Adlerian Theory and Therapeutic Techniques

Introduction

Alfred Adler wanted to help people get along with their family, friends, and others. He

valued the role of cooperation with and connectedness to the world around each person. His

message stressed the power of personal choice; the universal fellowship of human beings; the

importance of a positive, encouraging life focus; the eradication of social inequality; and the

primacy of social relationships (Carlson, 2017).

Adler envisioned a psychology of growth, where people could strive to overcome

difficulties and actually change their lives. Even though Alfred Adler inspired others (e.g., Ellis,

Beck, Maslow, & Rogers) to incorporate his ideas into their emerging theories, the Adlerian

approach itself has remained a comprehensive model of psychotherapy, one not well-known

although the component parts seem to be everywhere. It is fascinating to us that Adler’s original

ideas are consistent with the state of modern practice—even though his entire model was created

nearly 100 years ago! His vision of the equality of people, encouragement, the search for what is

right or positive, the emphasis on mental health and relationships, the concept of social interest,

and the need to consider cultural and contextual factors are examples of cutting-edge topics with

which Adler engaged to help people grow and develop their potential. Surprisingly, these ideas

and many others are the bases of today’s approaches to helping, yet there is often little reference

or recognition given to Alfred Adler (Carlson, 2017).

The Individual Psychology

The individual psychology of Alfred Adler is based on a phenomenological, holistic

understanding of human behavior. Adler used the term individual psychology for his approach in
order to emphasize the indivisible (undivided or whole) nature of our personalities and refer to

the essential unity of the individual psyche. Adlerians focus on holism and how each person

moves through life, noting that one cannot understand an individual by analyzing their parts (i.e.,

reductionism), but all aspects of the person must be understood in relationship to the total pattern

and in connection to social systems (Maniacci, Sackett-Maniacci, & Mosak, 2014). For example,

you don’t have to listen to the entire song before being able to state that it is by Beethoven. It is

only necessary to uncover the pattern or melody to understand. The phenomenological

perspective suggests that each person sees situations from a unique point of view. We live our

life and “act as if ” our view of the world is accurate or correct. When our views are distorted,

our thinking becomes faulty, our emotions destructive, and our behavior inappropriate (Carlson,

2017).

The Adlerian-trained psychotherapist believes that all behavior has a purpose and occurs

in a social context, noting that one’s cognitive orientation and lifestyle (literally one’s style of

dealing with life) is created in the first few years of life and molded within the initial social

setting, the family constellation. The family constellation, including family atmosphere, family

values, and gender lines, proposes that your basic birth order (psychological, not ordinal) in the

family emphasizes different worldviews and life demands in order to belong within the family

system. This position in your family influences your lifestyle. Each person is unique, and their

style of life (i.e., lifestyle) is formed partly by seeing how other family members react to

different behaviors and attitudes and partly from conclusions drawn as a child. The lifestyle is

the characteristic way that we act, think, and perceive and the way we live. It is from the lifestyle

that we select the methods for coping with life’s challenges and tasks (Carlson, 2017).
Emphasis on Sociality of Humans

Adlerian theory purports that humans are social beings and therefore all behavior is

socially embedded and has social meaning (Watts, 2000b). Adler emphasized the importance of

relationships and being connected to others, including the larger community in which people

reside. People are viewed as always trying to belong and fit into the social milieu. The outside

world shapes their consciousness, as does the world of the family. A hallmark of Adlerian theory

is the emphasis on social interest, which is a feeling of cooperation with people, the sense of

belonging to and participating in the common good (Carlson, 2017).

Adlerians understand the individual within their social context. Therefore, the Adlerian is

interested in the impact of culture and contextual factors on the individual. This contextual

understanding is so embedded in the essence of the approach that those who study Adler’s theory

often miss it. Carlson and Sperry (1998), as well as Watts (2003), attempted to emphasize this

aspect when they wrote about how Adler was one of the originators of the constructivist

approach. The community, for example, was easy to see in Adler’s early writings. He wrote

about how circus performers as freaks of society were marginalized and ostracized, and how

those working in the tailoring industry became blind from a poor work environment. Thus, the

environment and the context of that environment influence the health of the individual. Later in

his career Adler became focused on how people were being affected by social unrest, the wars,

and the anti-Semitism/ethnic conflict/nationalism in Europe (Hoffman, 1994).

