Deck 3: Adler: Individual Psychology

Question 1

Adler's break with Freud was due to the fact that

A)Freud believed that psychoanalysis should change to keep up with society.
B)Adler was extremely deferent to Freud.
C)Adler could not accept Freud's strong emphasis on sexual factors as motivators of behavior.
D)Freud lacked organizational skills, leaving Adler with the responsibility of directing the Wednesday Psychological Society.

Answer 1

C

Question 2

List and describe three Adlerian safeguarding tendencies.

Answer 2

Safeguarding tendencies take the form of neurotic symptoms and are designed to protect an inflated self-image against public disgrace.
The most common of Adlerian safeguarding tendencies are excuses, and these can take the form of either the "Yes, but" excuse or the "If only" excuse.With either excuse, a person is attempting to protect a real sense of self-worth by deceiving other people into believing that he or she is a worthy person.
A second safeguarding tendency is aggression, which may take the form of depreciation, accusation, or self-accusation.In all three cases, the person aggresses against others or self in order to gain personal superiority.
The third safeguarding tendency is to withdraw, or run away from life's difficulties.People can withdraw by (1) moving backward, or reverting to a more secure period of life; (2) standing still, which avoids responsibility for growing up; (3) hesitating, which gives people the excuse that "It's too late now;" and (4) constructing obstacles so that they can demonstrate their superiority by overcoming the obstacle.

Question 3

Early in his career, Adler used which term to refer to the single force behind all human motivation?

A)compensation
B)Eros
C)striving for success
D)will to power

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Adler's earliest memories concerned

A)comparisons with his older and healthier brother.
B)an active interest in helping others.
C)neglect by his mother.
D)his desire to become a famous psychologist.

Question 5

During the time that Freud and Adler were members of the Wednesday Psychological Society, ____________________.

A)Adler considered Freud to be his mentor.
B)Freud prevented Adler from holding office in the organization.
C)they shared a warm personal relationship.
D)they conspired to prevent Carl Jung from joining the organization.
E)None of these is correct.

Question 6

Differentiate the striving for superiority and the striving for success in Adler's theory of personality.

Question 7

Adler first postulated the aggressive drive and the will to power as the fundamental motivations that shape human personality.He later extended his view to include the

A)striving for success.
B)will to knowledge.
C)search for meaning.
D)striving for self-actualization.

Question 8

Adler believed that people strive for superiority

A)in order to compensate for feelings of inferiority.
B)in order to survive in a competitive society.
C)as a means of attaining sexual satisfaction.
D)in imitation of parents and other authority figures.

Question 9

One of Adler's strongest beliefs was in

A)equality of the sexes.
B)his Jewish faith.
C)his Protestant faith.
D)the communist doctrine.

Question 10

Adler felt that every individual is striving to reach the same goal of

A)self-fulfillment.
B)a perfect society.
C)superiority or success.
D)reduction of anxiety.

Question 11

Which of the following assumptions is NOT part of Adler's theory?

A)All human motivations for behavior are unconscious in origin.
B)The dynamic force behind a person's activity is the striving for superiority or success.
C)All psychological phenomena are unified within the individual in a self-consistent manner.
D)The opinions of people shape their behavior and personality.

Question 12

Unlike other psychiatrists of his time, Adler treated

A)large numbers of schizophrenics.
B)mentally retarded children.
C)patients without medical insurance.
D)large numbers of middle- and lower-class patients.

Question 13

Adler's concern for the whole person led to his

A)developing treatments for cancer.
B)studying psychiatry.
C)becoming a rabbi.
D)advocating revolution.

Question 14

Adler believed that the dynamic force motivating all human activity is

A)organ dialect.
B)a feeling of superiority.
C)the striving for success.
D)inferior physical endowment.

Question 15

The tendency toward completion, Adler believed,

A)was a result of birth order.
B)was innate but needed to be developed.
C)was learned during preadolescence.
D)resulted from the masculine protest.

Question 16

From Adler's biography, we know that he

A)came from a Jewish background.
B)had a younger brother who died in infancy.
C)was second born.
D)None of these is correct.
E)All of these are correct.

