I often meet clients who are intelligent, resourceful, and motivated but feel stuck repeating patterns that no longer serve them. Adlerian Therapy offers a powerful, encouraging framework to help people understand where these patterns come from, why they persist, and how to reshape them into healthier, more purposeful ways of living. Unlike approaches that focus only on symptom relief, Adlerian work seeks to uncover the unique “lifestyle” each person has developed, the beliefs, strategies, and goals that guide their choices, so they can rewrite their own story.
Adlerian Theory
Adlerian theory, developed by Alfred Adler in the early 1900s, rests on the belief that human beings are inherently social, creative, and purposeful. People are not driven solely by unconscious forces (as Freud emphasized) or by deterministic conditioning (as behaviorists proposed). Instead, they are motivated by goals, often unconscious, that shape their perceptions, emotions, and actions.
Adler proposed that each person develops a “lifestyle” (not in the modern sense of fashion or hobbies, but as an internally consistent pattern of beliefs, behaviors, and goals) by around age 5–6. This lifestyle reflects how a person interprets the world and their place within it, shaped by early experiences, birth order, and family dynamics.
Key Principles of Adlerian Theory
- Holism
- The person is an indivisible whole. Mind, body, emotions, and social context are interconnected.
- Symptoms cannot be fully understood in isolation from the person’s relationships and environment.
- Social Interest (Gemeinschaftsgefühl)
- A measure of mental health is the degree to which a person feels connected to, and responsible for, the welfare of others.
- Psychological distress often stems from feeling disconnected, inferior, or unable to contribute.
- Goal Orientation
- All behavior is purposeful, aimed toward achieving perceived goals.
- These goals are often future-oriented, even if rooted in past experiences.
- Subjective Perceptions
- Reality is experienced through a personal lens shaped by beliefs, interpretations, and assumptions.
- What matters in therapy is not objective truth, but the client’s subjective truth.
- Inferiority and Compensation
- Feelings of inferiority are universal; they can motivate growth or cause maladaptive compensations.
- “Striving for superiority” in Adler’s sense means striving toward mastery, competence, and contribution, not dominance over others.
- Creative Self
- Individuals actively construct their lifestyle and can choose new directions.
- This agency is central to change.
Overview of Adlerian Therapy
Adlerian Therapy, developed by Alfred Adler, is a goal-oriented, socially conscious, and holistic approach to psychotherapy. It is based on the premise that all human behavior is purposeful and directed toward finding significance, belonging, and meaning. Clients are seen as creative problem-solvers whose challenges arise when mistaken beliefs or discouragement lead to unhelpful strategies. Therapy focuses on encouraging clients, building insight, and guiding them toward socially beneficial goals that promote both self-respect and connection with others.
Who Is Best Suited for Adlerian Therapy
Adlerian therapy is especially effective for:
- Young adults who are exploring identity, purpose, and career direction.
- Adults making life transitions or significant decisions (e.g., relocation, career changes, relationship commitments).
- Individuals struggling with low self-esteem, social anxiety, or perfectionism.
- People seeking insight into recurring relational patterns.
- Clients who value collaboration and active participation in therapy.
How It Works
Adlerian therapy typically unfolds in four overlapping phases:
- Engagement – Building trust, safety, and a collaborative relationship.
- Assessment – Gathering life story, early memories, and family constellation to identify recurring themes and beliefs.
- Insight – Helping clients understand the purpose of their behaviors and reframe mistaken beliefs.
- Reorientation – Encouraging action steps, new behaviors, and an expanded sense of social contribution.
Specific Adlerian Techniques
- Lifestyle Assessment – In-depth exploration of early recollections, family roles, and pivotal life experiences to identify core beliefs.
- Family Constellation Analysis – Examining how birth order and perceived family dynamics influenced the client’s life style.
- Early Recollections Technique – Eliciting first memories to reveal symbolic themes.
- Encouragement – Reinforcing strengths, effort, and potential rather than focusing solely on deficits.
- Identifying and Challenging Mistaken Beliefs – Replacing unhelpful private logic with more flexible, reality-based perspectives.
- The Question – Asking, “What would be different if the problem were gone?” to reveal the function of symptoms.
- Acting ‘As If’ – Practicing desired qualities or roles before they feel natural.
- Spitting in the Soup – Highlighting the hidden payoff of unhelpful behaviors to reduce their appeal.
