What is the difference between psychoanalytic theory and humanistic theory?
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Compare and contrast the Psychoanalytic, Behaviourist and Humanist explanations of human behaviour. The Three main forces in psychology are psychoanalysis, behaviourism, and Humanism. They attempt to explain human behaviour in different ways but some common threads exist throughout. This essay examines what effects human personality and free will, the importance attached to early development by the three theories and the methodology adopted by each. In psychoanalytic theory human behaviour is defined by unconscious conflict between the Id containing primitive drives and emotions, the conscious super ego which contained ideals, morals and values and the Ego which was mostly conscious steering between the two extremes. In his 'three essays on sexuality' (1915) Sigmund Freud outlines five stages of development from birth to puberty. During each progressive stage the child is fixated on different areas of its body as a focus for pleasure. A proper resolution of the conflict leads the child to progress past one stage onto the next. If there is no resolution the child becomes fixated in that stage causing personality and behavioural disorders. These fixations often manifested them selves as physical symptoms without physical causes. Freud believed that it was unconscious psychic forces that determine human personality and we have little self control or free will. ...read more. Show
If parents offer only conditional positive regard -valuing the child only when it is behaving correctly - the child is likely have a distorted self concept and learns to act in ways that earn approval from others rather than in ways that may be intrinsically more satisfying and real, which may lead to problems later on. According to Freud 's Theory early development is more than just important, it is all defining as the s****l drive and experiences in this period determines adult personality and any behavioural problems stem from this period. Between birth and 18 months the child has to progress through the oral stage when the main focus is the mouth. The child gets pleasure from sucking and biting. Insufficient feeding of sucking at this stage can lead to an oral s******c fixation. Symptoms of this in adults would be sarcasm, nail biting and constant chewing. Over oral stimulation in this stage is likely to produce a person who is reliant on others and cheerfully gullible, could be described as a 'sucker'. Once this stage has been resolved the child moves on to the a**l stage which lasts till the age of about three years. In this stage the main focus of pleasure is bowel movements and the control over them. ...read more. The behaviourists insist psychology should be the study of overt behaviour rather than the inner workings of the mind. They say that the case studies of Freud and the humanists could not be proven so didn't hold any value. The behaviourist research was carried out in a scientific manor in laboratory conditions. Behaviourist Psychologist's Watson and Raynor carried out research on an eleven month old boy called little Albert. Albert played happily with a white rat in the laboratory, he was unafraid of it. Watson banged a steel bar with a hammer behind Albert's head (out of his view). This frightened Albert and made him cry. This was repeated five times, after which Albert had learned to fear the rat and avoided it. They had conditioned Albert to fear the rat. Pavlov famously carried out research on dogs. He would ring a bell when he presented his dogs with food. The dogs would salivate. Eventually the dogs would salivate when the bell was sounded - even if no food was presented. The dogs had been conditioned to salivate at the sound of a bell. The Humanist theory attempts to combine what is best from both theories, but in many ways is more similar to the earlier psychodynamic approach - and in other ways completely unique in its own right. All Three forces of psychology are relevant in explaining human behaviour and influencing further research. Sarah Nicholls 07/05/2007 pys 2 ...read more. • Categorized under Psychology,Science | Difference Between Psychodynamic Perspective and Humanistic Perspective Psychodynamic and humanistic perspectives have been remarkably essential in understanding behavior. Psychodynamic perspective focuses on the influence of unconscious psychological processes while humanistic perspective investigates the impact of our free will, the importance of personal worth, and the centrality of human values. The following discussions further delve into their distinctions.  What is Psychodynamic Perspective?The psychodynamic perspective pertains to the therapeutic approach and theories developed by Sigmund Freud (the founder of psychoanalysis) and supported by his followers. The neo-Freudians agreed with the fundamental principles of the psychoanalytic theory such as the influence of the unconscious and childhood experiences. However, they disagreed with some of his concepts; generally, they deemphasized the role of sex and acknowledged the impact of social environment. Some of the neo-Freudians are the following:
Adler, an Austrian psychiatrist, developed “Individual Psychology”. He was initially a part of Freud’s inner circle of colleagues. However, Adler disagreed with Freud’s emphasis on sexual and aggressive urges. He believed that individuals are driven by feelings of inferiority in childhood and that they should be studied as a whole.
