Maslow (50-60s of the twentieth century): “the highest human need is the need for self-actualization. According to Maslow, self-actualization is a person becoming what he wants and can become.
Self-actualization is the full disclosure of the individual's talents and abilities; This is the realization of the creative potential of the individual: every person is talented and capable.
There are self-actualized people, their traits:
The desire to realize your creative potential
Goodwill
Philosophical non-hostile sense of humor
Adequate self-esteem
Experience of external experiences.
Ways to achieve self-actualization:
1. self-interest, self-knowledge.
2. the ability to “self-adjust” with your inner nature; ability to self-government - the ability to manage oneself.
3. the ability to make adequate life choices.
4. the ability to take responsibility for one’s own life path, for its natural formation.
5. attitude towards self-actualization as a worldview, a way of life.
Self-actualization is a person’s constant work on himself in the name of realizing his potential.
Maslow's structure of needs:
Maslow identified 5 main groups of needs that form a hierarchy:
1. need for life support (food, sleep, sex, material security)
2. need for security (confidence in the future, social security)
3. need social contacts(need for love, friendship, belonging to a group)
4. need for recognition (respect from others and self-esteem)
5. need for self-actualization
Groups 1-4 are satiable needs that can be fully satisfied. 5th need - a person can realize his personal potential for a very long time.
According to Maslow, in order for a person to realize his creative potential, all previous groups of needs must be satisfied. The first four groups of needs, being lower compared to the need for self-actualization, are at the same time the most pressing. Until the needs of levels 1-4 are satisfied, a person’s activity will be aimed at satisfying precisely these needs.
Ways to satisfy needs.
One of generic concepts humanistic pedagogy is the concept of “self-actualization”. Relevant is important, essential for the present time, manifested in reality. The concept of self-actualization got its start in philosophy. Actualization (philosophical) is a realization, a transition from a state of possibility to a state of reality. In psychology, actualization means an action consisting in extracting learned material from a long-term or short term memory for the purpose of its subsequent use in recognition, recall and reproduction. In pedagogy, to actualize means to extract, to claim hidden moral values inherent in consciousness by nature, to make them significant for the individual. Each scientist and practitioner of humanistic pedagogy (Socrates, John Amos Comenius, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Immanuel Kant, Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi, Adolf Disterweg, John Dewey, Maria Montessori, Charlotte Buhler, etc.) used the philosophical, psychological and pedagogical aspects of this in his own way phenomena. As a term with the prefix “self-,” the concept of actualization began to be used relatively recently. It was first introduced by Kurt Goldsch - tein to denote the activity of a biological process that exists in any living organism. In psychology, the concept of self-actualization appears thanks to the works Abraham Maslow(1908-1970, USA). He put many meanings into this concept, but the most significant for humanistic pedagogy is most likely the following: self-actualization is the desire for self-realization, for the actualization of what is contained as potentials. According to Maslow, self-actualization is a person’s desire to fulfill himself, namely, his desire to become what he can be. This is the full use of talents, abilities, opportunities, etc. by the person himself. Maslow did not imagine the self-actualized person as ordinary person, to whom something has been added, but as an ordinary person, from whom nothing has been taken away: “ Average person- this is complete human, with suppressed and suppressed abilities and gifts.” A. Maslow, in his concept of self-actualization, offers the following interpretation of the nature of personality: a person is naturally good and capable of self-improvement, people are conscious and intelligent creatures, the very essence of a person constantly moves him in the direction of personal growth, creativity and self-sufficiency; to study a person as a unique, holistic, open and self-developing system, A. Maslow used the concept of self actualization (English). Human development in this theory is presented as climbing a ladder of needs, which has levels, in which it is “highlighted”, on the one hand, social dependence of a person, and on the other hand, his cognitive nature associated with self-actualization. The author believed that “people are motivated to find personal goals, and this makes their lives significant and meaningful.” Issues of motivation are central to humanistic theory personality and describe man as a “desiring being” who rarely achieves satisfaction. A. Maslow considers all needs as innate. The hierarchy of needs, according to Maslow, can be traced from the first level, which consists of physiological needs associated with maintaining internal environment body. As these needs are satisfied, the next level of needs arises. The second level consists of the needs for safety, stability, confidence, freedom from fear, and security. These needs function similarly to physiological needs and, when satisfied regularly, cease to be motivators. The next, third level includes the need for love and affection, communication, social activity, the desire to have a place in a group, family. Next comes the fourth level, which consists of the needs for respect, independence, independence, mastery, competence, confidence in the world, the desire to have a certain reputation, prestige, fame, recognition, dignity. Dissatisfaction with the needs of this level leads a person to a feeling of inferiority, uselessness, and leads to various conflicts, complexes and neuroses. And finally, the last, fifth level of needs is the need for self-actualization, self-realization and creativity. The hierarchy of needs, according to A. Maslow, is a pyramid from lower needs (needs) to higher needs (growth needs). Need for self-actualization - special kind needs: “This is the need for “growth”, in contrast to the needs of “deficit,” which includes the needs of the four lower levels.” A. Maslow wrote that self-actualization means “a person’s desire to fulfill himself, namely, his desire to become what he can be.” According to A. Maslow, the tendency towards self-actualization constitutes the essence, the core of personality, i.e. a person’s desire to constantly embody, realize, objectify himself, his abilities, his essence. But a person can realize, embody himself only in activity. A person realizes himself in activity, and the content of the need for activity and the need for self-realization are the same for the individual. The theory of self-actualization developed by A. Maslow still continues to cause discussions, disputes and even protests. Apparently, such an ambiguous attitude is due to the fact that A. Maslow considered as examples of self-actualized people those who have a certain level of personal accomplishment both in professional and personal life. By studying the best, A. Maslow believed, one can explore the boundaries of human capabilities. He established the criteria for selecting self-actualized individuals as relative freedom from neuroses and the best use of their talents, abilities, and capabilities: “Self-actualized people, without a single exception, are involved in something that goes beyond their selfish interests, in something outside themselves.” Having analyzed life achievements and features outstanding people(A. Lincoln, A. Einstein, A. Schweitzer, B. Spinoza, P. Kropotkin, etc.), A. Maslow identified the characteristics of self-actualization:
