Psychology Essay Sample: Maslow’s Concept
How Has Abraham Maslow’s Idea of Self-Actualization Affected Psychology?
Abraham Maslow was an American psychologist. That he was one of many founders of a new trend in psychology – humanistic psychology.
Maslow said: “What a man could be, he should be. This need we call self-actualization. ”Self-actualization is a term that has been found in lots of psychology theories in a few different ways. ” The concept became well-known because of Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs.
It has physiological needs, safety needs, love and affection, estimation, self-actualization, meaning the realization of capabilities and talents. According to Maslow, the highest specific features of a human being, such as for instance love and creativity, are laid in his biological character as his inborn potentials, which are actualized under the influence of some social living conditions. The greatest demands which can be underlain can determine behavior only following the lowest is going to be satisfied. Self-actualization is not a passive state. It is an acting process when abilities of an individual are fully applied. That he also unearthed that self-actualization is achieved only by a few people who are samples of a full-fledged personality. Maslow described them as easy-going, practical, selective, creative, independent, deep and democratic inside their relations. This type of person devoted to their work or business.
Maslow’s thinking was different from his associates’ thinking. Most psychologists before him had handled mentally deranged people. That he worked with normal and successful. He wished to know what composed mental health insurance and he viewed the positive side of things and how each goes.
Notwithstanding the fact that Maslow’s ideas have now been criticized for the lack of a scientific case, his positive humanistic psychology gave birth to several different therapies, e. g., client-centered therapy produced by Carl Rogers. Maslow’s a few ideas are widely spread in the fields of management, preparing and training staff and in the education area. They are also successfully applied by many boffins nowadays.
