Chapter 5- Adlerian Therapy
MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST ITEMS
1. Adler’s Individual Psychology was largely influenced by : (p.97)
a. his early childhood experiences.
b. his rejection of Freud’s biologically driven view of human nature.
c. his medical training in neurology.
d. both (a) and (b)
e. neo-Freudian scholars
2. Which is (are) true concerning one’s style of life? (p. 101)
a. All people have a lifestyle, but no two people develop exactly the same style.
b. The lifestyle is largely set by the age of 6.
c. One’s style of life is a reaction to perceived inferiority.
d. One’s style of life is learned from early interactions in the family.
e. All of the above
3. Adler believed that human behavior is: (p. 98)
a. motivated by sexual urges.
b. motivated by social urges.
c. purposeful and goal-directed.
d. all of the above
e. both (b) and (c)
4. In Adlerian counseling, the client/therapist relationship is characterized by: (p. 107)
a. cooperation and respect.
b. equality.
c. disengagement.
d. the counselor as “expert,” the client as “sick.”
e. both (a) and (b)
5. The purpose of examining a client’s family constellation is: (p. 105)
a. to get a picture of the individual’s early social world.
b. to bring unconscious factors to the surface.
c. to discover hereditary aspects of the client’s behavior.
d. to determine who else in the family needs help.
e. both (b) and (c)
6. The term “social interest” refers to: (p. 102)
a. an individual’s attitude in dealing with the social world.
b. a sense of identification and empathy with others.
c. striving for a better future for all humans.
d. all of the above
e. both (a) and (b)
7. Which of the following is not one of the five basic tasks Adler says we must master? (p. 102)
a. acceptance
b. achieving intimacy
c. intellectual development
d. work
e. the spiritual dimension
8. All of the following are stages in Adlerian counseling except: (p. 108)
a. reorientation.
b. insight.
c. establishing a therapeutic relationship.
d. analysis and assessment.
e. analysis of resistance.
9. The process of encouragement in Adlerian counseling includes: (p. 114)
a. helping clients use all their resources.
b. transforming traits that can be liabilities into assets.
c. helping clients recognize and accept their positive qualities.
d. all of the above
e. all but (b)
10. An Adlerian therapist asks for the client’s earliest recollections in order to: (p. 111)
a. discover goals and motivations.
b. reveal their beliefs and basic mistakes.
c. give clues as to the development of that individual’s lifestyle.
d. all of the above
e. both (b) and (c)
11. According to Adlerians, inferiority feelings: (p. 98-99)
a. are pathological.
b. lead to depression.
c. keep us from achieving our life goals.
d. are directly related to our family constellation.
e. create motivation to achieve mastery.
12. Adlerians believe that discouragement: (p. 114)
a. is the basic condition that prevents people from functioning.
b. is basic to the human condition and is to be accepted as part of being alive.
c. can be overcome by encouragement.
d. both (a) and (c)
e. both (b) and (c)
13. Adlerians view the use of techniques in counseling as: (p. 109)
a. geared to the phase of therapy and the needs of the client.
b. more important than paying attention to the subjective experiences of the client.
c. against their basic philosophy.
d. both (a) and (b)
e. all of the above
14. Which of the following techniques is not used in Adlerian family counseling? (p. 117)
a. the initial interview
b. paradoxical interventions
c. analyzing resistances between members of the family
d. making an appraisal
e. all are used
15. Adlerian therapy has a phenomenological orientation. Thus, the therapist attempts to
view the world: (p. 99)
a. from an objective frame of reference.
b. from his or her own subjective frame of reference.
c. from the client’s frame of reference.
d. from the frame of reference of a particular theory.
e. none of the above
16. Which of the following statements is not true about Alfred Adler? (p. 97)
a. He created child guidance clinics.
b. His early childhood was happy.
c. He worked with Freud for at least eight years.
d. He had much to say about child-rearing practices.
17. When Adler spoke of individuality, he referred to: (p. 101)
a. the unique way we rewrite our own life script.
b. the unique way we deal with the crises of our development.
c. the unique way we confront our unfinished business.
d. the unique way we develop our own style of striving for competence.
18. “Fictional finalism” is an Adlerian term meaning: (p. 100)
a. the unrealistic ideas that we have about the way life should be.
b. our strict adherence to certain beliefs that are not based on reality.
c. an imagined central goal that guides our behavior.
d. our stubborn resistance to change.
19. In helping clients to examine their mistaken goals and faulty assumptions, an Adlerian therapist does
not use: (p. 104-105)
a. encouragement.
b. challenge and confrontation.
c. open-ended interpretations.
d. interpretation of the transference relationship.
e. both (b) and (c)
20. Which of the following aspects are assessed when exploring a client’s family constellation?
(p. 110)
a. birth order
b. interactions between siblings and parents
c. the child’s psychological position in the family
d. all of the above
e. all but (c)
21. Which of the following is not true about the Adlerian concept of “private logic”? (p. 106)
a. It is a result of the feelings and emotions we experience in our daily lives.
b. It provides a central psychological unity for us.
c. It is the philosophy upon which we base our lifestyle.
d. It often does not conform to the reality of social living.
