Sunday, April 6, 2008

Adler's inferiority/superiority complex and compensation


Adlerian psychology assumes a central personality dynamic reflecting the growth and forward movement of life. It is a future-oriented striving toward an ideal goal of significance, mastery, success or completion. Children start their lives smaller, weaker, and less socially and intellectually competent than the adults around them. They have the desire to grow up, to become a capable adult, and as they gradually acquire skills and demonstrate their competence, they gain in confidence and self esteem. This natural striving for perfection may however be held back if their self-image is degraded by failures in physical, intellectual and social development or of they suffer from the criticisms of parents, teachers and peers.
If we are moving along, doing well, feeling competent, we can afford to think of others. If we are not, if life is getting the best of us, then our attentions become increasingly focussed on ourself; we may develop an inferiority complex: become shy and timid, insecure, indecisive, cowardly, submissive, compliant, and so on.
The inferiority complex is a form of neurosis and as such it may become all-consuming. A person with an inferiority complex tends to lack social interest; instead they are self-interested: focused on themselves and what they believe to be their deficiencies. They may compensate by working hard to improve in the skills at which they lack, or they may try to become competent at something else, but otherwise retaining their sense of inferiority. Since self esteem is based on competence, those who have not succeeded in recovering from this neurosis may find it hard to develop any self esteem at all and are left with the feeling that other people will always be better than they are


I have self-esteem issues. I do not think very highly of myself at all. I believe that is a mindset that has been created for me having grown up with people telling me that I am worthless. I never think myself as, as good as anyone else, I always think people are better than me. I find it very hard to accept compliments. I do, however, think of others, I have several friends and I always try to put their needs before mine.

We may also develop a superiority complex, which involves covering up our inferiority by pretending to be superior. If we feel small, one way to feel big is to make everyone else feel even smaller! Bullies, big-heads, and petty dictators everywhere are the prime example. More subtle examples are the people who are given to attention-getting dramatics, the ones who feel powerful when they commit crimes, and the ones who put others down for their gender, race, ethnic origins, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, weight, height, etc. Some resort to hiding their feelings of worthlessness in the delusions of power afforded by alcohol and drugs.

I've never developed a superiority complex. I've never believed myself to be superior to anyone.

bibliography
Mitchell, Gregory. "ALFRED ADLER & ADLERIAN INDIVIDUAL PSYCHOLOGY." 3 Apr. 2008 .
Ronald, Meyer. MODULE 2 DYNAMIC PSYCHOLOGY. 1 Apr. 2006. 3 Apr. 2008 .

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