Question 17

Unlike Freud's psychoanalysis, Adler's individual psychology assumed that

A)behavior is shaped by past experiences.
B)people are motivated largely by aggression.
C)people are mostly responsible for their personalities.
D)most behavior is motivated by unconscious forces.
E)the sexual instinct is the basis for most human behavior.

Question 18

In response to World War I, Adler

A)enlisted in the army.
B)became a conscientious objector.
C)changed his theoretical views.
D)moved to a neutral country.

Question 19

The death of Adler's younger brother resulted in Adler

A)withdrawing from other family members.
B)developing a severe childhood neurosis.
C)deciding to become a doctor.
D)turning to his older brother for protection.

Question 20

Describe the role of subjective perceptions in Adler's theory of personality.

Question 21

From an Adlerian perspective,

A)all behavior is inconsistent.
B)psychological conflict leads to inconsistent behavior.
C)inconsistent behavior serves multiple purposes.
D)inconsistent behavior serves a single purpose.

Question 22

Adler borrowed his ideas on fictionalism from

A)Sigmund Freud.
B)Karl Marx.
C)John Calvin.
D)Hans Vaihinger.

Question 23

Social interest

A)exists in every individual to some degree.
B)exists only in psychologically healthy people.
C)requires personal gain by the individual.
D)is much stronger in pampered children than in neglected ones.

Question 24

According to Adler, the behavior of psychologically healthy individuals is

A)unmotivated by any particular kinds of feelings.
B)motivated mostly by conscious goals and drives.
C)motivated mostly by unconscious goals and drives.
D)motivated by exaggerated feelings of inferiority.

Question 25

According to Adler, unconscious thoughts and behaviors are

A)essential to healthy psychological functioning.
B)understood only by the individual who has them.
C)regarded as helpful but not essential to healthy psychological functioning.
D)not clearly understood by the individual.

Question 26

Adler believed that social interest

A)develops early in the mother-child relationship.
B)is characteristic of all people to some degree.
C)is the English translation of Gemeinschaftsgefühl.
D)All these are correct.
E)None of these is correct.

Question 27

According to Adler, children who feel pampered

A)are generally conscious of their final goal.
B)typically become loving parents.
C)are usually neglected by their parents.
D)are frequently unaware of their final goal.

Question 28

Adler said that all humans are "blessed" at birth with

A)a well-developed sense of social interest.
B)small, weak, incomplete, inferior bodies.
C)superior intellects.
D)the need to become superior to other people.

Question 29

Adler said that the usefulness or uselessness of all human activity should be seen from the point of view of

A)the masculine protest.
B)the ego.
C)the superego.
D)the society.
E)social interest.

Question 30

Adler believed that there are two general routes by which people strive.One is the path of exaggerated personal superiority and the other is the road of

A)power.
B)masculine protest.
C)social interest.
D)individuation.
E)aggression.

Question 31

Teleology

A)is the doctrine that motivation must be considered according to its final purpose or aim.
B)considers behavior as springing from a specific cause.
C)is more accurately associated with Freud than with Adler.
D)is the study of telescopes.

Question 32

According to Adler, social interest is strongest in people who strive for

A)success.
B)personal gain.
C)superiority.
D)inferiority.

Question 33

Adler would see an individual's inconsistent behavior as

A)evidence of a variety of basic motives.
B)a person's attempt to strive for superiority.
C)a symptom of schizophrenia.
D)a conscious means of acquiring social interest.

Question 34

Jared develops tension headaches while trying to meet a deadline at work.This tactic allows him to escape responsibility for meeting the deadline and to receive sympathy from his boss and coworkers.According to Adler, Jared's headaches are examples of

A)an organ dialect.
B)an organ inferiority.
C)an as-if illness.
D)a fiction.

Question 35

Concerning feelings of inferiority, Adler held that

A)all individuals possess them.
B)only neurotics develop them.
C)they always lead to the development of social interest.
D)they only develop when organ inferiorities are present.

Question 36

According to Adler, organ inferiorities

A)cause the development of inferior personalities.
B)cause the development of superior personalities.
C)are important as they stimulate feelings of inferiority.
D)are important because they bestow purpose on all behavior.

Question 37

Adler referred to ideas that have no real existence yet influence people as if they really existed as

A)delusions.
B)hallucinations.
C)fictions.
D)hypothetical constructs.
E)objective certainty.

