The Actualizing Tendency- Carl Rogers
“Whether we are speaking of a flower or an oak tree, of an earthworm or a beautiful bird, of an ape or a person, we will do well, I believe, to recognize that life is an active process, not a passive one. Whether the stimulus arises from within or without, whether the environment is favorable or unfavorable, the behaviors of an organism can be counted on to be in the direction of maintaining, enhancing, and reproducing itself. This is the very nature of the process we call life. This tendency is operative at all times. Indeed, only the presence or absence of this total directional process enables us to tell whether a given organism is alive or dead.
The actualizing tendency can, of course, be thwarted or warped, but it cannot be destroyed without destroying the organism. I remember that in my boyhood, the bin in which we stored our winter's supply of potatoes was in the basement, several feet below a small window. The conditions were unfavorable, but the potatoes would begin to sprout—pale white sprouts, so unlike the healthy green shoots they sent up when planted in the soil in the spring. But these sad, spindly sprouts would grow 2 or 3 feet in length as they reached toward the distant light of the window. The sprouts were, in their bizarre, futile growth, a sort of desperate expression of the directional tendency I have been describing. They would never become plants, never mature, never fulfill their real potential. But under the most adverse circumstances, they were striving to become. Life would not give up, even if it could not flourish. In dealing with clients whose lives have been terribly warped, in working with men and women on the back wards of state hospitals, I often think of those potato sprouts. So unfavorable have been the conditions in which these people have developed that their lives often seem abnormal, twisted, scarcely human. Yet, the directional tendency in them can be trusted. The clue to understanding their behavior is that they are striving, in the only ways that they perceive as available to them, to move toward growth, toward becoming. To healthy persons, the results may seem bizarre and futile, but they are life's desperate attempt to become itself. This potent constructive tendency is an underlying basis of the person-centered approach.” -Carl Rogers
This passage offers one of the clearest expressions of the humanistic belief that all living things contain a built in movement toward growth. The author begins by reminding us that life is not passive. Every organism moves in the direction of maintaining and enhancing itself. This is not something that depends on ideal conditions. It is present in every moment and in every living being. It is so central that the presence or absence of this drive is one of the ways we recognize whether something is alive at all.
The author then expands this idea through a childhood memory of potatoes sprouting in a dark basement. The environment is completely wrong for their development. The sprouts are pale and weak rather than green and sturdy. Yet even in these poor conditions, the potatoes still reach toward the faint light from the single window. Their growth will not allow them to become full plants and they will never fulfill their natural purpose, but they continue to stretch toward what they need. The author describes this as a “desperate expression” of the same force that moves all life toward becoming what it is meant to be. This image is powerful because it shows that the drive toward growth remains present even when the environment blocks healthy expression.
Roger then connects this metaphor to people who have lived in extremely harmful conditions, especially individuals found in the back wards of psychiatric hospitals. Their lives may appear warped or distorted. Their behaviors may not make sense at first glance. Yet the same directional tendency exists within them. Even when a person has experienced deep trauma or neglect, their behaviors still reflect an attempt to move toward safety, connection, or coherence in the limited ways they understand. What looks strange or unhealthy from the outside is often a creative and sometimes desperate attempt to survive or to meet a need. The comparison to the potato sprouts shows that the form may be distorted, but the intent remains constructive.
The passage argues that this inner movement is so fundamental that it cannot be destroyed without destroying the person. It can be blocked, twisted, or limited by environment and experience, but it never disappears. This belief forms the foundation of the person centered approach. If humans always strive toward growth, therapists do not need to force or direct them. Instead, they must provide an environment in which that natural movement can finally unfold in healthier and more complete ways.
At its core, the passage is an argument for deep compassion. When we see people acting in ways that appear unhealthy or confusing, we are encouraged to look deeper and to understand those behaviors as the best attempts they can make within the conditions they have known. The author invites us to trust that underneath even the most wounded person there remains a powerful and constructive force that wants to move toward healing.
Understanding the actualizing tendency can be especially helpful in therapy with men, many of whom have been raised in environments that discourage emotional expression, vulnerability, or help seeking. When a therapist views every behavior as an attempt to maintain or enhance the self, even if the behavior appears shut down, guarded, or angry, it becomes easier to approach men with empathy rather than assumption. Many men come to therapy believing that their coping strategies mean something is wrong with them. When seen through the lens of the potato sprouts metaphor, those same strategies can be reframed as creative attempts to survive in environments where emotional safety was not available. This shift often reduces shame, which is one of the main barriers that keeps men disconnected from their inner experiences. When men understand that their internal world has always been trying to grow and protect them, even in imperfect ways, they can feel more permission to soften, to explore, and to trust the therapeutic process. This framework allows therapy to move from fixing what is broken to supporting what is already trying to thrive, which can make the experience more accessible and transformative for men who have long been taught to hide their needs.
