Alfred Adler facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Alfred Adler
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| Born | 7 February 1870 |
| Died | 28 May 1937 (aged 67) Aberdeen, Scotland
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| Nationality | Austrian |
| Alma mater | University of Vienna |
| Known for | Individual psychology Belonging Gemeinschaftsgefuhl Social Interest Style of life |
| Spouse(s) | Raissa Epstein |
| Children | Alexandra Adler, Kurt Alfred Adler, Valentine Adler, Cornelia Adler |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Psychotherapist, psychiatrist |
Alfred Adler (born February 7, 1870 – died May 28, 1937) was an Austrian doctor and psychotherapist. He created a new way of understanding people called "individual psychology".
Adler believed that feeling like you belong is very important. He also thought that your family and where you are born in your family (like being the oldest or youngest) affect who you become. He taught that helping others, which he called "Social Interest" (or Gemeinschaftsgefuhl in German), makes people feel valuable and connected to their family and society.
Earlier in his work, Adler focused on feelings of not being good enough, known as the inferiority complex. He believed these feelings play a big part in how a person's personality develops. Adler saw each person as a complete individual. This is why he named his ideas "Individual Psychology."
Adler was one of the first to highlight how important social connections are for a person's well-being. He also brought ideas about mental health into the community. A study in 2002 ranked Adler as one of the most important psychologists of the 20th century.
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Early Life
Alfred Adler was born on February 7, 1870, in a village near Vienna, Austria. He was the second of seven children born to Pauline and Leopold Adler. His father was a grain merchant.
When Alfred was only three years old, his younger brother died in the bed next to him. This event, along with other childhood illnesses, made him afraid of death. At age four, he became very sick with pneumonia. He heard a doctor tell his father, "Your boy is lost." This moment made him decide to become a doctor.
Alfred was an active and popular child. He was an average student but very competitive with his older brother, Sigmund. He felt his mother preferred his older brother. Even though he had a good relationship with his father, he still struggled with feelings of not being good enough when it came to his mother.
He was very interested in psychology, sociology, and philosophy. After studying at the University of Vienna, he first became an eye doctor. Later, he specialized in brain and mental health.
Career
Adler started his medical career as an eye doctor. But he soon changed to general medicine. He opened his office in a less wealthy part of Vienna, near a large amusement park. Many of his patients were circus performers. It's thought that seeing their unusual strengths and weaknesses helped him understand how people might try to make up for their "organ inferiorities" (when a body part is weaker).
Early in his career, Adler wrote an article supporting the ideas of Sigmund Freud. In 1902, Freud invited Adler to join a discussion group called the "Wednesday Society." This group met at Freud's home and was the start of the psychoanalytic movement. Members would present papers and discuss them.
Adler became president of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society in 1910. However, he and Freud had different ideas. Adler believed that social factors were just as important as inner thoughts. In 1911, Adler and his supporters left Freud's group. This was the first major split from Freud's original ideas.
Even though they disagreed, Adler always respected Freud's ideas about dreams. But Adler had his own ways of interpreting dreams. Freud and Adler never saw each other again after their split.
After leaving Freud's group, Adler started his own group called the Society for Individual Psychology in 1912.
The Adlerian School
After his break from Freud, Adler became very successful. He created his own unique way of understanding people and helping them with their problems. He traveled and gave talks for 25 years, sharing his ideas about how social connections affect our minds.
Adler's work was paused by World War I, where he served as a doctor. After the war, his influence grew a lot. In the 1920s, he opened many clinics to help children. He often gave lectures in Europe and the United States. In 1927, he became a visiting professor at Columbia University.
Adler's methods for adults aimed to find the hidden reasons behind their problems. He wanted to help people understand themselves better. Adler was one of the first therapists to stop using the traditional couch. Instead, he used two chairs, so the doctor and patient could sit facing each other as equals.
Adler also focused on preventing problems. He believed in teaching parents and communities to encourage social interest and belonging in children. He was against harsh punishments. Adler's ideas were popular because they were hopeful and easy to understand. He often wrote for everyone, not just other doctors.
Adler believed in three main "Life tasks": work, friendship, and love. He said that success in these tasks depends on working together with others.
