Humanistic, Cognitive and Positive Psychology Theories - Research Paper Example

Psychology-Comparison and Analysis Introduction Psychology is the applied and scientific study of the human mind and behaviors through the understanding of mental functions in relation to behavior (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1330). It is also the study of physiological and neurobiological processes that influence certain cognitions, emotions, brain functioning, personality, behavior and interpersonal relationships. Psychology seeks to understand and explain how people think, act and feel with an aim of improving peoples’ lives by enhancing their performance, productivity, self-determination and motivation. Branches of psychology include behaviorism, psychoanalysis, humanistic psychology, cognitive psychology, and positive psychology (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1330). Humanistic psychology’s key ideas include the individual’s power to control of his condition and his mental health and man is considered the ultimate measure of all things (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1334). It studies the whole individual and the uniqueness of each person. This theory argues that all parts of the body make a person and therefore, studying human behavior involves studying the whole individual, not necessarily certain parts of his body. It also takes into account environmental influence to our mental health and behaviors. Humanistic approach looks at human behavior, not only through the eyes of the observer, but also the person performing the act. Humanistic psychologists believe that the behavior of an individual is connected to their inner feelings and desires and self-concept (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1334). Every individual is unique in their own way, their wishes and desires are different and hence studying man’s behavior involves taking into account individual uniqueness and individual desires that motivate an individual to a certain action. Cognitive theory is the study of perception, pattern recognition, attention, problem solving and decision making and memory, cognitive theory, hence does not dwell on individualism, but provided a broader perspective of human behavior (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1333). The key ideas of cognitive psychology are rooted in how people acquire process and store information. The theory argues that mental process such as attention that filters which ideas to concentrate on and what information to ignore hence influence human behavior among other mental processes like memory which also influence behavior. Positive psychology on the other hand focuses on human happiness and satisfaction. Its key ideas include strategies and skills that motivate people to cope with challenges of life more effectively and to enjoy their lives despite the challenges (Hefferon, Kate, and Ilona 52). The theory argues that people are generally happy and money makes other people happier due to the pleasure and the enlargement of peoples’ choices it comes with. It states that enlarging employment opportunities and physical activity in a world faced with illnesses caused by lack of physical activity such as obesity will reduce their risk of obesity hence leading to human happiness. Before World War II, psychology was involved with curbing mental illness, making the lives of people happier, productive and more fulfilling and to identify and to nurture talents. Humanistic psychology, cognitive psychology and positive psychology are all related historically. Humanistic psychology emerged in 1950s as a reaction to behaviorism and psychoanalysis which dominated psychology at the time. Behaviorism studied conditioning processes that produced the behavior (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1333) while psychoanalysis studied unconscious motivations that drive human behavior. Founders of humanistic psychologists included Carl Rogers who believed in the power of self-determination and the individual free will and Abraham Maslow who believed in the individual hierarchy of needs theory of human motivation. They saw psychoanalysis and behaviorism as too pessimistic as it only looked at the environmental and unconscious causes of human behavior. Humanistic psychology believed that human beings are good in nature and mental or social problems are as a result of man deviating from his nature. Cognitive psychology on the other hand came into being when knowledge and acquisition of skills were encouraged as a means of economic development. Cognitive psychology was used in 1967 by American psychologist Ulric Neisser to refer to all processes by which the sensory input is transformed, reduced, elaborated, stored, recovered and used. It provided a rather more compelling explanation for human behavior than behaviorism which generalized and made assumptions about human behavior. Cognitive theory focused on the study of perception, pattern recognition, attention, problem solving and decision making and memory, cognitive theory hence and does not dwell the individual as humanistic psychology but provided a broader perspective of human behavior (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1333). Cognitive psychology therefore came after humanistic psychology to explain a more compelling theory to human mind and behavior. Positive psychology was founded in 1988 by Seligman who was then president of the American Psychological Association. This period was characterized by globalization, global warming, drought, terrorism and insecurity that brought terror and sadness to the faces of the people. To cope with these challenges, states have established institutions that promote peace and economic, political and social cooperation. Seligman emphasized on happiness, optimism and mindfulness as the key to a meaningful and satisfying life. A satisfying life according to positive theory is characterized by meaning, pleasure, accomplishments, engagement, positive personal and interpersonal relationships (Hefferon, Kate, and Ilona 52). This theory focused on finding satisfaction and happiness even at the period when the world faced challenges of global terrorism and harsh climatic conditions. The humanistic psychology, cognitive psychology and positive psychology all relate historically as each tries to explain human