Logotherapy is underpinned by the humanistic paradigm, as its key concepts recognise human individuality and freedom, as well as their need to fulfil their potential and find meaning. To understand the connection between humanism and logotherapy, it is important to first take a look at what humanism is, and how it came about.
Humanism, often referred to as the “Third Force” of psychology, emerged in the 1960’s in response to what some psychologists considered the shortcomings of behaviourism and psychoanalysis. These psychologists wanted to develop a different approach to studying humankind, an approach that emphasised humanisation as opposed to dehumanisation of the person. They criticised behaviourism for being preoccupied with the behaviour …show more content…
It draws on an optimistic outlook on human nature, with the belief that people are by no means pawns of their situations This is evident in logotherapy’s premise, ‘freedom of will’, which refers to human’s ability to make choices in life. Humanism further emphasises an individual’s power to overcome hardships. This is clearly seen in logotherapy, Frankl strongly believed that man’s ultimate freedom is the power to choose how we respond to suffering and pain, to change our attitude in order to overcome such …show more content…
It suggests that people cannot simply look to themselves or the therapist for the answer, but actually have to find it in the reality outside of them, and it is their responsibility to do so. In other words, meaning is not given but needs to be discovered. https://meaningtherapy.wordpress.com/2011/05/15/unique-aspects-of-logotherapy/
Criticisms of the humanistic approach: ??
The humanistic approach has been used in few psychological domains and thus its influence is restricted to areas such as therapy, motivation and personality. This may be due to a lack of empirical evidence to support its main theories, as the humanistic approach is non-scientific. This however, as humanists would argue, allows for a holistic, in-depth understanding of human behaviour, one of the aims of the humanistic approach. (https://www.simplypsychology.org/humanistic.html)
However, there is growing interest in integrating humanistic principles into psychological practices. (article
Humanism, often referred to as the “Third Force” of psychology, emerged in the 1960’s in response to what some psychologists considered the shortcomings of behaviourism and psychoanalysis. These psychologists wanted to develop a different approach to studying humankind, an approach that emphasised humanisation as opposed to dehumanisation of the person. They criticised behaviourism for being preoccupied with the behaviour …show more content…
It draws on an optimistic outlook on human nature, with the belief that people are by no means pawns of their situations This is evident in logotherapy’s premise, ‘freedom of will’, which refers to human’s ability to make choices in life. Humanism further emphasises an individual’s power to overcome hardships. This is clearly seen in logotherapy, Frankl strongly believed that man’s ultimate freedom is the power to choose how we respond to suffering and pain, to change our attitude in order to overcome such …show more content…
It suggests that people cannot simply look to themselves or the therapist for the answer, but actually have to find it in the reality outside of them, and it is their responsibility to do so. In other words, meaning is not given but needs to be discovered. https://meaningtherapy.wordpress.com/2011/05/15/unique-aspects-of-logotherapy/
Criticisms of the humanistic approach: ??
The humanistic approach has been used in few psychological domains and thus its influence is restricted to areas such as therapy, motivation and personality. This may be due to a lack of empirical evidence to support its main theories, as the humanistic approach is non-scientific. This however, as humanists would argue, allows for a holistic, in-depth understanding of human behaviour, one of the aims of the humanistic approach. (https://www.simplypsychology.org/humanistic.html)
However, there is growing interest in integrating humanistic principles into psychological practices. (article