Chapter 3    Adler: Individual Psychology101
in their sample (Realistic, Artistic, and Social). The general direction of a partici -
pant’s career path could be identified from themes seen in early recollections. These 
vignettes are consistent with Alder’s view of early recollections and demonstrate how 
style of life may relate to occupational choice.
Finally, Adlerian-based career counselors have developed an interview that asks 
about early life role models, movie and book interests, hobbies, and recollections that 
aid counselors in guiding people toward careers that match their personality and style 
of life (Taber & Biddick, 2011).
Distinguishing Narcissism as Striving for Superiority versus  
Self-Esteem as Striving for Success
Named after the Greek myth of Narcissus, a hunter who fell in love with his own reflec -
tion in a pool of water, narcissism was discussed by Freud and many other theorists, 
and today this construct is operationalized in psychology via narcissism scales. High 
scores on such scales tend to reveal a personality that feels superior to others and feels 
entitled to prestige and admiration from others. Adler has been credited with mak -
ing an important contribution to our understanding of narcissism (Ansbacher, 1985). 
The historical record shows that Adler’s idea of the “masculine protest” significantly 
influenced Freud’s theorizing  regarding narcissism. Furthermore, Adler’s personality 
theory provided a foundation for our modern understanding that a narcissist is some -
one who lacks social interest.
For a narcissist, and for someone whom Adler believed is driven by a striv -
ing for personal superiority, others’ welfare is of little to no concern. Such a 
person’s striving is centered around being acknowledged as better than  everyone 
else, to be “the best.” But is this just healthy esteem seeking? There is a common 
belief that narcissism is simply an exaggerated form of high self-esteem. Don’t all 
people wish to win? Indeed modern American society places an especially high 
value on children’s self-esteem, and some psychologists have expressed concern 
that American parents’ habit of praising their children for being extraordinary is 
not enhancing healthy self-esteem (which, in Adler’s view, would involve striving 
for success, but not at the expense of others) but rather creating a generation 
of narcissists who feel entitled to privileges and lack humility (e.g., Twenge & 
Campbell, 2009). 
Brummelman, Thomaes, and Sedikides (2016) recently provided a theoreti -
cal analysis of the distinction between narcissism and self-esteem that maps quite 
nicely onto Adler’s perspective. For these psychologists, narcissism, a maladaptive 
and unhealthy personality orientation, differs dramatically from self-esteem, an 
adaptive and healthy approach to the self. They argue that both narcissism and 
self-esteem have their origins in children’s internalization of regard from their care -
givers. However, this regard is characterized differently when it underlies narcis -
sism rather than self-esteem. That is, parental overvaluation leads to a core belief 
that “I am superior to others.” In contrast, parental warmth leads to a core belief 
that “I am worthy.” These two different core beliefs about the self are not equally 
resilient. As the authors write, “Although everyone can be worthy, not everyone 
can be superior” (Brummelman et al., 2016, p. 10). The  precariousness of feelings 
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