Adlerian Counseling: A Practitioner's Approach

Written with the practitioner in mind, this overview of the theory and practice of Alfred Adler's Individual Psychology explains the dimensions and uses of natural and logical consequences--the twin bases of Adlerian/Individual Psychology. The text takes a practical approach to the topic, and covers a variety of settings (school, home, community, business) and populations (children, adolescents, adults). While following the thinking of Alfred Adler and Rudolf Dreikurs, Sweeney incorporates research, methods, and techniques that expand upon Individual Psychology. This new edition also addresses encouragement as a means of helping others, demonstrates the application of Adlerian Psychology to people of all ages, and provides a tool for using the Life Style Inventory assessment tool. Chapters include: (1) "Individual Psychology: The Man, the Movement, and the Psychology of Alfred Adler"; (2) "Toward Wellness: The Goal of Helping" (J. Melvin Witmer; Thomas J. Sweeney); (3) "Natural Consequences: Life's Rules Are for Everyone"; (4) "Logical Consequences: Society's Lessons"; (5) "Encouragement: The Key to Change--The Essential Element of Helping"; (6) "Guiding Children Toward Wellness"; (7) "Lifestyle Assessment: Uncovering The Unconscious"; (8) "Stages and Order of the Counseling Process"; (9) "Career Style Assessment and Counseling" (Mark L. Savickas); (10) Working with Couples"; (11) "Working with Families"; and (12) "Working with Groups." Chapters are structured for instructional use, with each closing with a "Summary" and a set of "Study Questions." The supporting bibliography contains 266 references. (GCP)