Humanistic Learning Theory

– Abraham Maslow & Carl Rogers

Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
Maslow believed that people possess a set of
motivation systems unrelated to rewards or
unconscious desires .
He stated that people are motivated to achieve
certain needs. When one need is fulfilled a person
seeks to fulfill the next one, and so on.
The earliest and most widespread version of Maslow's
(1943, 1954) hierarchy of needs includes five
motivational needs, often depicted as hierarchical
levels within a pyramid.
Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs
This five stage model can be divided into two groupings: deficiency
needs and growth needs.
 Deficiency / basic needs encompass:
1 Physiological: hunger, thirst, bodily comforts, etc.;
(air, food, drink, shelter, warmth, sex, sleep, etc.)
2 Safety/security: out of danger; (protection from elements, security, order,
law, stability, etc.)
3) Belongingness and Love: affiliate with others, be accepted;
(friendship, intimacy, affection and love, - from work group, family, friends,
romantic relationships.)
4) Esteem: to achieve, be competent, gain approval and
recognition (self-esteem, achievement, mastery, independence, status,
dominance, prestige, managerial responsibility, etc.)
Growth needs
5) Self-actualization (realizing personal potential, self-fulfillment, seeking
personal growth and peak experiences.)
Within the deficiency needs, each lower need must be
met before moving to the next higher level. The need to
fulfill such needs will become stronger the longer the
duration they are denied. For example, the longer a
person goes without food the more hungry they will
become.
One must satisfy lower level basic needs before
progressing on to meet higher level growth needs. Once
these needs have been reasonably satisfied, one may be
able to reach the highest level called self-actualization.
Self-actualization
Maslow (1943, 1954) emphasized that human
motivation is based on people seeking fulfillment and
change through personal growth. Self-actualized
people are those who were fulfilled and doing all they
were capable of.
The growth of self-actualization (Maslow, 1962) refers
to the need for personal growth and discovery that is
present throughout a person’s life. So, a person is
always 'becoming' and never remains static in these
terms. In self-actualization a person comes to find a
meaning to life that is important to them.
Some of the characteristics of self-actualized people

