choice. Had Morrison seen a humanistic therapist, he probably would have
been encouraged to accept this responsibility and make choices about his life-style consistent with his individuality and personal needs.
The third force in American psychology caught on rapidly with a large
number of psychotherapists and personality theorists. The emphasis on indi-viduality and personal expression in the 1960s (which gave rise to the coun-
terculture movement personified by Jim Morrison) provided fertile soil for
the growth of humanistic psychology. The election of prominent humanisticpsychologist Abraham Maslow to president of the American Psychological
Association in 1967 symbolized the acceptance of the humanistic approach
as a legitimate alternative perspective. But before we explore in depth whatthis alternative view is all about, let ’s examine where the humanistic ap-
proach came from.
THE ROOTS OF HUMANISTIC PSYCHOLOGY
Although humanistic psychology evolved from many sources, its roots lie pri-
marily in two areas: existential philosophy, which is decidedly European in
flavor, and the work of some American psychologists, most notably CarlRogers and Abraham Maslow.
Existential philosophy addresses many of the questions that later became
cornerstones of the humanistic approach. Some of these include the meaningof our existence, the role of free will, and the uniqueness of each human
being. Many psychologists, primarily European, align themselves so closely
with existential philosophers that they have adopted the label existential
psychologists . These psychologists rely heavily on the works of the great exis-
tential philosophers —such as Friedrich Nietzsche, Søren Kierkegaard, and
Jean-Paul Sartre —in developing their theories of personality. The list of
prominent existential psychologists includes Ludwig Binswanger, Medard
Boss, Viktor Frankl, R. D. Laing, and Rollo May. Existential psychotherapy
frequently focuses on existential anxiety —the feelings of dread and panic
that follow the realization that there is no meaning to one ’s life. Therapy
often emphasizes the freedom to choose and develop a lifestyle that reducesfeelings of emptiness, anxiety, and boredom.
At about the time existential philosophy was making its way into conver-
sations among psychologists, two American psychologists were writing abouttheir personal transitions from traditional psychology theories to a humanistic
perspective. Early failures as a psychotherapist led Carl Rogers to wonder
about his ability to decide for clients what their problems were and how to
solve them. “It began to occur to me, ”Rogers reflected many years later,
“that unless I had a need to demonstrate my own cleverness …I would do
better to rely upon the client for direction ”(1967, p. 359).
The turning point for Abraham Maslow came while watching a World
War II parade. Although the parade was supposed to promote American
patriotism and the war effort, it caused Maslow to question just how276 CHAPTER 11 The Humanistic Approach