The Primary Source of Behavior - Essay Example

Carl Roger's theory of Self-actualization Questions Q1. What is the primary source of behavior Is it the result of heredity factors, or is it a product of interactions with the environment. How do these factors affect personality development According to Roger, behavior is a acquired through a learning process in a diverse social situations. It is mainly a product of interactions with the environment, which involves individual's ability to perceive and distinguish between different situations they encounter. Individuals attach meanings to feelings and experiences and based on those subjective meanings, they develop personality, rather than being born with a specific personality framework indicating there is no predetermined pattern or structure of personality development. Therefore each individual may have unique personalities due to unique life experiences and their interpretations. These are products of the concept of self leading to individual perceptions and feelings which ultimately strive to maintain and enhance the person. Q2. Whether or not there is a central aspect of personality such as the self. How does the concept of self develop As indicated in Roger's theory of self-actualization, the human behavior, which is essentially an expression of human actions in the social environment actually emanates from "self." The concept of self as indicated in Roger is "organized, consistent, conceptual gestalt composed of perceptions of the characteristics" of self and its relationships to others and various other aspects of life along with "the values attached to these perceptions." Therefore self does exist which essentially thrives in personal perceptions, feelings about one's own, perceptions about strengths and weaknesses, and interpretations about interrelations. In this way social experiences and their perceptions in the context of self shape the "self" when it continues to become fulfilled through its natural tendency to encounter new experiences. Q3. The flexibility of personality; is it constant or does it change If constant, why does personality remain constant What are the forces that influence changes in personality The concept of self-actualization contends that people can become fully functional with freedom and emotional support leading to a psychological growth. Each individual has a real self comprising of self perceptions and an ideal self which represents the individual's desire gained from experiences. When these two "self"s are congruent without any conflicts there is no need for adjustment leading to a seamless growth of self leading to the fullest possible functioning, where movement toward personality dimensions such as flexibility, autonomy, and self-acceptance are without events. Lack of self-actualization, on the contrary may lead to lack of self-esteem, lack of flexibility, feelings of inferiority, and other negative emotions. Therefore, formation of self values from experiences in public, private, and natural dimensions and the strong senses of these values impart flexibility to personality which can create another opportunity to enrich self. It means ideal and values gained and perceived from experiences impart new strengths regardless of external or internal pressures. Personality is experienced to be unchanging or perceived to be constant as a result of personal biases and tendency to selectivity in attending those elements of the person's phenomenal field that are consistent with his prior experience. Q4. The role of past experiences in shaping personality: How do life experiences affect personality Since personality is a byproduct of real-world experiences and attachment of meaning to it by self, the personality is considered to be a derivative of experiences and feelings. A person thus will be having various experiences which would continue to shape the personality as the meanings of personal experiences alter. This would mean every individual will have unique past experiences and their subjective interpretations uniquely configured leading to development of a unique personality. If seen in the light of self-actualization, through these experiences every person naturally tends to develop capacities leading to maintenance or enhancement of the acquired personality, reflecting a tendency or motivation to fulfill the personality through new experiences. Sense of self is influenced by past experiences, present situations, and future expectations. However, it should also be considered that inclination to past experiences can be a conscious choice, and the person may break away from it through conscious choices. Q5. The source of important characteristics of people: Do we have unique traits What are the unique traits What are the forces that shape unique traits Are we all basically the same In what ways are people the same The qualitative aspects of personality are strongly influenced by experiences from the natural environment and the drive of the person to gain self-actualization which emanates from the tendency to gain a congruency between actual self and ideal self. However, the manifestations of personalities are not dependent on these only. Each human being has some unique traits which distinguish that person from the other. According to the trait theorists, these traits such as achievement, affiliation, anxiety, aggression, and dependency are quantitative in nature and are assumed to be stable. This poses a dilemma as to why then are there differences between persons The traits and the amounts of traits interact differently in terms of perceptions of the environment and thus create a perceived difference between the personality and the behaviour. These amounts of unique traits which shape up the personality in conjunction with experiences are social adaptability, conformity, emotional control, self expression, and intellect. Q6. The nature of our interactions with others: Do we do so because we really care about others Do we help others for personal gain Is there such a thing as altruism The interpretation of behavior occurs in the social context and social interactions are nothing but self-actualization motive. Therefore, interactions with others are not altruistic or for really caring for others, rather an attempt to seek development of personal capacities. Since the development of self-concept is highly dependent on individual perceptions of experiences and is influenced by the need for unconditional positive regard, the social interactions are driven by the same impetus. Since the need for positive regard is an universal need in every person, all interactions ultimately are guided by that need, not to regard other persons. Thus instead of altruism or need to care for others, these interactions are results of a variety of experiences of frustration or satisfaction of the need for positive regard and the personal need for perception of a self-worth that is based on perceived attention from others and esteem received from others. Q7. What is the primary source of human motivation Is it based on internal rewards, on external rewards, or something else Since behavior is guided by personality and perceptions about real-world experiences through self-actualization, the need for positive regard, and sense of self regard, the external reward system drives the equilibrium. There is, however, often a discrepancy between the person's real self and ideal self. Basically the need of the individual to perceive themselves worthy makes him motivated. The need for attaining an idealized image may make the individual ignore the real self, and the person end up choosing thought over reality, other's perceptions over self perceptions, and experience over self. The primary source of motivation thus can be introjections as a part of self-actualization motive. Q8. What is the basic nature of human behavior Are we evil as Freud proposed, or are we basically good In contrast to Freudian theories, the basic nature of human being is inherently good by Rogerian theory. It has been believed that if a person remains relatively free of attempts to be influenced from others, the inherent and natural motives to self-actualization would lead to a sociable, creative, flexible, co-operative, and self-directed person, where a sense of self-regard play important roles. Through self-actualization, human can grow, express, and activate own capacities for good. Q9. What is your position on teleology and causality Is there a purpose for living What is that purpose Causality is an important aspect of human subconscious knowing and interpretation of experiences. This guides a person to evaluate new experiences for their growth potential. Causality also directs choices. It is a natural tendency for every human to live fully within the realm of experiences with ability to observe and interpret each moment of the experience. This mechanism offers the ability to generate flexibility or willingness to be changed as a result of interactions with the environment. The basic purpose of living is to live an enriched and meaningful life with openness to experiences more in touch with the person's essential self. Q10. Is our behavior driven by conscious choices that we make How do our choices influence our behavior Is behavior driven by forces external and inaccessible to us What are those forces According to Roger, every person has an experiential freedom of choices about thinking and developing a perspective on any circumstances, although this is often subdued by the environmental expectations out of them. The capacity of a person to reflect on self determines his choices. Usually, a person's ideal self and related aspirations would guide such choices and would foster further self-actualization. Therefore if the choice is driven by inner self, it would be guided by reality and the values. If the choice is driven by perceived self, it would be incongruent and may lead to discrepancies. Sometimes behaviours are driven by external forces are our desire for positive regard, genuineness, and need for empathy, but these forces are accessible to us through our perceptions and realizations about our inner self and can be separated from our inner aspirations. Reference Rogers, C.R., (1961). On Becoming a Person, Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Read More