1. A more selective perception of reality and a more comfortable relationship with it.
2. Acceptance (of yourself, others, nature). Self-actualizing people accept themselves and their nature without complaints or embarrassment, understanding its shortcomings, its discrepancies with the ideal, but without experiencing real anxiety.
3. Spontaneity, simplicity, naturalness. Self-actualizing people lack artificiality and the desire to produce an effect.
4. Focused on the task (problem center - tion). They have a life mission, a task that requires fulfillment, a goal external to themselves. They live in a world of broad, universal and lasting values.
5. Some isolation and need for solitude. The desire for loneliness, lack of involvement in what captures and absorbs others.
6. Autonomy, independence from culture and environment. People driven by growth motivation are characterized by self-sufficiency.
7. Constant freshness of the assessment. Ability to enjoy simple joys life. Draw strength from major life experiences. Ordinary people will know true value everyday surroundings (nature, loved ones, work) only after they are deprived of them.
8. Mysticism and experience of higher states.
9. Feelings of belonging, unity with others. In relation to other people, self-actualizing individuals experience deep feelings of identification, sympathy, love, and a genuine desire to help.
10. Deeper interpersonal relationships based on greater dedication, love, more complete transcendence of the boundaries of one’s “I”. The circle of friends is small. They do not forgive betrayal, hypocrisy, and narcissism.
11. Democratic personality structure. They do not notice class, social, professional, racial, etc. differences. They consider it possible to learn from anyone, as long as he has something to teach.
12. Distinguishing between means and ends, good and evil. Strong moral standards. They concentrate on goals, being able to subordinate means to them, and not vice versa, as is common among the majority. But any activity is considered by them as a goal, turned into an exciting game, entertainment.
13. Philosophical, non-hostile sense of humor. They do not accept laughter at causing harm to others, laughter of superiority, or protest against authority.
14. Self-actualizing creativity. Creativity as an expression of personal health is projected onto the whole world and colors any activity. Everything is done with a certain attitude and mood. A person can even see creatively, like a child sees.
15. Resistance to acculturation (average “cultivation”, familiarization with popular culture). They coexist with culture, but resist “cultivation” and maintain internal detachment from the culture in which they are immersed. But they fit into the framework of the conventions of material culture, although it does not have much meaning for them: by making life easier, things are not worth making a fuss about. Everything that is not essential is calmly accepted. But these conventions, if compliance with them seems unnecessary, can be discarded like boring clothes.
The culmination of A. Maslow’s thoughts on self-actualization, which do not always fit into the framework of generally accepted scientific and logical thinking, are eight types of behavior leading to self-actualization.
1. Self-actualization is a complete, living, concentrated experience of what is happening with a person and outside of him. Maslow calls moments of heightened awareness and intense interest self-actualizing.
2. Life is a process of elections. Self-actualization involves deciding in favor of growth in every choice. To choose growth means to open oneself to new, unexpected experiences, but to risk ending up in the unknown: “You cannot choose life wisely if you do not dare to listen to yourself, to your own self, in every moment of life.”
3. To actualize means to become real, to exist in fact, and not just in potentiality. Self-actualization is learning to tune in to your own inner nature: decide for yourself whether you yourself like a certain food, movie, book, regardless of opinions, etc. others.
4. Honesty and taking responsibility for your actions.
5. Trust your judgment and instincts.
6. Self-actualization - constant process development of their potentials.
7. “Peak experiences” are transitional moments of self-actualization. These are especially joyful and exciting moments in life. They are called strong feeling love, works of art, experiencing the exceptional beauty of nature.
8. Discovering your “defenses” and working on giving them up. The basis of personality, A. Maslow believed, is the motivational sphere, i.e. what motivates a person, what makes him a person.
Self-actualization as a capacity may exist in most people, but only in a small minority is it accomplished to some extent. Such people embody human essence as fully as possible. But there are very few self-actualized people, less than 1%, and teachers striving for self-actualization, according to the Psychological Institute Russian Academy education, only from 12 to 18%. Many people do not see their potential, and the process of growth requires a constant willingness to take risks, make mistakes, and abandon old habits. A. Maslow defined the life of a self-actualized person as “an effort or jerk when a person uses all his abilities to their full potential.” The author assumed that the actualization of human potential is possible “in a supportive society,” which has practically never happened in human history.
