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Running head: Humanistic, Psychodynamic and Structuralism James Price AIU PSY206 06 February, 2009 Humanistic, Psychodynamic and Structuralism I am going to discuss Humanistic theory, Psychodynamic theory and Structuralism. I will attempt to compare and contrast these three theories. The humanistic theory was headed by two psychologists, Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers (Humanistic Theory, 2002). Their goal was to understand the personality and to improve the overall happiness of their patients. This theory is one of most sought out as far as self help is concerned.
There are four basic beliefs held by humanists. The first belief is that you must focus on the present, not to dwell upon the past or to look toward the future. The second is that one must accept their actions and consequences alike, whether good or bad. The third is to hold understand that one is not perfect and that their mistakes do not mean they are a bad person. The fourth states that the only way you can be happy is to attain personal growth and understanding. Then next theory I am going to discuss is one of the oldest theories, psychodynamic.
This focuses on treating patients who have a mental illness and focusing on that to determine what may or may not be lacking. Those who believe in this theory base ones actions on their childhood and the parental effect on them. Psychotherapists tend to believe that an adult’s traits are due to whether or not the patient was able effectively getting through the psychosexual stage of childhood development (Depression-doctor. com, 2004). With their beliefs, mental illness is caused by their upbringing and their inability to get through their childhood.
They feel that when this happens a person that has unresolved conflicts they form subconscious tendencies, such as OCD or being a perfectionist. There are treatments for these type of mental issues, or illnesses. Since these therapist are considered the best at listening and interpretation, they can see the entire picture, not just what is placed in front of them. Finally, Structuralism is focused on understanding the mental processes and breaking them down into the simplest forms. Structuralism is where introspection was first introduced, which is the inspection of an individual’s thoughts and feelings.
This was founded by Wilhelm Wundt, but it was Edward Titchner that really brought this form of psychology into the light, and with that, also died with him upon his death. Structuralism was the first major school of thought in psychology. It also played a major role in influencing experimental psychology, although short lived. The methods used in structuralism were said to be too experimental in the ways of studying the mind. Also, it claimed that the use of introspection led to too many variables in the final diagnosis (Murphy, 2001).
Although every form of psychology studies the mind, one way or another, rather diverse techniques and thought processes are used. Humanistic theorists feel that the present is the most important part of ones life and that that is what you must focus on. Psychodynamic theorists feel that all mental illnesses are based upon ones childhood and their upbringing. Lastly, structuralisms’, they believe in breaking down the human mind into so simplistic terms that many felt it was too simple and too experimental. References {text:bookmark-start} {text:bookmark-end} Depression-doctor. om. (2004, May 15). Psychodynamic Theory. Retrieved February 04, 2009, from Depression-docotor. com: http://www. depression-doctor. com/psychodynamic-theory. html Humanistic Theory. (2002, September 23). Retrieved February 4, 2009, from Allpsych. com: http://allpsych. com/personalitysynopsis/humanistic. html Murphy, M. D. (2001, October 22). Structuralism. Retrieved February 03, 2009, from Anthropological Theories: http://www. as. ua. edu/ant/Faculty/murphy/struct. htm If you need to type anything after the reference list then start it on this page