Existential Psychoanalysis
Rollo Reece May
Creative Portfolio
GOALS FOR THIS CHAPTER
1. Identify two major traditions that May combines.
2. Describe the philosophy of existentialism.
3. Explain the existentialist approach to scientific methodology.
4. Describe the central problem May believed we face.
5. Explain how May conceived of anxiety, and tell how it is intensified in contemporary culture.
6. Discuss the source of the human dilemma according to May.
7. Identify four ontological assumptions May made concerning human beings, and explain how
they can give us a structural basis for a science of personality.
8. Discuss what is involved in rediscovering selfhood.
9. Show how May confronted the paradoxes involved in each of the following goals of integration:
love, intentionality, the daimonic, courage and creativity, power, freedom and destiny.
10. Explain how May defined myth and why he believed we need new myths.
11. Describe the existentialist approach to psychotherapy.
12. Describe May’s methods of assessment and research.
13. Evaluate May’s theory from the viewpoints of philosophy, science, and art.
14. Discuss some of the challenges presented to us by new technologies and social media.
Rollo May (1909–1994)
BACKGROUND
Rollo May was born on April 21, 1909, in Ada, Ohio, and grew up in Marine City, Michigan
May graduated from Oberlin College in Ohio, where he received an A.B. in 1930
He also went to Vienna and studied briefly with Alfred Adler, whose approach influenced him
considerably. Europe’s tragic view of human nature prevented May from ever accepting a
mechanistic concept of the person. Upon his return to the United States, American psychology
seemed “naive and simplistic.
May’s parents were divorced while he was at Union, so he interrupted his studies and returned to
East Lansing, Michigan, to take care of what remained of his family—his mother, a younger sister,
and a brother
May’s illness helped him to appreciate an existential point of view. His own book The Meaning
of Anxiety (1977) is widely recognized as the first in America to encourage a genuine union
between psychology and philosophy and to demonstrate the importance of values for psychology.
His family was not the "Education is the most important thing I can provide to you"
He Learned a lot from Adler and was able to learn more about himself because of Adler's seminars
He had a brush with death when he was infected with tuberculosis
He does not like theories of personality.
WHAT IS EXISTENTIALISM
is a movement in contemporary
philosophy and psychology that sprang
up spontaneously in different parts of
Europe and among different schools of
thought. It has its roots in the resistance
movements during World War II and in
the philosophies of Sören Kierkegaard
People acquire freedom of action by
expanding their self-awareness and
then by assuming responsibility for
their actions. However, the
acquisition of freedom and
responsibility is achieved only at the
expense of anxiety. as people realize
that,ultimately, they are in charge of
their own destiny, they experience
that burden of freedom and the pain
of responsibility.
WHAT IS ESSENCE
Existence precedes Essence
Existence means to emerge or
to become essence implies a
static immutable substance
DESCRIBE THE CENTRAL PROBLEM MAY BELIEVED WE
FACE.
EXISTENCE AND FREEDOM
Since he was an existential psychologist,
existence and freedom were the central
themes of Rollo May’s analyses. He
believed that human beings constantly faced
the dilemma of being an object and a
subject at the same time.
WHAT IS ANXIETY
PEOPLE EXPERIENCE ANXIETY WHEN THEY BECOME
AWARE THAT THEIR EXISTENCE R SOME VALUR
IDENTIFIE WITH IT MIGHT BE DESROYED
AS THE APPREHENSION CUED OFF BY A THREAT TO AN
ESSENTIAL VALUE. IT IS INTENSIFIED IN CONTEMPORARY CULTURE BY THE
INTERPERSONAL ISOLATION AND ALIENATION THAT HAVE COME OUT OF THE WAY
IN WHICH WE VIEW OURSELVES. MANY OF OUR PRESENT EFFORTS TO DISPEL
ANXIETY ACTUALLY END UP INCREASING IT.
