ALFRED ADLER - INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY

Flashcards based on Alfred Adler's Individual Psychology

Where was Alfred Adler born and in what year?

Rudolfsheim, Vienna in 1870

In what year did Adler form 'The Society for Individual Psychology'?

1911

When did Alfred Adler die, and what was the cause of death?

May 28, 1937 ( Heart Attack)

What is the basis of Individual Psychology?

An optimistic view of people with a feeling of oneness with all humankind.

According to Adler, what primarily motivates individuals?

Social influences and the striving for success or superiority.

What shapes present behavior according to Adler?

People's view of the future

What is the one dynamic force behind people's behavior, according to Adler?

Striving for success or superiority.

What is the role of feeling of inferiority in Adler's theory?

Feelings that motivate a person to strive for either superiority or success.

What is an inferiority complex?

A condition that develops when a person is unable to compensate for normal inferiority.

What is a superiority complex?

A condition that develops when a person overcompensates for normal inferiority feelings

What is the main goal of people who are striving for superiority?

Personal gain

What do people Striving for Success think about?

They think about the effect to others.

What is the striving force as compensation?

People strive for superiority or success as a means of compensation for feelings of inferiority or weakness.

According to Adler, what shapes people's behaviour and personality?

The way we interpret the reality or things that is happening around our world shapes our behavior and personality.

What is fictionalism in Psychology?

A goal that guides our style of life and gives unity to our personalities.

What does physical deformities suggest in Adler's theory?

Suggestions that because we are small, weak and inferior, we develop a fiction or belief system about how to overcome these physical deficiencies and become big, strong, and superior.

According to Adler, what is the Unity and Self Consistency of Personality?

Each person is unique and indivisible.

According to Adler, what is Organ Dialect?

The deficient organ expresses the direction of the individual’s goal.

What are Conscious Thoughts?

Thoughts that are understood and regarded by the individual as helpful in striving for success.

What are Unconscious Thoughts?

Thoughts that are not helpful to an individual.

According to Adler, what is Social Interest?

A striving for a form of community which must be thought of as everlasting

According to Adler, which parental figure is responsible for developing a bond that encourages the child's mature social interest and foster a sense of cooperation?

Mother

What is the constructive path that leads people to social interest?

Leads people to relate to others with cooperation and good will

What is the destructive path that leads people to personal superiority?

Leads them to seek to dominate and exploit others

What is Style of Life?

It includes a person’s goal, self-concept, feelings for others and attitude toward the world.

What is Creative Power?

The freedom to create his/ her own style of life.

According to Adler, what are characteristics of Neurotics?

Setting their goals too high and living in their own private worlds.

What is one factor that underlies all types of maladjustments?

Underdeveloped Social Interest

According to Adler, what are characteristics of those with Pampered Lifestyles?

They lack social interest because they want to perpetuate their parasitic, pampered relationships

According to Adler, what are characteristics of those with Neglected Lifestyles?

Feel unloved and unwanted and lack social interest.

What are Safeguarding Tendencies?

Protective devices that enable people to hide their inflated self-image

What does Aggression mean in Safeguarding Tendencies?

To safeguard their exaggerated superiority complex

What are the applications of Individual Psychology?

Family Constellations, Early Recollections, Dreams and Psychotherapy

What is the chief purpose of Psychotherapy?

To enhance courage, lessen feelings of inferiority and underdeveloped social interest.