Emigration
In the early 1930s, many of Adler's clinics in Austria were closed because he was Jewish. Even though he had converted to Christianity, the political situation was difficult. Adler then moved to the United States to become a professor at the Long Island College of Medicine.
Adler died suddenly from a heart attack in 1937 in Aberdeen, Scotland, while on a lecture tour. His ashes were lost for many years but were found in 2007 and returned to Vienna in 2011.
Even after his death, Adler's ideas remained strong. Many of his concepts were used by other psychologists, especially through the work of Rudolf Dreikurs in the United States. Today, many groups around the world continue to promote Adler's ideas about mental and social well-being.
Basic Principles
Adler was influenced by thinkers like Hans Vaihinger and the writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky. He developed the idea of the inferiority complex, which is a strong feeling of not being good enough. This idea came from his earlier thoughts about how people try to make up for physical weaknesses.
Adler's "Individual Psychology" emphasizes that people are whole beings. It's a social and community-focused way of thinking about psychology. Adler believed in preventing problems by training parents, teachers, and social workers. He taught them to use democratic ways of raising children, allowing kids to make choices while also learning to cooperate. He was a social idealist and believed in fairness for everyone.
Adler thought that everyday people could use psychological insights in their lives. He was also an early supporter of feminism in psychology. He believed that feelings of being better or worse than others were often linked to gender roles. These feelings could lead to mental health problems.
Adlerian ideas and practices focus on topics like:
- Social interest and feeling connected to others.
- Seeing people as whole beings with a creative self.
- Understanding our goals and purposes in life.
- Encouraging ourselves and others.
- Feelings of not being good enough, trying to be better, and making up for weaknesses.
- Our "style of life" – how we live and approach challenges.
- Early memories, which can show a lot about a person's life philosophy.
- How family structure and birth order affect us.
- Life tasks (work, friendship, love) and how we fit into society.
- Our conscious and unconscious thoughts.
- How we think privately versus common sense.
- Understanding symptoms and worries.
- Dream interpretation.
- Child and teen psychology.
- Democratic ways of parenting and managing classrooms.
Adler created Adlerian Therapy because he believed that a person's mind should be understood within their environment.
Adler's Approach to Personality
In one of his first famous writings, Adler talked about "Organ Inferiority and Its Psychical Compensation." He explained that if one part of the body is weaker, other parts might work harder to make up for it. Sometimes, this "making up" can even turn a weakness into a strength. For example, someone with a weak leg might become a great runner.
As his ideas grew, he changed "organ inferiority" to "feelings of inferiority." He believed that people's personalities are shaped by their goals. People often try to change feelings of not being good enough into feelings of completeness. But if they try too hard to be superior, they might become self-centered or aggressive.
Psychodynamics and Goals
Adler believed that human psychology is always moving and changing. Unlike Freud, who focused on instincts, Adler thought people are guided by goals. These goals are often unconscious. They have a "teleological" function, meaning they are about purpose or an end goal.
There's usually a main goal, along with many smaller goals. The feeling of not being good enough and the desire to be better are always at work. For example, someone with anorexia nervosa might have a goal to "be perfectly thin." This goal is a "fiction" because it can never truly be reached.
Thinking about the end goal also helps us understand if our actions are healthy or not. Adler emphasized that healthy people take responsibility for their actions and aim for what's good for themselves and society.
Holism
Adler's ideas emphasize holism, meaning seeing the whole person. This is like the idea that all parts of something are connected and work together. Adler believed that understanding a person means looking at their entire life, including their social and community connections.
He thought that understanding a person's mind and how they function means looking at their community, how it's built, and the social, historical, and political forces that shape it. Adler is sometimes called the "first community psychologist" because he cared about both preventing problems and treating them.
Adlerian psychology, along with other schools like Carl Jung's analytical psychology, sees people as whole beings. They don't try to break down human psychology into tiny, separate parts.
Personality Styles
Adler described different "personality types," but he always said these were just general patterns. He didn't want people to lose sight of how unique each person is. These types show common ways people live their lives:
- The Getting or Leaning Type: These people are sensitive and rely on others to help them through life. They might have low energy and become dependent. When they feel overwhelmed, they might develop worries or fears.
