IV-Adler: Individual Psychology

I. Overview of II. Biography

Individual of Alfred
Psychology Adler
• Presents an optimistic view • Born February 7, 1870 in
of people while resting heavily Rudolphsheim.
on social interest – feeling of
• Second son of middle class
oneness with humanity, is
Jewish parents, has 7 siblings
inherent in all individuals.
• At age 5 , he was weak and
FREUD ADLER sickly child, led to his ambition
 Man is • Man is to be a doctor.
motivated motivated
by Sex & by social • Considered childhood as an
Aggression influences unhappy experience.
. & striving
for • Resented an older brother,
superiority Mother’s favorite.
.
• Though Jewish, he never
 People • People
have no are largely claimed to mistreated as
choice in responsibl Freud did
shaping e for who • Converted as protestant,
their they are.
though remain agnostic.
personality
 Present • Present • Death of his brother Rudolf
behavior is behavior convinced him even more to
caused by is shaped overcome death by becoming
the past. by the a physician someday.
future.
 Emphasis • People • Surrounded by a large family
on the are but more attached with his
unconsciou usually parents.
s. aware of
what they • Preferred group situations
are doing rather than one-to-one
and why. relationship.
• Pursued medicine at the
University of Vienna.
 • Opthalmology, General condition that leads to
Practice, Psychiatry feelings of inferiority and a
consequent dependence on
• 1902 – First Association with
other people.
Freud, Wednesday
 Therefore, a feeling of Unity
Psychological Society.
with others (social interest) is
• Never Considered Freud as inherent in people and the
his mentor. ultimate standard for
psychological health.
• 1907 – Paper on Organ
Inferiority and Compensation Final Statement
• 1911 – Break from Freud,
established SOCIETY FOR
of Individual
FREE PSYCHOANALYTIC Psychology
RESEARCH
• Eventually led to Individual
1. The one dynamic force
behind people’s behavior is the
Psychology
striving for success or
• Interest in Child Psychology superiority.
and Guidance in Schools.
2. People’s subjective
• Experience in WWI led to his perceptions shape their behavior
ideas of social interest (Army & personality.
Doctor)
3. Personality is unified and self-
• Went to the United States in consistent.
1934 to escape Nazi
4. The value of all human activity
Persecution.
must be seen from the viewpoint
• Lectured in various parts of of social interest.
the US and abroad.
5. The self- consistent
• Died of a heart attack while personality structure develops
on a lecture tour in Aberdeen, into a person’s style of life.
Scotland in 1937.
6. Style of life is molded by
people’s creative power.

III. Introduction
IV. Striving for
to Adlerian
Success or
Therapy
 To Adler, people are born Superiority
with weak , inferior bodies-a
o The sole dynamic force • Without innate movement
behind people’s actions toward perfection children
o Guided by a Final Goal would never feel inferior.
o The Striving force as
• But without feelings of
compensation inferiority, they would never set
o Psychologically unhealthy a goal superiority or success.
individuals strive for
personal superiority. • Though innate it must be
o Psychologically healthy developed.
individuals seek success • General avenues for strivings:
for all humanity.
personal superiority and
striving for success (social
interest).

A.THE FINAL
GOAL C. STRIVING FOR
• The final goal of success or
superiority toward which all
PERSONALITY
people strive unifies personality SUPERIORITY
and makes all behavior
meaningful. • Strive for superiority with little
or no concern for others.
• People are not always
conscious of their final goal, • Their striving are largely
even though they may be motivated by personal
aware of their immediate inferiority or the presence of
subgoals. inferiority complex.
• Some have exaggerated
feelings of personal superiority
B.The Striving to overcompensate a
Force as weakness.

