Welcome to the Connection
August 2021 Issue
Letter from a Co-Editor
Hi Readers!
This month, we are pleased to include a President’s Address, some consistent and foundational faces, some new and appreciated faces, an incredible spotlight, and exciting news about one of our longstanding and beloved members, among other fantastic articles! Our design team has, once again, brought us amazing artwork! Our editors have been hard at work applying APA edits and suggested revisions to make our writer’s submissions flawless. We give a HUGE applause of appreciation to those who make this newsletter possible!
Illustration © Alyssa Rodríguez, 2021
We have experienced a few changes in the newsletter. You all are probably used to this by now. Forward movement, right?! We have added a new submission guideline, based on leadership feedback. All printed materials must now have a clear connection to Adlerian Theory. Given that we are a NASAP newsletter, I think you writers will be able to integrate this quite easily into your submissions.
Additionally, we have decided to try out themed publications, beginning in September. Our September issue will have a theme of “Back-to-School; Adlerian Education.” This is a wide umbrella, and we are looking forward to reading your submissions! If you know of Adlerians who would be excited to submit an article about an educational topic, please send them our way. This can be education or back-to-school in ANY form, as long as you can easily integrate an Adlerian lens. I am looking forward to seeing how this goes for us! Be on the lookout for the October theme that will be titled something like “Wellness/ Integrative Adler.”
Last, I am hoping to launch our “Interviews with Adlerians” page soon. If you are interested in serving as an interviewer or interviewee, please let me know!
Interestingly, our president, Tim, has included a statement along the lines of my thought processes recently. I want the readers to know that the newsletter can be a place for dialogue. You are invited to dialogue with the content of the newsletter. You are invited to write response pieces to articles you are reading. You are invited to ask questions. You are invited to submit a fresh perspective on published pieces. I do request that you keep your responses Adlerian. However, please, respond! I will work with our design team to include a section of responses to published articles if we get enough feedback. As Adlerians, we welcome dialogue and embrace the chance to learn from one another!
I wish you many life successes in the month of August! I look forward to continuing my time serving NASAP through working with the newsletter team!
Kind Regards,
Candace
President’s Address
“If you want to increase your involvement, we of course welcome it very much.”
Tim Hartshorne, President
The American writer and theologian Frederick Buechner wrote “You can survive on your own; you can grow strong on your own; you can prevail on your own; but you cannot become human on your own.” This quote should resonate with Adlerians, as we recognize our social embeddedness as human beings. It is also be a somewhat odd segue into some of my thoughts this month which have to do with our membership in NASAP.
NASAP is a membership organization, and thereby belongs to its members. While it is governed by the Board and the Council of Representatives, they cannot fully meet the full potential of NASAP on their own. Every member is an essential part of who we are. I certainly hope that you are pleased and encouraged by how NASAP is functioning. One of the interesting things about being president is that I receive communications from members, some of whom are pleased and some of whom are not. I endeavor to respond to each one and to create dialogue so that we can better understand each other, and so that I can consider actions that NASAP leadership might take in response. I recognize that we are not going to please everyone, but we cannot become who we need to be on our own. So I am encouraging you to reach out to me (harts1ts@cmich.edu) , to our newsletter Connection (NASAPnews@gmail.com) , or the office (office.nasap@gmail.com), and give us your feedback, or express some of your needs and wishes for the future of NASAP. You are NASAP and so you have a voice.
If you want to increase your involvement, we of course welcome it very much. We have an active committee structure, and one way to get involved is to volunteer to serve on a committee. We particularly need members for the Conference, Membership, Publications, and Public Relations committees. Email me or Katie at the office if you are willing to join in. We need you.
Enjoy the rest of your summer and look for upcoming events from NASAP.
Tim
Buechner, F. (1991). The sacred journey: A memoir of early days. Harper One.
From the Social Justice Task Force
The SJTF will not have a published column this month. But, stay tuned! They won’t be gone for long!
Other Contributions
Review of Philippe Mairet. (1928). A B C of Adler’s Psychology. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co.
Steve Slavik and James Croake
Philippe Mairet (1886–1975) was a British writer and journalist with a variety of interests, including crafts, literature, psychiatry and the work of Alfred Adler in particular. He was, in addition, the translator of the works of major figures in philosophy, such as Jean-Paul Sartre. As editor of the New English Weekly in the 1930s, he championed Christian socialism and ideas on agriculture that are currently known as organic farming.
