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Adler's Three Mistaken Styles Of Life

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According to Cloninger (2013) Adler presented three different mistaken styles of life. That is, three lifestyles that are not healthy. The three types are the ruling type, the getting type, and the avoiding type. Adler does point out, however, that no matter what environmental factors, it is always the choice of the individual to determine the style of life. (Cloninger, 2013) The first of these three types is the ruling type. Members of the ruling type seek domination over others, as pointed out by Cloninger, (2013) the resulting effects may cause the subject to become a delinquent, sadist, or tyrants. The second type, the getting type, lean and rely upon others. The results of this type can cause the subject to adopt a more passive attitude toward life, rather than an active one. This type can even lead into depression. The final type is the avoiding type. Members of this final type try to avoid problems and not deal with them, in an effort to avoid defeat. As Cloninger (2013) states, this type can have extreme consequences. For instance, a common result of this type is agoraphobia-an irrational fear that confines one to their own home. These three types are …show more content…

The question has been asked, as to whether American culture provides an adequate support for the transition from adolescence to adulthood, and for the sake of academic discussion, I will be responding according to Erikson's developmental model. In Erikson's theories of personality, an individual goes through different stages of development. And in each stage there is a conflict that can result either in the positive pole, or the negative pole. For example, an infant (stage one) learns either trust (positive pole) or mistrust (negative pole). Adolescence is a trying time, and I do not believe that modern American culture provides an adequate support for the transition from it into adulthood. One only has to look at the many conflicts that arise during the stages of adolescence to understand how difficult

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