22. During the phase of analysis and assessment, the Adlerian therapist: (p. 109-111)
a. explores the family constellation.
b. asks for early recollections.
c. offers tentative interpretations.
d. all of the above
e. all but (c)
23. Reorientation, the fourth phase of Adlerian therapy, involves: (p. 113)
a. putting insights into action.
b. helping clients see new alternatives.
c. helping clients come to understand their own part in creating their problems.
d. both (a) and (b)
e. both (b) and (c)
24. One way that clients in Adlerian therapy are encouraged to change is: (p. 115)
a. by changing early decisions.
b. by understanding the roots of their problems.
c. by “acting as if” they were already the way they want to be.
d. both (a) and (b)
25. One contribution of Adlerian therapy is that: (p. 123)
a. practitioners are given a great deal of freedom in working with their clients.
b. it offers a well-defined theory of personality.
c. many of its concepts have been supported by research.
d. it is a common-sense psychology.
26. Who is primarily credited with popularizing and extending Adler’s work by applying Adlerian
principles to group work? (p. 98)
a. Don Dinkmeyer
b. Erik Erikson
c. H. L. Ansbacher
d. Raymond Corsini
e. Rudolph Dreikurs
27. Which of the following did Adler not stress? (p. 98-99)
a. the unity of personality
b. focus on early childhood experiences as determinants of later personality functioning
c. behavior is purposeful and goal-oriented
d. a unique style of life that is an expression of life goals
e. feelings of inferiority
28. Which child is most likely to demand center stage, tends to have difficulties in life when he or she is
no longer the center of attention, and is likely to become dependently tied to the mother? (p. 104)
a. the oldest child
b. the second child
c. the middle child
d. the youngest child
e. the only child
29. Which child tends to feel squeezed out and may develop a conviction that life is unfair and a feeling
of being cheated? (p. 103)
a. the oldest child
b. the second child
c. the middle child
d. the youngest child
e. the only child
30. All of the following are life tasks that Adler taught we must successfully master except for: (p. 102)
a. building friendships
b. establishing intimacy
c. contributing to society
d. achieving self-actualization
31. The client’s core experience in Adlerian therapy consists of: (p. 106)
a. working through the transference relationship.
b. discovering their basic mistakes and then learning how to correct them.
c. understanding how their relationship with their parents has shaped their personality.
d. understanding how their birth order has determined the person who they are today.
32. Which of the following would an Adlerian therapist particularly value? (p. 107)
a. interpretation of dreams
b. confronting the ways the client is living dependently since early childhood
c. modeling of communication and acting in socially minded ways
d. helping the client to work through the transference neurosis
33. The premise of Adlerian group work is that: (p. 117)
a. clients’ problems are usually of a social nature.
b. early childhood disturbances are at the root of the client’s current problems.
c. individuals are encouraged to become fully independent.
d. insight, not action is needed for change.
34. When counseling couples, Adlerian therapists strive to: (p. 116-117)
a. create solutions for problems.
b. increase the couple’s choices.
c. help the couple discover their collective resources.
d. enhance the couple’s communication.
e. all of the above
35. The Adlerian approach is well suited to multicultural counseling because: (p. 119)
a. the approach encourages clients to define themselves within their social context.
b. the approach has few rigid techniques.
c. the focus on early recollections allows clients to explore their past.
d. the focus on a lifestyle assessment is appealing to appealing to most cultures.
ANSWER KEY FOR CHAPTER 5
MULTIPLE-CHOICE TEST QUESTIONS
TRUE/FALSE TEST ITEMS
Decide if the following statements are “more true” or “more false” as they apply to adlerian therapy.
1. Alfred Adler believed that what we are born with is not as important as what we choose to do with the
abilities and limitations we possess.
2. Adlerians have a teleological view of human nature.
3. According to Adler, perfection, not pleasure, is the goal of life.
4. Adlerian therapists pay careful focus to techniques and work in structured, set ways.
5. Adler maintained that individuals attempt to overcome feelings of basic inferiority by developing a
lifestyle in which success is possible.
6. In Adler’s view we can be fully understood only in light of knowing the purposes and goals toward
which we are striving.
7. Adlerians maintain that change is not possible without insight; understanding the causes of one’s
problems is a prerequisite to behavioral change.
8. Adlerian counseling focuses on the family constellation and the influence of the family on the
individual.
9. Encouragement is a part of the Adlerian counseling process.
10. Adlerians typically do not use techniques of interpretation, for they believe that clients can make their
own interpretations without therapist intervention.
11. From the Adlerian perspective, objective reality is more important than how we interpret reality and
the meanings we attach to what we experience.
12. Adlerians emphasize reeducating people and reshaping society.
13. For Adlerian counselors, techniques are helpful when adapted to the needs of the client.
14. By discussing a client’s earliest recollections, an Adlerian counselor hopes to bring unconscious
conflicts to the surface.
15. Adler stressed that our desire to strive for perfection is learned from our parents.
16. One Adlerian concept is that everything we do is influenced by our style of life.
17. “Fictional finalism” is a term that Adlerians use to describe our attitude in dealing with the social
world.
18. Clients are viewed by Adlerian therapists as “sick” and in need of a cure.
19. The concept of lifestyle refers to an individual’s core beliefs and assumptions through which the
person organizes his or her reality and finds meaning in life events.
20. Adlerians maintain that the priorities we choose arise from our personality strengths.
21. Adlerian views of birth order and family constellation are highly relevant to individuals from all
cultural contexts
22. Research supporting the effectiveness of the Adlerian approach is limited.
23. The Adlerian approach has a wide variety of applications including group and family therapy.
24. The Adlerian approach to parent education emphasizes listening to children.
25. Adlerian couples therapists use a psychoeducational approach.
ANSWER KEY FOR CHAPTER 5
TRUE/FALSE TEST QUESTIONS