It is hardly appropriate to assert that “refined” self-actualization should certainly become the goal and meaning of education. However, if we keep in mind that the need for the implementation of physical and psychic powers most relevant in adolescence and adolescence, which is characterized by an increase in self-awareness, a transition from external determination of behavioral activity to self-determination, then the help of adults in determining the direction and methods of self-realization becomes very important for older schoolchildren. And this is already connected with a very real organization pedagogical support processes of self-knowledge, self-understanding, adequate attitude towards oneself. A. Maslow considered a person based on the position of his nature. Probably, it is precisely these positions that make sense to take into account for a teacher who risks creating conditions for the self-actualization of his students.
1. A person is free and responsible for his decisions, what lifestyle to choose and how to strive to actualize his potential; The older a person is, the higher he rises in the hierarchy of needs, the freer he is.
2. Human behavior is regulated by rational forces, acceptance rational decisions and the desire to rationally actualize one’s potential.
3. A person is considered as a whole. “It is John Smith who wants to eat, and not John Smith’s stomach,” therefore man is an integral being, striving for self-actualization.
4. Moderate constitutionalism, expressed in the concept of meta-needs using terms such as “innate desire”, “instinctive”, “inherent in man”, means that the desire to actualize one’s potential is an innate, not an acquired quality.
5. The constant desire for personal growth, when people have the ability to decide what they want to become, leads to the fact that the personality certainly changes.
6. Each person is unique in the expression of these needs, i.e. a person strives to actualize the unique self in accordance with his own assessment.
7. Although needs are innate, situational variables play a significant role, i.e. the influence of motivation (innate needs) and the social and physical environment that influence human behavior.
9. People cannot be studied by traditional methods, which is why they are unknowable, the traditional study of a person in parts must be replaced with an approach that allows people to demonstrate their subjective experience in a holistic manner (as a hierarchy of wholes).
The desire for self-actualization is the desire for self-affirmation through the manifestation, specific inclusion of a whole set personality structures consciousness: reflection, conflict, motivation, meaning-making, creating your own picture of the world, etc.
In psychology, the term “Self-actualization” means a person’s complete discovery and disclosure of one’s self, the implementation of one’s skills and talents in all spheres of life, the use of all existing inclinations and inclinations.
Thus, we can say that this mechanism manifests itself in the form of a desire for any identification and external expression individual of his capabilities. It should be noted that the possibility of self-actualization largely depends on the conditions external environment, social conditions and other factors, but at the same time it can in no way be imposed or transformed from the outside.
It is also noteworthy that this desire does not have any external goal and is determined purely by the internal positive nature of a person. Self-actualization often underlies humanistic trends in psychology, seen as a complex of personal freedom, the desire for the development of the individual, the realization of all human potentials and desires.
Self-actualization of personality
It should be noted that the problem of self-actualization in to a greater extent specialists such as K. Rogers and A. Maslow were interested. Thus, the very essence this concept comes from the classical directions of humanistic psychology. Moreover, the formation of the term is directly related to the formation of humanistic psychotherapy in the middle of the 0th century, when it took one of the leading places along with psychoanalysis, which was already popular by that time.
Taking themselves as a basis, the movement is seen as a direction based on the belief that each individual has the capacity for absolute disclosure if given the freedom and necessary conditions for this. In this case, the subject will be able to fully determine and direct his own destiny.
Some experts, in particular A. Maslow himself, believed that precisely such mechanisms as self-realization and self-actualization of the individual represent absolutely leading human needs, capable of replacing even food and sleep.
Experts also highlighted whole line qualities, some common features character traits of individuals who are very successful in self-actualization or have already reached great heights in it:
Such people often do what they love throughout their lives.
They are not subject to outside influence and are in complete control of their lives.
The individual strives for constant improvement and development. Likes to receive new information through reading.
Typically these are highly creative individuals. They are also often prone to positive type thinking.
Open at emotional sphere. It is much faster and easier to forgive yourself for any breakdowns or incontinence in a sensitive person.
To summarize, we can say with confidence that such an approach is the “golden key” to a happy life, because such people are in complete harmony with themselves.
Self-actualization Maslow
A. Maslow became known as the founder of the movement of humanistic psychology. Unlike his contemporaries, colleagues and specialists, he sought to study psychological norm. That is, he turned where more attention on healthy individuals, creatively developed, and also, subsequently, on those who have reached certain peaks within the framework of self-actualization.
Maslow's self-actualization, or rather, his theory regarding this psychological process, is based on the internal experience of the individual. From the point of view of a specialist, this was an absolute experience, liberated, alive and pure, that is, not burdened with “teenage shyness.”
Maslow also proposed his list of characteristic traits that he identified as leading for a person striving for self-actualization:
Such a person has a more accurate and effective perception of the surrounding reality and is able to more adequately contact it.
Absolute acceptance of yourself and your personality, environment, other people.
Such people are somewhat spontaneous, they are open, never cheat, and at the same time they always clearly know their goal and move towards it.
They are autonomous. Independent of the surrounding society and any cultural conventions. At the same time, they often need a certain solitude and isolation.
They are capable of deeper and stronger interpersonal relationships. They are also able to separate the ends from the means and separate the concepts of “good” and “evil.”
Quite often they experience a feeling of union with those around them; they are rarely impartial.
As a rule, these are creative people.
Maslow's main assumption regarding self-actualization was that in order to achieve set goals and avoid disappointment in human nature, an individual must first of all abandon the illusions imposed on him about it. That is, such people initially perceive themselves and those around them as they really are.
Need for self-actualization
In humanistic psychology, the need for self-actualization is considered as the main internal manifestation of the individual’s desire for development.
