Biography of Alfred Adler

Alfred Adler is well known for his psychologic and psychopathologic theories which are still incorporated today.

Adler is one of six children who spent their childhood in the suburbs of Vienna. At the age of five he was struck with pneumonia and doctors feared he would ever recover from the illness. It was at that time he decided to devote his to become a doctor so he would be able to fight deadly illnesses. It took him just 20 more years to accomplish this task.

In 1898 Adler wrote his first book which dealt with health conditions of tailors. With this book he became known as one of the leading psychologists in his school of thought.

Just four years later Adler was invited to discuss his ideas involving dream interpretations with Sigmund Freud. However in 1907, after Adler published his book on organ inferiority and its compensation, the differences between Freud's and Adler's views became well marked. Soon Adler would leave Freud's circle with eight colleagues to form their own school of thought.

In 1912 Adler published a book, The Neurotic Constitution which further explained his concepts. In this book he named this theories "Individual Psychology". He then published yet another book, Understanding Human Nature, which comprised his lectures at the Viennese Institute for Adult Education. This book is still considered to be required-reading in many American high schools.

Adler returned home from the Great War in 1918. He then founded several children guidance clinics in Vienna and began spreading similar clinics throughout other countries.

Columbia University then invited Adler to lecture in 1926 and just six years later he stood as first chair of Visiting Professor of Medical Psychology at Long Island College of Medicine.

His lectures were overcrowded as he communicated his theories to his audiences. However on May 28th, 1937 while visiting Aberdeen, Scottland he collapsed while walking on the street and died moments later from a heart failure.

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