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Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
A study group has been formed in the San Francisco Bay Area, to read and discuss The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler. Jim Wolf, Dyanne Pienkowski, and Jeanie Cotton plan to meet monthly, and have started in September with Volume 1, "The Neurotic Character." Erik Mansager, the President of NASAP, and a recently appointed instructor at the Adler School of Professional Psychology in Chicago, is using Volumes 1 & 8 of the CCWAA for his course in psychopathology. He plans to propose courses for studying all of the volumes. Hopefully, other Adlerian training institutes will begin including a study of the CCWAA as part of their curriculum. Informal study groups can also be formed to read and discuss the CCWAA regularly. If you'd like some guidance on how to get a study group started, e-mail me at HTStein@att.net or call me at (360) 647-5670. Abstracts, for all eleven volumes, and a study guide are being prepared and will be published in the spring of 2006.
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
What is the possibility and reasonableness of doing an on-line study group? I sure would appreciate seeing a "study guide" from such a course.
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George Neeson M.D. |
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
George, an on-line study group is certainly possible. It would be good to get some feedback from forum members and guests about their degree of interest and the format preferred. The most comprehensive study of "The Collected Works of Alfred Adler" would require a willingness to read each volume in sequence, perhaps a chapter or two a week, starting with Volume 1. Each person's comments and questions would then be exchanged with the members of the study group. This can be done through the BOL discussion forum, a dedicated chat room, or an audio or video teleconference. Certainly, the discussion forum is most convenient, but misses the spontaneity and dynamic exchange of direct contact. Chat rooms are usually not conducive to serious discussion. We could experiment with an audio or video teleconference (I have subscribed to iVisit <www.ivisit.com>), but all participants would need to agree on a mutually convenient time, have a high-speed Internet connections, and have a microphone and speakers connected (a video cam would be optional). We could set up a couple of short "pilot" sessions to test the quality of the teleconferencing system; my iVisit subscription can handle up to eight participants. I am open to other suggestions.
A study guide is being prepared, but is not yet available. In addition to abstracts of each chapter for every volume, it will offer topic guides that suggest key sources in each of the volumes; it is intended for individuals who have access to all of the volumes. Our Advanced Certification Training for Study-analysis includes course DT702: "Comprehensive Study/Discussion of The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler and His Unpublished Manuscripts," described at http://go.ourworld.nu/hstein/dt702.htm. |
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
Course DT702 looks "daunting" but I feel it would give a most complete understanding of Adler's psychology. What time frame would this be done over? The reading assignments by themselves would consume maybe 18 months. I am interested in this programme. Please tell us if it would produce the deep understanding I am suggesting.
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George Neeson M.D. |
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
George, at the pace of one hour of discussion a week, the total length really depends on the individual's reading style and appetite for depth (taking at least a year, but possibly two years). Although it would appear to be mainly a scholarly examination of theory, the actual experience and result are a deepening of diagnostic insight and therapeutic skill. This combination of in-depth reading and regular discussion is one of the best, effective roads to a mastery of the core theory. It takes this rock-solid theoretical base upon which to launch the creative application of Adler's principles. (Students who have developed the habit of "quick study," often quit prematurely, thinking they know the subject sufficiently to move on to something else.) If you go deep enought, at some point, it begins to feel like Adler's thinking and feeling are in the marrow of your bones. Then the diagnostic conclusions and therapeutic strategies seem to flow easily and effortlessly. The "deep understanding" that can result from extensive study and discussion, must also be combined with a "deep feeling" that does not come from books, it comes from a sustained relationship with a mentor who provides the emotional "imprinting." This is how Sophia learned it from Adler, and how I learned it from her.
There are very few Adlerians today who have studied most of Adler's writings. This is understandable since only a few of his clinical writings have been available in English for the past seventy years. However, now that we have access to the great body of his work, we are faced with a wonderful opportunity to re-discover the treasure of Classical Adlerian depth psychotherapy. Digging for buried treasure takes sustained effort and vigorous optimism. Is it worth it? Ask Jim, Dyanne, Jeanie, and Martha (they are all forum members and can be contacted with private messages). For the past twenty years, we have held monthly discussions about theory and practice--we still do. |
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
I do not need to ask the forum members. The monthly discussions sound wonderful. The next question is how and when to start these readings. The Distance training should not be lost in all of this, but doing both could become a bit heavy . Should one do a certain level of distance training before this discussion work starts? As you know I have done a fair measure of this training already. I would not be able to reasonably determine the timing of such a transition, but I sure would love to be in on the monthly disscusions. I would assume that the "iVisit" capoability on the internet could enrich such an experience.
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George Neeson M.D. |
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
Perhaps I should clarify the intent of my original post, as well as the normal sequence of distance training courses. The initial post suggested a possible "informal" reading and discussion of the Collected Works by members of an online group. Course DT702, Comprehensive Study of Adler's Collected Works, is part of the Advanced Certification track to become a Training Analyst. The prerequisite is completing the Basic Certification (see below). The ongoing, monthly case study group is composed of students who have completed the Basic Certification. At present, the monthly case study is conducted via telephone conferencing (no video). We hope to upgrade to iVisit in the future, after a little informal experimenting.
Typical Course Sequence for Basic Certification First Year:Courses Required for Certification as a Training Analyst DT701 - Advanced Personal Study-Analysis; Striving for Optimal Functioning |
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Re: Study Groups for "The Collected Clinical Works of Alfred Adler."
Thanks Henry. Your clarification makes sense of what I did not understand before. This is a reasoned approach to training.
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George Neeson M.D. |
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