- Existentialism focuses on finding meaning and purpose in life, and emphasizes that people must make choices about their life while knowing they are mortal. It was started by Soren Kierkegaard and focuses on existence preceding essence.
- Existential psychology views people as responsible for their own existence and emphasizes authentic experience over objective states of being. Education in this view should help students develop themselves and their capacities through free choice and problem solving.
- There are stages of existential development from innocence to rebellion to becoming an authentic, creative adult who faces life's anxieties with courage. Existentialism differs from humanism in its view of inherent human qualities.