Which Psychological Perspective Understands Anxiety Disorders By Examining Temperament, Parenting, And Life Stress? (2023)

FAQs

What psychological perspective is anxiety? ›

Anxiety can be thought of as a future-oriented emotional state that is characterized by anticipatory cognitive, behavioural and affective changes in response to uncertainty about potential threat.

Humanistic Therapy For Anxiety

Humanists see existential anxiety as an inevitable part of life that restricts potential, causing people to avoid seeking meaning and fulfillment due to fear of loss or failure.

THE MAIN POINT: One of the main theories about social anxiety asserts that social anxiety is related to overestimating the negative aspects of social interactions, and underestimating the positive aspects.

When the amygdala perceives danger, the hypothalamus will pick up this signal and relay it to the body's adrenal glands. Adrenaline and cortisol are flooded into your bloodstream which transports these hormones throughout the body, effectively triggering many physical responses that individuals experience with anxiety.

The humanistic perspective is a way of evaluating an individual as a whole, rather than looking at them only through a smaller aspect of their person. It is a branch of psychology that relates to the idea of being entirely unique and your own individual.

The humanistic perspective focuses on the positive image of what it means to be human. Human nature is viewed as basically good, and humanistic theorists focus on methods that allow fulfillment of potential. self‐actualization (realization of one's full potential).

The humanistic approach emphasizes the individual's personal worth, the centrality of human values, and the creative, active nature of human beings. The approach is optimistic and focuses on the noble human capacity to overcome hardship, pain and despair.

According to the behavioral perspective, the way we behave and learn can be explained through our interactions with the environment. Our actions are always responses to stimuli, which either occur naturally or because of a learned response. ¹.

In the Freudian model, anxiety symptoms reflect unconscious conflicts, and the purpose of psychoanalytic therapy is to resolve them. In contrast, in the behavioural model, anxiety symptoms result from simple conditioned responses.

The biological perspective views psychological disorders as linked to biological phenomena, such as genetic factors, chemical imbalances, and brain abnormalities; it has gained considerable attention and acceptance in recent decades (Wyatt & Midkiff, 2006).

How do humanistic theorists explain anxiety and or depression? ›

Humanistic approaches would look on depression as a disturbance in a person's ability to grow to their full potential. Every individual holds the key to their own ability to facilitate change given the right conditions for growth and self-actualisation.

Techniques used in existential therapy include exploring existential questions, confronting anxiety, and facilitating personal responsibility. The therapist encourages the client to reflect on their existence, to confront their anxieties and fears, and to take responsibility for their choices.

The humanistic therapist focuses on helping people free themselves from disabling assumptions and attitudes so they can live fuller lives. The therapist emphasizes growth and self-actualization rather than curing diseases or alleviating disorders.

In the humanistic vision, human dysfunctions are caused by a faulty or interrupted development process; essentially human problems are due to immaturity, generally of the social/emotional variety. The goal of a humanistic therapy is thus to promote social/emotional maturity and growth.