For example, K. Rogers in his concept assumed that self-actualization is based on a quality or even a whole phenomenon inherent in any living being, which literally pushes it to move forward. That is, this theory is based on the assumption of the existence of a certain innate quality, which, according to K. Rogers, always exists and only waits for certain positive conditions in order to manifest itself.
At the same time, if we consider the theory of A. Maslow, the main motivating force for human development can be a strong sense of the individual’s experience, aimed at his internal self-awareness and personal experience. Also given nature suggests that self-actualization is also reflected in the mechanisms of hedonism, that is, pleasure the highest blessings, finding its reflection in a feeling of absolute satisfaction with life, inner harmony, enlightenment.
Development of self-actualization
Today at modern world, the development of self-actualization is not only a pressing issue, but also very problematic. The rapid pace of life, the development of technology, the constant new conditions that our century dictates - all this poses before each person the task of adapting to these conditions.
Very often, self-actualization is perceived as a psychological new formation, a kind of complex. Which is very strongly associated with achieving maximum peaks, opportunities and skills in all areas of his life that are relevant to an individual.
Success in this direction sets the further pace of development of the subject. The process of self-actualization ensures the preservation of the integrity of the inner world, its balance. At the same time, harmony psychological organization Personality largely determines the individual’s motivation for further actions and development of himself as a unique personality.
Self-actualization has always remained and remains a pressing issue for any person - it has a great positive influence on a positive experience and foundation in the external world and manifestations of a person, which steadily leads to his inner positive experience and growth of self-esteem.
American psychologist Abraham Harold and Maslow(1908-1 970) - one of the founders of humanistic psychology. His Jewish parents immigrated to the United States from Russia. Maslow received a psychological education, became a professor of psychology, and was a member of a number of professional societies psychologists, was the founding editor of the Journal of Humanistic Psychology and the Journal of Transpersonal Psychology. Most of his books were written in the last 10 years of his life: “Towards the Psychology of Being” (1968), “Religions, Values and Summit Experiences” (1964), “Motivation and Personality” (1987) and others.
A. Maslow believed that psychoanalysis is a good system for analyzing psychopathology, but psychoanalysis is completely unsuitable as a theory to explain everything human behavior. Maslow based his research not on the study of sick people, as Freud did, but on the study of the biographies of the healthy, the most mature, creative and outstanding personalities, believing that only when studying the best representatives human race you can approach the boundaries of human capabilities and explore them.
Maslow notes that although his sample of “the best of the best” did not turn out to be absolutely perfect and ideal people, however, they were all distinguished by one characteristic feature, which he designated as self-actualization (Self-Actualization).
The term "self-actualization" was first coined by Kurt Goldstein. His ideas differed significantly from Maslow's formulations. As a neurophysiologist who worked with brain-damaged patients, Goldstein viewed self-actualization as a fundamental process in every organism, which consists in the tendency to actualize all the individual abilities inherent in it, “its nature.” This process does not always only have positive consequences for the individual.
Maslow defines the concept of “self-actualization” as the desire for self-expression with the most full use their talents, abilities and capabilities. Maslow believes that this high
The humanoid need for self-actualization is always present in a healthy person. In other words, a person must realize what is inherent in him from birth, what he can. If he has the ability of a scientist or an actor, then he is obliged to realize it. If he does not do this, if living conditions interfere with self-realization, then the conflict of dissatisfaction begins, which lies at the basis of neuroses.
In personology, the most important question is the question of motivation. Maslow believes that people are motivated to find personal goals that make their lives meaningful. Human needs are organized into hierarchical system priority and dominance (“pyramid of needs”): physiological needs, needs for safety and protection, needs for belonging and love, needs for self-esteem, needs for self-actualization (personal improvement). Satisfaction of needs located at the bottom of the hierarchy makes it possible to recognize and participate in the motivation of behavior of higher order needs.
The concept of self-actualization is the most important contribution Maslow in psychology. To get closer to understanding it, he cites a number of “types of behavior” leading to self-actualization:
1. Freshness of perception. Usually we are small and superficial with
we know what is happening in us and around us. However, sometimes we have
there are brief moments of heightened awareness and interest in one's
to the inner and outer world, when we observe especially beautiful
great natural phenomena, human creativity(sunset, car
tina artist) or experience emotional inspiration in
love - all these are “self-actualizing moments.” Self-actuals
tion means perception and experience complete, living, selfless
new, with maximum concentration and absorption. Self-actual
congestion people rarely complain about a boring, uninteresting life.
2. Personal growth and problem-centeredness.
Maslow believed that all the individuals he examined were
committed to some task, duty or calling. In other words
you, they were all not ego-centered, but oriented towards
tasks that are higher than their personal immediate needs
news If we think of life as a process of elections, then self-actualization
lization means a decision in favor of personal growth in each
choice. We often have to choose between growth and lack of
danger, between progress and regression. Each choice has
its negative and positive aspects. Choose safe -
means staying with the known and familiar, but risking becoming
outdated and funny. To choose growth is to discover yourself.
new, unexpected experiences, but risk being in the unknown.
3. Acceptance of yourself, others and nature.
Self-actualizing
people can accept themselves as they are. They're not superkree
sensitive to their shortcomings and weaknesses. Self-actualization is
learning to tune into one's own inner nature
go, with your self. By self, Maslow understands the heart.
guilt, own nature person, his unique tastes and prices
ness. A person must decide for himself whether he likes
yourself this or that food, movie, etc., regardless of
opinions and points of view of other people. To be updated means
become real, exist in fact, and not just in
potentiality. In a similar way they accept other people
and humanity as a whole.