Question 38

According to Adler, the goal toward which a psychologically healthy person strives is

A)fictional, with no objective existence.
B)the creation of one's conscious thought.
C)largely conscious or known to that person.
D)shaped mostly by the person's birth order.
E)All of these are correct.

Question 39

Jade is a 20-year-old college junior who "checks in" daily with her out-of-state mother by e-mail or telephone.Jade, who makes no decisions without consulting her mother, is a pre-med major because her mother insists that she become a doctor.Adler would see Jade's relationship with her mother as a ________ one.

A)parasitic
B)casual
C)loving
D)sadistic

Question 40

Adler believed that behavior and personality are shaped by

A)early childhood experiences.
B)organ inferiorities.
C)subjective perceptions.
D)sexual and aggressive impulses.
E)birth order.

Question 41

According to Adler, which factor does NOT describe maladjusted people?

A)a dogmatic style of life
B)a high level of social interest
C)exaggerated goals
D)a private world of experience

Question 42

Unlike Freud, Adler believed that

A)people are basically narcissistic.
B)narcissism is an inherent human characteristic.
C)sublimation is necessary for social interest.
D)narcissism is a form of neurosis.

Question 43

According to Adler, _______ is the bond that holds society together.

A)fiction
B)the sex drive
C)a feeling of incompleteness
D)social interest

Question 44

Adler believed that maladjusted people

A)set their goals too low.
B)set their goals too high.
C)set too many goals.
D)set too few goals.

Question 45

Adlerian safeguarding tendencies protect _______ against public disgrace and loss of self-esteem.

A)the individual's ego
B)superiority feelings
C)creative power
D)fictional finalism

Question 46

As a dynamic concept, Adler's notion of creative power implies

A)movement.
B)adjustment.
C)social interest.
D)conflict.
E)cooperation.

Question 47

Adler's notion of moving backward is similar to Freud's notion of

A)sublimation.
B)fixation.
C)progression.
D)repression.
E)regression.

Question 48

Adler believed that creative power

A)shapes an individual's style of life.
B)guides the method of striving toward the final goal.
C)implies individual freedom.
D)None of the above is correct.
E)All of these are correct.

Question 49

Envy, gossip, and intolerance are manifestations of which Adlerian safeguarding tendency?

A)excuses
B)depreciation
C)accusation
D)self-accusation
E)withdrawal

Question 50

Adler held that exaggerated physical deficiencies

A)directly cause abnormal psychological development.
B)are the eventual results of abnormal psychological development.
C)trigger inferiority feelings leading to abnormal development.
D)are unrelated to abnormal psychological development.

Question 51

Adler believed that the essence of maladjustment is in a person's

A)fictional goals.
B)creative power.
C)safeguarding tendencies.
D)underdeveloped social interest.
E)psychic conflict.

Question 52

Adler's concept of standing still is similar to Freud's concept of

A)fixation.
B)repression.
C)regression.
D)sublimation.
E)projection.

Question 53

According to Adler, ______ is the "barometer of normality."

A)social interest
B)creative power
C)subjectivity of perception
D)fictional finalism

Question 54

According to Adler's theory of abnormal development, the goals of neurotic people

A)originate in the id.
B)are actually realistic, but their attempts to reach them are not.
C)are overcompensations for exaggerated feelings of inferiority.
D)All of these are correct.
E)None of these is correct.

Question 55

Although similar to Freud's defense mechanisms, Adler's concept of safeguarding tendencies differs in several respects.One difference is that safeguarding tendencies are

A)completely conscious.
B)completely unconscious.
C)sometimes conscious.
D)used by everyone.

Question 56

According to Adler, two commonly used safeguarding tendencies are excuses and aggression.A third is

A)regression.
B)fixation.
C)social interest.
D)withdrawal.
E)early recollections.

Question 57

Adler maintained that social interest is

A)inborn.
B)acquired through experience.
C)inborn, but brought to expression through experience.
D)inborn in some people but acquired by others.

Question 58

The "sole criterion of human values," Adler said, is

A)style of life.
B)creative power.
C)subjectivity of perception.
D)social interest.

