Case Study 8 Alfred Adler oshimi is a ballet dancer and teacher. She has her own ballet school in Detroit and teaches dozens of children, mostly girls, how to plik, the correct positions for their arms and legs, and how to go en painte. Looking at her now, anyone would chaink that she is the epitome of health. She is thin, with an athletic build, strong yet pful, and very coordinated. Her school is the best in the city, and a few of her udents have gone on to train and dance with prestigious dance companies. Toshimi was not always athletic or graceful, though. As a child she was very and because of a variety of health problems, she was not able to play physical such as tag and baseball very well with other children. She was bom prema- and almost died a few days later from a respiratory infection. Later in child- she developed a severe case of tuberculosis from which she gradually d. As she was an only child, her parents became overprotective of Toshimi for years encouraged her to "take it easy," not run around very much, and not too excited. Essentially, they encouraged Toshimi to become fragile. Her activity left her awkward and out of shape which, in tum, resulted in an ineptitude childhood games. She felt as though her friends were better than she was, at least of physical activity, and unfortunately she was right. In fact, one of her ories was of not being chosen to be on anyone's baseball team. The iren chose other friends to be on the two teams but both team captains, gh they liked Toshimi, refused to let her on their team because she was too and slow. Toshimi, feeling very embarrassed, retumed home alone and the television. As she flipped through the channels, a program on PBS eye. She sw women and men in beautiful costumes perform incredible The women were able to stand on their toes, and both the men and able to perform graceful leaps. As she watched the Swan Lake ballet, me determined. Rather than leading to depression, thinking about this ence of not being chosen for a team made Toshimi very determined healthy and physically fit. More than anything, she wanted to be good at of physical activity and to have others respect her athleticism. 28 Toshimi nagged her overprotective parents into letting her take ballet les- sons. They reluctantly gave in, thinking (incorrectly) that dance was not very renuous. They loved their daughter and did not want to deny her anything. At first, Toshimi was incredibly incompetent and clumsy in dance class, but she had a patient and understanding teacher who discouraged the other children from mickering. Toshimi gradually became stronger and more coordinated. Eventually, she started to show some talent for the ballet, especially for choreog- raphy. Her teacher also noted her determination and talent and discussed the posibility of training for a career in dance. After discussion with her parena, Toshimi was allowed to take extra dance classes at a summer camp for dancers and did so for a number of years. At first, the camp dance teacher was reluctant to take Toshimi as a student because she was older than most of the girls, but she was convinced to work with Toshimi for a short time and then determine whether Toshimi should stay on. Soon, it was very dear that Toshimi had talent. She stood out in a performance, and she was a gifted choreographer. Toshimi's life changed dramatically when she moved to live with the dancers at the camp. She found that her every whim was no longer satisfied and that she had to wait her tum for various things from brushing her teeth, to getting food, to talking and working with her teacher. Although she found it difficult, Toshimi eventually adjusted to this lifestyle and in the process found herself caring for some of the youn- girls. She was the oldest and found herself in the role of a big sister. She comforted younger girls and gave them advice as they needed it. They looked up to her, ially when they needed comfort. This was quite a change for Toshimi. When the bad lived with her parents, it was she who needed comforting, for example at the te when no one wanted her on their baseball team. Now her role was reversed. Although Toshimi showed determination and talent, her delay in taking dance put her at a disadvantage. Furthermore, because of discriminatory practices at it was very difficult for a woman of Asian descent (or any other minority) time, gin a career as a professional dancer. Although disappointed, Toshimi would be stopped from pursuing her dream. She continued to take dance lessons, and ge she majored in dance and minored in business. When she completed her she opened her own dance studio with a loan from her parents and began dance lessons to children. Her reputation as an experienced, talented, and ballet teacher grew and her enrollment enlarged. Today there is a waiting begin lemons at her school. She is also beginning to get a reputation regionally nationally because a few of her students have been accepted to train with gigious ballet companies as the Cleveland Ballet and American Ballet Theater. APPLICATION QUESTIONS Adler's theory of individual psychology, analyze Toshimi's life by answering questions. What is the motivation behind Toshimi's career choice, according to Adler's CASE STUDY # APPLYING THE THEORIES * According to Adler's theory, what was Toshimi's goal? What was Toshimi's amique style of life that could be used to achieve this goal? Provide evidence for your answer. L Does Toshimi have a high or low level of social interest? What does this imply about her personality and adjustment? What is the cause of this level of social interest? What did Adler say about birth order that would apply to Toshimi's life? THEORY COMPARISON QUESTIONS 1. How can Freud's theory explain Toshimi's personality? Elaborate in detail. 2. How can Jung's theory explain Toshimi's personality? Elaborate in detail L parg L e of the 87 See if the er, all people are moti fority expe- define person. Thus, each individual's goals are unique. Likewise, how each individual strives to reach that goal varies, even if two people seem to be striving for the same goal. The way a person strives to meet his or her goal (or strives for success) is referred to as style of life. The key to identifying style of life lies in one's earliest memory because that memory has psychological significance for the individual and has been repeatedly considered.