Jung, a Swiss psychiatrist, developed “Analytical Psychology”. He had a close friendship with Freud but it ended due to their differing concepts. Jung described Freud’s theory of the unconscious as incomplete and too pessimistic. For example, Jung suggested the existence of the “collective unconscious” which is transpersonal and deeper. However, Freud dismissed such concepts as being irrational.
Horney (“horn-eye”), a German psychoanalyst, is credited for her feminist psychology. She disagreed with the concept of “penis envy” ( Freud explained that young girls experience anxiety when they realize that they do not have a penis). Horney then explained that men go through “womb envy” (men are actually envious of women’s capability to bear children). She also believed that neurosis is attributed to the basic anxiety which stem from interpersonal relationships. The core assumptions of the psychodynamic perspective are the following (Bornstein, 2020):
The psychodynamic perspective explains that our psychological processes our largely unconscious. For instance, we are not consciously aware of most of our feelings, motives, memories, and other mental activities.
Psychodynamic theorists view childhood experiences, including those that occur during the first weeks of life as crucial in shaping personality. For instance, not experiencing sufficient care from a primary caregiver can negatively affect one’s behavior, even decades later.
The psychodynamic perspective suggests that behavior is caused by certain biological and psychological processes. Hence, every thought, feeling, or motive does not just happen by chance; everything has a meaning. For instance, dreams are not merely meaningless images or stories, they may say something about your desires, fears, past, etc. What is Humanistic PerspectiveThe humanistic perspective emphasizes free will, empathy, self-actualization, holistic approach, and the goodness of each human being. It is also known as the “third force”, it arose in the 1950s in response to psychoanalytic and behavioral perspectives which are described as too deterministic. For instance, it sees the psychodynamic perspective as having too much focus on the unconscious. It also sees behaviorism as having too much emphasis on reinforcement, punishment, and animal research. Humanistic psychologists include Abraham Maslow, Carl Rogers, and Fritz Perls. The following are humanism’s basic assumptions (McLeod, 2020):
Humans have the capacity to choose how they will respond to stimuli. For instance, we can choose to be happy despite challenging situations.
Good intentions are the driving force of behavior; however, individuals may deviate from their innate goodness when facing adverse situations. We can then change for the better and will ourselves to overcome challenges.
People continuously seek to achieve growth, satisfaction, and fulfillment.
Instead of focusing on the unconscious, rewards and punishments, thinking, or the human brain, we should look into how people interpret events, each individual’s unique understanding of the world.
As compared to laboratory experiments and surveys, the use of diary accounts, open-ended questionnaires, in-depth and unstructured interviews and observations are more productive in studying behavior. Humans can be better understood by genuinely talking with them, being open, and empathetic.
Humanism views studies on animals as insignificant since they do not tell us much about how humans feel, think, and experience events. Difference between Psychodynamic Perspective and Humanistic PerspectiveDefinitionThe psychodynamic perspective pertains to the therapeutic approach and theories developed by Sigmund Freud (the founder of psychoanalysis) and supported by his followers. It emphasizes the influence of the unconscious and childhood experiences in shaping one’s behavior. In comparison, the humanistic perspective emphasizes free will, empathy, potential, holistic approach, and the goodness of each human being. It is also known as the “third force”, it arose in response to both psychoanalytic and behavioral perspectives which are described as too deterministic. Core AssumptionsThe core assumptions of psychodynamic perspective are: primacy of the unconscious, importance of early experiences, and psychic causality (Bornstein, 2020). On the other hand, the basic assumptions of humanistic perspective are: people have free will, humans are innately good, we are motivated to self-actualize, conscious subjective experiences are more important, qualitative methods over quantitative methods, and rejection of comparative psychology (McLeod, 2020). PsychologistsThe neo-Freudians advanced the psychodynamic perspective which was based on Freud’s psychoanalysis. They include Adler, Jung, Horney, and Erikson. As for the humanistic psychologists, they include Maslow, Rogers, and Perls. Psychodynamic Perspective vs Humanistic PerspectiveSummary
gene Brown Jean Brown is a Registered Psychologist, licensed professional teacher, and a freelance academic and creative writer. She has been teaching social science courses both in the undergrad and graduate levels. Jean has also been a research adviser and panel member in a number of psychology and special education paper presentations. Her certifications include TESOL (Tampa, Florida), Psychiatric Ward Practicum Certification, and Marker of Diploma Courses. |