- Push-Button Technique – Training clients to switch emotional states intentionally.
- Reframing in Social Context – Viewing personal struggles as part of a larger need for connection and purpose.
Therapeutic Goals
- Foster insight into mistaken beliefs and unhelpful patterns.
- Encourage the client to develop social interest and a sense of belonging.
- Support clients in adopting more flexible and constructive life goals.
- Cultivate courage to face life’s challenges and embrace imperfection.
Adlerian Therapy Case Example 1: College Student
Emily, 20, is a sophomore majoring in liberal arts. She came to therapy reporting chronic procrastination, extreme anxiety over grades, and indecision about choosing a major. She frequently avoided starting assignments, only to work frantically at the last minute, producing work she never felt was “good enough.” She worried her professors and peers would think less of her if she made mistakes.
Adlerian Theory Assessment:
- Early recollections: Helping her younger siblings with homework and receiving praise for being “the smart one.”
- Birth order: Oldest of three, felt responsible for modeling success and keeping peace at home.
- Life style theme: Worth and belonging are tied to flawless performance and others’ approval.
- Mistaken belief: “If I’m not perfect, I’ll let everyone down and lose their respect.”
Insight Phase:
Through therapy, Emily saw that her procrastination was a protective strategy. It gave her an excuse if her work fell short (“I didn’t have enough time”) rather than risking full effort and potential criticism. She recognized this fear-driven pattern as a continuation of her childhood role of “the dependable achiever.”
Reorientation Strategies:
- Practiced Acting As If she could turn in imperfect work without rejection.
- Used the Push-Button Technique before study sessions, recalling times she felt calm and capable.
- Began setting micro-deadlines to reduce overwhelm.
- Joined a student environmental group, shifting some focus from achievement to contribution.
Adlerian Therapy Outcome:
Over several months, Emily declared a biology major, accepted B grades without spiraling into self-criticism, and began seeing herself as valuable beyond academic achievement. Her confidence grew as she diversified her identity from “the smart one” to “a capable, multifaceted person.”
Adlerian Counseling Case Example: A Personal Decision
Sarah is 36 and works as a marketing manager. She is currently torn between accepting a job abroad with her partner or staying near her aging parents. She described feeling “frozen” in indecision, plagued by guilt about leaving her family and anxiety about regretting either choice.
Assessment Using Adlerian Theory
- Early recollections: Mediating arguments at family dinners and being praised for “keeping the peace.”
- Birth order: Middle child, often positioned as the mediator between siblings.
- Lifestyle theme: Maintaining harmony and others’ happiness is her responsibility, even at personal cost.
- Mistaken belief: “If I put my needs first, I’m being selfish and will hurt the people I love.”
Adlerian Therapy Insight Phase:
Sarah realized her difficulty deciding was rooted in a lifelong pattern of over-responsibility for others’ well-being. She recognized that she had been avoiding choices that could create disappointment, even if they aligned with her personal growth.
Reorientation Strategies:
- Used Reframing: “Caring for myself allows me to be more present for others.”
- Applied The Question to imagine her life if the indecision vanished, clarifying her true preference.
- Engaged in a two-week “Acting As If” experiment, journaling each day as though she had made each possible decision, noting changes in energy, mood, and motivation.
Adlerian Counseling Outcome:
Sarah chose the overseas job, developing a plan for regular visits and virtual check-ins with her parents. The decision, once paralyzing, became a source of empowerment. She reported excitement about professional opportunities and a sense of agency in shaping her own future.
Case Example 3: Adlerian Art Therapy
Laura is 28 and a graduate art student. She sought therapy for self-doubt, creative block, and difficulty forming close friendships. She described feeling “invisible” in social settings and believed her art was “never original enough.” She had recently withdrawn from her art collective, fearing her work didn’t measure up.
Adlerian Assessment:
- Early recollections: Drawing alone in her room as a child while her older siblings played outside together.
- Birth order: Youngest of three, often left out of group activities.
- Life style theme: To be accepted, she must stand out through unique talent—but she also fears scrutiny.
- Mistaken belief: “If I am truly seen, I will be judged and rejected.”
Adlerian Art Therapy Integration:
I used art-making as both a means of expression and a diagnostic/insight tool.
