Charles L. McLafferty, Jr.,
and James D. KIrylo
University of Alabama at Birmingham

Cite: McLafferty, C. L., Jr., & Kirylo, J. D. (2001). Prior positive psychologists proposed personality and spiritual growth. [Comment]. American Psychologist, 56(1), 84-85.

Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000) and others should be applauded for opening a dialogue towards a psychology of human health and well being, encompassing concepts such as hope, love, courage, optimism, faith and flow. They assert that “humanistic psychology did not attract much of an empirical base… and encouraged a self-centeredness that played down concerns for a collective well-being” (p. 7). It is the purpose of this comment to outline an overarching theoretical framework for a positive psychology, supported by psychoanalytic, existential, humanistic and transpersonal theories. Jung, Frankl, Maslow and Assagioli emphasized wholeness and wellness without encouraging narcissism, though admittedly with little empirical support. Each of these theorists implicitly or explicitly acknowledged two overlapping processes of growth: the emergence of personality, and the alignment of that personality with a transcendent (spiritual) center.

For Jung (1933), every patient over 35 years “fell ill because he had lost that which the living religions of every age have given to their followers, and none of them has been really healed who did not regain his religious outlook” (p. 229). He revealed a key to resilience when he stated, “man is never helped in his suffering by what he thinks for himself, but only by revelations of a wisdom greater than his own” (Jung, 1933, p. 240-241). Jung acknowledged both processes of growth when he noted that it was in personality unfoldment (individuation) that a person develops a transcendent function that gives the person the ability to move beyond the self-centered ego.

Abraham Maslow (1954/1970) defined self-actualizing persons as being self-determined, self-organized and self-directed. Their behavior is marked by a naturalness and spontaneity that is congruent with the “positive personality” of Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000, p. 8). Maslow (1971) noted two processes in his two types of self-actualizing people: non-transcenders and transcenders. While non-transcenders are high achievers, transcenders are more spiritual, more ego-transcendent and have a greater number of peak experiences. Paradoxically, Maslow mused that transcenders might be less happy because of their enhanced vision and insight. (For example, consider the burdens faced by Albert Einstein and Mother Teresa.)

Viktor Frankl (1967, 1986) pointed out that happiness cannot be sought as an end in itself, but rather is the side effect of the normal pursuit of meaningful activities. Frankl (1967) extended this idea: when self-actualization “is made an end in itself and is aimed at as the objective of a primary intention, it cannot be attained” (p. 63). Both ideas are analogous to Seligman’s (National Press Club, 1998) observation that self-esteem cannot be taught directly but must be the by-product of hard work and earned accomplishment.

Frankl asserted the existence of three dimensions of human existence: soma (the physical), psyche (including the emotions) and noëtic (of the spirit). To Frankl (1967), illness manifests only in soma and psyche; not in the noëtic dimension. Logotherapists are trained to assess whether the philosophical stance of the individual is materialistic (mechanical) or teleological (spiritual).

Like Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000), Roberto Assagioli (1965) argued that psychology had, for too long, focused on pathology instead of health and giftedness. He proposed psychosynthesis: the discovery and formation of a dynamic relationship of the personality with a spiritual Self. The goal is not bliss, but a creativity, service and practical livingness exemplified by geniuses and forerunners such as Jefferson, Spinoza, and Mozart. The two stages of psychosynthesis involve the attainment of individualization and self-identification in the personality, and the discovery of—and identification of the personality with—a transpersonal, spiritual Self. 

How can these theorists, taken collectively, be supportive of a positive psychology? Each proposed two processes of wellness in the human being. The first is the development of individuation or personality unfoldment. The second involves alignment of that personality with a spiritual or transcendent function, one explicitly concerned with traits emphasized in positive psychology, such as collective well-being, optimism, resilience and faith. Indeed, many of the traits mentioned by the positive psychologist (such as peace, love, faith, hope, patience and joy) are identical to qualities emphasized by all world religions, including Christian, Jewish, Buddhist and Islamic traditions.

The notion of two processes of normal, healthy human growth is crucial to an emerging science of positive psychology. First, it provides a theoretical framework that can be empirically tested. The traditional methods of scientific research may be used to understand the more mechanical function of the soma (physical body) and psyche (emotional and intellectual “bodies”) as they are integrated into a fully functioning personality. However, the emergence of a spiritual, transcendent function may be far more difficult to study using the assumptions of traditional statistical methods because they present a paradox: by design, these approaches remove the uniqueness of the individual. Specifically, if we are looking for the one thing that a person can do better than ten thousand others, as stated by Seligman (National Press Club, 1998), then a wise, intuitive guide may be more appropriate than a multiple choice inventory. Qualitative approaches may better help the positive psychologist to identify qualities that define the uniqueness of the individual.

Unquestionably, those who pursue the empirical study of psychological health have much exciting work ahead. Success will require empirical consideration of the ideas of those who advocate a psychology of health, such as Jung, Maslow, Assagioli, Frankl, and others. Moreover, development and validation of new methods for studying two simultaneous processes of wellness in the human being will be needed: the unfolding of personality and the alignment of that personality with a point of transcendence.

References

Assagioli, R. (1965). Psychosynthesis. New York: Penguin Books.

Frankl, V. E. (1967). Psychotherapy and Existentialism. New York: Washington Square Press.

Frankl, V. E. (1986). The Doctor and the Soul (Original work published 1946 as Ärztliche Seelsorge; Vienna: Franz Deuticke.) (R. Winston and C. Winston, Trans.). New York: Vintage.

Jung, C. G. (1933). Modern man in search of a soul. New York: Harcourt Brace.

Maslow, A. H. (1954/1970). Motivation and personality. (2nd ed.). New York: Harper & Row.

Maslow, A. H. (1971). The farther reaches of human nature. New York: Penguin Books.

National Press Club. (1998). Martin E. P. Seligman, PhD, speaks at the National Press Club on two main epidemics afflicting American youth: Depression and violence., [www]. Available: http://www.apa.org/releases/epidemic.html [1999, 12/9].

Seligman, M. E. P., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5-14.