3. LIFE OF ALFRED ADLER
Adler was born just outside of Vienna on
February 7, 1870. After graduating with a
medical degree in 1895 from the University of
Vienna, he began his career as an
ophthalmologist, but soon switched to
general practice in a less affluent area of
Vienna near an amusement park and circus.
Working with people from the circus, Adler
was inspired by the performers’ unusual
strengths and weaknesses. It has been
suggested that Adler began to develop his
insights on compensation and inferiority
during this time.
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4. INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY
Presents an optimistic view of people
while resting heavily on the notion of
social interest, that is the feeling of
oneness with all humankind
Focuses on uniqueness of each person
Denies universal biological drives and
goals
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5. One of the central ways in which
Adler’s views differed from those of
Freud was the emphasis each placed
on the origin of motivation
For Freud, the prime motivators
were pleasure and sexuality
For Adler, human motivations were
much more complex
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6. 6
The central core of personality
Although striving for superiority does
refer to the desire to be better, it also
contains the idea that people want to be
better than others, rather than better in
their own right
Adler later tended to use striving for
superiority more in reference to
unhealthy or neurotic striving
STRIVING FOR SUPERIORITY
7. COMPARISON WITH FREUD
Motivation
Concept of
humanity
Shaping
Personality
Present
Behaviour
Focus
Freud
Sex and
aggression
Pessimistic
Little or no
choice
Past
experiences
Unconscious
Adler
Social
influences,
superiority
Optimistic
Largely
responsible
View of future
More on
conscious
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8. INFERIORITY COMPLEX
If people are overwhelmed by the forces of
inferiority, whether it is their body hurting,
the people around them holding them in
contempt, or just the general difficulties of
growing up, they develop an inferiority
complex
An inferiority complex is not just a little
problem, it is a neurosis, a psychological
problem
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9. “The feeling of inferiority
rules the mental life and can
be clearly recongnized in the
sense of incompletness and
unfulfillment, and in the
uninterrupted struggle both of
individuals and humanity”
Alfred Adler
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10. COMPENSATION
People respond to psychological
inferiorities with compensation
Some compensate by becoming good
at what they feel inferior about
More compensate by becoming good
at something else, but otherwise
retaining their sense of inferiority
And, some just never develop any
self esteem at all
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11. SUPERIORITY COMPLEX
People can respond to inferiority by
developing a superiority complex.
A superiority complex involves covering
up one’s inferiority by pretending to be
superior
Bullies, braggarts, and petty dictators
everywhere are the prime example
12. STRIVING FOR PERFECTION
Motivating force the striving for
perfection
A single "drive" or motivating force
lies behind all our behavior and
experience
Superiority or success
The desire we all have to fulfill our
potentials, to come closer and closer
to our ideal
Similar to the more popular idea of
self-actualization
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13. AGGRESSION DRIVE
The reaction we have when other
drives for e.g
o the need to eat
o be sexually satisfied
o get things done
o Or be loved are frustrated
The aggression drive: might be
better called the assertiveness drive
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14. MASCULINE PROTEST
Both boys and girls, however,
begin life with the capacity for
"protest!“
People want, often desperately, to
be thought of as strong,
aggressive, in control (i.e.
"masculine”) and not weak,
passive, or dependent (i.e.
"feminine”)
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15. NEUROSIS
All neurosis is a matter of insufficient
social interest
Three types can be distinguished:
i. The first is the ruling type
ii. The second is the getting type
iii. The third type is the avoiding type
16. The Ruling Type
From childhood on, they are
characterized by a tendency to be
rather aggressive and dominant over
others
The most energetic of them are bullies
and sadists
Somewhat less energetic ones hurt others
by hurting themselves, and include
alcoholics, drug addicts, and suicides
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17. The Getting type
They are relatively passive
make little effort to solve their own
problems
Instead, they rely on others to take
care of them
Frequently use charm to persuade
others to help them
18. The Avoiding type
These have the lowest levels of energy
and only survive by essentially
avoiding life -- especially other
people
When pushed to the limits, they tend
to become psychotic, retreating
finally into their own personal worlds
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