Individual Psychology
Individual Psychology was created by Alfred Adler. He did not agree with Freud and his psychoanalysis, so he came up with his own theory. He replaced the idea of sexual drive with the idea that people have a drive for power, superiority, and to become a fully functioning adult. After WWI he altered his idea of human motivation and stated that motivation is driven by the desire to be significant, have self-worth, and social involvement. GoalsThis form of therapy helps people to feel self-actualized and empowered. It aims to help build relationships and rewarding social involvement. The goal in individual psychology is to make people aware of their faulty logic. The goal is to make people aware of this in order to establish healthy, realistic and rewarding goals. This will help the client overcome their feelings of inferiority and allow them to take responsibility for themselves and become more adjusted to the world around them. Adler thoroughly believed that individuals could change their goals and lifestyles in order to achieve happier and more fulfilled lives.
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Birth Order
- Oldest Child - tends to be the most intelligent and achieving of the five groups.
- Second Child- feels pressure to catch up and compete with the oldest. Once they realize they cannot go past the elders achievement they aim at something that child cannot do, which is typically something more creative.
- Middle Child- this child is often also the second child, so it has those characteristics. The middle child tends to feel left out and have trouble finding a way to become special and become discouraged.
- Youngest Child- this child will be pampered and spoiled, feel a need to go at top speeds all the time, and they may become discouraged about competing with the older siblings. They can experience strong feelings of inferiority. However, these children often develop power within the family. They become adventurous, easygoing, empathetic, sociable, and innovating.
- Only Child - They seek achievement and enjoy being the center of attention. They may become pampered and spoiled, and intern selfish. They mature early since the rest of the family consists of adults.
Techniques
1. Establishing the therapeutic relationship and goals
The first phase of treatment in Adler's individual therapy requires that the counselor and client develop a relationship and set goals. The relationship emphasizes the importance of true caring and involvement, empathy, and verbal and nonverbal listening cues. Encouragement is also huge in this phase, in order to help clients overcome their feelings of inferiority. Once the relationship develops a stable foundation, the two individuals can work on creating realistic goals.
Example: Lisa comes into therapy because she is having trouble in her current relationship. She says that she is afraid to speak up to her boyfriend and she doesn't feel like she is special to him. During the first few sessions the counselor builds a relationship with Lisa and they create a few simple goals of how she can communicate with her boyfriend.
2. Assessment, analysis, and understanding of the person and the problem
This theory focuses on in-depth assessment of the client, so phase two requires the counselor to look into all aspects of the client's life. The clinician conducts a general assessment which provides information such as: identifying information, background, current level of functioning, presenting problem, expectations for treatment, and summary.
The first phase of treatment in Adler's individual therapy requires that the counselor and client develop a relationship and set goals. The relationship emphasizes the importance of true caring and involvement, empathy, and verbal and nonverbal listening cues. Encouragement is also huge in this phase, in order to help clients overcome their feelings of inferiority. Once the relationship develops a stable foundation, the two individuals can work on creating realistic goals.
Example: Lisa comes into therapy because she is having trouble in her current relationship. She says that she is afraid to speak up to her boyfriend and she doesn't feel like she is special to him. During the first few sessions the counselor builds a relationship with Lisa and they create a few simple goals of how she can communicate with her boyfriend.
2. Assessment, analysis, and understanding of the person and the problem
This theory focuses on in-depth assessment of the client, so phase two requires the counselor to look into all aspects of the client's life. The clinician conducts a general assessment which provides information such as: identifying information, background, current level of functioning, presenting problem, expectations for treatment, and summary.
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Example: The therapist goes through a ton of different assessments with Lisa and finds out that she was the middle child growing up. Her mother went back to work when Lisa was 6 years old, and took another leave of absence when her younger sister was born. Lisa felt left out and unable to get the attention she needed from her parents. Her earliest memory is of her trying to impress her older brother and his friends by showing off and they were uninterested and laughed at her.
3. Reduction, insight, and interpretation
Phase 3 requires clinicians to be encouraging and challenging at the same time. The clinician needs to make the client aware of their lifestyle, recognize the reasons behind their behaviors, understand the negative consequences, and move toward a positive change.
Example: The therapist discusses with Lisa that he feels her experience growing up and feeling neglected may be the cause for her feeling like she has no voice in her current relationship.
4. Reorientation, reinforcement, termination, and follow-up
Once the client's understand their lives and that it needs to be changed, they are ready to reorient their lives. They are now able to view their lives from a different perspective and choose different behaviors to produce better outcomes.
Example: Lisa begins to understand her negative behaviors of just going with whatever her boyfriend wants. She begins to realize that she needs to be firm with him and speak her mind. Through her therapy she realizes her parents might not have been as neglectful as she once thought, and now she needs to let go of those feelings and stand tall. She is ready to be more assertive in her relationship.
Phase 3 requires clinicians to be encouraging and challenging at the same time. The clinician needs to make the client aware of their lifestyle, recognize the reasons behind their behaviors, understand the negative consequences, and move toward a positive change.
Example: The therapist discusses with Lisa that he feels her experience growing up and feeling neglected may be the cause for her feeling like she has no voice in her current relationship.
4. Reorientation, reinforcement, termination, and follow-up
Once the client's understand their lives and that it needs to be changed, they are ready to reorient their lives. They are now able to view their lives from a different perspective and choose different behaviors to produce better outcomes.
Example: Lisa begins to understand her negative behaviors of just going with whatever her boyfriend wants. She begins to realize that she needs to be firm with him and speak her mind. Through her therapy she realizes her parents might not have been as neglectful as she once thought, and now she needs to let go of those feelings and stand tall. She is ready to be more assertive in her relationship.