Both the humanistic and the existential psychologists focused
on your freedom to choose your path in life. However, whereas the humanists
believed that “being that self that you truly are” (as Carl Rogers put it)
was a happy experience, the existentialists believed an authentic existence
also yielded anguish, forlornness, and despair. Consequently, many people
choose inauthenticity—simply thinking and doing what others think and do. In
this lesson we will learn that for existentialists, the courageous choice is
to act in responsible, self-directed ways even while remaining aware of your
powerlessness and mortality.
While the book cites some interesting research studies that
relate to the concerns of the humanistic and existential psychologists, it
must be admitted that many of the important ideas in this chapter—having a
self-actualizing life, having rich phenomenological experiences, having free
will—are not amenable to empirical assessment and validation. In fact, many
psychologists of a phenomenological orientation would proudly agree with
this, insisting that whereas objects can be studied through traditional
“objective” research methods, human subjects cannot.
