Chapter Three: Individual Psychology The Therapeutic Approach of Alfred Adler

Biographical Information Born 1870, second of six children Had a sickly childhood Freud and Adler

Theoretical Principals The whole person Striving with a purpose Striving for superiority Pheomenology Ideographic Soft Determinism

Further Theoretical Principals Social interest and community feeling Lifestyle

Tasks of Life Work, or occupation Love and marriage Social Relationships Self Spirituality Parenting and Family

The Practice of Adlerian Therapy Client Preparation Assessment Issues Therapy Process

Forming the Therapeutic Relationship Alignment of goals Focus on the positive Initial lifestyle interpretations

Lifestyle Assessment and Analysis Family Constellation Interview Earliest Recollections Dream Analysis

Specific Techniques The future autobiography Creating new images Acting “As if” The Push-Button technique Spitting in the client’s soup Catching oneself Task Setting Paradoxical Strategies Advice, Suggestion, Direction

Therapy Outcome Research Lack of controlled, empirical studies Some studies show slight positive outcome

Multicultural Perspectives Overall problems noted with use of “insight” therapies Is Adlerian therapy dependent on insight?

Concluding Comments Adler is ubiquitous Often, not given credit Everything is a matter of opinion

Student Review Assignments Critical corner Reviewing key terms Review questions

Critical Corner Much of individual psychology is based on concepts such as lifestyle and the individual’s subjective fictional goals. These concepts are, at best elusive, and at worst, fictional. Comment on how a modern psychological theory could base itself on such unscientific concepts.

Critical Corner (continued) The Adlerian family constellation and, in particular birth order, is too flexible for practical evaluation. For example, birth order research has been flatly negative—in that birth order, in and of itself does not adequately predict individual personality or behavior. However, Adler’s belief in the individual’s unique interpretation of birth order and family position makes it impossible to systematically evaluate these theoretical influences on human behavior.

Critical Corner (continued) One of the cornerstones of Adlerian therapy is that insight produces motivation for change. Do you think that’s true? Is there any empirical evidence to support the contention that insight produces motivation?

Critical Corner (continued) One of the cornerstones of Adlerian therapy is that insight produces motivation for change. Do you think that’s true? Is there any empirical evidence to support the contention that insight produces motivation?

Critical Corner (continued) In this chapter Adler has been characterized as a strong feminist. However, he also wrote that the woman’s proper place is in the home, raising children and that’s where his wife spent most of her time. Consequently, from a feminist perspective, although Adler may have been a feminist in his time, he can hardly be viewed as a man who was completely liberated from the trappings of masculine domination.

Critical Corner (continued) As a theory, individual psychology is somewhat loose and poorly organized. Adler spent more time lecturing and talking about therapy cases and less time writing out his ideas into a coherent and integrated theory. Although no one claims his ideas are poor, it’s obvious from reading Adler that his theory is underdeveloped. In fact, individual psychology is more like the pasting together of a number of common sense ideas about humans rather than a formal theory of personality

Reviewing Key Terms The masculine protest Holism Purposeful striving Superiority striving The idiographic approach

Key Terms (continued) Soft determinism Social interest Community feeling Phenomenology

Key Terms (continued) Tasks of life Fictional goals or fictional finalism Lifestyle The four goals of children’s misbehavior The four stages of Adlerian therapy

Key Terms (continued) Family constellation The question Birth order Early recollections Dream analysis Basic mistakes

Key Terms (continued) Future autobiography Creating new images Acting “as if” Push button Spitting in the client’s soup Catching oneself Task-setting and indirect suggestion Paradoxical strategies I’ll betcha

Review Questions 1.  According to Dreikurs, what two psychosocial needs should be fulfilled in order to alleviate children’s pursuit of the four goals of misbehavior? 2.  Adler emphasized the importance of “winning the patient.” What does he mean by this and what is the other major point he makes about the attitude of the therapist during therapy? 3.  From the Adlerian perspective, discuss the relationship between insight and motivation. 4.  Answer the following question as briefly as you can: How do Adlerians propose that individual clients overcome their basic mistakes?

Review Questions (continued) 1.  Identify and operationally define one Adlerian concept that you think should and could be evaluated using modern quantitative scientific research methods. 2.  For an Adlerian, what causes psychopathology? 3.  Discuss the suitability of Adlerian therapy for ethnoculturally diverse clients. Which of the techniques discussed in this chapter do you think would be appropriate and/or inappropriate for clients of specific ethnocultural backgrounds?