4. Spontaneity, simplicity and naturalness.
In the story
in the behavior of self-actualizing people there is no artificiality or
desire to make an effect. But this does not mean that they are constantly
behave contrary to tradition. However, when the situation requires it,
they can be irreconcilable even under the threat of condemnation. Chas
integrity and acceptance of responsibility for one’s actions is essential
ny moments of self-actualization. Maslow recommends not posing
don't try to look good or satisfy your
the answers of others. You need to “dig the answers inside yourself, and every time,
when we do this, we come into contact with our self again.
5. Autonomy: independence from culture and environment. All
the previous one helps to develop in a person the ability to be independent
in their actions from their physical and social environment
wife, he is capable of "the best life choices"not only in
art, music, food, but also in serious problems of life, such
like marriage or profession. We learn to trust our judgments and
act in accordance with them.
6. Creativity.
Self-actualization is also a constant and
a continuous process of developing your capabilities and talents.
Great talent or intelligence is not the same as self-actualization.
Many gifted people have failed to fully utilize their
opportunities, others, maybe even with average talent, did
incredibly much. Self-actualization is not a thing that
one can have or not have, not a single achievement, but a process without
end, way of living.
7. More effective perception of reality.
Further
the step of self-actualization is the discovery of one’s “psychological
defenses" and work to abandon them. Psychological defenses are
mechanisms for distorting reality for the sake of self-conceit. We need to be aware of how we distort our self-image and the external world through repression, projection, and other defense mechanisms.
8. Summit, mystical experiences.“Peak experiences” are what Maslow calls particularly pronounced and fairly long self-actualizing moments lasting several minutes (rarely hours). They are caused by a strong feeling of love, experiences of exceptional beauty of nature or works human mind. At such moments we are more integrated into the world, we are more aware of it, we act and feel more clearly. The most significant "peak experiences" are rare. Poets described them as moments of ecstasy, and people of religion - as deep mystical experiences. According to Maslow, these peak experiences are not of a divine or supernatural nature - people simply feel greater harmony with the world, lose their sense of self or go beyond it, and lose their sense of time and place.
Unlike peak experiences, “plateau experiences” are more stable and lasting. Maslow describes it as a new, deeper way of seeing and experiencing the world. Maslow himself experienced a similar thing late in life, after a heart attack.
States similar to descriptions of “peak experiences” are often found in psychopathology in the form of peculiar altered states of consciousness - an aura before an epileptic seizure, during a migraine attack, when taking drugs, etc. Maslow finds similar states in healthy people and considers them an essential property self-actualization.
He found that some self-actualizing individuals tended to experience many peak experiences, while others experienced them only rarely. He calls the first "transcending the self-act of alizoralpG", and they often bring mysticism into what is happening, think more chaotically, are able to transcend (from the Latin transcendere - to step over) the categories of past, present and future, good and evil, perceive the unity behind the apparent complexity and contradictory nature of life. They are more innovators , than systematizers of the ideas of others, which are the other half of the self-actualizers from his sample.
Maslow considered humanistic psychology, the psychology of the “third force” (after psychoanalysis and behaviorism), transitional and preparatory to an even higher, fourth psychology - transpersonal psychology, centered on space rather than human interests and needs. It will go beyond the limits of human
th self-determination, self-actualization. Anthony Sutich, founder and first editor of the Journal of Transpersonal Psychology (founded in 1989 with the participation of A. Maslow) defined it as “the study of the ultimate abilities and possibilities” of a person. This psychology includes the study of religious experience, meditation and other methods of obtaining altered states of consciousness, parapsychological phenomena, etc. Theoretical sources of transpersonal psychology include the teachings of medieval mystics (especially Maister Eckhart, XIII-XIV centuries), Eastern philosophy (mainly Indian), and the analytical psychology of C. Jung. The modern representative of the direction is Stanislav Grof.
The essence of theoretical concepts here comes down to the fact that the determinants of human behavior and sources psychological problems are beyond individual, lifetime experience. A person with his lifetime formed psyche, experience and qualities is traditionally designated as “persona”. In addition, there is something outside of man that exists within him. individual experience, outside his “persona”, i.e. transpersonal. This “something” is, according to the mystics’ concept, a particle of God; for C. Jung, it is archetypes.
Maslow believes that self-actualization is the highest human need, the implementation of which is possible after satisfying lower-order needs - respect, love and belonging, security, as well as physiological needs (the “pyramid” of needs). Neurosis, as Maslow understands it, is a “disease of deprivation” of satisfying fundamental needs, just as a lack of vitamins causes physical illness.
In the motivational sphere of personality, Maslow distinguishes motivation, which orients behavior towards eliminating deficit anything necessary for the body, i.e. satisfaction of any need that is not satisfied or frustrated (D-motivation), and motivation for growth, being(B-motivation). Examples of motivation of the first group (deficient motivation) are hunger, pain, fear. But when the body does not experience hunger, pain, or fear, new motivations appear, such as curiosity or the desire to play. This activity can be satisfying in itself. It relates to the world of being, satisfaction and enjoyment in the present (existential motivation). In accordance with this, Maslow distinguishes between B- and D-cognition, B- and D-values, B- and D-love, and the like. For example, in D-cognition, objects are viewed solely as need-satisfiers. A hungry person notices food, and a beggar notices money. B-cognition is more accurate and effective, it distorts its perception less in accordance with
with a need or desire, it does not judge, evaluate, or compare. B-love of nature is expressed in the ability to appreciate flowers and observe their growth. D-love is more likely to be expressed in picking flowers and arranging bouquets of them. B-love is love for the essence, “being” and existence of another.
