Alfred Adler (1870-1937)

1. Alfred Adler (1870-1937) Individual Psychology © Lucie Johnson

2. A Fictitious Memory • As an adult, Adler had a vivid memory of having to walk through a cemetery on his way to school as a five year-old, being terrified, and mastering his fear by running through the cemetery back and forth a number of times. • Later, when he was 35, he learned that there never had been a cemetery on his way to school, and thus, the whole memory was fictitious (= not factual, created unconsciously by the psyche). © Lucie Johnson

3. Why did Adler construct such a memory? • When he was five, Adler almost died of pneumonia, but was then given treatment and recovered rapidly. That incident is was gave him the desire to become an MD when he grew up (which he did) • The fear of death stayed a predominant theme in Adler’s life and work. • The construction of this memory was a way for his unconscious to express the manner in which he dealt with that fear. © Lucie Johnson

4. Why does the unconscious create a fiction? • In Adler’s view, the unconscious helps us problem solve. • The fear of death was more prevalent in Adler’s psyche than he consciously knew. • Configuring that memory provides a possible model for action. In the memory, he faces and copes successfully with his fear, and showed courage and strength. © Lucie Johnson

5. We always construct memories… • If you doubt this, just compare some of your childhood recollections with your siblings and other family members. They may remember things quite differently than you do. There may be things you remember strongly and clearly that no one else does. Did these things happen? Only God would know for sure (unless it is the kind of thing for which you can find physical evidence) • Do some memory constructions” give you information about your fears or important themes? © Lucie Johnson

6. We construct helpful memories • Adler would say that we are constructing the kinds of memories which support us in our goals and struggles. • That also is, says Adler, how we are constructing dreams: dreams aim to create a mood that will prompt us into taking action when we wake up. • Question: How is that similar to/different from the way Freud and Jung looked at dreams? © Lucie Johnson

7. The basic driving force for Adler is • The attempt to overcome death, to live constructively in the presence of death as a possibility © Lucie Johnson

8. Overcoming Death Means • When we are afraid of death, we also fear the various forms of inferiority and vulnerability we experience (ex: disability, illness, not being good at something, being poor, being weak and small etc..) • Trying to hide our vulnerabilities or deny them is the UNHEALTHY response • Overcoming death means living constructively in the presence of our weaknesses and vulnerabilities. © Lucie Johnson

9. Ways to deal with our sense of inferiority • Compensatory striving: becoming stronger, better in some other way • Aggression and anger at one’s problems, hostility (or its opposite, submission, passive aggression) • Overcompensation to feel competent and in control (Adler called this: masculine protest) • Perfection striving: seeking after a goal, or dream. Based on subjective, fictional ideas about life. © Lucie Johnson

10. Find some examples of: • Compensatory striving • Compensatory anger • Overcompensation • Perfection striving Note that SOME of that can be energizing and helpful. © Lucie Johnson

11. Inferiority and superiority traits serve the same goal • Which is to deal with one’s vulnerabilities and inferiorities. • An overbearing, authoritarian, arrogant person is in fact insecure and exhibiting a “superiority complex” • An overly timid, submissive, conforming person, exhibiting an “inferiority complex” is insecure as well. • The two have chosen different strategies: attack vs withdrawal. Both have different subjective or fictional ideas about where safety lies. © Lucie Johnson

12. Fictional goals: Vaihinger • Adler was influenced by a philosopher by the name of Hans Vaihinger who published a book entitled The Philosophy of “As If” • Fictions are subjective ways to represent reality in understandable, livable terms. They may be false, but they are useful. • For example, Vaihinger, who was a skeptic himself, said that behaving “as if” there were a God lent meaning to people’s lives. © Lucie Johnson

13. Fictions in science and business • Physicists for example, sometimes behave "as if" electricity where a fluid, or "as if" light were discrete packets of energy. • Lawyers and others in the legal process behave “as if” corporations were individual persons. • In the financial world, “trusts” are treated as persons as well. © Lucie Johnson

