On social sentiment as a structure for intrapsychic communication

Abstract

Since 1912, Adler has declared his intention to demonstrate how the psychological evolution of each individual is determined by the attitude he or she assumes towards society. The nature and intensity of psychological disorders depend, in fact, on the lack of creative adaptation to the demands of the surrounding world. The fundamental approach of individual psychology is therefore interpersonal; only a social feeling towards oneself, towards the inner self, allows the cohesion of the self and enables the patient to develop a social feeling towards the external environment. The reciprocal processes of cultural and transindividual identification allow the patient to remodel intrapsychic communication systems; this transformation will be all the more profound if we consider that information conveys affective meanings