- The Avoiding Type: These people hate to lose. They might be successful but avoid taking risks. They often don't have much social contact because they fear being rejected or defeated.
- The Ruling or Dominant Type: These people want power. They will try to control situations and people to get their way. They might also show anti-social behavior.
- The Socially Useful Type: These people are outgoing and active. They have a lot of social contact and work to make positive changes for everyone.
These styles usually form in childhood and show how a person approaches life.
The Importance of Memories
Adler believed that our early memories are very important. He said, "Among all psychic expressions, some of the most revealing are the individual's memories." He thought memories are not random. Instead, they are chosen reminders that show a person's life philosophy or "lifestyle."
On Birth Order
Adler often talked about how a person's birth order (where they are in the family, like oldest, middle, or youngest) affects their personality. He believed that the oldest child might feel "dethroned" when a second child arrives, losing the full attention of their parents.
Adler thought that in a family with three children, the oldest child might be more likely to struggle with worries or addiction. He reasoned this was because they felt too much responsibility. Youngest children might be spoiled, leading to less empathy for others. The middle child, who didn't experience being dethroned or overly spoiled, might be more likely to succeed. Adler himself was a middle child.
Adler didn't provide scientific proof for his birth order ideas. But his main point was to show how important brothers and sisters are in shaping a person's mind, beyond just the influence of parents. So, Adlerian therapists look at how siblings influenced their clients.
Adler's birth order theory helped answer the question: "Why do children raised in the same family grow up with very different personalities?" He argued that children don't grow up in the exact same environment. An oldest child grows up with younger siblings, a middle child with older and younger siblings, and a youngest child with older siblings. Adler said this position in the family is why personalities differ, not just genetics.
Parent Education
Adler focused on both treating problems and preventing them. He believed that childhood is very important for developing personality. To prevent future problems, he thought children should be taught to feel like an equal part of the family.
He argued that teachers, nurses, and social workers should be trained in parent education. This would help families raise children in a democratic way. When a child doesn't feel equal, they might develop feelings of not being good enough or trying too hard to be superior. These feelings can lead to problems like higher divorce rates, family breakdowns, and unhappiness. Adlerians have long promoted parent education groups.
Death and Cremation
Adler died suddenly in Aberdeen, Scotland, in May 1937. He was on a lecture tour at the University of Aberdeen. He collapsed on the street and died. Doctors said he died from a heart problem. His body was cremated, but his ashes were not claimed for many years. In 2007, his ashes were found and returned to Vienna for burial in 2011.
Influence on Psychology
Alfred Adler was one of the co-founders of the psychoanalytic movement with Sigmund Freud. He was a key member of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society. Freud even called him "the only personality there."
Adler was the first important figure to leave psychoanalysis and start his own school of thought. He called it "individual psychology" because he believed each person is a complete, indivisible whole. He also thought people are connected to the world around them.
Freud disagreed with Adler's ideas, saying they were too different. But Freud always took Adler's ideas seriously, calling them "honorable errors." After their split, Adler had a huge impact on counseling and psychotherapy throughout the 20th century. He influenced famous psychologists like Rollo May, Viktor Frankl, Abraham Maslow, and Albert Ellis.
Adler stressed the importance of equality to prevent mental health problems. He promoted developing social interest and democratic family structures for raising children. His most famous idea is the inferiority complex, which talks about self-esteem issues and their negative effects.
Adler believed in seeing the whole person, not just parts. He was also one of the first in psychology to support feminism. He argued that power differences between men and women are crucial to understanding human psychology. Adler is considered, along with Freud and Jung, one of the three main founders of "depth psychology," which looks at the unconscious mind.
Personal Life
During his college years, Adler joined a group of socialist students. There, he met Raissa Timofeyewna Epstein, an intelligent social activist from Russia. They married in 1897 and had four children. Two of their children, his daughter Alexandra and son Kurt, also became psychiatrists. Raissa, Adler's wife, died in 1962.
The author and journalist Margot Adler (1946-2014) was Alfred Adler's granddaughter.
See Also
In Spanish: Alfred Adler para niños
- Adlerian
- Classical Adlerian psychology
- Neo-Adlerian
