1. Emma Kirk, Gemma Williams, Gideon Martin, Karen Dodd, Kate Isherwood,
Laura Breeze, Polly Shingler, Pravin Poobalan, Ryan Flynn, Tanya McDermott
In western societies Alternative Societies
First: Given responsibilities, A limitation of Adler’s theory
and set the example. would be his focus on Western
Supports authority, maintains culture as he fails to account for
status quo alternative family styles. For
example, the Ik tribe of Uganda do
Middle: Tend to compete
with older siblings but
not have the concept of family and
instead are categorised by specific
Application of theory
dependent on their treatment age groups ( i.e. 3 to 8). In this
from others. Demanding of situation birth order would have
selves, too high goals. very little effect, and could show
Competitive/rebel. that Adler’s theory is not applicable
to alternative family structures.
Youngest: Need the most
attention, pampered, spoilt.
High dependency, need to Howard Wolowitz is an
excel and be praised. only child. He is
Dr Sheldon Cooper exhibits Penny exhibits the
a Ruling Personality type. pampered and still lives
Only: Viewed as pampered, with his Mother. He is a Getting Personality
intelligent, high achiever, He frequently takes type. She often relies
Inferiority advantage of his roommate high-achiever as a
high approval needs, can’t Mechanical Engineer on Leonard and his
take criticism well, over- for his own benefit, using flatmates to do
him a chauffer to transport working for NASA.
protected. Adler`s Theory states that when we are children we things for her. Penny
him. Sheldon feels that he is Howard exhibits a
have a sense of inferiority. However, we overcome is most likely the
vastly intellectually superior Neurotic personality
these imperfections of being weak and helpless to middle child, as she
compared to his colleagues type as he vastly over-
Neuroticism become superior to all around us. exhibits competitive
and rarely gives any credit evaluates himself,
Everyone aims for superiority which is the object traits.
to his friends. especially when
Neurotic personalities feel their own inferiority very acutely and try to driving our emotions, thoughts and behaviours. A
interacting with the
compensate with success. Grossly inaccurate in their own self-evaluations. person who wants to be successful is driven by their
opposite sex.
Either under- or over-evaluating themselves. Continually tense and fearful, feelings of inferiority to avoid imperfections.
especially of decision making, tests and any situation where failure is Feelings of inferiority can also go the opposite way as
possible. Adler described them as not being socially courageous. Adapt well, which can make an individual develop an
defensive strategies to cover themselves and are primarily interested in inferiority complex. An inferiority complex can make
themselves. They cannot be challenged as it would upset them. Neurotic an individual feel unimportant and therefore they do
symptoms: phobias, obsessions and compulsions, general anxiety, hysteria, not strive for superiority.
amnesias, and so on, depending on individual details of their lifestyle.
Neurosis is the natural, logical development of an individual who is Evaluation
comparatively inactive, filled with a personal, egocentric striving for Adlerian Treatment Approaches
superiority, and is therefore is inhibited in the development of their social • Explains the influence of family dynamics in
interest. Aim is to identify unhealthy behaviours and learn to overcome them. Adler utilised therapy
comparison to other developmental theories, lacks
in order to:
details into development and psychopathology.
• Gain an understanding of the patient’s lifestyle.
Adlerian Personality Types • Studies show a relationship between early
• Allow patients to recognise their lifestyle mistakes .
recollections and current interpersonal behaviour,
• Increase a patient’s social interest, so that an individual would begin to understand their
Ruling: Lacks social interest and courage. Intense desire for personal emotionality and perceived control, Adler found
mistakes and create stages to reduce socially negative behaviours. Emphasised on strong
superiority and seek out power over others, often through emotional that patients given therapy produced more
bond between therapist and patient.
manipulation i.e. drug addicts and juvenile delinquents. However positive early recollections as they got better.
Adler also saw many domineering, often highly successful • Lacks empirical evidence, his influence extends
Earliest childhood memories: Could provide important insight into a person’s life.
individuals as ruling personalities. into the full range of contemporary therapies.
Birth order: How other family members treat them and their role. E.g. the youngest child
Avoiding: Lacking the confidence to solve their problems. Often try • Adler’s theory covers many topics; but as social
may be the neediest, but this is dependent on how much the parents indulge and pamper
to pretend that the problem doesn’t exist. Often try to dodge interest was the sole motivator, the motivational
them.
responsibility by saying that it is someone else’s problem or that basis for explaining behaviour is very limited.
Childhood disorders: He looked at a wide range of childhood behaviours such as fears and
someone else is to blame. • Doesn’t specify what good role models actually are
aggression to see if these are characterised by other aspects of his theory such as an inferiority
Getting: Passive individuals, using minimal effort to solve problems as his descriptions are not specific and just give
complex, or pampering or neglect that may be due to birth order in the family.
and rely on others to get them through life’s hardships. Generally vague general principles.
Day and night dreams: Viewed as unconscious interpretations of one’s views towards their
obsessive, compulsive, have general amnesia and are hysteric. • Led to the development of effective parenting
personal aims and goals, especially interested in analysing recurrent dreams.
Socially useful: The healthy individual who is energetic and social. training, such as the ‘Systematic Training for
The nature of external factors: Problems and conflicts in the patient’s current life that could
They are also prepared to cooperate with others ideas, and also have Effective Parenting’.
be contributing to their unhealthy lifestyle.
a contribution to another’s welfare. • Helps explain the issue within highly competitive
Western societies.