Humanistic-Existential Psychology Course

Lesson 1 • Core Philosophical Assumptions

Examines the ontological and epistemological commitments underlying humanistic-existential thought. Connects these assumptions to clinical and research practice.

Lesson 2 • Historical Origins and Intellectual Context

Traces the emergence of humanistic-existential psychology from European existentialism and American humanism. Provides the timeline and key thinkers that shaped the field.

Lesson 3 • Distinguishing Humanistic from Existential Approaches

Clarifies the overlap and divergence between humanistic and existential orientations. Students learn to identify each tradition's unique emphases in theory and practice.

Lesson 1 • Isolation, Relatedness, and Connection

Addresses the tension between fundamental aloneness and the human need for connection. Explores how existential isolation differs from loneliness and social withdrawal.

Lesson 2 • Anxiety, Guilt, and Authentic Living

Differentiates existential anxiety and guilt from pathological forms. Shows how these experiences signal the call toward authentic existence.

Lesson 3 • Freedom, Responsibility, and Choice

Explores how existential freedom generates both possibility and anxiety. Connects the concept of radical responsibility to therapeutic work with avoidance and blame.

Lesson 4 • Meaninglessness and the Search for Meaning

Investigates the existential vacuum and the human drive to construct meaning. Prepares students to work with clients experiencing nihilism, depression, and purposelessness.

Lesson 1 • Phenomenological Self and Lived Experience

Introduces phenomenological methods for understanding subjective experience as the primary data of psychology. Links first-person perspective to humanistic assessment.

Lesson 2 • Maslow's Hierarchy and Self-Actualization

Presents Maslow's motivational hierarchy and the concept of self-actualization as a developmental endpoint. Examines empirical support and critiques of the model.

Lesson 3 • Psychopathology from a Humanistic Lens

Reframes psychological disorders as disruptions of growth, authenticity, and meaning rather than disease entities. Prepares students for humanistic case conceptualization.

Lesson 4 • Rogers's Person-Centered Personality Theory

Examines Rogers's constructs of the self, ideal self, and organismic valuing process. Connects congruence and incongruence to psychological distress and growth.

Lesson 1 • Presence and the Existential Encounter

Explores full therapeutic presence as a relational stance beyond technique. Connects Buber's I-Thou philosophy to the existential therapeutic encounter.

Lesson 2 • Rogers's Core Therapeutic Conditions

Teaches the three necessary and sufficient conditions: empathy, unconditional positive regard, and congruence. Grounds each condition in theory and clinical evidence.

Lesson 3 • Empathic Attunement and Reflective Listening

Develops advanced empathic listening skills central to person-centered and existential work. Students practice reflecting feeling, meaning, and implicit experience.

Lesson 4 • Alliance Ruptures and Repair

Identifies signs of therapeutic alliance ruptures and teaches evidence-based repair strategies. Connects rupture-repair cycles to client growth and trust.

Lesson 1 • Process-Experiential and Emotion-Focused Extensions

Introduces emotion-focused therapy as a contemporary evolution of person-centered principles. Teaches emotion theory and experiential interventions derived from this lineage.

Lesson 2 • Evaluating Person-Centered Outcomes

Reviews the evidence base for person-centered therapy and introduces outcome monitoring tools. Students learn to use client feedback to guide the therapeutic process.

Lesson 3 • Applying Person-Centered Work Across Populations

Adapts person-centered principles to diverse client populations and presenting concerns. Addresses cultural responsiveness within a non-directive framework.

Lesson 4 • Structuring the Person-Centered Session

Provides practical guidance on opening, sustaining, and closing person-centered sessions. Addresses pacing, silence, and following the client's lead.

Lesson 1 • Major Existential Therapy Models

Surveys Yalom's, van Deurzen's, and Spinelli's existential therapy models. Identifies shared principles and distinctive emphases across these approaches.

Lesson 2 • Existential Assessment and Case Conceptualization

Teaches how to assess clients through an existential lens, identifying core concerns and worldview. Connects assessment findings to treatment planning and goals.

Lesson 3 • Meaning-Centered Interventions

Introduces structured meaning-centered techniques drawn from logotherapy and existential practice. Students apply these interventions to clients experiencing meaninglessness.

Lesson 4 • Working with Death and Finitude in Session

Provides techniques for raising and exploring mortality themes without inducing unnecessary distress. Teaches how death awareness can catalyze meaningful change.

Lesson 1 • Working with Trauma from a Humanistic Lens

Applies humanistic-existential principles to trauma treatment, emphasizing meaning, agency, and growth. Addresses trauma's disruption of the self-concept and existential worldview.

Lesson 2 • Humanistic-Existential Work with Grief and Loss

Addresses grief as an existential encounter with mortality, identity change, and meaning disruption. Teaches meaning reconstruction and continuing bonds approaches.

Lesson 3 • Humanistic Approaches to Severe Mental Illness

Adapts humanistic-existential principles for clients with psychosis, bipolar disorder, and severe depression. Emphasizes dignity, agency, and recovery-oriented practice.

Lesson 4 • Integrating Mindfulness and Somatic Awareness

Connects mindfulness and body-based practices to humanistic-existential goals of presence and authenticity. Teaches practical integration of somatic and mindfulness techniques.

Lesson 1 • Research Literacy and Evidence-Based Practice

Develops skills for critically evaluating research on humanistic-existential therapies. Connects evidence-based practice to the humanistic value of honoring client experience.

Lesson 2 • Therapist Self-Care and Personal Development

Addresses the existential demands of therapeutic work and strategies for sustainable practice. Students design a personalized self-care and professional growth plan.

Lesson 3 • Supervision and Reflective Practice

Establishes supervision as a core professional practice for humanistic-existential therapists. Teaches reflective practice skills that support ongoing growth and self-awareness.

Lesson 4 • Cultural Humility and Social Justice

Integrates cultural humility and social justice commitments into humanistic-existential practice. Addresses how power, privilege, and oppression shape existential experience.