What Understanding and Acceptance Mean to Me

Running Head : The Meaning of Acceptance

Rogers ' Meaning of Acceptance and Understanding

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Rogers ' Meaning of Acceptance and Understanding

Introduction

Human beings are social animals . That means that they interact with each other apart from reasons of propagation . One of the ways human beings interact is through communication . However , not all communication is successful . Oftentimes , communication between two or more individuals may cause misunderstandings and conflicts to occur . In this , Rogers present his outlook towards acceptance and understanding , its importance and the

benefits of achieving this

The Meaning of Acceptance and Understanding

In a lecture given by Rogers (2007 ) in 1956 , the premise of his lecture was that he firmly believed that all individuals have an inert tendency to grow , mature and be responsible for their lives . His ideas with regards to the meanings of acceptance and understanding were influenced by both religion and philosophy . Throughout his lecture , he emphasized that an individual would only be able to understand one self and others only if they have embraced the acceptance of one self and others

Rogers (2007 ) focused his lecture on a number of key points . The first is that he discovered that in the long run , it would benefit the individual to accept himself or herself and to refrain from acting as though they were someone else . This is because when an individual lives a fallacious life and portrays an identity that is other from his or her own , that individual would not be able to act in a calm and pleasant manner . This would also lead to the failure of the individuals in keeping and maintaining personal relationships with others . As a result , he believed that it is extremely imperative that an individual must learn to accept who and what he or she is

Once an individual is able to accept himself or herself for who and what they are , it is only then that they will be able to begin to accept other people . This process is more difficult than the acceptance of one self . Because human beings are social beings , they interact with each other . However , there are instances when it becomes difficult to accept the words , thoughts , expression and especially suggestions of others This is because it is the nature of the individual to become judgmental about the statement and reactions received from another individual . In fact , it is on very rare occasions that individuals accept criticism and suggestions given by other people , particularly if they view these people are inferior to them . Some examples of these relationships are between parent and child , professor and student , or employer and employee (Rogers 2007

Rogers (2007 ) stressed the importance of accepting other people for who and what they are with regards to not only the development of deeper and more meaningful relationships with each other , but also this would become a valuable experience for the individual as well . This is because once the individual has come to accept who he...