The functions of memory are dominated by the necessity of adaptation.
Without memories it would be impossible to exercise any precaution for the future. We may deduce that all recollections have an unconscious purpose within themselves. They are not fortuitous phenomena, but speak clearly the language of encouragement and warning. There are no indifferent or nonsensical recollections. We remember those events whose recollection is important for a specific psychic tendency [attitude], because these recollections further an important underlying movement. We forget likewise all those events which detract from the fulfillment of a plan. Every memory is dominated by the goal idea which directs the personality-as-a-whole. (Adler, as cited in Ansbacher, 1947, p. 197-198)
Perhaps one of the most intriguing propositions of individual psychology is the role it assigns to memory. Adler’s leap of intuition was in conceptualizing memory as a tool used actively in the service of the individual’s goal, rather than as a passive recorder of data (Mosak & Maniacci, 1999). A simple and familiar example is that of a child who, not yet being comfortable with school, misplaces his or her books (Ansbacher & Ansbacher, 1956).
Note that it is not as simple a matter as only a portion of our experiences being committed to memory. Rather, as Dreikurs (1989) stated, all experiences are recorded, even if we are not always aware of them. We can choose to recall them or not to recall them to serve our real intentions, which are not known to us.
Further, Adler did not believe that recollections are necessarily faithful records of actual facts (Ansbacher & Ansbacher, 1956). Instead, what is recalled or omitted from the recollection is in line with the individual’s private logic, which says “it must have happened that way, because that’s the way I/they/the world is.” As a result, what details are chosen for inclusion or omission serve as windows into the life-style of the individual.
Make a Connection
1. If remembering is a projective activity, are there implications for such situations as eye-witness courtroom testimony?
2. Adlerian therapists often prompt early recollections in order to gain insight into the client’s private logic. In what ways would this be similar to and different from the issue of false memory syndrome (Gardner, 2004)?
References
Ansbacher, H. L. (1947). Adler’s place today in the psychology of memory. Journal of Personality, 15(3), 197-207. doi:10.1111/1467-6494.ep8932029
Ansbacher, H. L., & Ansbacher, R. R. (Eds.). (1956). The individual psychology of Alfred Adler. New York: HarperPerennial.
Gardner, R. A. (2004). The relationship between the Parental Alienation Syndrome (PAS) and the False Memory Syndrome (FMS). American Journal of Family Therapy, 32(2), 79-99. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.
Mosak, H. H., & Maniacci, M. (1999). A primer of Adlerian psychology : The analytic-behavioral-cognitive psychology of Alfred Adler. New York: Routledge.
Copyright © 2011 Leonard Snyder
The concept of the function of memory is intriguing, but I'm uncertain of how it relates to cognition. In my work with people with mental illness, I often see people whose memory is adequate - who can remember the things that they did and the choices that they made, but fail to make the cognitive connection between the events they remember and the outcomes. For example, people who repeatedly get involved with others who are bad influences, lead them astray, and take advantage of them. They can remember the previous toxic relationships and what happened to them, but fail to make the connection between the two.
ReplyDeleteThat's a great example, because it clearly shows what Adler was getting at. It will help to take a look at the posts on "What is Individual Psychology?" and "Private Logic".
ReplyDeleteIndividual psychology - think indivisible psychology - views all the psychological processes of a person as organized into a unified, consistent whole, the operations of which support striving toward the person's fictional goal. There is no independent operation of memory-as-recorder, making available an objectively accurate picture of past events to cognition, which in turn independently accesses memory as needed to "get the facts" and reach some sort of context-free "correct conclusion".
You can't understand people until you understand their goals, and their goals are part of their private logic, which is not necessarily the same as what we would call common sense. All behavior is purposeful, so the key question is what purpose is being served when someone gets involved with an abusive person. The answer is somewhere in the person's private logic, which is their unique ideas about themselves and others. Fundamentally, my private logic is my set of axioms about "I/they/the world is"; "I/they/the world should", and so forth. When I recall an event, rather than replaying a factually correct recording, I recall it in a way that is consistent with my private logic at the time of recall. "Of course this is how it must have happened, because that's the way I/they/the world is". And that serves my fictional goal. I do this, of course, in a way that is largely unknown to me.
You can point out to someone until you're blue in the face the common sense that IF you hang around with abusive people, YOU WILL get hurt. That is true and someone who acts that way may very well agree with that line of reasoning - and then continue to hang around with abusive people. That's because everyone's private logic diverges to a greater or lesser degree from common sense, and it is private logic that directs our behavior.
This behavior will only change when the person becomes aware of his or her private logic through increased self awareness and reorientation, which is the basic goal of Adlerian therapy.
Thanks for your comment!