- Projective Drawing for Early Memories
- Laura was asked to create a drawing of her earliest memory. She drew herself in a corner, coloring, while her siblings laughed together on the other side of the page.
- Discussion revealed her interpretation that she was “different” and “on the outside,” reinforcing her belief that safety comes from remaining unseen.
- Metaphor-Based Art
- Laura created an image of a bird in a cage, painted in vivid colors but surrounded by gray space.
- This became a visual metaphor for her life style, possessing vibrant creativity but self-contained and hidden.
- Acting “As If” Through Art
- Laura was invited to create a series of paintings as if she had no fear of judgment.
- She experimented with bolder colors, unfinished textures, and more personal subject matter.
- This paralleled Adlerian behavioral experiments in the verbal therapy space, where she began initiating conversations with peers without overthinking.
- Social Interest in Artistic Context
- The therapist encouraged Laura to submit a collaborative piece to a community art show, reframing it as a way to contribute rather than to prove herself.
- This directly addressed her need for belonging and her mistaken belief that she must stand apart to be valued.
Adlerian Art Therapy Outcome:
Over several months, Laura began sharing more of her work publicly and rejoined her art collective. She reported less perfectionism, greater enjoyment of the creative process, and increased comfort connecting with peers. In verbal sessions, she acknowledged that “being seen” could mean acceptance rather than criticism.
Case Example 4: Brief Adlerian Therapy for a Teen
Marcus is a high school sophomore referred by his school counselor for frequent class absences, declining grades, and a recent suspension for skipping detention. He appeared withdrawn at the first session but admitted feeling “pointless” about school and unmotivated. His parents described him as bright but easily discouraged.
Brief Adlerian Therapy Format:
Brief Adlerian Therapy (BAT) – 6 sessions over 8 weeks, focused on clarifying goals, identifying mistaken beliefs, and initiating action steps.
Session 1 – Engagement
- Built rapport through collaborative goal-setting.
- I expressed genuine respect for Marcus’s perspective, avoiding lecture-style interventions.
- Agreed therapy goal: “Figure out what makes school worth showing up for.”
Session 2 – Assessment
- Explored family constellation: Marcus is the youngest of three, with two high-achieving older sisters.
- Early recollection: Sitting at the dinner table, parents praising his sisters’ grades while he remained silent.
- Emerging life style theme: “No matter what I do, I can’t measure up—so why try?”
Session 3 – Insight
- I shared an interpretation: Marcus’s withdrawal might be a strategy to avoid inevitable comparison.
- Used “Spitting in the Soup” to make the hidden payoff of disengagement clear: “If you don’t try, you can always say it’s because you didn’t care—not because you couldn’t do it.”
- Marcus acknowledged this matched his thinking and felt “called out in a good way.”
Session 4 – Reorientation
- Practiced Acting As If: Marcus chose one subject (history) to attend consistently for two weeks, even on bad days.
- Introduced Push-Button Technique—focusing on energizing memories before class.
- Reframed “being measured” into “being different” by identifying personal strengths outside academics (mechanical skills, problem-solving).
Session 5 – Social Interest Activation
- Encouraged Marcus to join the school’s robotics club to connect his mechanical strengths to a group setting.
- Discussed contribution, not competition, as a new measure of worth.
Session 6 – Consolidation
- Reviewed progress: Marcus had attended all history classes for two weeks, raised his grade from 62% to 75%, and enjoyed the robotics club.
- Identified ongoing plan: Build consistency in other subjects, maintain club participation, and check in with the school counselor monthly.
Outcome:
Marcus’s attendance improved, his teachers noted increased engagement, and he reported feeling “more in control.” The brief format helped focus on specific, actionable change without overwhelming him with long-term therapy expectations.
Conclusion and My Work
Adlerian therapy invites clients to see themselves as the authors of their lives, capable of identifying unhelpful patterns, reinterpreting their experiences, and adopting new ways of living that honor both personal needs and social connection. With its blend of insight, encouragement, and actionable strategies, it serves people at many stages of life, from young adults charting their course to seasoned professionals facing pivotal decisions. The goal is not simply to solve a problem, but to help clients cultivate the courage, clarity, and confidence to meet life’s challenges with purpose.
If you have any questions about how Adlerian therapy might benefit you or a loved one, or would like more information about Adlerian Therapy, please do not hesitate to contact me or schedule a consultation.
