Nikolaev D.E. Human-Centricity and Human Potential: An Existential Perspective

Human-centricity as a strategy for organizing social systems is gaining increasing significance in business, education, and public life, as well as attracting growing interest from the academic community. The relevance of this line of research is determined by the need to comprehend the key categories of the concept of human-centricity in the context of the anthropological turn in social practice.

The purpose of this paper is to articulate the core ideas of the existential approach to human-centricity and human potential.

The methods employed include epistemological and axiological analysis, the comparative-analytical method, theoretical modeling, categorical analysis, and hermeneutic reflection.

The results of the study demonstrate the invalidity of certain criticisms of human-centricity by researchers and practitioners who view the trend as neglecting the social reality of human existence. It is substantiated that a culture may be considered human-centric if it supports the unfolding of the human dimension in its participants by nurturing the individual process of existential development (an ascent toward the possible human being). A key concept here is human potential, defined as the potential human being (the human being one may become). Understood in this way, neither human-centricity nor human potential can be adequately measured by quantitative means. The very act of studying these phenomena, which inevitably influences both culture and its participants, must be aligned with the principles of human-centricity. Accordingly, qualitative research methods are proposed as the most appropriate for examining the human-centric nature of corporate culture and human potential.

Conclusion. Turning to the existential tradition enables researchers to operate with non-reductionist, holistic representations of the human being and human potential, and the concept of human-centricity. Human-centricity and human potential, understood in this complex way, are not opposed to partial forms of 'centricity' and potential described in various paradigmatic frameworks, but instead provide them with internal coherence, orientation, and the possibility of development. In a human-centric culture, partial potentials are realized not as a random collection of resources, abilities, and skills, but as an integrated expression of the human being. 

Key words: human-centricity, human potential, self-determination, anthropological turn, corporate culture, potential development, existentialism, images of the human being

For citation: Nikolaev, D.E. (2025). Human-Centricity and Human Potential: An Existential Perspective. New Psychological Research, No. 2, 30–50. DOI: 10.51217/npsyresearch_2025_05_02_02