Schools of Thought: Behaviorism vs. Humanistic Psychology One of the most influential schools of thought is behaviorism founded by two psychologists by the name of John B Watson and B.F. Skinner (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). Behaviorism rejected introspection, the study of inner mental processes, and viewed psychology as an objective science (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). It discussed how theories need to be supported by data and obtained by careful measurements and observations (McLeod, 2007). Behaviorism also underlined how all behavior is learned from the environment (McLeod, 2007a). Consequently, this idea stated that people have no free will and we learn behavior through two methods: classical conditioning and operant conditioning (McLeod, 2007a).
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These psychologists were Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). They found behaviorism too limiting (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). As a result, they founded this new school of thought known as humanistic psychology (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). Humanistic psychology is essentially the study of the self and how individuals perceive and interpret events (McLeod, 2007b). Humanists drew attention to how current environmental influences can nurture or limit growth potential and stressed the importance of having needs for love and acceptance satisfied (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). Humanistic psychology introduced a new set of values for approaching and understanding human nature and condition as well as a new perspective on methods of inquiry in the study of human behavior (McLeod, 2007b). Not to mention it provided a broader range of more effective methods in the field of psychotherapy (McLeod, 2007b). Humanistic views assume that people have free will and are ultimately good (McLeod, 2007b). According to McLeod (2007b), the humanistic approach emphasizes that humans have an innate need to make themselves and the world better. He also states that the humanistic approach is optimistic and encompases the noble human capacity to overcome hardships while also emphasizing the personal worth of an individual, the centrality of human values, and the
These psychologists were Carl Rogers and Abraham Maslow (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). They found behaviorism too limiting (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). As a result, they founded this new school of thought known as humanistic psychology (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). Humanistic psychology is essentially the study of the self and how individuals perceive and interpret events (McLeod, 2007b). Humanists drew attention to how current environmental influences can nurture or limit growth potential and stressed the importance of having needs for love and acceptance satisfied (Meyers & DeWall, 2014 ). Humanistic psychology introduced a new set of values for approaching and understanding human nature and condition as well as a new perspective on methods of inquiry in the study of human behavior (McLeod, 2007b). Not to mention it provided a broader range of more effective methods in the field of psychotherapy (McLeod, 2007b). Humanistic views assume that people have free will and are ultimately good (McLeod, 2007b). According to McLeod (2007b), the humanistic approach emphasizes that humans have an innate need to make themselves and the world better. He also states that the humanistic approach is optimistic and encompases the noble human capacity to overcome hardships while also emphasizing the personal worth of an individual, the centrality of human values, and the