Although, theoretically, everyone is capable of self-

actualizing, most of us will not do so, or only to a
limited degree. Maslow (1970) estimated that only 2%
of people will reach the state of self actualization. He
identified the characteristics of people whom he
considered to have achieved their potential as
persons.
Characteristics of self-actualizers:
1. They perceive reality efficiently and can tolerate uncertainty;
2. Accept themselves and others for what they are;
3. Spontaneous in thought and action;
4. Problem-centered (not self-centered);
5. Unusual sense of humor;
6. Able to look at life objectively;
7. Highly creative;
8. Resistant to enculturation, but not purposely unconventional;
9. Concerned for the welfare of humanity;
10. Capable of deep appreciation of basic life-experience;
11. Establish deep satisfying interpersonal relationships with a few
people;
12. Peak experiences;
13. Need for privacy;
14. Democratic attitudes;
15. Strong moral/ethical standards.
Behavior leading to self-actualization
(a)Experiencing life like a child, with full absorption and
concentration;
(b) Trying new things instead of sticking to safe paths;
(c) Listening to your own feelings in evaluating
experiences instead of the voice of tradition, authority
or the majority;
(d) Avoiding pretense ('game playing') and being honest;
(e) Being prepared to be unpopular if your views do not
coincide with those of the majority;
(f) Taking responsibility and working hard;
(g) Trying to identify your defenses and having the
courage to give them up.
Educational applications
A holistic approach to education and learning. The
hierarchy of needs looks at the entire physical,
emotional, social, and intellectual qualities of an
individual and how they impact on learning.
Before a student's cognitive needs can be met they
must first fulfill their basic physiological needs. E.g. a
tired and hungry student will find it difficult to focus
on learning. Children need to feel emotionally and
physically safe and accepted within the classroom to
progress and reach their full potential.
Children must be shown that they are valued and
respected in the classroom and the teacher should
create a supportive environment.
 Students with a low self-esteem will not progress
academically at an optimum rate until their self-
esteem is strengthened.
Teachers’ knowledge of the behavior leading to self-
actualization should be incorporated in teaching and
learning so children start developing the qualities of
self-actualizers at much earlier age.
Humanistic approach - Carl Rogers
Carl Rogers (1902-1987) was a humanistic
 psychologist who agreed with the main assumptions
of Maslow, but added that for a person to "grow", they
need an environment that provides them with
genuineness (openness and self-disclosure),
acceptance (being seen with unconditional positive
regard), and empathy (being listened to and
understood).
Rogers (1959) believed that humans have one basic
motive, that is the tendency to self-actualize - i.e. to
fulfill one's potential and achieve the highest level of
'human-beingness' we can. 
He (1959)believed that for a person to achieve self-
actualization they must be in a state of congruence.
This means that self-actualization occurs when a person’s
“ideal self” (i.e. who they would like to be) is congruent
with their actual behavior (self -image). 
As individuals, we want to feel, experience and behave in
ways which are consistent with our self-image and which
reflect what we would like to be like, our ideal-self.  The
closer our self-image and ideal-self are to each other, the
more consistent or congruent we are and the higher our
sense of self-worth. 
A person is said to be in a state of incongruence, if some of
the totality of their experience is unacceptable to them and
is denied or distorted in the self-image.
Self-actualization takes place when the person
achieves his / her goals, wishes, and desires in life.
People who are able be self-actualize, and that is
not all of us, are called fully functioning persons.
Five characteristics of the fully functioning person
1. Open to experience: both positive and negative emotions
accepted. Negative feelings are not denied, but worked through
(rather than resorting to ego defense mechanisms).
2. Existential living: in touch with different experiences as
they occur in life, avoiding prejudging and preconceptions.
Being able to live and fully appreciate the present, not always
looking back to the past or forward to the future (i.e. living for
the moment).
3. Trust feelings: feeling, instincts and gut-reactions are paid
attention to and trusted. People’s own decisions are the right
ones and we should trust ourselves to make the right choices.
4. Creativity: creative thinking and risk taking are features of a
person’s life. A person does not play safe all the time. This
involves the ability to adjust and change and seek new
experiences.
5. Fulfilled life: person is happy and satisfied with life, and
always looking for new challenges and experiences.
Self Worth and Positive Regard
 The main determinant of whether an individual will become self-
actualized is childhood experience.
 How we think about ourselves, the feelings of self-worth are
important in determining the likelihood that we can achieve goals and
ambitions in life and achieve self-actualization
 The feelings of self-worth developed in early childhood and were
formed from the interaction of the child with the mother and father.
As a child grows older, interactions with significant others will affect
feelings of self-worth.
 The need to be regarded positively by others; we need to feel valued,
respected, treated with affection and loved. Positive regard is to do
with how other people evaluate and judge us in social interaction.
Unconditional positive regard is where parents,
significant others (and the humanist therapist)
accepts and loves the person for what he or she is. 
People who are able to self-actualize are more likely
to have received unconditional positive regard from
others, especially their parents in childhood.
Conditional positive regard is where positive
regard, praise and approval, depend upon the child,
on condition that he or she behaves only in ways
approved by the parent(s). A person who constantly
seeks approval from other people is likely only to have
experienced conditional positive regard as a child.
References
McLeod, S. A. (2014). Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs.
Retrieved from
ww.simplypsychology.org/maslow.html
McLeod, S. A. (2014). Carl Rogers. Retrieved from
www.simplypsychology.org/carl-rogers.html
Tutorial 8
Both Social Cognitive Theory and Humanistic
Learning Theory emphasise on affective aspect of
education.

Elaborate on the features of each of this learning

theory and its implications in T & L.
Personality Development
Central to Rogers' personality theory is the notion of
self or self-concept, defined as "the organized,
consistent set of perceptions and beliefs about
oneself".
The humanistic approach states that the self is
composed of concepts unique to ourselves. The self-
concept includes three components.
Self worth (or self-esteem) – what we think about
ourselves. Feelings of self-worth developed in early
childhood and were formed from the interaction of
the child with the mother and father.
Self-image – How we see ourselves, is important to
good psychological health. Self-image includes the
influence of our body image on inner personality. At a
simple level, we might perceive ourselves as a good or
bad person, beautiful or ugly. Self-image has an effect
on how a person thinks, feels and behaves in the
world.
Ideal self – This is the person who we would like to
be. It consists of our goals and ambitions in life, and is
dynamic – i.e. forever changing. The ideal self in
childhood is not the ideal self in our teens or late
twenties etc.