1 - Adlerian Therapy

Adlerian therapy

views people as active creators of their lives

who make choices, take responsibility, and work toward their goals based on how they interpret their experiences.

People are self-determined

People can decide who they want to become

based on the meaning they give to their experiences.

Example: Two students fail an exam. One gives up, while the other uses it as motivation to study harder.

creative power

People create their own lives by using their ___ ____.

abilities

It is the individual who must ultimately be responsible for making good use of his _____

Adlerian therapy

People are motivated by their present perceptions

and by their present expectations of the future

Adlerian therapy

• People do not determine meanings by situations, but they determine themselves by the meanings they give to situations.

• People create their own personalities,

• and they can change their personality by developing new attitudes

• optimistic

• holistic

• phenomenological

Adlerian’s view is essentially _____, _____, and ______ in orientation

Subjective Perception of Reality

it pays attention to the individual way in which people perceive their world (PHENOMENOLOGICAL).

Subjective Perception of Reality

includes the individual’s perceptions, thoughts, feelings, values, beliefs, convictions, and conclusions

Unity and Patterns of Human Personality

The focus is on understanding whole persons within their socially embedded contexts of family, culture, school, and work

unified

Through the development of life goals,

human personality become _____

holistic view of personality

means human is an integral part of social system

• Goal-directed & Purposeful behavior

• Feelings of Inferiority

• Striving for Superiority

• Lifestyle

• Fictional Finalism

UNITY AND PATTERNS OF HUMAN PERSONALITY (5)

Goal-Directed and Purposeful Behavior

All behavior has a purpose and is directed toward a goal,

even when the person is not fully aware of it.

Goal-Directed and Purposeful Behavior

When counselors help clients analyze their goals, they are taking important steps to helping them lead more productive lives

Goal-Directed and Purposeful Behavior

Example

A student avoids participating in class.

Behavior: Staying quiet and avoiding recitation.

Possible goal: Avoiding embarrassment or making mistakes.

Counselor's role: Help the student understand this goal and develop confidence to participate.

Feelings of Inferiority

All human beings begin their psychological life with feelings of inferiority

Feelings of Inferiority

It is the presentation of the person to himself and others that he is not strong enough to solve a given problem in a socially useful way

Feelings of Inferiority

• It is more than a sense of inadequacy
• Its is inevitable, universal, and normal

Feelings of Inferiority

A student feels inferior because their classmates perform better in class.

Since the student struggles to understand the lessons, they begin to think they are not as capable as others.

• However, this feeling is normal because everyone has weaknesses and areas for improvement.

• Instead of giving up, the student studies harder, asks for help, and practices until they improve.

Striving for Superiority

Used to explain our drive to master external obstacles, to gain power and status, and to arrive at a positive state

• Positive striving for perfection

Striving for Superiority

The student uses their feelings of inferiority as motivation to overcome obstacles and improve themselves.

Lifestyle

Behavior is lawfully organized and that each person develops a generalized pattern of responses to most situations

Lifestyle

Habitual pattern of behavior

• unique to each person

• Considered as the major key of our behavior

Lifestyle

Includes our goals, opinions of ourselves and the world, and the habitual behaviors

we use for achieving desired outcomes

Lifestyle

means your usual way of thinking and behaving

as you try to reach your goals

Fictional Finalism

an imagined central goal

that guides a person’s behavior.

Fictional Finalism

Can help us deal more effectively with reality,

• or they may block our attempts to accept reality

Fictional Finalism

an imagined future goal

that guides how you think and act today.

early childhood

• unconscious

Fictional goals develop during __________,

• and they exist primarily at the ______ level of awareness throughout one’s life.

Fictional Finalism

Our fictional goals influence

the way we think, and act throughout our lives.

• GUIDING SELF-IDEAL

• GOAL OF PERFECTION

Fictional Finalism was later changed to? (2)

• Social Interest

• Community Feeling

SOCIAL INTEREST AND COMMUNITY FEELING (2)

Social Interest

Refers to the individual’s sense of being part of the human community

and their attitudes toward others.

Social Interest

An individual’s ability to empathize with others

Social Interest

provides us with a basically positive outlook on life and an interest in developing the welfare of others

Social Interest

During group work, you do your share and support your groupmates because you care about the whole group’s success.

Community Feeling

embodies the feeling of being connected to all of humanity

—past, present, and future—and to being involved in making the world a better place.

Community Feeling

• You preserve useful knowledge from older generations and share it with younger people so it continues to help others.

• You plant trees today so future generations can enjoy cleaner air and shade—even though you may never meet them.