The Central Ideas of Adlerian Therapy

1. Goal-Directedness
 Adler talked about the freedom of choice. However, a general idea holds that humans do

not have freedom of choice because every action has a “cause”. Adler was influenced by Kant,

he added his own ideas on the issue of causality and wrote the following:

“In psychology, we cannot talk about causality or determinism (…). Man makes one thing

the cause, and another thing the effect, and then joins the two. Much appears as causally

determined, although causality was only attributed to it. (Adler, 1967, p. 91).

The idea Adler added is revolutionary. Indeed, we look for causes for everything, and this

is what science is based upon. But there is one case in which this principle does not hold. There

is one being that has a certain range of freedom of choice that is not predetermined by a cause. A

human being creates a goal for himself, and he chooses his actions according to this goal. His

movement is goal-directed.

This understanding makes it easier to accept the idea of freedom of choice. If my action

is the result of a reason, I cannot have freedom of choice because the reason, which happened in

the past, cannot be cancelled or changed. Accordingly, I cannot change the result either.

However, if I act towards a goal that I myself created, then I am free. Goals are in the future,

therefore I can change my previous goal and create a different one.

If we think about this for a moment, we will realize that there is nothing we can do in

therapy if we accept the assumption of causality. Suppose a client says, “My wife is always late.

Because she’s late, I get hysterical, and then I become very angry, and I shout at her like mad.” If

we accept his reasoning, what can we do? We can invite the wife to therapy and suggest she be

punctual. But she will say, “I come late because I feel my boss expects me to stay late at work.”

What will we do? Invite the boss to therapy and try changing his expectations of this woman? It
is a never-ending chain, or, more accurately, a chain with no beginning. And if our patient’s

hysterical rage attacks occur because his wife comes home late, there is nothing we can do for

him.

But as discussed earlier, Adler did not accept the idea of causality as an explanation for

human behavior. He claimed that we move towards goals. Therefore, in our therapeutic work, we

will not deal with the reasons for our clients’ complaints; instead, we will look for their goal.

The Goals According to Adler

1) The Universal Goal (Common to All Humans)

On the highest level, at a point towards which all humans strive, we find a goal common

to all of us. Human beings are social creatures and as social creatures, our main aspiration is to

feel a sense of belonging, to feel we have a place in society, that we matter, that we have

meaning, that we are a significant part of the groups in which we function. Adler and Adlerians

have many names for these goals. The names are a sense of belonging, a sense of value, finding a

place, and more.

2) The Personal Goal

The second level is the personal goal. According to Adler, we can strive towards a sense

of significance and value in two very different ways: either in a mistaken way or in the right

way, in a way that creates difficulties for the individual and for society or a way that helps

improve the emotional and actual situation of the individual as well as the community. Lydia

Zicher, a follower and colleague of Adler, created an image to illustrate these two ways.

Adlerians use this image to depict the two contradicting worldviews Adler talks about. The
image clearly represents the two directions of striving people choose from as they set out to

achieve a sense of having their place.

1. The Vertical Worldview (or The Mistaken Worldview).

Those who hold the vertical worldview see social life as if it exists on a ladder. The

ladder begins at a very low point, lower than ground level, at a place where no one is prepared to

remain because this would mean unbearable suffering. To perceive oneself in this position is to

feel inferior. A person who sees himself at this low level lacks a sense of value and belonging in

society. “I have no place. I am nothing. I am nobody,” he thinks.

The ladder, which climbs up to the sky, passes horizontal ground level where human

society resides, crosses it and continues to climb. At its highest point lies the attainment of

perfection, absolute control, absolute security, unlimited knowledge, and the whole gamut of

superlatives—the best, the cleverest, the strongest, and (in these times) the richest. Up there we

find success, triumph, and the vertical personal sense of value.

