Northern Caribbean University

Department of Graduate Education and Leadership

RESEARCH

Phenomenology and Humanistic Psychology and the Curriculum

Presented in Partial Fulfillment

of the Requirements for the Course

EDCI547: FOUNDATIONS of CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT

By

Gervanna Stephens

To:

Dr. Nicole Mauzard

November 10, 2014

 Phenomenology and Humanistic Psychology and the Curriculum

Three major theories of psychology stand as the foundation of the curriculum. These

include: behaviorism, cognitive development and phenomenology. This paper seeks to highlight

the third, phenomenology and humanistic psychology, and its importance and relation to the

curriculum.

Phenomenology or humanistic psychology can be considered the “third force” in

psychology and the most recent learning theory. Its emphasis is on attitudes and feelings, self-

actualization, motivation, and freedom to learn (Ornstein & Hunkins, 2009, p. 145).

Phenomenology refers to a twentieth century philosophical movement which describes

the structures of experience in relation to consciousness, without recourse to theory deduction or

assumptions from other disciplines (Phenomenology, 2014). In essence, phenomenology is the

immediate study of “experiences as one’s reality” (Ornstein & Hunkins, 2009, p.137). In relation

to this is humanistic psychology.

According to The Concise Dictionary of Psychology, “Humanistic Psychology is a school

of psychology which emphasizes the qualities that differentiate human beings from other

animals, particularly through creativity, humour, play and psychological growth in general.

Sometimes called the 'THIRD FORCE' as opposed to Behaviorism and Psychoanalysis; its

leading proponents are Gordon Allport, Abraham Maslow and Carl Rogers” (Statt, 1998, p.66).

Self-perception is foundational phenomenologists believe, to understanding our

behaviour. Ergo, our determinants of what we do and the extent to which we learn are based on

our self-concept (Combs, 1982). According to Ornstein & Hunkins 2009, for the

phenomenologist, it is the raw data of personal experiences which are vital to understanding
learning. “Phenomenology becomes synonymous with concepts such as creativity, love, higher

consciousness, valuing, transcendentalism, psychological health, ego identity, psychoanalysis”

(Sullivan, 1990) — almost anything that suggests maximum self-fulfillment, self-actualization,

and self-realization. The aim of phenomenologists is to rescue learning theory from the narrow

and rigid behaviorists and from overstress on cognitive processes.

Phenomenologists seek to comprehend what goes on inside the human—needs, thoughts,

and ways of perceiving and understanding. Students’ needs, to the phenomenologist, must be

satisfied. A well-known phenomenologist, Abraham Maslow, postulates a theory of human needs

as follows:

1. Survival needs. Those necessary to maintain life: needs for food, water, oxygen, and

rest.

2. Safety needs. Those necessary for routine and avoiding danger.

3. Love and belonging needs. Those related to affectionate relations with people in

general and to a place in the group.

4. Esteem needs. Those related to receiving recognition as a worthwhile person.

5. Knowing and understanding needs. Those more evident in people of high intelligence

than those of limited intelligence, a desire to learn and organize intellectual and social

relationships.

6. Self-actualization needs. Those related to becoming the best person one can be, to

developing one’s fullest potential (Ornstein & Hunkins, 2009, p.138-139).

The implications of these categorized needs for teaching and learning are evident. For

example, if a child is hungry, they will not be interested in learning because they will not be able

to focus on the information being presented or to a greater extent understand said information.
The child’s goal of satisfying their hunger will take precedence over learning and thus controls

his or her behaviour in the situation; ergo, the importance of Maslow’s theory to educators.

From this, extends what Maslow termed humanistic psychology. In Bugental's 1964

article, “The Third Force in Psychology” in the Journal of Humanistic Psychology five basic

postulates of Humanistic Psychology warrants discussion. They are:

1. Human beings, as human, are more than merely the sum of their parts. They cannot be

reduced to component parts or functions.

2. Human beings exist in a uniquely human context, as well as in a cosmic ecology.

3. Human beings are aware and aware of being aware—i.e., they are conscious. Human

consciousness potentially includes an awareness of oneself in the context of other people

and the cosmos.

