Humanistic and Cognitive Approaches in Psychology

Humanistic approach

Humanistic psychology is a perspective that emphasizes looking at the whole person and the uniqueness of each individual. It begins with the existential assumptions that people have free will and are motivated to achieve their potential and self-actualize. The humanistic approach is a rebellion against psychoanalysis and behaviorism. Humanism rejected the assumption of the behaviorist perspective, which is characterized as deterministic. Humanistic psychology also rejected the psychodynamic approach because it is also deterministic, with unconscious irrational and instinctive forces determining human thought and behavior.

• Basic assumptions:
  • Humanistic psychology begins with the existential assumption that people have free will.
  • People are basically good: the approach is optimistic and focuses on the noble human capacity to overcome hardship, pain, and despair.
  • People are motivated to self-actualize: psychological growth, fulfillment, and satisfaction in life.
  • The subjective, conscious experiences of the individual are most important: this means that personality is studied from the point of view of the individual's subjective experience.
  • Humanism rejects scientific methodology: qualitative research is useful for studies at the individual level and to find out, in depth, the ways in which people think or feel.
  • Humanism rejected comparative psychology (the study of animals) because it does not tell us anything about the unique properties of human beings: humanism views human beings as fundamentally different from other animals, mainly because humans are conscious beings capable of thought, reason, and language.

Cognitive approach

The Cognitive approach began in the 1950s when psychologists had become frustrated with previous approaches failing to explain cognition. Cognition refers to the mental processes needed to make sense of the world. These include perception, attention, language, thinking, problem-solving, and memory. Cognitive psychologists believe that behavior is influenced by cognition, so the way we perceive and think determines the way we behave. The role of the cognitive psychologist is to understand cognitive processes and suggest models and theories that help explain how humans process information and how these mental operations influence behavior.

Cognitive distortions: Cognitive distortions are simply ways that our mind convinces us of something that isn't really true. These inaccurate thoughts are usually used to reinforce negative thinking or emotions and only serve to keep us feeling bad about ourselves. Cognitive distortions are at the core of what many therapists try to help a person learn to change in psychotherapy. In 1976, psychologist Aaron Beck first proposed the theory behind cognitive distortions.

• The Most Common Cognitive Distortions:
  • Filtering
  • Polarized thinking
  • Overgeneralization
  • Jumping to conclusions
  • Catastrophizing
  • Personalization
  • Shoulds
  • Emotional reasoning
  • Global labeling