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Conditions of worth
Rogers (1980) said that we all need a kind of love from other people, which
he called unconditional positive regard. This is where a person is loved,
valued and accepted for what they are, without any conditions being
attached. There is no evaluation, reservation or possessiveness by one person
to another. Humanistic therapists accept a client without evaluations,
reservations or conditions.
For Rogers, unconditional positive regard is the ideal way in which others
should interact with us, and how we should be with other people. For
example, if a child does something wrong, the ideal response by the parent is
to make the child feel wanted and loved. However, Rogers says that all too
often the response is for the parent to tell the child off and withhold love.
This is called conditions of worth and is defined by Rogers (1959) as
follows: ‘A condition of worth arises when the positive regard of a
significant other is conditional, when the individual feels that in some
respects he is prized and in others he is not.’
Because it is so important for us to be accepted by others, we will generally
meet the conditions that others impose on us in order to receive their love,
respect and positive regard. This is also sometimes called conditional
positive regard. The child is not truly loved and valued as a person in his or
her own right. Instead the child is loved and valued to the extent that the
behaviour is approved by parents and/or significant others. As adults, this
results in seeking approval from others and acting in ways others want us to.
For Rogers, this represents a denial of the person, since conditions of worth
do not allow the individual to fully understand and explore their likes and
dislikes.
The client-centred therapy that Rogers developed is based on the principle
that the therapist must show the client unconditional positive regard at all
times. The therapist must not impose any conditions of worth and be
genuine. The purpose of humanistic psychotherapy is to achieve personal
growth in the client and reduce the degree of incongruence.
Evaluation of the humanistic approach
Strengths:
 The humanistic approach is optimistic about people, since it
recognises the importance of personal experience and looks to the
future in terms of personal growth.
 Client-centred therapy has been shown to be effective in the treatment
of relatively mild rather than severe psychological disorders.
 The humanistic approach, as the third force, made psychologists think
carefully about what the subject matter of psychology should be, and
recognise the importance of conscious experience, and what people
think and feel.
 It recognises as a fundamental principal that people are responsible for
their own behaviour and are not controlled by environmental forces
(behaviourism) or inner unconscious conflicts (psychodynamics).
Limitations:
 The focus on subjective experience (the ‘here and now’ and
conscious thoughts) means that the approach ignores mental
processes that do not take place at a conscious level.
 The approach rejects the scientific method of understanding and
explaining human behaviour and thought. As a result of this, theories,
concepts and claims cannot be investigated properly.
 Roger’s concepts and ideas have been criticised for being culturebound. For example, self-actualisation is all about the individual in a
western culture and does not deal with group achievements that may
be more important in eastern cultures.
 By focusing entirely on the individual, the approach does not look at
personality characteristics common to all people.