Psychological utopia: Eupsycheia. A. Maslow, like many other psychologists, is the creator psychological theories personalities, did not ignore the devices public relations. He dreamed about utopian society, which he called Eupsyche. In his opinion, a good person and good society- It is the same. Society, Maslow believed, must find ways to realize the potential of its citizens: “enlightened management” assumes that workers want to be creative and productive, they just need support and approval, and not restrictions and control by the administration. Forcing oneself to act always indicates a certain conflict of motives, and ideally a person does what he should do because he wants to do it.
Carl Rogers (C. Rogers): phenomenological theory of personality
Carl Ransom Rogers (1902-1987) - American psychologist whose work has received widespread recognition in the field clinical psychology. His main work is the book “Client-Centered Therapy: Its modern practice, meaning and history" (1951). It sets out a theory that most fully reflects phenomenological direction in the study of personality. Rogers is also the author of many books on psychological counseling.
The phenomenological school of psychology emphasizes the idea that human behavior can only be understood in terms of its subjective perception and knowledge of reality- from the point of view of his internal, subjective experience. The external world is only that reality that is consciously perceived and interpreted by a person in this moment time.
Another important idea of the phenomenological direction is the recognition that people are free to decide their destiny. If people believe that they live under some forces that they cannot resist, then this is because they have lost faith in the freedom of self-determination that is inherent in their nature.
3 Sidorov P.I. and Ir. T. II 65
Last important thesis phenomenological direction is that man is good by nature and strives for perfection, realizing your internal capabilities.
Rogers' view of personality was shaped by his personal experiences working with people with emotional disorders. As a result of his clinical observations, unlike Freud, who saw in instincts driving forces personality, Rogers came to the conclusion that man by his inner nature is good and his essence is oriented and aimed primarily at forward-toward movement positive goals. A person strives to realize himself if he is given the opportunity to reveal his innate potential. Of course, Rogers admitted that people sometimes have evil feelings and abnormal destructive impulses, but then the person does not behave in accordance with his inner nature. Rogers argues that his view of human nature is not naive optimism, but is based on 30 years of experience as a psychotherapist.
K. Rogers, like A. Maslow, considered the main life motive of human behavior to be his tendency to actualization, which is the desire to develop all his abilities in order to preserve and develop his personality. This fundamental tendency (the only one postulated by the author) can explain all other motives - hunger, sexual desire or the desire for security. All of them are only specific expressions of the main tendency - to preserve oneself for development, actualization.
What is real for a person, his thoughts and feelings, is only what exists within his internal coordinates or subjective world, which includes everything that is conscious at a given moment in time. Phenomenologically speaking, each person reacts to events in accordance with what he feels, subjectively perceives at the moment. Since different people can perceive the same situation in diametrically opposed ways, phenomenological psychology defends the doctrine that psychological reality phenomena is solely a function of how they are seen and perceived by specific people. Rogers is interested in psychology precisely in this psychological reality, and objective reality, in his opinion, is the destiny of the study of philosophers. If we want to explain why a person feels, thinks and behaves in a certain way, then we must understand his inner world, his subjective experience, i.e. psychological reality.
A person’s behavior is not determined by the past events of his life, but only by how a person perceives his environment here and now. Of course, past experience influences the perception of the present, but a person’s actions determine how this past is perceived now, in the present time. Moreover, Rogers believed that behavior is influenced to a greater extent not by a person’s past history, but by how he sees his future. And finally, he emphasized that the personality should be considered not only in the context of “present-future”, but also as a whole, whole organism, and this unity cannot be reduced to the constituent parts of the personality. Rogers' commitment to holistic direction visible in almost every aspect of his theoretical system.
The most significant element psychological reality, a person's individual experience is his self, or Self-concept. Self-concept is a person’s system of views on his essence, on what he is. In addition to the true self (real self) and ideal self (ideal self), the self-concept can include a whole set of self-images: parent, spouse, student, musician, leader, etc.
The self-concept is a product of human socialization, and in the process of its formation, a child, and then an adult, always needs positive attention from his environment. This attention, according to Rogers, must be unconditional, i.e. without any ifs and buts. A person should be perceived as he really is. That's exactly what unconditional positive attention we see the love of a mother for her son, regardless of his misdeeds. Conditioned positive attention we see when a child is told that if he gets excellent grades for half a year at school, then they will buy him some kind of toy that is interesting to him. This kind of conditioned positive attention is also widespread in the everyday life of adults. Rogers argues that conditional positive attention causes damage to personal development, the child tries to meet the standards of others, rather than determine for himself who he wants to be and what to achieve.
Rogers believes that most human behavior is consistent (congruent) with the self-concept, or at least the person strives for this. All experiences that are consistent with the self-concept are well recognized and accurately perceived. And vice versa, experiences that are in conflict with the “I” are not allowed to be realized and accurately perceived. In Rogers' theory, anxiety and a threat to well-being begin to arise only when
people begin to realize the discrepancy between the self-concept and their actual real state. So, if a person considers himself honest, but commits a dishonest act, he will feel anxiety with confusion and guilt. It is also very likely that a person experiences anxiety, but is not aware of the reasons for it. An anxious person is a person who is vaguely aware that acknowledging or symbolizing certain experiences will lead to a violation of the integrity of his current self-image. Psychological personal defenses are called upon to preserve the integrity of the self-structure.
