Humanistic psychology and its role in the formation of a healthy personality

The humanistic approach in psychology Appeared in scientific circulation in the thirties of the twentieth century as an alternative to fashionable at the time psychoanalysis and the theory of behaviorism. Its founders, Erich Fromm, Karl Rogers, Victor Frankl and Harold Maslow, based in many respects on the basic principles of Freudianism, are still based on the integrity of the human person in the process of its formation. Psychologists and philosophers took for the starting point of their theory a complex synthesis of all human sciences. This new scientific trend in psychology received a great deal of recognition in the middle of the last century, which to some extent was due to the development of democracy in civilized countries and the enhancement of the status of a free individual in the life of society.

Humanistic Psychology Involves a comprehensive study of the inner world of man and finds its application not only in psychiatry, but also in pedagogy, philosophy, culture and even political science. This doctrine (it is also called existential-humanistic) is the most promising direction in pedagogical practice, since it is based on respect for each individual, on a careful attitude to her inner world. Thus, the reciprocal perception of the world outlook and respect for the values of others are cultivated.

This doctrine has its opponents. Some scholars argue that the humanistic direction in psychology Discards the biological essence of a person and does not take into account his individualistic aspirations to power and the possession of vital resources. Another group of specialists believes that the attitude to each person as a goal, and not as a means to humanize pedagogy, is too high a bar in a society where success is important, a certain social status. It is claimed that she cultivates the features of the introvert, although for the modern life the qualities of the extrovert are more important.

The society that survived the two world wars in a short time turned out to be unprepared to answer the problems concerning the deep essence of the human soul. Self-denying kindness and insane violence, bloodshed and heroism, which were manifested during these wars, raised new questions about the man and his inner world. This was exacerbated by the collapse of the optimistic belief in social progress, the breakdown of traditional ties and the increasingly alienated industrial society that the writer Hermann Hesse aptly called the "feuilleton era." In this sense, humanistic psychology, in spite of the stimulus of "external success" acting in society, practices a sympathetic, understanding, compassionate approach to the everyday existence of the individual.

How high is this bar? After all, the very word "humanism" comes from the word "homo" - a person. Humanity is not something alien to the behavior of people, it does not come into conflict with the biological aspirations of the individual and the person does not need to "step over oneself" in order to show mercy, reveal tenderness and love, and provide care. On the contrary, these actions often come from deep layers of our essence - humanistic psychology maintains. The identification and cultivation of these qualities, undoubtedly inherent in us from birth, is due solely to the fact of belonging to the form of homo sapiens, and lies at the heart of the humanistic approach in pedagogy.

"Humanity" in behavioral attitudes is not at all remote and unrealizable Moral imperative, which is imposed on us "from above," but on the contrary, it is our most natural behavior. This is an extremely thin, but also a strong personality setting for a reverent attitude to one's inner world. The job of a psychologist is to reveal these noble movements of the soul, even if only evil deeds are manifestations of a person's life, to develop these natural qualities and to instill a reverent attitude towards the personality of another, to his sovereign self. Humanistic Psychology Helps to harmonize our inner world, overcome the chasm of alienation, survive the collapsed vital values, answer the questions "Who am I in this world?" And "What am I striving for? For what do I live? ".