science

Neo-Adlerian

Neo-Adlerian is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Neo-Adlerian rather than just read about it. In short: Neo-Adlerian psychologists are those working in the tradition of, or influenced by Alfred Adler, an early associate of, and dissident from the ideas of, Sigmund Freud. Education Neo-Adlerian ideas have been identified in the field of education, associated particularly with the work of Rudolf Dreikurs.

Key takeaways

Neo-Adlerian belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Neo-Adlerian to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Neo-Adlerian from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Neo-Adlerian psychologists are those working in the tradition of, or influenced by Alfred Adler, an early associate of, and dissident from the ideas of, Sigmund Freud.

Education Neo-Adlerian ideas have been identified in the field of education, associated particularly with the work of Rudolf Dreikurs. The neo-Adlerian classroom model stresses the importance of the student's search for feelings of belonging.

Neo-Freudians Fritz Wittels used the term 'neo-Adlerian' to refer derogatively to the Neo-Freudians, due to their emphasis on the social aspects of psychology. Heinz Ansbacher however sought to capture the Neo-Freudians as neo-Adlerians, to promote Adler's influence. Henri Ellenberger would later adjudge that what he called the neo-psychoanalysts like Karen Horney and Erich Fromm would indeed more accurately be known as neo-Adlerians. Transactional analysis (TA) has also been termed a neo-Adlerian school – Eric Berne himself acknowledging that "of all those who preceded transactional analysis, Alfred Adler comes the closest to talking like a script analyst". A direct line of influence runs from Adler through Harry Stack Sullivan to Thomas Anthony Harris – one of the co-creators of TA – with Adler's ideas on guiding fictions and the sense of inferiority feeding into Berne's concept of psychological games, which can also be considered in terms of the interactions of different life style systems.

See also Adlerian Classical Adlerian psychology Positive discipline School discipline

References

Further reading Ansbacher, H. L. (1953). ""Neo-Freudian" or "Neo-Adlerian"?". American Psychologist. 8 (4): 165–166. doi:10.1037/h0060947. ISSN 0003-066X. 'Adlerian Psychotherapy' in Wedding, D. and Corsini, R.J., 2013. Current psychotherapies. Cengage Learning. Cowie, H. and Jennifer, D., 2008. New perspectives on bullying. McGraw-Hill Education (UK).

External links 'What is an Adlerian?' 'Positive Discipline Association'

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Neo-Adlerian

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Neo-Adlerian claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Neo-Adlerian before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Neo-Adlerian ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Neo-Adlerian

In research: Neo-Adlerian appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Neo-Adlerian in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Neo-Adlerian is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Adlerian psychology, Philosophy of education, Psychoanalytic schools, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Neo-Adlerian outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Neo-Adlerian in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Neo-Adlerian means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Neo-Adlerian out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Neo-Adlerian in simple terms?

Neo-Adlerian psychologists are those working in the tradition of, or influenced by Alfred Adler, an early associate of, and dissident from the ideas of, Sigmund Freud. Education Neo-Adlerian ideas have been identified in the field of education, associated particularly with the work of Rudolf Dreiku…

Why does Neo-Adlerian matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Neo-Adlerian?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Neo-Adlerian.