Fulfillment theory is a form of therapy, an approach to mental healing, most closely associated with Carl Rogers (1902-1987). It has been attractive to some due to its simplicity in approaching what he considered the main problem in psychotherapy: the relation between one's personal standards and the actual life one leads in respect to those standards. It is this dichotomy that lies at the root of neurosis and hence, the need for Fulfillment theory as the central mode of therapeutic practice.
Basic Structure
Human beings have two needs: The first is to fulfill one's innate potential. The second is to receive positive feedback for succeeding in reaching those goals. But these needs, while felt by everyone, become a problem due to our very humanity: One always falls short of abstract standards. Hence, the concept of "self worth" comes into existence as either an accurate or inaccurate measure of one's progress. The person's image of his or her own "self-worth" is the central problem. This is the formal development of neurosis and this gap between standard and actual practice is termed by Rogers "in-congruence."
Self Worth
People, in setting up standards for themselves such as "I am a loving person," or "I am a giving person" are setting themselves up for mental instability. To the extent that these senses of self are held with vehemence, acts that go against such self images can have severe effects on the psyche of the person, even leading to psychosis. Mental illness can be reduced to these constant divergences between standard and practice where, in failing to reach the desired standard, the self worth becomes something akin to "I am worthless" or "I am a failure."
Defense Mechanisms
It is regularly the case, according to Rogers and his followers, that one's sense of self worth acts independently of the actions committed under different circumstances. A lack of positive feedback for one's progress towards a goal can lead to an artificial inflation of one's self worth as compensation, or a downward spiral into depression. Hence, it is not only the gap between standard and practice, but the reaction of the world around the agent that causes neurosis and even psychosis. States of self-evaluation are labeled inaccurately as a result of hostile outward forces or a lack of reinforcement. In this case, to speak plainly, one begins to live a lie.
Approaching a Solution
Rogers' approach can simply be put as "unconditional acceptance." This is the slogan that all therapists should begin with as they treat patients suffering from these neuroses deriving from false or distorted self-images. No one can live up to abstract conditions and standards, especially if they are imposed from without. Unconditional acceptance of one's condition regardless of the patent's outward activity is the first step in recovery. It is not so much a morally neutral doctrine, but a doctrine that refuses to link a healthy sense of self worth solely to outward actions that violate a deeply held sense of self.
Criticism
This approach of total acceptance has been considered problematic. Rogers' basic needs idea is that the entire human organism strives for increasing perfection (hence, "Fulfillment theory"). Writers such as Henry Lamberton have rejected this basic approach, reminding Rogers about the nature of original sin and the easily corruptible nature both of humanity itself and their (self-interested) self evaluations. Predictably, the idea of total acceptance has come under attack as a means of eliminating serious moral considerations from therapy. Rogers holds the facile view that humans should be accepted as humans regardless, since there are no real standards to measure human perfectibility and hence, no really objective understanding of this progress and its relation to one's self-image. Therefore, to live is merely to live without forcing oneself to suffer under standards and impossible goals. One cannot help but see Rogers as abandoning standards on the basis that many cannot reach them. Hence they are harmful.
Tags: self worth, between standard, Fulfillment theory, , between standard practice