NORMAL ANXIETY
TO GROW AND TO CHANGE ONES VALUES MEAN TO MEAN
EXPERIENCE CONSTRUCTIVE OR NORMAL ANXIEY
GOING OUTSIDE YUR COMFORT ZONE CAN PRODUCE NORMAL
ANXIETY
ONTOLOGICAL ASSUMPTIONS CONCERNING THE PERSON
MANY PSYCHOLOGISTS EMPHASIZE THE STUDY OF
BEHAVIOR, BUT MAY BELIEVED THAT THEY NEED TO
ASK QUESTIONS ON A DEEPER ONTOLOGICAL LEVEL
—THE LEVEL OF BEING. THEY NEED TO ASK WHAT IS
THE NATURE OF THE PERSON AS A PERSON AND HOW
CAN WE BEST DESCRIBE HUMAN EXISTENCE
REDESCOVIRING SELF HOOD
IN REDISCOVERING SELFHOOD, MOST PEOPLE HAVE TO START BACK AT
THE BEGINNING AND REDISCOVER THEIR FEELINGS (1953). MANY OF US
HAVE ONLY A VAGUE IDEA OF WHAT WE ARE FEELING
AT ANY GIVEN TIME. WE REACT TO OUR BODIES AS IF THEY WERE
SEPARATE AND DISTINCT. WHILE
DENYING OUR OWN EMOTIONS, WE ASCRIBE FEELINGS TO MACHINES,
DESCRIBING THEM AS “FRIENDLY,”
“AFFECTIONATE,” AND SO FORTH.
4 STAGES
Innocence - This is when the infants have basically have no idea of what's
out there to be explored and learned
REBELLION-THE INDIVIDUAL SEEKS TO ESTABLISH SOME INNER STRENGTH
CONSCIOUSNESS OF SELF - THIS IS THE STAGE MOST PEOPLE REFER TO
WHEN THEY SPEAK OF A HEATHY PERSONALITY. IT INVOLVES BEING
ABLE TO LEARN FROM ONE'S MISTAKES AND LIVE RESPONSIVELY.
CREATIVE -- THE AUTHENTIC ADULT, THE EXISTENTIAL STAGE, BEYOND
EGO AND SELF-ACTUALIZING. THIS IS THE PERSON WHO, ACCEPTING
DESTINY, FACES ANXIETY WITH COURAGE!
THE DAIMONIC
IN HIS EFFORTS AT RECONCILING FREUD AND THE EXISTENTIALISTS, HE TURNS HIS
ATTENTION TO MOTIVATION. HIS BASIC MOTIVATIONAL CONSTRUCT IS THE DAIMONIC.
THE DAIMONIC IS THE ENTIRE SYSTEM OF MOTIVES, DIFFERENT FOR EACH INDIVIDUAL. IT
IS COMPOSED OF A COLLECTION OF SPECIFIC MOTIVES CALLED DAIMONS
POWER
ACTOR IN OUR CONTEMPORARY CRISIS IS THE FEELING OF INSIGNIFICANCE AND POWERLESSNESS.
HUMAN LIFE CAN BE SEEN AS A CONFLICT BETWEEN ACHIEVING A SENSE OF THE SIGNIFICANCE OF ONE’S
SELF ON THE ONE HAND AND THE FEELING OF POWERLESSNESS ON THE OTHER. WE TEND TO AVOID BOTH
SIDES, THE FORMER BECAUSE OF EVIL CONNOTATIONS ASSOCIATED WITH BEING TOO POWERFUL AND
THE LATTER BECAUSE OUR POWERLESSNESS IS TOO PAINFUL TO BEAR
LOVE AND SEX
LOVE USED TO BE SEEN AS THE ANSWER
TO HUMAN PROBLEMS. NOW LOVE ITSELF
HAS BECOME THE
PROBLEM
MAY BELIEVED THAT OUR HIGHLY VAUNTED
SEXUAL FREEDOM HAS TURNED OUT TO BE A NEW
FORM OF PURITANISM IN WHICH EMOTION IS
SEPARATED FROM REASON AND THE BODY IS USED
AS A MACHINE
INTENTIONALITY THE ABILITY TO MAKE A CHOICE IMPLIES SOME UNDERLYING
STRUCTURE UPON WHICH THAT CHOICE IS MADE.THE