If a person’s experiences are completely inconsistent with the self-concept (incongruence), then severe anxiety and he develops a neurotic disorder. A “neurotic” person’s psychological defense is still quite strong and, although he needs the help of a psychotherapist, his self-structure is not significantly disturbed. If ineffective psychological protection and significant destruction of the self-structure, a person develops psychosis and needs the help of a psychiatrist. Rogers suggests that personality disorders can arise either suddenly or gradually. In any case, as soon as a serious discrepancy between the Self and the experience appears, the person’s defenses cease to function adequately and the previously integral structure of the Self is destroyed.
Klien! - centered non-directive psychotherapy. In the therapy of personality disorders, according to Rogers, in order to implement constructive personality changes, the presence of following conditions:
1. The presence of psychological contact between the psychotherapist
and the client.
2. The client is incongruent, vulnerable and anxious, so he
asked for help.
3. The therapist must be congruent, harmonious and
sincere in relationships with your clients.
4. The therapist experiences unconditional positive attention
tion to your client. The atmosphere of the psychotherapy process should
create confidence in the client that he is fully understood and
accepted.
5. The therapist experiences empathic understanding of the inner
your client's early experiences. The psychotherapist feels inside
the patient's external world as if it were his own internal
early world.
6. Empathic understanding must be transferred to the client
attention and unconditional positive attention of the psychotherapist. Bess
It makes sense to have similar feelings for your client if the latter does not know about it. The psychotherapist must try to convey this attitude to the client with every word and gesture.
Rogers argues that it is the client, not the therapist, who is responsible for personal growth and the results of psychotherapy. The author's use of the concept "client" instead of "patient" emphasizes recognition of this. This approach is understandable to everyone who shares Rogers' optimistic view of human nature - provided there is the right conditions the person himself strives to move towards personal growth, actualization and health. Person-centered psychotherapy is designed to resolve incongruence between experiences and the self.
Training groups. Training groups are created for training with healthy people. We are talking about using group forms of interaction between people not for therapeutic purposes, but for gaining life experience and personal growth. The emergence of this kind of psychocorrectional groups is due to the desire for self-expression, characteristic of the humanistic movement. Among such psychocorrectional groups, organizational development groups (solving certain problems) can be distinguished; leadership training groups, interpersonal skills training (socio-psychological training); personal growth groups and others. K. Rogers (1947) paid especially great attention to providing psychological assistance to personal growth using group methods. His concept of "encounter groups", focusing on the search for authenticity in the expression of feelings, thoughts and behavior, is closely related to his work in client-centered psychotherapy.
When conducting classes in training groups, it is considered that the group is real world in miniature. She has the same life problems interpersonal relationships, behavior, decision making, conflict resolution, etc. The only difference from reality is that in this “laboratory” everyone can be both an experimenter and the subject of an experiment. First of all, the training group human relations(T-group) teaches how to learn. All group members are involved in a common process of mutual learning, and they learn to rely more on each other than on the leader. Learning how to learn involves first and foremost a process of self-discovery (expanding one's self-image). Most effective model A useful tool for understanding this process is the “Jogari window,” named after its inventors Joseph Laft and Harry Ingram.
Joghari Window
IN compliance With Using the Jogari model, we can imagine that each person contains four personal zones:
1) “Arena” is what others know about me and I know myself, or
personal space open to everyone;
2) “Visible” is something that is known only to me (for example, my
fears or love affairs), I carefully hide it from others
vayu;
3) “Blind spot” is what those around me know about me, I
it is not visible (as in the proverb: “In someone else’s eye a sliver is visible, but in your own
the log doesn't notice");
4) “The unknown” is hidden from everyone (the subconscious zone), in
including latent reserve resources for personal growth.
The Joghari Window clearly demonstrates the need to expand contacts and expand the arena. At the beginning of classes, the “arena” is usually small, but as cohesion and mutual understanding in the group increases, it increases, and all the best personal resources are activated. Receiving signals feedback from each other, group members can adjust own behavior, become more natural in expressing their feelings. An important condition The group's work is to focus on the "here and now" principle. What is relevant in a group is only what happens in it. The creation of various experimental group situations will allow you to apply the acquired knowledge and skills social interaction and in real life (in the family, at work).
In 1954, in Motivation and Personality, Abraham Maslow proposed that all human needs are innate and organized in a hierarchical system. This interesting theory, which shows that having satisfied one level of needs, a person is motivated to realize himself at the next. Although Maslow's pyramid is often criticized as a broken and absurd model, in this article we will try to prove that for some people it can be of great importance.
About Maslow's pyramid
The pyramid of needs is the name of a hierarchical model of human needs, which is a simplified presentation of ideas American psychologist Abraham Maslow. It reflects one of the most known theories motivation - theory of the hierarchy of needs. Let's briefly go over the seven levels of the pyramid.
- Physiological needs ( lowest level): thirst, hunger, sexual needs, sleep.
- Security needs: stability, comfort, security, confidence.
- Social needs: communication, love, support, joint activities.
- Need for respect and recognition: recognition, self-esteem, success, approval.
