Running Head: INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY !

Personal Theory of Counseling:

Individual Psychology
Virginia Philbrook
Seattle University
March 12
th
, 2012




















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Overview of Individual Psychology
Alfred Adlers Individual Psychology was developed as a rejection of Freuds
Psychoanalysis. According to Adler, the first five years of life are important, but do not
determine everything about an individual. Instead, Adler believe that, more important than
background, is what one does with their experiences (Reichenberg & Seligman, 2010).
Individual Psychology is oriented more around the present and future than the past (Watts,
2000). Nevertheless, Adler has a holistic perspective towards people. Individual Psychology
hinges on Adlers theory of lifestyle. Ones lifestyle is the unique way in which each of us
seeks to find our place in the world, to overcome feelings of inferiority, and to achieve our
goals (Reichenberg & Seligman, 2010, p. 66). Adler believed that humans share the desire to
set and meet goals and that humans make decisions as a part of goal-achievement (Reichenberg
& Seligman, 2010). As such, Adlerian counselors emphasize the importance of
reconstruction/restructuring maladaptive cognitions within the context of a supportive
therapeutic alliance (Watts, 2000, p. 22). Adler also looked at behaviors and background as the
source of dysfunction (Reichenberg & Seligman, 2010). In Individual Psychology, counselors
spend considerable attention to social context, family dynamics, and child rearing
(Reichenberg & Seligman, 2010, p. 61). Similarly, birth order is an important concept for
practitioners and is useful is helping determine the clients lifestyle.
I chose Individual Psychology for two reasons. First, I value the holistic perspective on
people. There are many factors that can contribute to difficulty for people, often simultaneously.
The fact that Individual Psychology has room to examine background, thoughts and behaviors is
important. I also agree with Adlers belief that the quality of ones relationships is indicative of
mental and emotional health. Mental health is alarming subjective. Universal definitions of
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illness fail to take into account social and cultural norms around behavior and values. I
appreciate the Adlerian belief that mental and emotional difficulties are concerning only when
there are external consequences.
Health and Dysfunction
Adler viewed the healthy, well-functioning adult as a person who is independent,
emotionally and physically self-reliant, useful and productive and able to cooperate with others
for both personal and social benefit (Reichenberg & Seligman, 2010, p.67). Healthy adults,
according to Individual Psychology, are able to work with others to contribute to a larger good
(Herring and Runion, 1994). Health involves the ability to look beyond ones self, to have
relationships with other people as an individual but to also be a part of and contribute to a
community.
In contrast, dysfunction occurs when ones lifestyle is self-defeating (Herring and
Runion, 1994). Dysfunction might appear through increased feelings of inferiority,
underdeveloped social interest, and an exaggerated uncooperative goal of personal superiority
(Herring and Runion, 1994, p. 215). Because an emphasis is placed on ones relationships with
others, a client exhibiting dysfunction would have weak or, at the other end of the spectrum,
overly-reliant relationships with those around them.
The Adlerian definition of health and dysfunction is flexible enough to be applicable for
multicultural clients, but does have limitations. For example, independence and self-reliance are
ideals favored in Western culture but are not universally valued. To have independence be a
goal of counseling would be incongruent with some cultural beliefs. Individual Psychology does
balances the desire for independence with the need to cooperate with others for ones own
benefit and the benefit of others. There is room here to bend Adlers idea of health to meet the
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needs of multicultural clients, though multiculturalism was clearly not a part of the original
intent.
Change
Change occurs in Individual Psychology if an effective counselor guides the client toward
change. Counselors act as guides who encourage and support the client, while also noting their
faulty logic (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010). Individual Psychology places a great deal of
emphasis on the importance of a strong counselor-client relationship as imperative to client
change. An Adlerian counselor uses tools, including encouragement, to help the client develop a
healthier lifestyle (Herring and Runion, 1994).
Goals of Counseling
Counseling utilizing Individual Psychology has the primary goal of developing a healthy
lifestyle. There are multiple steps that might be taken to achieve those goals. Together, client
and counselor will work to understand how the clients background and heredity shape difficulty
in the clients life. The counselor will work with the client to improve self-esteem and reduce
feelings of inferiority (Herring and Runion, 1994). Counselors and clients will identify and
correct faulty logic (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010; Watts, 2000). In general, the clients will
attempt to modify their beliefs and develop new and more rewarding goals, a modified lifestyle,
and constructive and positive social interest and behaviors (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010, p.
