fei75766_ch10_309-344.indd 318  02/06/20 12:29 PM
Part III    Humanistic/Existential Theories318
Levels of Awareness
Rogers (1959) recognized three levels ofawareness. First, some events areexperi -
enced below thethreshold ofawareness andareeither ignored ordenied. Anignored 
experience canbeillustrated byawoman walking down abusystreet, anactivity that
presents many potential stimuli, particularly ofsight andsound. Because shecannot 
attend toallofthem, many remain ignored. Anexample ofdenied experience might be
amother whonever wanted children, butoutofguiltshebecomes overly solicitous to
them. Heranger andresentment toward herchildren maybehidden toherforyears, 
never reaching consciousness butyetremaining apartofherexperience andcoloring 
herconscious behavior toward them.
Second, Rogers (1959) hypothesized thatsome experiences areaccurately sym -
bolized andfreely admitted totheself-structure. Such experiences arebothnonthreat -
ening andconsistent withtheexisting self-concept. Forexample, ifapianist whohas
fullconfidence inhispiano-playing ability istoldbyafriend thathisplaying isexcel -
lent,hemayhearthese words, accurately symbolize them, andfreely admit them to
hisself-concept.
Athird levelofawareness involves experiences thatareperceived inadistorted 
form. When ourexperience isnotconsistent withourviewofself,wereshape ordistort 
theexperience sothatitcanbeassimilated intoourexisting self-concept. Ifthegifted 
pianist weretobetoldbyadistrusted competitor thathisplaying wasexcellent, he
might react verydifferently thanhedidwhen heheard thesame words from atrusted 
friend. Hemayheartheremarks butdistort theirmeaning because hefeelsthreatened. 
“Why isthisperson trying toflatter me?Thisdoesn’t make sense.” Hisexperiences are
inaccurately symbolized inawareness andtherefore canbedistorted sothattheycon-
form toanexisting self-concept that,inpart,says,“Iamaperson whodoesnottrust
mypiano-playing competitors, especially those whoaretrying totrickme.”
Denial of Positive Experiences
Ourexample ofthegifted pianist illustrates thatitisnotonlythenegative orderoga -
toryexperiences thataredistorted ordenied toawareness; many people havedif-
ficulty accepting genuine compliments andpositive feedback, evenwhen deserved. 
Astudent whofeelsinadequate butyetmakes asuperior grade might saytoherself, 
“Iknow thisgrade should beevidence ofmyscholastic ability, butsomehow Ijust
don’t feelthatway.Thisclass wastheeasiest oneoncampus. Theother students 
justdidn’t try.Myteacher didnotknow what shewasdoing.” Compliments, even
those genuinely dispensed, seldom haveapositive influence ontheself-concept ofthe
recipient. They maybedistorted because theperson distrusts thegiver, ortheymay
bedenied because therecipient doesnotfeeldeserving ofthem; inallcases, acompli -
ment from another alsoimplies therightofthatperson tocriticize orcondemn, and
thusthecompliment carries animplied threat (Rogers, 1961).
Becoming a Person
Rogers (1959) discussed theprocesses necessary tobecoming aperson. First, anindi-
vidual must make contact —positive ornegative—with another person. Thiscontact is
theminimum experience necessary forbecoming aperson. Inorder tosurvive, an
infant must experience some contact from aparent orother caregiver.Final PDF to printer