Compensation • Murderers, thieves, and con

• People strive for success or artist are obvious examples
superiority as a means of who strive for personal gain.
compensation for feelings of
inferiority.
• People need to overcome
inferiorities and pulled by the
desire of completion.
 • Adler argued that the • But the manner in which they
MORE we perceive strive is not shaped by reality
ourselves to be but by their subjective
inferior, the stronger perceptions of reality, that is,
our superiority striving by their fictions, or
might be. expectations of the future.
• These people are
poorly adjusted and
expresses through A.Fictionalism
selfishness and a
• Fictions are people’s beliefs
concern for personal
and expectations of the future.
glory at the expense
Adler held that fictions guide
of others.
behavior, because people act
as if these fictions are true.
D. STRIVING FOR • Adler emphasized teleology
SUCCESS over causality; that is, he
favored explanations of
• Psychologically healthy behavior in terms of future
people are those who are goals rather than past causes.
motivated by social interest
and the success of all
humankind. B.Physical
• These people are concerned Inferiorities
beyond themselves.
• Adler believed that all
• Their success is not gained at humans are “blessed” with
the expense of others but in organ inferiorities, and that
the natural tendency to move these small, inferior organs
toward completion or stimulate subjective feelings of
perfection. inferiority and move people
toward perfection or
completion.
V. SUBJECTIVE
PERCEPTION
VI. Unity and
S
Self-
• People strive for superiority
or success to compensate for Consistency
feelings of inferiority,
 in striving for success,
whereas unconscious
Personality thoughts are those
that are not helpful.
• Each person is unique and
indivisible. Inconsistent
behavior do not exist. VII. Social Interest
• All actions are directed at a • Gemeinschaftsgefuhl “social
single goal and serve a single feeling or community feeling”.
purpose.
• Membership in a social
A. Organ Dialect – speaks a community of all people.
language which is usually
more expressive and • Attitude of relatedness
discloses the individual’s
• Empathy for each member of
opinion more clearly than
the community.
words are able to do. (e.g.
a child who wets bed to • For social advancement
show that he does not rather than personal gain.
wish to obey parental
wishes.) • Fruits of early social
B. Conscious and environment
Unconscious Actions –- • Sole criterion of human
Unconscious as that part values.
of the goal that is neither
clearly formulated nor A. Origins Social Interest
completely understood by
the individual. • Mother and child relationship
• With this definition, during the early months of
Adler avoided a infancy.
dichotomy between
• The father as the second
the unconscious and
important person in child’s
the conscious, which
social development.
he saw as two
cooperating parts of • Adler believed that after age
the same unified of 5. the effects of heredity
system. become blurred by the
• Conscious thoughts powerful influence of the
are those that are child’s social environment.
understood and
regarded by the • By the time, environmental
individual as helpful in forces have modified or
shaped nearly every aspect of • Unhealthy individuals = rigid
child’s personality. Style Of
• Life Healthy individuals =
flexible Style Of Life. For
B.Importance Socially useful type.

Social Interest • Problems: Neighbourly love,

sexual love, and Occupation
• Social interest is Adler’s
• Means: cooperation,
yardstick for measuring
courage, and willingness to
psychological health.
contribute to another.
• Thus, the “ sole criterion of
human values”. 1. Getting/Leaning:
selfish, no give-just
• Barometer of normality. take. Antisocial with
• Lack of Gemeinschaftsgefuhl low activity levels
are self-centered and strive for 2. Avoiding: hate being
personal power and defeated. May be
superiority over others. successful but without
risks. Low social
• It is not always synonymous contact, fear of
with charity and unselfishness. rejection/defeat.
3. Ruling/Dominant:
Nelson Mandela - People
Strive for power; willing
learn to hate and if they learn
to manipulate. Prone to
to hate then they can be
anti-social behavior.
taught to love, for love comes
4. Socially Useful: very
more naturally to the human
outgoing and active.
heart than its opposite.
Lots of social contact,
strive for the good.

VIII. Style of Life

• Flavor of a person’s life IX. Creative
• Includes a person’s goal, Power
self- concept, feelings for
others, and attitude towards • People are empowered by
the world. freedom to create her or his
own style of life.
• Fairly established by age 4
or 5. • Creative power
• Enables people to bein (1) Exaggerated
control oftheir lives
Physical Deficiencies
• Implies movement toward a
goal,and direction – Exaggerated feelings of
inferiority
• And contributes to the – Overcompensation for
development of social interest. their inadequacy
• Thus, it makes each person – Results in narcissism and
a free individual. lack of consideration for
others.
X. Abnormal (2) Pampered Style
Developmen of Life
t – Weak social interest
• Creative power is not limited – Maintains parasitic
to healthy people; unhealthy relationship with other
individuals also create their people.
own personalities. Thus,
people are free to choose – Feelings of being unloved
either a useful or a useless because their parents have
style of life. done everything for them.
A.General (3) Neglected
Description. Style of Life
Due to underdeveloped – Low self- confidence
social interest.
– Overestimating difficulties
– Setting goals too high – Distrust
– Living in their own
private world – Refusal to cooperate
– Rigid and dogmatic style – Strong sense of envy and
of life hostility