14. How do we create fictions? • Individuals create fictions that are unique to them, that help them cope etc… • These fictions are created at least in part, in the unconscious, in response to unconscious needs or fears • We are not fully aware of the fictions and fictional goals underlying our actions and objectives. © Lucie Johnson

15. Alfred Adler and religion • How does our concept of God fit with our desire to escape inferiority? • Why is a more "general" God as creative force etc. not as effective on a personal level according to Adler? • How might our concept of God influence our social interest? • Read what Adler has to say on religion • Read here about Adler's conversion to protestantism. What was the motive do you think? © Lucie Johnson

16. Alfred Adler and pastoral psychology • Read an article about the usefulness of the Adlerian approach in pastoral counseling • What do you think? © Lucie Johnson

17. Our style of life • On the basis of our experience, biology, needs and fictions, we develop our own unique pattern of character. • Adler calls this pattern of character our style of life. • Some of our style of life is determined, but Adler introduces an element of free will, which he calls the creative power of the self, which allows us to develop a constructive life style within the limitations of our circumstances. © Lucie Johnson

18. Neurotic strategies to approach life • Self absorption: centered on the self • Safeguarding strategies (defense mechanisms to avoid the anxiety of low self-esteem or the fear of challenges) • Excuses and rationalizations • Aggressive strategies: • Depreciation of others • Accusation and blaming • Distancing strategies: • Moving backward (somewhat like regression) • Standing still • Hesitation (i.e. procrastination) • Construction of obstacles © Lucie Johnson

19. How does a person choose a life style? • Adler often used early recollections in therapy to help people see what patterns they adopted or interpretations they made. Insight into those may help change. For example: someone’s whose earliest memory is an accident that provoked a lot of attention, may have developed a “pampered child” approach, wanting to be the center of attention, avoiding autonomy etc. • One’s ordinal position within the family is also something Adler considered significant © Lucie Johnson

20. Birth order • First Born: possible envy at having been “dethroned”, but also may identify w/ parent and be a helper and mentor. Sets the pace for the others. Parents are more anxious • Second born: often more competitive. • Youngest child: more likely to be pampered, will be ambitious, but may be discouraged too, which results in laziness • Only child: often sweet and too dependent, a people pleaser. © Lucie Johnson

21. What does it mean to be mentally healthy? Three essential components: • To work: vocational tasks, productive tasks of all kinds. These tasks give the person a feeling of worth within society • To care for the larger community: societal tasks: friendship, social interest (Gemeinschaftgefuhl) • To love: love tasks: relationship between the sexes (the least important for Adler) © Lucie Johnson

22. Adler’s psychological theories are • More concrete and common-sense than those of Freud and Jung • Less sytematic, and more superficial. For example, the role of the unconscious is not clear, nor how freedom operates • Usable for short term therapy • More cognitive (thinking based) © Lucie Johnson

23. Watch and listen • A 1929 video with sound of Alfred Adler summarizing his theory (real player) © Lucie Johnson

24. Adlerian therapy • Here is a transcript of a demonstration therapy session about procrastination (a very common problem :-)) following an Adlerian method. Note the concreteness and specificity. • What insight (or new direction on thought) was the client brought to? Do you think the session was taking the client in a helpful direction? • What do you see as possible roots of procrastination? Does procrastination have deeper roots (besides convenience and simple impulsivity)? What are some "deeper reasons" people might procrastinate? © Lucie Johnson

25. Adlerian child rearing • Some principles for child rearing. Adler stresses, among other things, mutual respect, and also the use of natural consequences (rather than artificial rewards and punishments). • Adler introduces the notion of parenting style and their consequences. What do you think of this concept and the way he applies it? © Lucie Johnson

26. Adler Links • Alfred Adler Institutes of San Francisco and Northern Washington. Lots of info here. • Alfred Adler Photo Gallery • Prof Anthony Bruck's personal remembrance of Adler • Dr Sophia deVries remembrances • An interesting short biography © Lucie Johnson

27. The End What do you think of Adler? © Lucie Johnson