Adlerian Theory
Journal #1 – Adlerian Theory
Rubric #1: Personal Style and Counseling Theory 1. How congruent is the theory with your truth/personal philosophy? Alfred Adler said, “I would like to stress that the life of the human soul is not a ‘being’ but a ‘becoming’.” In my opinion, this quotation is a perfect summation of both what we have learned about the Adlerian theory and of my own personal philosophy for life. The congruency between my philosophy and the Adlerian theory was immediately apparent, because like Adler, I believe in a holistic and teleological approach to life. Adler believed in a holistic concept of looking at a person as a whole, rather than a sum of its parts unlike what Freud did with his concepts of id, ego, and super ego. With this holistic concept, Adler accounted for genetic and environmental influences on human behavior, but believed a person’s capacity to choose and create his/her own life was more influential on how that person would behave. My personal philosophy on life is very congruent with Adler is this holistic sense, as I am a product of my past including my genetics and my childhood environment. I do believe, however, much more of who am I today and how I act has been decided by the choices I have made.
Another way the Adlerian theory is congruent with my own truth is through the concept known as fictional finalism, defined as “an imagined life goal that guides a person’s behavior,” a term that was later replaced with that of “guiding self-ideal.” According to Adler, the choices we make in life will guide us forward towards our final goals of what we view as a life of perfection, and he does not believe our pasts have to dictate what the future will look like. I believe in having a “guiding self-ideal” that represents my dreams of a perfect life, and I believe most of the decisions I make, both consciously and unconsciously, are influenced by my desire to achieve perfection in
Rubric #1: Personal Style and Counseling Theory 1. How congruent is the theory with your truth/personal philosophy? Alfred Adler said, “I would like to stress that the life of the human soul is not a ‘being’ but a ‘becoming’.” In my opinion, this quotation is a perfect summation of both what we have learned about the Adlerian theory and of my own personal philosophy for life. The congruency between my philosophy and the Adlerian theory was immediately apparent, because like Adler, I believe in a holistic and teleological approach to life. Adler believed in a holistic concept of looking at a person as a whole, rather than a sum of its parts unlike what Freud did with his concepts of id, ego, and super ego. With this holistic concept, Adler accounted for genetic and environmental influences on human behavior, but believed a person’s capacity to choose and create his/her own life was more influential on how that person would behave. My personal philosophy on life is very congruent with Adler is this holistic sense, as I am a product of my past including my genetics and my childhood environment. I do believe, however, much more of who am I today and how I act has been decided by the choices I have made.
Another way the Adlerian theory is congruent with my own truth is through the concept known as fictional finalism, defined as “an imagined life goal that guides a person’s behavior,” a term that was later replaced with that of “guiding self-ideal.” According to Adler, the choices we make in life will guide us forward towards our final goals of what we view as a life of perfection, and he does not believe our pasts have to dictate what the future will look like. I believe in having a “guiding self-ideal” that represents my dreams of a perfect life, and I believe most of the decisions I make, both consciously and unconsciously, are influenced by my desire to achieve perfection in