not a patient, he established the client-centred