Alderian Approach Flashcards
what is Alderian therapy often called
often called individualistic therapy, associated with community psychology
what is Alderia therapy based off of
Based on the holistic concept (positive view of human nature, what did you learn in terms of cultural and social messages, individual is a part of society)
- Alder used own experience of feeling inferior to brother as inspiration for theory
- Stresses uniqueness of individual
explain phenomenological approach
focusing on clients subjective experience (does person feel connected to community, where are they in terms of relationships)
what is stressed in Alderian therapy
- Social interest is stressed
- Birth order and sibling relationships
- How does someone experience being a middle child
- Therapy as teaching, informing and encouraging
- Therapist also takes on holistic approach
- The therapeutic relationship—a collaborative partnership
what is view of human nature in Alderian therapy
Adlerians attempt to view the world from the client’s subjective frame of reference (how does client interpret or understand events)
-How life is in reality is less important than how the individual believes life to be
-It is not the childhood experiences that are crucial
it is our present interpretation of these events
-Unconscious instincts and our past do not determine our behavior
what is the role of the counselor in Alderian therapy
Diagnosticians, teachers, and models of egalitarian relationships
-Emphasizes sense of curiosity (how individual understands life)
Uses family constellation, earliest memories, dreams
Client encouraged to change faulty lifestyle
Counselor active, assigns homework
- Getting client to participate (get client to download dating app), getting them to be own agents of change
- Do webinar, have them read
explain social interest in Alderian therapy
Adler’s most significant and distinctive concept
- Refers to an individual’s attitude toward and awareness of being a part of the human community
- Embodies a community feeling and emphasizes the client’s positive feelings toward others in the world
- Helping client find place in society where they can contribute and cooperate, feel connected and develop a sense of empathy
how is mental health measured
measured by the degree to which we successfully share with others and are concerned with their welfare
what are happiness and success related to
social connectedness
social interest with people on the spectrum?
not everyone has to be friends and socialize, but depends on the person, what is best for the person
explain inferiority feelings
Are normal (everyone experiences these)
- “Minus situations” help create “plus situations”
- Minus: recovery; plus: using these to understand emotions and triggers
They are the wellspring of creativity.
-Develop when we are young–characterized by early feelings of hopelessness
what are superiority feelings
(normal too) Promote mastery
- Enable us to overcome obstacles
- “we are the best” “everything I do is fantastic” (overcompensate), tricks to help us not realize how fragile we are actually feeling
what are the related complexes to superiority and inferiority feelings
▫ Inferiority Complex
▫ Superiority Complex
explain birth order importance in Alderian therapy
- Actual birth order is not as important as the interpretation of the role
- A concept that assigns probability to having a certain set of experiences based on one’s position in the family
Alder’s 5 psychological positions in birth order
1) Oldest child– receives more attention, spoiled,
center of attention
2) Second of only two– behaves as if in a race, often opposite to first child
3) Middle– often feels squeezed out
4) Youngest– the baby
5) Only– does not learn to share or cooperate with other children, learns to deal with adults
explain Alderian view on lifestyle (archetypes of how we approach life)
he was influenced by German philosopher (fictional finalism: one’s final goal/ideal situation- there are patterns you follow to get to these goals, it organizes client’s life and gives it meaning)
- A life movement that organizes the client’s reality, giving meaning to life
- Psychiatric symptoms/pathology are “failed attempts” at achieving our lifestyle
- Adlerian therapy helps clients to effectively navigate lifestyle tasks
Lifestyle is how we move toward our life goals (therapist is supposed to help client move to realistic/appropriate goals, have to understand their values and life plans)
- Values, life plan, perceptions of self and others
- Unifies all of our behaviors to provide consistency
- Makes all our actions “fit together”
goals of Alderian therapy
- Help client to develop healthy and holistic lifestyles
- Faulty lifestyle is self centered and based on mistaken goals, incorrect assumptions and feelings of inferiority
- Client ultimately decides to choose social interest or self interests
4 phases of therapy
1) establishing the proper therapeutic relationship
2) exploring the individual’s psychological dynamics
3) encouraging self-understanding/insight (what is motivation behind goals they set for selves)
4) reorientation and re-education (ways a person can get lifestyle to meet goals)
explain establishing the proper therapeutic relationship
- Supportive, collaborative, educational, encouraging process
- Person-to-person contact with the client precedes identification of the problem
- Help client build awareness of his or her strengths
- Educating them about process of therapy (informed consent)
- Instilling hope that they will get better/ can get better
explain exploring the individual’s psychological dynamics
Lifestyle assessment
- Subjective interview (how a person would describe own experiences)
- Objective interview (more like intake, medical concerns, when did this arise, more specific and pointed questions)
- Family constellation
- Early recollections
5 basic mistakes in individual’s psychological dynamics
1) overgeneralization- we experience one failure and we generalize it to everything;
2) false and impossible goals- I must/I should “I must please everyone” “I should always be happy” “I should always be thin”;
3) misperception of life- taking failure or minus situation and you say “life is so difficult/easy”;
4) denial of one’s basic worth- negative self talk or negative messages taken in about identity;
5) faulty values- “I need to get ahead” “I need to get to the top and I can step on someone to do this”
These do not align with goals of community or positive self identity
explain encouraging self-understanding / insight (what is motivation behind goals they set for selves)
- Interpret the findings of the assessment
- Hidden goals and purposes of behavior are made conscious (where it is coming from)
- Therapist offers interpretations to help clients gain insight into their lifestyle
explain reorientation and re-education (ways a person can get lifestyle to meet goals)
Action-oriented
Useful vs. unhelpful
what two problems drive psychopathology
- Exaggerated inferiority feeling
- Insufficiently developed feeling of community
these manifest through pathological lifestyles
what are the different kinds of pathological lifestyles
1) Pampered lifestyle
- Parental overindulgence
- Ex. Getting a trophy all of the time leads people to believe they will always be applauded
2) Compulsive lifestyle
- Parental domination
Other manifestations
- Abuse
- Neglect
People accept abnormal lifestyles as normal and therapists work to change that
strengths of alderian therapy
- Counselor encouragement and support
- This was a novel idea at the time (to really collaborate)
- Emphasizes the life span
- Emphasizes culture and society
- Useful in treating conduct disorders, antisocial disorders, anxiety disorders, some affective disorders, and personality disorders
- Used in different cultural and sociocultural contexts
limitations of alderian therapy
Lacks a research base
-Not as empirically supportive
Vague in terms
-Significant trauma might impact one’s memories / recollection, lower functioning might also impact this
Relies heavily on verbal, logic and insight
- Lengthy, managed care
- No labels or diagnosing (nowadays people do use diagnoses for insurance purposes even if they do not enjoy it)