4. Human beings have some choice, and with that, responsibility.

5. Human beings are intentional, aim at goals, are aware that they cause future events, and

seek meaning, value and creativity (Bugental, 1964, pp. 19-25).

In my opinion, Bugental’s postulations revolve around the student as a person. It focuses

on the person as the sum of his or her entire parts. It highlights humans as a part of the

universe in its total conceptual framework. Mention is made too of how humans relate to

other people and their environment and how this affects them and in turn how they learn.

Similarly, students as an extension of humanity have personal freedom and as such they can

discover and develop themselves. Finally, Bugental speaks to humans intentions and how

aware humans are of their actions and the ripple effect caused on those around them and the

society at large.
 Similar to Bugental’s postulations, the emphasis of humanistic psychology is based on

three major principles as purported by Maslow:

1. Centering attention on the experiencing person, thus focusing on experience as the

primary phenomenon in learning;

2. Emphasizing human qualities such as choice, creativity, values, and self-realization,

as opposed to thinking about people in mechanistic terms and learning in cognitive

terms; and

3. Showing ultimate concern for people’s dignity and worth and an interest in learners’

psychological development and human potential (Maslow, 1970).

The aim of education for Maslow is to create a “healthy, happy learner who can

accomplish, grow, and self-actualize. Learners should strive for, and teachers should stress,

student self-actualization and its attendant sense of fulfillment” (Ornstein & Hunkins, 2009, p.

139).

What humanistic psychology and in extent humanistic education seeks to purport is the

viewing of the student as a whole person. The aim is to cater to all the needs of the student

ranging from the cognitive, to the emotional and to the spiritual. Humanistic psychology focuses

on the subjective atmosphere which supports the child and pinpoints expanding self to one’s full

potential and reforming society’s ills.

For the phenomenologist and humanist, the curriculum should be concerned with

“process, not products; personal needs, not subject matter; psychological meaning, not

cognitive scores; and changing environments, not predetermined environments. …there

must be freedom to learn, not restrictions or preplanned activities. The environment’s

 psychological and social conditions limit or enhance a person’s field or life space. A

necessary consideration in the curriculum and everything that is taking place in relation

to a specific learner at a given time gives meaning to the field and eventually to learning”

(Ornstein & Hunkins, 2009, p.140).

Humanistic education, deals with “the more basic aspect of humanity... as having feelings

and inclinations creditable to man . . . humanistic psychology extends psychology from

behaviorism and psychoanalytic psychology, which view man as an object, to a concern about

the person as a subject, who is more than the sum of conditional responses, but a person, or self,

who thinks, feels, and acts on his own” (Patterson, 1973, p. 35).

In summary, phenomenology and humanistic psychology echo as the third and latest

learning theory of psychology. In essence both focus on the individual learner, the subjective

nature of learning and the necessity of satisfying student needs before seeking to transfer

knowledge. All these aspects of phenomenology and humanistic psychology affect the

curriculum for developers, teachers and students alike. It begs the question then that if

humanistic psychology focuses on the entire individual, encompassing their behaviors and

cognitive processes, then it should be more adept than the behaviorist or cognitive theory

separately?

The concept of the whole individual thus highlights in extension the whole curriculum

and creates various opportunities for students to succeed in learning. Alternatives to assessments

and determinants to promote self-actualization, overall human striving and success is promoted

by humanistic psychology through the curriculum.

 References

Bugental, J. (1964). The third force in psychology. Journal of Humanistic Psychology 4 (1), 19-

25.

Combs, A.W. (1982). A personal approach to teaching. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Maslow, A.H. (1970). Motivation and personality. (2nd ed.). New York: Harper & Row.

Ornstein, A. C. and F. P. Hunkins. (2009). Curriculum: Foundations, principles, and issues. UK:

Pearson.

Patterson, C.H. (1973). Humanistic education. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, Inc.

Phenomenology. (2014). Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia, 1p. 1.

Statt, D.A. (1998). The concise dictionary of psychology. (3rd ed.). New York: Harper & Row.

Sullivan, E.V. (1990). Critical psychology and pedagogy: Interpretation of the personal world.

Westport, CT: Bergin & Garvey.