68). With new goals in mind and healthy behaviors in place to support those goals, clients are
able to redesign their lifestyle more positively.
Therapeutic Alliance
Adler believed that a strong therapeutic alliance was one of mutual trust and respect.
Client and counselor should be collaborative and cooperative. The phenomenological approach
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is very important in a client-counselor relationship. Adlers emphasis on a persons perception
of reality is key to helping the client feel that they are heard (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010,
p. 67). The counselor and client must then work together to hear the clients perspective on the
world.
Role of Counselor
Individual Psychologists consider themselves to be non-experts. This allows the client
and counselor to develop a more balanced dynamic and makes room for collaboration to occur.
Instead of dictating a path for change, counselors act as guides once clients have chosen to see
things differently, and goals are chosen collaboratively (Perkins-Dock, 2005, p. 237).
Counselors using Individual Psychology avoid offering prescriptive solutions to clients
problems, instead maintaining flexibility and openness to what the client has to offer (Carlson
and Carlson, 2000). Adler also believed that counselors should be role models for their clients,
demonstrating ways to think clearly, search for early recollections, and drives (Reichenberg
and Seligman, 2010, p. 68). And though therapists using Individual Psychology strive to
maintain a collaborative relationship, the counselors do take on the role of educators, fostering
social interest and teaching people ways to modify their lifestyles, behaviors and goals
(Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010, p. 68).
Role of Client
A client who chooses Individual Psychology for counseling should be willing to
collaborate with the counselor. Clients who expect a counselor to tell them what to do are often
frustrated by this model of counseling (Carlson and Carlson, 2000). Individual Psychology
instead expects clients to take an active role in directing their counseling (Perkins-Dock, 2005).
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They must be able to collaborate with their counselors. Finally, clients need to be open to
reflection and willing to revisit the past.
Techniques and Approaches
The main approach used by Adlerian counselors is the lifestyle assessment. Because
lifestyle is defined as the unique way in which a person perceives the world, as well as their view
of themselves within the world and their goals for the future, a lifestyle assessment is essential to
teaching the counselor who the client is (Bishop, 1993; Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010). Early
childhood memories are a central part of the lifestyle assessment. Individual Psychology is
based on the assumption that memories of the past act as a foundation for decisions in the future
(Bishop, 1993). The memories are also examined as a personal narrative, where the counselor
looks for themes and motifs. In addition to reviewing early childhood memories, the assessment
reviews siblings and parents and family atmosphere through description and ranking (Eckstein,
2003). Family constellation, or birth order, is considered central to the lifestyle assessment.
Individual Psychology theories believe that birth order plays a role in determining how
individuals respond to life events (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010). The effect that birth order
has on personality is the result of a combination of parental behaviors, sibling interactions and
coping mechanisms designed to deal with the two (Laird and Shelton, 2006). A lifestyle
assessment might also ask about stressors or areas of difficulty, giving the client the power to
determine the direction of counseling (Eckstein, 2003).
After conducting the lifestyle assessment, the client and counselor work on collaborative
goal setting typically around designing and integrating a healthier lifestyle (Perkins-Dock, 2005).
The counselor will then use multiple techniques to help the client achieve their new goals.
Techniques include:
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Catching ones own faulty logic: clients learn to recognize when they are participating in
self-defeating behaviors or using faulty logic (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010; Herring
and Runion, 1994).
Spitting in the soup: the counselor recognizes the payoff associated with self-defeating
behaviors and comments on that payoff (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010; Herring and
Runion, 1994).
Acting as if: the client is asked to imagine what an event or experience could look like
(Herring and Runion, 1994; Carish, 1997).
Commonly, counselors grounded in Individual Psychology will balance these techniques with a
combination of humor, encouragement and support for the client (Reichenberg and Seligman,
2010; Herring and Runion, 1994).
