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Understanding Human Nature

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About this listen

Alfred Adler (1870-1937) was an Austrian physician, psychotherapist, and one of the founding fathers of modern psychology. In Understanding Human Nature, (1928), Adler sets out to acquaint the general public with the basics of Individual Psychology, which holds that the driving force of human behavior is the individual’s striving for power, partly to compensate for feelings of inferiority.

Each individual’s personality structure finds expression in their lifestyle, their goals and how they strive to attain them, but the individual cannot be considered apart from society as all the important issues of life are social.

The book demonstrates the practical application of psychological principles to the conduct of relationships and the organization of daily life. With reference to the nature of the psyche, Adler looks at different personality types and character traits, and explains how character develops; the emotions, feelings and moods that shape the personality are placed under the spotlight.

The purpose of the book is to identify mistaken behaviors and show how they undermine healthy relationships, in order to gently guide the individual towards adjustment.

Public Domain (P)2020 Museum Audiobooks Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Social Psychology & Interactions Social Sciences
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I was interested in the idea of understanding Human Nature as a scientific inquiry rather than an artistic expression. In my opinion the former hypothesis was not proven, and in its stead, opinions was presented as Scientific research with no evidence of rigorous replicated experimentation. Nonetheless, I stuck to the task, but it was turgid!

moments of lucidity surrounded by darkness

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I love the Adlerian approach as opposed to the Freudian. The teleological concept of human psychology makes a lot of sense and offers hope for change. This book illustrates this very well. fascinating listen.

Adlerian principle

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Some ideas and language dated but I find Adler's philosophy important and enormously useful when you paired with our recent understanding of trauma and the holistic nature of illness. With all we know know and despite the current trend towards cultivating self awareness we still seem unprepared to take an honest look at ourselves and grow from the inside out. Only when we connect authentically with ourselves can we reconnect with the world. Some interesting points about the patriarchy, education and the varying and surprising techniques we may use in our striving for power and belonging.

Difficult & rewarding!

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I very much valued Alfred Adlers “the neurotic character “for its genuine insight. This title was more socially and politically correct and suffered for that.

Too much woke

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