Question 59

Adler held that children who received love and affection from their parents typically develop

A)strong social interest.
B)a pampered style of life.
C)a neglected style of life.
D)a variety of safeguarding tendencies.
E)a parasitic style of life.

Question 60

Vacillating, procrastinating, or behaving compulsively are examples of which Adlerian safeguarding tendency?

A)moving backward
B)standing still
C)hesitating
D)constructing obstacles
E)excuses

Question 61

Adlerians believe that if style of life changes, early recollections

A)are forgotten.
B)also can change.
C)are objectively verified.
D)cause the changes in style of life.

Question 62

Adler hypothesized that early recollections

A)are complex daydreams.
B)cause or determine one's style of life.
C)are usually unpleasant and traumatic.
D)are shaped by one's present style of life.
E)All the above are correct.

Question 63

Although Adler's theory is optimistic, it can be criticized for its

A)inability to be falsified.
B)inconsistency.
C)parsimony.
D)inability to generate research.
E)inability to organize knowledge.

Question 64

The most important factor for the child in Adler's family constellation is

A)rank order of siblings.
B)gender of siblings.
C)spacing of siblings.
D)number of siblings.
E)subjective perception of self and environment.

Question 65

Adler believed that early recollections

A)have no objective validity.
B)are inconsistent with present style of life.
C)are psychologically meaningless.
D)yield clues to understanding style of life.

Question 66

According to Adler, _____ is the most reliable means of revealing style of life.

A)the word association test
B)early recollections
C)free association
D)hypnosis

Question 67

Adler believed that the typical secondborn child

A)develops moderate competitiveness.
B)becomes extremely competitive.
C)becomes easily discouraged.
D)is fearful of authority.

Question 68

A unique aspect of early Adlerian therapy was

A)self-hypnosis.
B)its use of patients' drawings and sketches.
C)treating children in front of an audience.
D)its emphasis on returning patients to the workforce.

Question 69

Adler's concept of humanity is most accurately summarized in which phrase?

A)Childhood experiences determine adult personality.
B)People are motivated by their goals for the future.
C)People's experiences are more important than their interpretations of experience.
D)Genetic factors are more influential than social factors in shaping personality.

Question 70

The night before Adler made his first trip to the United States, he dreamed that

A)his ship capsized and that he had to swim courageously to safety.
B)he saw Freud on board the ship and that Freud asked him to hold his coat.
C)he saw a smiling Freud on board the ship, admitting that individual psychology was superior to psychoanalysis.
D)a huge American audience was applauding loudly after one of his speeches.

Question 71

Adler used the therapeutic relationship to

A)increase sense of social interest.
B)increase private intelligence.
C)increase personal superiority.
D)increase safeguarding tendencies.
E)decrease safeguarding tendencies.

Question 72

Firstborn children, according to Adler, are likely to

A)suffer from organ inferiorities.
B)communicate in organ dialect more than secondborn children do.
C)have intensified feelings of power and superiority.
D)have very little anxiety.

Question 73

Adler believed that dreams

A)are expressions of infantile wishes.
B)provide clues to solve future problems.
C)are prophetic.
D)can be easily understood by the dreamer.

Question 74

Research by Statton and Wilborn found that children who received counseling

A)had essentially the same quality of early recollections as those who did not receive counseling.
B)tended to forget their earliest recollections.
C)showed more changes in early recollections than did students who did not receive counseling.
D)tended to recall more vivid early recollections.

Question 75

According to Adler,

A)the psychic lives of men and women are fundamentally different.
B)only men overemphasize the importance of being manly.
C)women's inferior place in society is biological.
D)All of these are correct.
E)None of these is correct.

Question 76

Adler refers to the overemphasis on the importance of being manly as the

A)masculine protest.
B)sexist imperative.
C)sexual safeguarding tendency.
D)gender excuse.

Question 77

Which of the following statements best expresses Adler's concept of humanity?

A)The environment basically determines personality.
B)People are by nature good.
C)Early childhood experiences are the single most important factor in shaping personality.
D)People's interpretations of experiences are more important than the experiences themselves.

Question 78

Adler's notion of the masculine protest

A)is a reaction to feelings of inferiority.
B)applies only to women.
C)is genetically determined.
D)is the precursor to the feminine protest.