Critique
Multicultural Critique
Although Adler developed Individual Psychology with a homogenous population of
clients in mind, the theory is vey applicable to multicultural groups. In the practice of Individual
Psychology, clients are asked to define themselves within the context of their social environment
(Carlson and Carlson, 2000). Clients are not considered to be separate from the world but rather
are expected to consider themselves and their lifestyle in the context of family, community and
culture. Similarly, Adlers belief in a phenomenological approach is important because there are
many layers of difference, including but not limited to those stemming from race and culture,
which a client brings to counseling. The phenomenological approach makes these layers of
difference expected and welcomed. Indeed, Adlerian counselors emphasize the value of
subjectively understanding the unique cultural world of the individual (Carlson and Carlson,
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2000, p. 218). Individual Psychology, through the phenomenological approach, then encourages
counselors to remain sensitive to the effects that cultural will have on a clients lifestyle
(Perkins-Dock, 2005). Similarly, Individual Psychology emphasizes the subjectivity in life, and
that subjective emphasis in therapy pertains to a respect Adlerian psychotherapists have for
understanding and acknowledging a clients values and perceptions (Carlson and Carlson, 2000,
p. 219).
Individual Psychology has shown to be an effective method for specific ethnic and
cultural groups. For example, research has shown that counselors utilizing Adlerian approaches
found success with Asian clients. Individual Psychology highlights the importance of
developing harmonious interpersonal relationships, interdependence, and mutual obligation for
creating harmony and peace, concepts which are highly valued in some traditional Asian
communities (Carlson and Carlson, 2000, p. 219). The lifestyle assessment, which hinges on
family, could show Asian-American clients the amount of respect and influence the therapist
places on the family (Carlson and Carlson, 2000, p. 221). In working with African-American
families, Adlerian principles provide the therapist with a tool of empowerment for African
American families within their own environmental conditions with their own language, culture,
traditions, and values (Perkins-Dock, 2005, p. 245). Similarly, the Adlerian practice of
recognizing the importance of collective unity and family makes the model more conducive to
therapeutic success for African-American clients who also highly value family bonds (Perkins-
Dock, 2005).
Individual Psychology is not without limitations in a multicultural setting. The most
glaring limitation is that minimal amount of research conducted on the use of Adlerian practices
with clients of color. Some tools used by Adlerian therapists are not useful for all clients. For
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example, the collaborative approach to the client-counselor relationship is not always
comfortable for Asian clients who may want the therapist to assume an expert role and to
prescribe what should be done (Carlson and Carlson, 2000, p. 220). The lifestyle assessment
can be perceived as intrusive to cultures that value privacy with regards to family (Carlson and
Carlson, 2000). The lifestyle assessment also defines family very narrow to fit into modern
Western norms. However, many African-Americans and Pacific Islanders view family more
broadly. Counselors need to be willing to expand their definition of family to a more
extended kinship system, to take into account the diverse ways family is now defined (Perkins-
Dock, 2005, p. 238).
Social Justice Critique
Though perhaps unintentionally, Individual Psychology neatly fits into the modern push
to incorporate social justice into counseling practice. From the beginning, Adler was concerned
about the betterment of people generally (Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010). Through Individual
Psychology, Adler sought to foster responsibility and social interest (Reichenberg and
Seligman, 2010, p. 68). The goals of counseling in Individual Psychology encourage clients to
examine their world and work to improve it for themselves and others. Similarly, the emphasis
on relationships indicates that advocacy for social justice on the micro (individual) and meso
(community) levels are a natural progression for Adlerian practitioners (American Counseling
Association, 2003). For example, Adler believed in the social nature of human problems
(Reichenberg and Seligman, 2010, p.64). In this theory, individuals do not have difficulty alone,
but with other people. The focus is on individuals within their social context (Carlson and
Carlson, 2000). Individual Psychology theorizes that people are social beings interested in
belonging to a group and desiring to solve the problems of their society (Reichenberg and
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Seligman, 2010, p. 67). There is a great deal of room to focus on teaching the client how to
advocate for themselves as well as for others with similar difficulties. Healthy individuals are
expected to work for social benefit, which can easily be construed to include social justice.
Adlerian theory has a very open perspective on difficulty, one which positively reflects
social justice values. Individuals are not labeled ill for behaving outside of social norms.
Instead, individuals have difficulty are viewed as feeling discouragement, often because they
have internalized too many feelings of inferiority. Rather than fixating on repairing what is
broken, Individual Psychology works to build on strengths (Eckstein, 2003). The solution in
Individual Psychology is not to diagnosis clients, but to offer encouragement and connection.
Marginalization and oppression in all forms conveys the message that individuals do not belong
and that they are inferior to the dominant group (Shelley, 2009). The Adlerian emphasis on
strong relationships to others and to a community work well to overcome the negative
consequences of oppression. Counselors who advocate on the micro level by helping clients find
communities in which they feel safe and can contribute to successfully seamlessly blend social
justice and Individual Psychology.