STRUCTURE THAT GIVES MEANING TO EXPERIENCE AND
ALLOWS PEOPLE TO MAKE DECISION ABOUT THE FUTURE
CALLED INTENTIONALITY
FREEDOM AND DESTINY
THE EXISTENTIALIST ATTITUDE IS SOMETIMES MISTAKENLY CRITICIZED FOR PORTRAYING THE INDIVIDUAL AS ABSOLUTELY
FREE WITH NO RESTRAINTS WHATSOEVER. MAY REMINDED US THAT FREEDOM CAN BE CONSIDERED ONLY TOGETHER WITH
DESTINY (1981). FREEDOM MEANS “OPENNESS, READINESS TO GROW, FLEXIBILITY, AND CHANGING IN PURSUIT OF GREATER
HUMAN VALUES”
FREEDOM COMES FROM AN UNDERSTANDIG OF OUR DESTINY TO UNDERSTAND THAT DEATH IS
POSSIBILITY AT ANY MOMENT,
COURAGE AND CREATIVITY
COURAGE IS THE CAPACITY TO MOVE
AHEAD IN SPITE OF DESPAIR. IN HUMAN
BEINGS, COURAGE IS NECESSARY IN ORDER
TO MAKE BEING AND BECOMING POSSIBLE
CREATIVE COURAGE IS THE DISCOVERY
OF NEW FORMS, SYMBOLS, AND PATTERNS
ON WHICH A NEW SOCIETY CAN BE BUILT
A CRY FOR MYTH
MAY ARGUED PASSIONATELY THAT MANY OF THE PROBLEMS
WE CONFRONT, SUCH AS INCREASES IN SUICIDE, ANXIETY, DEPRESSION, SUBSTANCE ABUSE,
AND THE
GROWTH OF CULTS, STEM FROM THE ABSENCE OF MYTHS THAT WOULD HELP US MAKE
MEANING IN
WHAT HAS BECOME A “SENSELESS WORLD.” MAY DEFINED MYTHS AS “NARRATIVE
PATTERNS THAT
GIVE SIGNIFICANCE TO OUR EXISTENCE” AND DEEMED THEM ESSENTIAL FOR
PSYCHOLOGICAL HEALTH.
OUR CURRENT MYTHS NO LONGER PLAY THAT ROLE; RATHER, THEY INCREASE OUR
FRUSTRATIONS.
PSYCHOTHERAPY
THE EXISTENTIAL APPROACH TO PSYCHOTHERAPY MAINTAINS THAT THE
CENTRAL GOAL OF THERAPY IS TO HELP PROMOTE UNDERSTANDING OF
THE SELF AND ONE’S MODE OF BEING IN THE WORLD. PSYCHOLOGICAL
CONSTRUCTS FOR UNDERSTANDING HUMAN BEINGS ARE, THEREFORE,
PLACED ON AN ONTOLOGICAL BASIS AND TAKE THEIR MEANING FROM THE
PRESENT SITUATION. DRIVES, DYNAMISMS, OR BEHAVIOR PATTERNS ARE
UNDERSTOOD ONLY IN THE CONTEXT OF THE STRUCTURE OF THE
EXISTENCE OF THE PARTICULAR PERSON.
SOCIAL MEDIA
THE ASTRONOMICAL GROWTH OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND SOCIAL MEDIA ARE GOOD
EXAMPLES OF DRAMATIC CHANGES THAT MAY WOULD POINT OUT HAVE GIVEN US
TOOLS WHICH WE CAN USE
DESTRUCTIVELY OR CONSTRUCTIVELY TO RESPONSIBLY WORK TOGETHER TO DEVELOP
A GOOD SOCIETY.
THE NEW TECHNOLOGY IS ALTERING HOW WE INTERACT AND COMMUNICATE. TODAY,
TEENAGE S
INCREASINGLY COMMUNICATE PRIMARILY BY TEXTING (LENHART, 2010; 2012), NOT TO
AVOID PER-SONAL INTERACTION BUT RATHER TO SUPPLEMENT IT IN SITUATIONS WHERE
GEOGRAPHIC CONSTRAINTS PREVENT FACE-TO-FACE COMMUNICATION (MILLENNIALS,
2010)
THANK YOU
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Marceline Anderson
123 Anywhere St., Any City, ST 12345