Adler Chapter 4

Early Influences Illnesses as a child Poor student at first Older, “perfect” brother Domineering, socialist wife  Interest in everyday problems and people Freud

Organ Inferiority Version 1 “Weak” Organs Compensation  try to improve weakness, or  emphasize other functions to make up for weakness Overcompensation  Conversion of a biological weakness into a strength

Feelings of Inferiority Version 2 Emphasis shifted from physical to subjective inferiorities All people born “inferior” The desire to overcome inferiority is the primary motivator in life Masculine Protest Inferiority Complex

Striving for Superiority Version 3 Life Goal: seeking superiority or perfection Final version: striving for superior or perfect society Superiority Complex

Vaihinger’s “As If” Philosophy 1. All experience of “reality” comes through our senses 2. Humans have a natural tendency to give these sensations meaning, or fictions

Fictional Goals and Lifestyles “As if” applied to lives of individuals:  Because of past experiences, world views created  Subjective reality more important than physical reality Lifestyle: ways a person attempts to gain life goals

Creative Self Free element of the personality that allows a person to choose between alternative fictional goals and lifestyles

Social Interest Three major problems or goals in life:  Occupational tasks: advance society  Societal tasks: cooperation/division of labor  Love/marriage tasks: procreation

Mistaken Lifestyles Mistaken Lifestyle: any lifestyle not aimed at socially useful goals Lifestyle types:  Ruling-dominant type  Getting-leaning type  Avoiding type Healthy lifestyle must be socially useful

Where do mistaken lifestyles come from? Physical inferiority Spoiling/pampering Neglecting

Safeguarding Strategies Used by neurotics to save self-esteem  Excuses Symptoms created to explain short-comings  Aggression Deprecation  Idealization: use of unrealistic standards to judge others  Solicitude: giving advice to point where you believe others cannot live w/o you Accusation: blame others for own short-comings Self-accusation: self-harm w/ the goal of gaining attention

Safeguarding Strategies  Distancing Moving backward: revert to less complicated time to escape social responsibilities Standing still: inability to move forward in life Hesitating: vacillating with problems, delaying, avoiding Constructing obstacles: creating minor barriers to success Experiencing anxiety: amplification of all distancing strategies Using the exclusion tendency: living within narrow limits

Goal of Therapy Awareness of incorrect old lifestyles and creation of a more healthy lifestyle Therapists avoids blame or criticism Prevented from using neuroses to gain sympathy from therapist

Methods of Research Birth Order  Firstborn  Second born  Youngest  Only

Methods of Research First Memories Dream Analysis

Evaluating Adler’s Theory Empirical Research Criticisms  Falsifiability  Overly simplistic and optimistic Contributions  Social variables  Influential

Horney ( ) Part 1

Early Influences Mother: supportive, independent Father: very religious, believed women source of evil Large family, felt unwanted Bouts w/ depression Unhappy marriage, sexual promiscuity

Influence of Freud Trained in Freudian tradition However, she discover her clients had different problems from the ones that Freud described Developed her own personality theory to better explain what she saw  Emphasis on culture rather than biology

What causes neuroses? Social experiences Esp. important  Relationship between parent and child

Childhood Two basic needs  Satisfaction  Safety

If… Need for safety satisfied  Healthy person Need for safety not satisfied Parental Indifference: THE "BASIC EVIL"  Neurotic person

Parental Indifference Basic Hostility Basic Anxiety Making a Neurotic Person

10 Neurotic Trends or Needs Affection/approval Partner who will run one’s life Live life in narrow limits Power Exploit others

10 Neurotic Trends or Needs Social recognition and prestige Personal admiration Ambition / personal achievement Independence Perfection

Adjustment Patterns moving toward  compliant type moving against  hostile type moving away  detached type

What is mental health? neurotic: overemphasizes one orientation healthy: uses all 3 orientations

 needs affection, approval, a partner  compliant, manipulative, temper tantrums  represses competition, rage, anger, hostility  lives life within narrow borders  "poor little me"; martyr; saint Neurotic: MOVING TOWARD PEOPLE Motto: "If I give in, I will not be hurt."

In healthy people, "moving toward" enables us to give and receive social support. Healthy: MOVING TOWARD PEOPLE

needs control, dominance, recognition and power hostile, exploitative, perfectionistic, need to be right, Machiavellian, but likeable facade self-worth  success and prestige chooses a partner to enhance prestige, wealth, or power identifies with the ideal self Neurotic: MOVING AGAINST PEOPLE Motto: "If I have power, I shall not be hurt."

In healthy people, "moving against" enables us to be appropriately assertive Notice that socially approved competition can be a "moving against" symptom Healthy: MOVING AGAINST PEOPLE

need for privacy self-sufficient, detached, emotionally flat, lacks goals, overly sensitive to coercion or advice belittles own potential vacillates between despised real self and ideal self attitude of "I don't care about anything" Neurotic: MOVING AWAY FROM PEOPLE Motto: "If I withdraw, nothing can hurt me."

In healthy people, "moving away" enables us to be self-reliant (when this is appropriate). Healthy: MOVING AWAY FROM PEOPLE