Private logic

Private logic, a term…adapted from Adler's "private intelligence," describes the fictional line of reasoning proceeding from private meaning, that is, meaning premised upon the person's private and unique valuation of self, others, and the world, and what life requires of him or her. (Griffith and Powers, as cited in Manaster, 2009, p. 5-6)

Private logic diverges from common sense…the degree of divergence, the discrepancy between private logic and common sense, what Adler called the iron logic of social living, is an indicator or measure of mental health. (Manaster, 2009, p. 5)

The socially embedded nature of individual psychology is evident in the above statements. When we act, we do so in accordance with our private logic, which is largely unknown to us but nonetheless determines our behavior.

For example, a student may believe that he should get A’s in all of his classes, and that if he doesn’t he is a failure. This is his private logic. To avoid being a failure he takes only classes that offer the prospect of easy A’s, and he is anxious about his school experience to the point where his performance is significantly diminished. A common sense perspective, however, might reasonably be that one’s performance will vary among classes for a variety of factors, and that even if one does not score 100%, a good effort will produce valuable results.

Dreikurs (1989) described the manner in which our private logic evolves as a result of our understanding of our earliest experiences. He also stated that once developed, private logic is persistent and can only change when the individual achieves true self knowledge.

Make a Connection

Oberst and Stewart (2003) described biased apperception, whereby individuals pay attention to information that tends to support their beliefs while ignoring information that does not. What implications does biased apperception have for the development of self knowledge? How might biased apperceptions be overcome?

References

Dreikurs, R. (1989). Fundamentals of Adlerian psychology. Chicago: Adler School of Professional Psychology.

Manaster, G. J. (2009). Private logic and the logic of social living. Journal of Individual Psychology, 65(1), 4-12. Retrieved from EBSCOhost.

Oberst, U. E., & Stewart, A. E. (2003). Adlerian psychotherapy: An advanced approach to individual psychology. New York: Routledge.

Copyright © 2011 Leonard Snyder