This worldview is the alternative Adler proposes. It is based on the assumption that there

is social equality between human beings. Those who hold this worldview look at social life as

unfolding on a horizontal plane. The horizontal plain is at ground level, where all people are at

the same height. All have equal value. Not only do they not compete, they cooperate, as all of

them have a common goal, which is everyone’s wellbeing.

The goal of the individual who perceives social life this way is also to overcome but not

to overcome other human beings (as is the goal of those who hold the vertical worldview).

Rather, those with a horizontal worldview seek to overcome the challenges and obstacles nature

and social life place before them. This individual copes with the tasks of life in cooperation with

others. That is where he gets a sense of belonging from.

Therapeutic Techniques and Procedures in Adlerian Counseling

Adlerian counseling is structured around four central objectives that correspond to the

four phases of the therapeutic process. These phases are not linear and do not progress in rigid
steps; rather, they can best be understood as a weaving that leads to a tapestry. These phases are

as follows:

1. Establish the proper therapeutic relationship.

2. Explore the psychological dynamics operating in the client (an assessment).

3. Encourage the development of self-understanding (insight into purpose).

4. Help the client make new choices (reorientation and reeducation).

Phase 1: Establishing the Therapeutic Relationship

For the psychotherapy to be effective, it is essential that the therapist and the client

commence with a healthy working relationship. There must be a “warm, empathetic bond” which

opens the door for gradual progress.

This bond is created by genuine warmth and compassion expressed by the therapist, in

addition to the trust of the client in the relationship.

Phase 2: Assessment

The therapist must conduct a thorough assessment of the client in order to develop an

effective therapeutic process. The analysis must identify at least the following elements:

 Feelings of inferiority

 Fictive goal, defined as “an imagined, compensatory, self-ideal created to inspire

permanent and total relief, in the future, from the primary inferiority feeling”

 Psychological movement, defined as “the thinking, feeling, and behavioral motions a

person makes in response to a situation or task”

 Level and radius of activity

 Scheme of apperception

 Attitude toward occupation; love and sex; and other people

Phase 3: Encouragement and Clarification

The process of encouraging the client helps them reduce feelings of inferiority. The

therapist can start by acknowledging courage that the client has already shown, and continue by

discussing small steps the client can take towards getting to a more confident place. For instance,

if the client has a limited radius of activity, the client and the therapist might discuss ways to

broaden their activity.

The second crucial aspect of this phase is to clarify the client’s core feelings and beliefs

regarding the self, others, and life in general. This is done using Socratic questioning.

Through this method, the therapist challenges the clients’ private logic and focuses on

psychological movement around his fictive goal.

Phase 4: Interpretation

Once the therapy has reached the point where the client has made some progress, and he

and the therapist have examined the meaning of his movement in relation to his goals, the

therapy is ready to begin interpreting the client’s style of life. This must only be done when the

client is encouraged sufficiently, and this must be done with significant care.

Discussing and recognizing topics such as the inferiority complex can be difficult for the

client, but new insight can be transformative.

Now that the client and the therapist have recognized the issues with the client’s style of

life, the task becomes to redirect the style of life towards life satisfaction. This involves reducing

and productively utilizing feelings of inferiority, changing the fictive final goal, and increasing

feelings of community.

This is accomplished using different methods, depending on the specific needs of the client.

Phase 6: Meta-therapy

Finally, some clients may wish to seek further personal development, towards higher

values such as truth, beauty, and justice. Towards this end, the therapist can provide stimulation

for the client to become the best version of himself. This process is certainly challenging and

requires a deep understanding of the individual client.

References

Adler, A. (1967). The individual psychology of Alfred Adler: A systematic presentation in

selections from his writings. H. L. Ansbacher & R. R. Ansbacher (Eds.), New York:

Harper & Row.

Adler, A. (2010). Understanding Human Nature (Menschenkenntnis): Applied Individual

Psychology. Hebrew, (Translation: Professor D. Guttmann). Israel: Yizreel academic

publication.

Carlson, J., & Englar-Carlson, M. (2017). Adlerian psychotherapy. American Psychological

Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000014-000
Dreikurs, R. (1973). Psychodynamic, Psychotherapy and counseling. Alfred Adler Institute of

Chicago.