In this paper I will outline the evaluation between psychodynamic and the humanistic approach. Psychodynamic approach founded by Sigmund Freud whereas humanistic approach founded by Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow. Through identifying and distinguishing the differences between these theories, will consider the relation amongst them.
Psychodynamic approach as mentioned was founded by Sigmund Freud states that circumstances occurred during our childhood have great impact on our personalities during our adult years (Fonagy, 2018). These events are unconscious and shape our personalities but somewhere they may cause difficulties later in lives. Psychologists also included that during childhood an individual has to face different conflicts at different times due to psychosexual developments in the body (Fonagy, 2018).
Carl Rogers, an American psychologist known as the father of humanistic theory (Leach, 2018). According to him, the main purpose of humanistic approach is to focus on distinctiveness of an individual. It greatly highlights the areas that help individuals in self-actualization of their adaptive behaviours. Analysts believed that every individual is capable enough to choose their actions which represent an affirmative view of their experience. Abraham Maslow on the other hand, concluded that to reach self-actualisation an individual has to ascend five levels which he named Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. These five levels consisted of physiological, safety, love and belonging, esteem and self-actualisation (Rusu, 2019).
While studying the approaches, I made differences in both the aforementioned theories that according to psychoanalytic theory, human nature has negative and pessimistic approach whereas optimistic approach is greatly highlighted in humanistic theory (Orange , 2010). Considering these factors, society has a different influence on an individual’s personality development. The theory of psychoanalysis states that id controls an individual’s behaviour which recognises that it is a pleasure principle that is not entirely connected with the reality (Orange , 2010). Freudian theory has so far emphasized that we are able to influence only our conscious or preconscious thought processes and not the unconscious pleasures. It reminds that early childhood experience can impact our lives throughout whether a good or a bad experience. The approach makes clear that anyone can suffer from mental illness explaining the factors causing unconscious emotional pain (Leach, 2018).
There are certain weaknesses of this theory that it cannot be scientifically observed or tested. Actually, it has no demonstration about unconscious thought processes. There is evidence which verifies the repressed memory it focuses on the latest information processed by the brain regardless of the past history of the client. Cognitive analysts ignored the complexity of functioning and the emotional life of human (Orange , 2010).
Humanistic approach on the other hand, has a different perspective to analyse as it emphasizes how worthful an individual could be to centralise human values and dynamic nature of the human beings (Rusu, 2019). This approach optimistically focuses how to overcome the agony, desolation and adversity an individual is going through. This approach is also termed as phenomenological because it is viewed as per the subjective experience of the individual. Rendering the fact, humanism has always seen that human beings are fundamentally different from other animals and this is so for the reason that humans are conscious beings capable of thought, reason and language (Rusu, 2019).