Illustration © Galen Gaze, 2021
Although this modest book “attempts only to give the leading ideas of Individual Psychology, and a sketch of their origins” for the general reader, it offers in clear and non-technical language a gentle and un-ambitious perspective on Adler’s thinking that all practitioners could use to improve their work. It is well-worth reconsideration at this time.
Although the core of the book is social equality, it is approached through the idea that the life goal is the key to understanding the individual. The life goal is a fantasy of what an individual thinks he or she could be if things did not constantly oppose him or her; hence, the life goal is always utilised as a compensation for that felt inferiority. With very little relationship to reality, the life goal yet has tremendous influence over the behaviour of the individual. Thus:
These imaginations about [oneself], by means of which an individual balances his [or her] account with life . . . make up the directive fiction of the life. They are a bundle of ideas about his [or her] own disadvantages, united with corresponding ideas of how to gain advantages. This bundle of ideas . . . is the real centre of the individuality itself, to which everything else gets related. (pp 30-31)
Utilising the idea of the junctim, a thought used to intensify an emotion and to guide and motivate behaviour, the author develops how the directive fictions are expressed. Hence, the individual becomes isolated by and within his or her own fantasies and loses the recognition that he or she is, in fact, in association with and equal to all others.
The words social interest or Gemeinschaftsgefühl do not appear in the book, perhaps because Adler had not used them in writing by 1928; community feeling occurs a number of times, in a less technical sense. Nonetheless, the core of the work rests on the idea of equality. The author introduces the prospect of equality through a review of the idea of masculine protest, a particular directive fiction: “Ideal masculinity is invariably conceived as the possession . . . of freedom, love and power, which in this egoistic conception amounts simply to irresponsibility, the conquest of women or friends, and the surpassing or overthrowing of others” (p. 83). Masculine protest can be cured only through the idea and actual practice of equality, both in relationships between men and women and in larger groups. As well, Mairet states, “there is not inherently any opposition between the communal feeling and the erotic aspirations” (p. 86). The larger groups encompass the life tasks of work and friendship.
Thus, in conclusion, the author states that
an individual’s real problems are always in the present. Even a well-conducted inquiry into a [person’s] past history will never do him [or her] as much good as an honest effort to do justice to his [or her] personal relationships and to the logical demands of society. (p. 93)
The source of sanity is not in the past, but “in social vision, in the love for the world and society as one’s own counterpart and field of action” (p. 94). To live this way, social courage is called for rather than social interest.
The ideal, or rather normal, attitude to society is an unrestrained and unconsidered assumption of human equality unchanged by any inequalities of position. Social courage depends on this feeling of secure membership of the human family. (p. 100)
In the end, Mairet states that social courage is a “tremendous assumption of worth, to claim exactly equal reality and omnipotence with the whole of the rest of creation, in whatever particular manifestation of it we may be meeting” (p. 107). In fact, we use junctims at this point as well, to urge ourselves, to motivate ourselves, in addressing with all our energy the challenges of life.
Steve Slavik
#411 – 1044 Balmoral Road
Victoria, BC V8T 1A8
778-430-1353
stevenslavik@shaw.ca
Steve Slavik is a retired individual and marriage counsellor, presently devoting his time to reading, meditating, and correcting the sins of his past.
James Croake
437 5th Avenue South, 2B
Edmonds, Washington 98020
425-673-1105
jwcroake@gmail.com
James Croake is well-known as an Adlerian psychologist, author, and educator. He presently is retired, living in Washington state.
A Classic
Rocky Garrison, Ph.D.
Reference: Adler, A. (2002). The structures of psychic activity: A contribution to Individual Psychological understanding of character. In H. Stein (Ed.), The collected clinical works of Alfred Adler (Volume 7). (S.J.de Vries, Trans.). Classical Adlerian Translation Project (pp. 135-140). (Original work published 1933)
Author Information: Alfred Adler (1870-1937) founder of Individual Psychology
In this brief article, Adler discusses the dynamics of activity level (AL) and social interest (GSG) in the individual law of movement or style of living. In Individual Psychology, AL and GSG are two of the three primary factors of human behavior, along with the striving for superiority. Activity level is seen as forming early in life and remaining relatively constant throughout life. Like GSG, while hereditary and environmental factors play a role, it is a possibility that can be developed or diminished with proper nurturing and the efforts of the creative self.
