Introduction
Kurt Lewin is considered as a member of the Gestalt school in the discipline of psychology. Lewin’s theory is oriented towards Gestalt ideas but at the same time differs from the orthodox Gestalt psychology because this theory lays emphasis on the needs, will, personality and social factors.
Founders of Gestalt thought focused on perception and less on learning. Lewin on the other hand concentrated on psychology as a social science. In their experiments Lewin and his colleagues laid emphasis on the study of the behavior as function of total social and physical situation.
His theory is based on homeostatic or equilibrating principles.
Lewin is individualistic in his approach. According to him even if we know about all the psychological laws, we still have to understand them in relation to the individual and the total situation in which the individual exists before we make any speculations about the individual’s behavior.
Formula Given by Lewin
B = f (P.E)
Where,
B= Behavior, f= function of, P= Person, E= Total Environmental Situation
Concepts in Lewin’s Theory
Lewin’s theory can be broadly divided into two types of constructs-
- Descriptive Constructs
- Life Space- Life space are all the events in totality that influence the behavior and life of an individual. In Lewin’s words “the person and his environment as one constellation of independent factors”. According to him all the people have their own psychological space which is called their life space. Life space is actually an interaction between the person and the environment.
B= f (Lsp)
Where,
B= Behavior, f= Function of, Lsp= Life Space
Life Space has various differentiated regions of the activities, groups, classes, roles etc. related to the individual. As the child grows in life, the life space becomes more and more differentiated in various areas.
- Locomotion- in simple words can be defined as the behavior of an individual. It is not related to any actual movement of the individual but it means the changes that occur in the psychological space or the life space.
Locomotion can be and overt act like an attitude shift or making new associations between two events. It is assumed that locomotion happens due to motivation.
- Dynamic Constructs
The fundamental concepts that form up an individual’s motivation are-
- Need– A need is any state of motivation which can be due to physiological drive, environmental drive or aim to achieve a goal.
- Tensions- are the emotions that are elicited along with a need, they act as a motivating force for an individual.
- Valence- Objects that are satisfying have a positive valence whereas objects which are not satisfying have a negative valence.
- Vector- refers to a directed line mathematically. According to Lewin vector is the direction and strength of attraction towards objects. Vectors can move in one or more directions. Conflicts occur when two equally attractive vectors operate.
- Barriers- are the obstructions that prevent the individual from reaching the desired goals and get in the way of their equilibrium.
- Equilibrium- According to Lewin whenever a need is fulfilled the individual is able to get back to a state of balance between forces. Disequilibrium can be explained as a state of tension that exists due the arousal of a need.
Types of conflicts in Lewin’s Theory
- Approach-Approach conflict- When a person has to choose between two desirable alternatives. For example, watching movie with family and going out for an outing with friends. It leads to an unstable equilibrium as one has to choose a comparatively more attractive alternative.
- Avoidance- Avoidance conflict- In this type of conflict one has to choose between two non-desirable alternatives. For example, choosing between tooth decay and going to the dentist. It leads to a stable equilibrium.
- Approach-Avoidance conflict- In this type of conflict a person is attracted to and repelled by the same goal. For example, buying a new bike but not being ready to pay the installments. It leads to a stable equilibrium as the positives and negatives get balanced.
Evaluation
It is one of the most detailed experimental study which involved a lot of interesting experiments which were consistent to his theory.
But his theory has been criticized on some points like-
- The theory is oriented towards only a certain type of motivated behavior but hasn’t talked about other behaviors like Altruism & creativity.
- The theory is descriptive in its approach and not explanatory
- It doesn’t account for of the past experiences of the person.
- Human behavior is much more complex and richer.
- There is a lot of overlapping of the constructs.
By Shagun Talwar
