Rogers based his theories of personality development on humanistic psychology and theories of subjective experience. He believed that everyone exists in a constantly changing world of experiences that they are at the centre of. A person reacts to changes in their phenomenal field, which includes external objects and people as well as internal thoughts and emotions. Rogers further divided the self into two categories: the ideal self and the real self. The ideal self is the person that you would like to be; the real self is the person you actually are. Rogers focused on the idea that we need to achieve consistency between these two selves. We experience congruence when our thoughts about our real self and ideal self are very similar—in other words, when our self-concept is accurate. High congruence leads to a greater sense of self-worth and a healthy, productive life. Conversely, when there is a great discrepancy between our ideal and actual selves, we experience a state Rogers called incongruence, which can lead to maladjustment.

1. Carl Rogers
(1902-1987)
Humanistic Psychologist
K.THIYAGU,
Assistant Professor, Department of Education,
Central University of Kerala, Kasaragod
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2. Born January 8, 1902
Oak Park, Illinois, U.S.
Died February 4, 1987 (aged 85)
San Diego, California, U.S.
Nationality American
Fields Psychology
Alma mater University of Wisconsin–Madison
Teachers College, Columbia University
Known for The Person-centered approach
(e.g., Client-centered therapy,Student-centered learning,Rogerian argument)
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3. Carl Rogers:
Person Centered Therapy
He Viewed personality structure
in terms of “self-concept”
or the beliefs about ones own
behavior, nature, and qualities
An important tool in
human self-
actualization is
the development of
an image of oneself,
or the self-concept.
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5. The humanistic approach states that the self is composed of concepts
unique to ourselves.
The self-concept includes three components:
Self Worth
Self
Image
Ideal
Self
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6. Self worth (or self-esteem)
What we think about
ourselves.
Rogers believed feelings of self-
worth developed in early childhood
and were formed from the
interaction of the child with the
mother and father.
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7. Self-image
which is important to good psychological health.
How we see
ourselves
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.
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8. 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.
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9. refers to how we see our describe ourselves
Positive tend to act, feel, think
optimistically & Constructively
Negative tend to act, feel & think
pessimistically & destructively
SELF-CONCEPT
Two kind of selves
Ideal Self: Based in our hopes & wishes;
How we would like to see ourselves
Real Self: Based on actual experiences;
How we really see ourselves
SELF-CONCEPT
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10. Congruence
Ideal self meshes well with real self
Incongruence
Ideal self does not meshes well with real self
Ideal
Self
Ideal
Self
Real
Self
Real
Self
Real Self: One’s Perception of actual characteristics, traits and abilities
Idea Self: What one should or would like to be
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11. Close Match
Harmony
Mismatch
Anxiety
Ideal
Self
Ideal
Self
Real
Self
Real
Self
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12. Ideal Self
Real Self
Incongruence
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13. Moving Towards Congruence
Ideal
Self
Real
Self
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15. Result
Responses
Basic Human
Needs
Need for Self
Actualization
Need for
Positive Regard
Unconditional
Positive Regard
Self Actualization
Conditional Positive
Regard
Self Discrepancies
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16. Carl Rogers’s Person-Centered Perspective
People are basically GOOD.
Need Water, Sun and Nutrients to Grow into a big Oak Tree.
We need genuineness, acceptance and empathy for us to grow.
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17. Rogers agreed that people have natural tendencies to grow, become
healthy, move toward self-actualization
Acceptance / Unconditional Positive Regard:
Acknowledging feelings, even problems, without passing
judgment; honoring, not devaluing.
Rogers’ Person-Centered Perspective
Genuineness:
Being honest, direct, not using a façade.
Empathy:
Tuning into the feelings of others, showing your efforts to
understand, listening well
(NOT sympathy: people need to be heard, not to be pitied)
The 3 conditions that
facilitate growth
(just as water, nutrients,
and light facilitate the
growth of a tree):
Empathy
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18. Genuineness
Being open with
your own feelings.
Dropping your
facade.
Being transparent
and self-disclosing.
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19. Acceptance / Unconditional Positive Regard:
An attitude of
acceptance regardless
of circumstances.
Accepting yourself or
others completely.
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20. Types
Conditional positive regard: positive
regard we receive if we behave in
certain acceptable ways
Unconditional positive regard:
warmth, acceptance & love that others
show you regardless of your behavior
Positive regard
love, sympathy, warmth, acceptance, and respect, which we crave from family,
friends, and people important to us
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21. Vijay was thinking about becoming a math teacher, a computer or an elementary school
teacher. While Vijay’s parents had told him that what he wanted to become was up to his and
that they would love him no matter.
UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD
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22. Ravi knew that he was going to be a doctor. Ravi’s parents had made it very clear to him as a
small child that they expected him to become a doctor. He as under the very strong impression
that if he tried to choose any other career, he would lose his parents’ love and respect.
CONDITIONAL POSITIVE REGARD
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23. Empathy
• Listening, sharing,
understanding and mirroring
feelings and reflecting their
meanings.
Yawn
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24. Evaluating Humanistic Perspectives
Contributions
• self-perception is key to personality
• consider the positive aspects of human nature
• emphasize conscious experience
Criticisms
• too optimistic about human nature
• promotes self-love and narcissism
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25.  Some say Rogers did not appreciate
the human capacity for evil.
 Rogers saw “evil” as a social
phenomenon, not an individual
trait:
 “When I look at the world I’m
pessimistic, but when I look at
people I am optimistic.” –Rogers
Critiquing the Humanist Perspective
What about evil?
Humanist response: Self-
acceptance is not the end; it
then allows us to move on
from defending our own
needs to loving and caring
for others.
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26. • For Roger, a person who is in the process of self-
actualizing, actively exploring potentials and
abilities and experiencing a match between real
and ideal shelves, is a fully functioning person.
• Fully functioning people are in touch with their
own feelings and abilities and are able to trust
their innermost urges and intuitions. To become
fully functioning, a person needs unconditional
positive regard.
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27. Thank You
Jai Bharat!
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