A key limitation to Adlerian theory from the perspective of social justice lies in the lack
of responsibility on the part of the counselor to advocate for their clients at the macro, and to
some extent meso, level (American Counseling Association, 2003). The responsibility for
advocacy lies wholly in the clients own need to be connected to and improve their community.
While counselors grounded in Individual Psychology might apply the principals of connection
and improvement to advocacy work on behalf of their clients, there is little regard for the value
of advocating on a larger scale.
General Critique
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Individual Psychology contains some limitations for future practitioners, particularly
around the quality and quantity of research conducted. Although the theory has existed nearly a
century, there is a dearth of quantitative research on the efficacy of Individual Psychology
(Carlson and Carlson, 2000). There is a particular lack of research around the application of
Individual Psychology with diverse populations (Herring and Runion, 1994). While the theory
seems to fit well in a multi-cultural setting, the limited research is focused on serving clients
form a Western background. More research, especially around serving diverse clients, would
strengthen Individual Psychology.
Reflection
Experience
Researching and writing this paper was incredibly useful. The process helped me place
Individual Psychology as a theory into context by seeing how it applies to research and case
studies. Finding sources introduced me to the vast array of resources and research conducted on
counseling practice. I also appreciated finding and using research that has utility for my future
as a school counselor.
This process helped me gain a greater appreciation for the flexibility and nuance of
counseling theories. I learned that it is possible to adapt the core of a theory to multiple settings.
Finally, the process helped me clarify my own personal theory of counseling. I feel confident
that Individual Psychology is a strong grounding for counseling theory and, combined with other
tools, especially around social justice, will be a solid basis for working with youth.
Next Steps
There are some obvious limitations to Individual Psychology in the areas of social justice
and multicultural counseling. I would like to continue to examine the role that social justice
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plays in Individual Psychology. I want to research tools to adapt the theory to better serve the
needs of diverse populations. I also would like to research and develop strategies to practically
apply Adlerian theory into the school counseling.
The key concepts of Individual Psychology do work very well for a school setting. For
that reason, I would like to develop a curriculum to teach youth about the role that goal-
orientated decision making places in their lives. While not as in-depth as one-on-one counseling
with a detailed lifestyle assessment, I think that a unit encouraging young people to think about
why they make choices and what they hope to achieve through those choices would build skills
around self-reflection and healthy decision making. I would also like to design the curriculum in
such a way as to be able to adapt it for specific problems in schools like bullying, absenteeism or
drug use and intend to incorporate many of the techniques used in Individual Psychology as
tools.











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References
American Counseling Association. (2003). [Graphic illustration of Advocacy Competency
Domains]. ACA Advocacy Competencies. Retrieved from
http://www.counseling.org/resources/.
Bishop, D.R. (1993). Applying psychometric principles to the clinical use of early recollections.
Individual Psychology, 49(2), 153-165.
Carlson, J., & Carlson, J. D. (2000). The application of Adlerian psychotherapy with Asian-
American clients. Journal Of Individual Psychology, 56(2), 214.
Echstein, D. (2003). Footprints and fingerprints of my 30-year journey in lifestyle assessment.
The Journal of Individual Psychology, 59(4), 410-420.
Frevert, V. S., & Miranda, A. O. (1998). A conceptual formulation of the Latin culture and the
treatment of Latinos from an Adlerian psychology perspective. Journal Of Individual
Psychology, 54(3), 291.
Herring, R. D., & Runion, K. B. (1994). Counseling ethnic children and youth from an Adlerian
perspective. Journal Of Multicultural Counseling & Development, 22(4), 215-226. Laird
and Shelton, 2006
Perkins-Dock, R. E. (2005). The application of Adlerian family therapy with African American
families. Journal Of Individual Psychology, 61(3), 233-249.
Reichenberg, L.W. & Seligman, L. (2010). Theories of counseling and psychotherapy: Systems,
strategies, and skills. Boston, MA: Pearson.
Shelley, C.A. (2009). Trans people and social justice. The Journal of Individual Psychology,
65(4), 386-396.
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Watts, R. E. (2000). Entering the new millennium: Is individual psychology still relevant?.
Journal Of Individual Psychology, 56(1), 21.