RUDOLF DREIKURS

The Encyclopedia Britannica depicts Dreikurs as an "American psychiatrist and educator who developed the Austrian psychologist Alfred Adler's system of individual psychology into a pragmatic method for understanding the purposes of reprehensible behaviour in children and for stimulating cooperative behaviour without punishment or reward."

Basics of Adler and Dreikurs’s social theory

i) Man is a social being and his main desire (the basic motivation) is to belong.

ii) All behavior is purposive. One cannot understand behavior of another person unless one knows to which goal it is directed, and it is always directed towards finding one's place.

iii) Man is a decision-making organism.

iv) Man does not see reality as it is, but only as he perceives it, and his perception may be mistaken or biased.



Basic Assumption

All misbehavior is the result of a child’s mistaken assumption about the way he can find a place and gain status (Dreikurs, 1968, p. 36).


Rudolf Dreikurs main focus is on establishing a classroom which is democratic in nature and gives students a sense of belonging. This is put in place when students have some voice as to the functions of the classroom. Mutual trust between the teacher is created in various ways, including common group discussions about class concerns.

Dreikurs maintains that "discipline makes no use of punishment." He further believes that students have different levels of misbehavior. These misbehaviors occur in a progressive manner. The child first tries to get attention. If this does not work, the child will misbehave further in an effort to achieve power over the teacher or others. When attention or power do not gain the student sufficient status, they seek revenge. They believe they can only feel significant if they hurt others. After all else fails, the student then displays inadequacy. This is also called "learned helplessness." The student sees themselves as a complete failure. They feel others will leave them alone if others see them as inadequate.
Dreikurs model is an ideal one for enhancing student empowerment.



Dreikurs defined three types of teachers: autocratic, permissive and democratic. Autocratic teachers are teachers who exhibit the following traits: the are bossy, use a sharp tone of voice, command, exercise power, dominate, exert pressure, demand cooperation, tell you what you should do, impose ideas, dominate, criticize, find fault, punish and unilaterally establish all procedures, rules and consequences. Permissive teachers place few if any limits on student’s behavior, nor do they invoke logical consequences when misbehavior disrupts the class. Their demeanor is wishy washy and they tend to make excuses for students who misbehave. Democratic teachers stand in marked the following traits of democratic teaching: leadership, friendliness, inviting nature, stimulation traits of ideas, cooperation, guidance, encouragement, acknowledgement, helpfulness and shared responsibilities. Dreikurs believed that democratic teachers in contrast to autocratic and permissive teachers are more likely to help students become self-disciplined.

Dreikurs did not consider punishment as an effective method of discipline. He viewed punishment as an action taken by the teacher to get back at students and show them whose boss. He believed that punishment was humiliating and offensive to students.

Dreikurs central focus was on constructive behavior rather than coercive discipline. He believed that teachers should have a democratic classroom and teaching style, for helping students gain a sense of belonging (genuine goal). He believed that in this manner students would have a social interest: a condition in which students come to see that it is to their advantage to contribute to the welfare of a group.