Self-Concept-PSY - Essay Example

Rogers and his Psychological Theory Carol Rogers was a very important theorist in psychology. He set the foundation for counseling theories, which were derived from his humanistic and religious traits. As a result, his personality theory is based on the qualities of the interior of a person and how they interact with the exterior aspects of a person. Roger’s theories are often compared to that of Maslow because they both share a hierarchy of needs and certain traits which must be met in order for a person to be considered “fully functional” in society.

I think that the most important component of Roger’s existential theory is that of the ability to make choices, which falls under experiential freedom. This means that we have the ability to make choices and that not everything in life is completely deterministic, even though some aspects are. Through exploring experiential freedom, this is the way in which we learn and grow. Societies and the development on both the personal level and collective level is based on the ability to make choices, whether they are right or wrong.

I think that the least important trait is organismic trusting. Roger’s basically stated that this is doing what feels natural. As a component of basic living, humans are going to do whatever they please, whether it is natural or not. Thus, this component of being able to be “fully functional” seems to be redundant and unnecessary. These qualities are related to the development of personality. The decisions and method by which a person lives will inherently play a role in the development of the self.

In addition, the qualities of society and socialization will also play a role in the development of personality. The five traits are highly abstract that deal with the ability to make choices and the way in which a person looks at the world and interacts. As a result, this interactionist perspective relies on the fact that the development of personality is the result of many diverse interactions with the environment and other individuals. Maslow and Rogers are very close in the way that they attempt to standardize a “fully functional” individual in society.

They take on a humanistic and existentialist philosophy. Unlike Maslow’s theory, Roger’s allows these five traits to be done at different times/different combinations in order to achieve functionality. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is built on the premise of a pyramid in that in order to move from one stage to the next, the previous stage must be overcome. Thus, Roger’s gives a more flexible perspective on human behavior, which allows him to create more parsimony in personality development.