- Cognitive (creative) needs: creativity, creation, cognition, discovery.
- Aesthetic needs: order, harmony, beauty.
- The need for self-actualization (highest level): personal growth, realization of one’s goals and abilities, .
Criticism of the pyramid
Based on Maslow's theory, an ideally happy society is a society of well-fed people who have no reason for fear and anxiety. He argued that in this case a person develops more high needs. Is it really?
Psychologist Ed Diener studied housing conditions, finances, safety, nutrition, social support and emotions of people from 155 countries over five years. The scientist identified both some patterns and deviations. There are people who moved upward as if for them Maslow's pyramid was an internal constitution. However, he discovered what we already knew deep down - a person can demonstrate high level self-actualization and beauty social relations even when his basic physiological needs, as well as the need for safety, are not fully met.
And our life observations show that the majority of people, having satisfied the first two levels, begin to simply mark time. Such people consider themselves happy, but such happiness is local and fake. A society in which most people are on the second rung and do not strive higher can be called unconscious.
Now let's talk about Maslow's pyramid in more detail and draw some important conclusions from this theory.
Self-actualization in Maslow's pyramid
Self-actualization is a person’s desire to most fully identify and develop his personal capabilities. In pedagogy and psychology of the humanistic direction, it is argued that only through self-actualization can a person realize himself, achieve success and find the meaning of his existence. Already sounds similar enough to Maslow's theory, is not it?
Analyze your life according to Maslow's pyramid. Perhaps you have big problems with self-confidence, conflicts in the family or you have not achieved success at the point in time you planned. As a result, you look at the pyramid and it rather reminds you of a giant piece of cheese with holes inside. At this moment, you clearly realize that you have not fully realized yourself in life, have not achieved self-actualization, and also have not thought enough about your life using this method.
Some people reach the top of the pyramid very quickly. But as a rule, these are yogis, monks or hermits. They may have achieved self-knowledge in the caves, but they sacrificed everything else. For example, social needs. It's hard to say whether these people are happy. Therefore, a gradual ascent to the top of the pyramid would be more or less correct.
One of the main problems modern society the fact that many people cannot find a use for themselves and do not reveal their talents and abilities. And if so, there can be no talk of any realization in life. They are forced to choose a job that does not require any special abilities and at the same time it takes up almost all of their time. The time they need is just to develop their abilities. These people find themselves in a vicious circle. The desire to develop and motivate oneself to realize oneself in life disappears. They replace higher values with ordinary comfort. And even if they have time left after work, they fill it completely unnecessary things. Their contribution to society is minimal and subconsciously they understand this. This leads to learned helplessness and victim syndrome. It's sad there isn't one effective medicine which will help pull such a person out of the vicious circle. That is, of course, there are ways (meditation, ), but try to force a person to use them and you will encounter complete misunderstanding.
If you are reading this article, it means that you at least want a little more from life than satisfaction. physical needs. Let's think about success? What immediately came to your mind? Many people misunderstand the meaning of this word, and this is where the roots of many problems grow. Success is not money or comfort. Even if you think so, you cannot be truly happy. Traveling to other countries, eating a wide variety of foods and best clothes- this is not success. These are pleasant things that for many become an end in themselves.
So what is success? This is personal growth. Because if you imagine a situation in which everything was taken from a person - food, clothes, money, home - what will be left in the end? The personality will remain. Of course, it can also be taken away with the help of various psychological tricks and devices. For example, you may have read the book “1984” by George Orwell and understand perfectly well what it’s about. we're talking about. But you are also probably familiar with the name Viktor Frankl. And it's not literary character, A real personality. This is a man who could not be broken. Read about it if you have the opportunity. This is personal growth.
Why many people don't want to exercise personal growth? Because it's boring and difficult. In addition, it implies a refusal to instantly satisfy one's needs. It requires will and thought and long period time. The ability to give up short-term pleasures for long-term goals is what makes the difference between a mediocre person and a successful person. A successful person is willing to temporarily sacrifice comfort and focus on higher goals. This even manifests itself in finance: the ability to not spend everything you earn in order to save money for something more important. No, not buying a car instead of a phone, but rather opening a business that you believe in and that can benefit society, no matter how pompous it may sound. There are such people, and there are only a few of them. We consider them blessed and at the same time admire them. Sometimes the thought may cross our minds that we are also capable of this, but the next second we drive it away.
Success is the absence of selfishness. Again, the desire to support yourself and your family is a wonderful aspiration, but if you don’t want more, then true success cannot be achieved. We social personalities and no matter how you treat people, they surround and influence us. It's good if you have friends, family and loved ones around you, you have a roof over your head and a decent income. However, you live in society and every day you are faced with the most different people. Perhaps not the nicest or smartest. In fact successful man will see a part of his guilt in this. Existence shapes consciousness. And if you don't try to change society, it will certainly change you.
Your goal as Homo sapiens is to fill these holes in the piece of cheese called Maslow's pyramid, no matter in what order. This is a great strategy for self-actualization. To do this, answer two questions, just give yourself enough time to think.
- What level of the pyramid are you stuck on? Perhaps your needs are partially met on many levels, note this for yourself.
- What are you missing? For example, you lack self-esteem. There are two possible options here. First: you achieve your goals, but still do not respect yourself enough - then this is a problem or partly far-fetched. Second: you don’t achieve your goals and give up halfway through. In this case, you need to develop discipline and...
We wish you good luck in self-actualization!