There are many psychological ways of learning and most of them are closely related, but the two that are most widely diverse are behaviorism and humanism. The following information was supposed to be a contrast and comparison, but humanism and behaviorism are so different that I have found no comparisons except that they are both ways of learning.
The definition of "behaviorism is a theoretical orientation based on the premise that scientific psychology should study only observable behavior". This means that behaviorists believe that the only way to study behavior is by watching people's actions and reactions to certain stimuli. Most commonly, behaviorists explain personality in terms of how people learn. People being "trained" by a behaviorist, usually learn from and by external motivation. .
Behaviorists are more often found to be like a trainer and are more likely to be helping children than adults. Their conclusions are verifiable by experiments and experiences alone, without the use of medicine or any other scientific method or theory. Their goal is acquiring and accumulating knowledge with learning as the end result. However, their teachings are by rote. Just like in schools today, educators teach their students facts upon facts of what humanists may think is irrelevant in everyday life. Students .
are taught to know the answer without really knowing the meaning. This is exactly what behaviorists do. The teaching and learning style that they use is simply explained as "programmed". .
Behaviorism may be a good way to teach a child, but once the individual comes of age where he or she can make decisions on their own, a humanistic approach may be in order. Depending on how fast a child matures determines how soon the humanistic approach could be used. As long as the child is still living with Mom or Dad, behaviorism may always be a good alternative.
The definition of "humanism is a theoretical orientation that emphasizes the unique qualities of humans, especially their freedom and their potential for personal growth".