Adler proposes that the AL of any person be understood in combination with the amount of GSG. "Combined, these two factors of Individual Psychology permit us to predict the danger of failure in the future and what kind of failure it could be" (p. 136). While all "failures" have underdeveloped GSG, their AL can vary from low to high.
You can receive 0.3 hours of continuing education credit from NASAP by going to https://nasapce.didacte.com and finding the course entitled "Adler 1933/2002." It will cost $12.00.
A letter from the newly elected Board of the International Association of Individual Psychology (IAIP), Marina Bluvshtein, PhD, LP, LPMFT:
“It is an honor for me as a newly elected President to write to you shortly after the conclusion of the 28th Congress of the IAIP. In this, I am joined by a newly elected IAIP Board – Vice President Ursula Oberst (Spain), Secretary General Giansecondo Mazzoli (Italy), and Treasurer Michaela Stacher-Linhart (Austria).”
Adlerian Spotlight
Ashley Greensmyth
Location: Burnaby, BC Canada
Degrees, licenses & certifications: Registered Clinical Counsellor with the British Columbia Association of Clinical Counsellors (BCACC), Certified Gottman Seven Principles Leader for Couples, Gottman Level 1
Education: Masters in Counselling Psychology (Adler University Vancouver)
Institutional Affiliation: APABC, NASAP
What do you do? I work as a clinical counselor in private practice. My focus in private practice is largely on helping individuals navigate anxiety, relationships, stress, and personal development. I also help couples to strengthening their bond and resolve conflict at all stages of the relationship, from dating to marriage.
Where do you work? Prior to the pandemic, I worked in a private space within a multidisciplinary clinic, as well as in a separate counseling office as an associate counsellor among a group of colleagues. Since the pandemic, I switched to working online and have remained online over the past one year and counting.
Research interests/Life Task interests: I’m very interested in continuing my training in couples therapy and providing more workshops on relationships, stress, and mood management. add also love to therapy training and add salaries to my repertoire. I really enjoy public speaking and connecting with the community to make mental health information more accessible. Exploring the impact of culture and acculturation is another area of interest, especially because I work with a very diverse population.
If you could be any animal/mineral/spirit/object what would you be? I remember answering a question like this during my postgraduate studies and I chose a golden retriever service dog. To me, it represents duty, compassion, service, love, playfulness, curiosity, and fun, which are some of my most closely held values.
If you could have lunch with one person from the past, who would it be? I suppose some people might pick an historical figure, but who comes to mind for me is my dad's mother. She died a month before I was born. There's a story my mom tells that I was breech until soon before my birth, and my grandma placed her hand on my mom's belly over me and said a prayer. Soon after that, I turned around. My dad talks about her in a way that makes me think we would have a lot in common, so I would love to have a long conversation with her.
What would you eat? I think I would pack a picnic of sandwiches and charcuterie and make the event like a high tea. Id like to prepare it myself, to thank her for what she gave to me.
Why did you join NASAP (and when)? I joined NASAP in 2018 because I decided to attend the conference in Tucson, AZ. NASAP had been on my radar for a year or so, and my friend encouraged me to attend the conference. Adler's philosophy has influenced my life since I became a middle child, and I adopted his philosophy in my practice. The opportunity to learn alongside the Adlerians that I studied and cited throughout my education was exciting, and after attending the conference, I was hooked.
What are your hopes are for the future of NASAP? My hope is to see a strong cultivation of community that focuses on social justice, education, equality, and inclusion among its members and the community. I'd love to see more students, millennials, and gen z attendees at the conference, as well as greater diversity among NASAP presenters. I think there's also room to modernize NASAP, and it is inching towards that with the hybrid conference and more social media activity. Opportunities to contribute towards causes through organized group volunteering could be another way to increase the sense of unity among NASAP members.
How have you participated in NASAP so far? So far, I have participated by being a member of NASAP, attending conferences and TapTalks, and presenting.
Illustration © Alyssa Rodríguez, 2021
What’s one example of how community interest can be increased today? This idea is inspired by Gabor Mate’s recent documentary, “The Wisdom of Trauma.” There are a lot of invisible people in our communities, whether they are homeless, struggling with substance abuse, or self-isolating because of mental health or other distress. We can show community interest by engaging in conversation with strangers and connecting on a human-to-human level; offering support (if it's appropriate, and within a person's means), even having a conversation to share compassion and the power of connection.
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