Rudolf Dreikurs

In my plethora of readings for my dissertation, I stumbled across the writings of Rudolf Dreikurs. Dreifurs is important to me because of his research on student misbehavior. However, his work extends well beyond student misbehavior.

For Dreikurs (and Adler who he studied under), misbehavior was the direct result of a "corrupt" lifestyle. By lifestyle, Dreikurs meant the general orientation an individual has towards the rest of humanity.

The key to good behavior, according to Dreikurs, was a healthy social lifestyle. Cooperation and equality were two major components of a healthy lifestyle. Dreikurs referenced competition as just one example. Excessive competition creates an imbalance of power in humans. Winners suffer from egotism of superiority; losers suffer from discouragement of inferiority. Both are out of balance and unhealthy according to Dreikurs.  It is fairly easy to find examples of both in our world today.

Cooperation and equality keep the individual in balance, specifically because of the individual's response to others. Cooperation is a striving for equality with others, and equality is arriving at that balance with others. A healthy lifestyle does not include "I" or "me." It is a lifestyle considerate of others, and one marked be selflessness and service.  

Dreikurs also believed that human beings become who they are largely due to the decisions they make. Dreikurs believed democracy could not function nor could humans fully appreciate the control they possessed over their lives if they were constantly fed excuses for the way things are. Dreikurs asked the same question Kant asked years earlier, how could we possibly emphasize basic human rights while neglecting personal responsibility? Good question!

Regardless of your theological position, is not life a series of decisions? If Dreikurs were alive today I think his assessment would be that most of us are out of balance in our lives. We focus on ourselves more than we focus on others, which for Dreikurs, constitutes imbalance. What are the root sources for your decisions? Do you think of others? Do you seek to make decisions consistent with your belief system? Or, do you make each decision based upon what that decision will do for you right now, never considering the future ramifications of it for you or for others?

What is your status? Are you in balance or out of balance? More good questions!