behavior more comprehensively and compelling than the previous theory. The world is dynamic and the theories of psychology have evolved over time to explain human behavior more compellingly. The Zeitgeists is the dominant ideology of historical era, reflecting social, philosophical and scientific thoughts at that particular time. The effects of the Zeitgeists in the development of psychology in the late 20C and the 21st C cannot be underestimated and theories of psychology were also influential upon the Zeitgeists. The late 20 C in America was characterized with knowledge based economy hence giving birth to cognitive psychology. Cognitive psychology studied mental processes, how people think, their perception, memory and learning from childhood, adolescent to adulthood. The key focus of cognitive psychology was how people acquire, process and store information, which is education. It is aimed at exploring peoples’ perceptions, language, attention, memory, problem solving, decision making and judgments with an aim of improving memory, increasing decision-making accuracy, and enhancing learning (Weiner, Irving and Craighead 1333). This was in line with the late 20 century knowledge based economy. The knowledge based economy that existed in the century can also be figured out as a circumstance and point of history that encouraged learning and the acquisition of skills which gave birth to cognitive psychology which focused on increasing memory and improving learning. The Zeitgeist in the beginning of the 21st Century in America was also influenced and influential upon theories of psychology. The beginning of the 21st century was characterized by globalization which greatly influenced globalization of psychology and gave birth to positive psychology since this encouraged the formation of institutions that promote cooperation, peace and security in the United States to deal with threats of insecurity and to promote safety and happiness of the citizens. Positive psychology has also influenced the Zeitgeist in 21st Century in America as it analyses strategies and skills that motivate people to cope with challenges of life more effectively and to enjoy their lives despite the challenges and problems life has to offer (Hefferon, Kate, and Ilona 52). This led to the formation of conflict resolution institutions and encouraged growth of religion where individuals found meaning, pleasure, hope, faith and satisfaction in their lives. Research has supported humanistic, cognitive and positive psychology in the following ways. Cognitive research focused on improving knowledge and learning and structuring curricula to improve learning. In schools, cognitive psychology enables teachers realize how students can learn and remember information. Encouraging curricula in schools has been seen to encourage students’ performance. Qualitative research is useful for studies at the individual level to find out what people feel or think for example in case studies, using open ended questionnaires, diary accounts and unstructured interviews give more reliable outcomes. Humanistic theory argues that all individuals are unique and born with free will and each individual has inborn drive to achieve their maximum potential. Research showed that using humanistic psychology provides more reliable information because it does not generalize peoples’ perspectives or feelings. Research also showed that physical activity reduces the risk of medical complications hence encourages happy and satisfying lives. Positive psychology is therefore supported by this research since it focuses on strategies that promote people’s happiness and help individuals live satisfying lives and this include physical activity to encourage a healthy living. Positive psychology will have the most lasting impact in the 20 Century. This is because the 20th century is characterized with the challenges of global warming, terrorism, insecurity, homelessness, war, and the struggle for power (Hefferon, Kate, and Ilona 2). With the horror and threats, the happiness, well being, personal growth in the modern day can best be measured by positive psychology theory which focuses on the happiness, creativity, strengths, wisdom and welfare of the individual and the society of which individuals are part. To pursue and maintain global peace and security, states focus on happiness and well being of their populations by offering employment opportunities to reduce poverty levels and enlarge peoples’ choices, encouraging physical activity so as to avoid rising medical problems such as obesity and establishing institutions that enhance cooperation and states economic, political and social development. The essential elements of well being according to positive psychology include career well being which dictates where one spends most of his day, social wellbeing which is one’s relations with others, financial well being, physical well being and community well being (Hefferon, Kate, and Ilona 52). Research showed that an individual strengths and weaknesses change over time depending on the circumstances and the environment (Hefferon, Kate and Illona 201). After a tragedy such as illness or war, there is an increase in the peoples hope, faith, forgiveness, kindness and the love of learning. Using positive psychology, teachers are able to encourage students to work harder, coaches, therapists and employers are able to motivate their workers and help them understand and develop their personal strengths hence fostering not only individual satisfaction, but also the achievement of the company’s goal which leads to group satisfaction. In conclusion, humanistic, cognitive and positive psychology theories all enhance one’s understanding of human feelings, thinking and behavior. The human mind influences the body and vice versa. The world changes and as the times and environment change, individuals are forced to change how they behave to best suit the requirements of nature. Psychology has therefore developed over time to explore the functioning of the mind and how it influences man’s behavior. Work Cited Hefferon, Kate, and Ilona Boniwell. Positive Psychology: Theory, Research and Applications. Maidenhead, Berkshire, England: Open University Press, 2011. Print. Weiner, Irving B, and W E. Craighead. The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology. Hoboken, N.J: Wiley, 2010. Print. Read More