B. External
Factors in C.Safeguarding
Maladjustments Tendencies
 • Protective device, that - Moving backward
enable people to hide their (reverting to a secure
inflated self-image and to period of life)
maintain their current style of - Standing still (avoiding
life. responsibilities)
- Hesitating(vacillation,
• Compared to Freud’s
procrastinations)
Defense Mechanisms.
- Constructing obstacles
• Largely conscious (creating problems or
trials)
• Protects self- esteem from
public disgrace • Includes
Excuses, Aggression, &
Withdrawal
• People state what they claim
they would like to do, that
others will like, then follow it
up with an excuse.
• Protects a weak sense of
self-worth and deceive people
into believing they are more
superior than they really are.
• “yes, but”, “if only”…..
Depreciation – Undervaluing
other people’s achievement
and overvaluing one’s own.
Accusation – Tendency to
blame others and seek
revenge.
Self-accusation
- Self-torture or guilt
- People devalue
themselves to inflict
suffering on others.
• Running away from difficulties
• Safeguarding through distance
 • If a girl is quiet and shy, she
is praised for her femininity.
• However if a boy is quiet and
shy, they worry he may grow
up to be a sissy and if a girl is
assertive, they call her a
“tomboy” and hope she grows
out of it.
• Adler asserted that men are
no more successful or
powerful because they are
men but because they are
encouraged to be assertive.
• Both genders begin life with
D. Masculine a capacity to “protest”, what
Protest they protest though is largely
shaped by what we expect
• Overemphasis on the them to be (social or cultural
importance of being manly. by nature).

• Resulting from cultural and

social influences.
XI. Applications
• Women want the same
of Individual
things that men have. Psychology
• Adler noted that boys were • Family Constellation – Birth
held in higher esteem than order, gender of siblings, age
girls spread
• Boys wanted desperately to • Early Recollections (Ers)
be thought of as strong,
aggressive, in control – ie. – Consistent with a person’s
Masculine. style of life

• The idea of weakness and – reflects patterns of one’slife

dependency is seen feminine
• Dreams – May present
• If a boy fusses or demands inconsistencies
to have his own way
• Psychotherapy - Enhance
(masculine protest) they say it
courage, lessen feelings of
is natural.
inferiority, and encourage
social interest.
XII. Related Positive Traits
Research • Highly motivated
Cooperative
• Birth Order Effects. • Cooperative
• First born vs. Later • Moderately
Borns? Competitive

• Early Recollections and Negative Traits

Career Choice.
• Highly competitive
• Distinguishing Narcissism as
• Easily discouraged
Striving for Superiority versus
Self-Esteem as Striving for Birth Order –
success.
Youngest Child
• Parental Over
evaluation Positive Traits
• I am superior to
others? Or I am • Realistically ambitious
Worthy?
Negative Traits
Birth Order –
• Pampered style of
Oldest Child life
• Dependent on
Positive Traits
others
• Nurturing & protective • Wants to excel in
everything
Negative Traits • Unrealistically
• Highly anxious ambitious
• Exaggerated feelings
of power
Birth Order –
• Unconscious hostility Only Child
• Fights for acceptance
• Must always be right Positive Traits
• Highly critical of
• Socially mature
others uncooperative
Negative Traits
Birth Order –
Second Child • Exaggerated feelings
of superiority
 • Low cooperation
• Inflated sense of self
• Pampered style of life

XIII. Critique
• Adler’s Theory Is
– High on Generating
Research, Organizing
Known Data, and Guiding
Action, Parsimony
– Low on Falsifiability
(present style of life
determines ERs) and
Internal Consistency (e.g.
goal superiority and
creative power)

XIV. Concept of
Humanity
• High on Free Choice and
optimism
• Very Low on Causality
• Moderate on conscious
influences
• High on social factors and
uniqueness of an individual.