Title: Alfred Adler’s Individual Psychology - Towards an Integrative Psychosocial Foundation of the Education in the 21st Century
Abstract: Discouraging effects of globalization and the crisis of values manifested in the increase of deviant behaviors amongst youth, deterioration of moral standards, and a climate of disagreement and conflicts in schools are important issues to explore. The realities of the contemporary society and the perspectives of the global society demand the reorientation of the education towards fundamental democratic values. More and more authors plead for an education based on values, for the clarification and explanation of values within education which would contribute to the forming of an European conscience with students. Alfred Adler conception regarding the development of community feeling, social equality and of pro-social lifestyle present a valuable and practical importance in the foundation of democratic relations in school communities. In an encouraging atmosphere the inferiority feelings as ‘minus’ situation can be compensated on the ‘useful side of life’, leading to outstanding performances and developing of psychosocial competences and personal meaning. In the holistic conception of Adler the community feeling as a sense of solidarity constitutes itself as a generally evaluating attitude, oriented towards life’s problems, allowing the individual to act courageously and competently in a large variety of life situations and challenges. This complex feeling ‘for and with the community’ represents an indicator of the level of adaptation, moral socialization and psychical health of the young people. Social equality as a functional value of democratic living together gives the individuality the right to self-determination and the right to be treated respectfully, admitting of the ‘infinite worth’ of human dignity. Students will develop their cooperation capacity only if they convince themselves that, despite the existent differences, they are not fundamentally different from the others, having a similar value on the social level as equal human beings, and also the same needs of belonging and respect of the self dignity. The creation of the cooperative democratic climate in schools, founded on mutual respect and shared responsibility assumes the development of a pro-social lifestyle, encouraging the functional interpersonal equivalence, the community feeling in action and the feeling of personal freedom, under the circumstances of respecting the students’ rights to make decisions to influence their own lives.
Publication Year: 2011
Publication Date: 2011-04-30
Language: en
Type: article
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Cited By Count: 2
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