A movement that focused on helping normal persons achieve their full potential through an eclectic combination of therapeutic methods and disciplines. The movement's values include tolerance, a basic optimism about human nature, the necessity of honest interpersonal communication, the importance of living life to the fullest in the "here and now," and a spirit of experimentation and openness to new experiences.

William James, an early proponent of human potential and altered states of consciousness, is considered a forerunner of the human potential movement. However, modern interest in human potential can be traced most directly to the humanistic psychological approach of such figures as