The Contributions of Individual Psychology to the Humanistic Concept of Ethical Education

Introduction

Ethical education in the current educational system is a leading domain of personality development, whether in the context of education in primary, secondary, or higher schools. This subject is a core component of the personality dimension in upbringing and education, thus extending its impact from school practice into social practice. Its orientation lies in the experiential development of a comprehensively prosocial personality that is capable of conducting open and assertive dialogue, through which one gets to know oneself and others. A comprehensively prosocial personality possesses a high degree of empathy, respect, tolerance, and esteem toward oneself, as well as toward others. The concept of ethical education is primarily based on the foundations of humanistic psychology, which forms its theoretical framework. In the current dynamically changing era, it is necessary to update and optimize ethical education with additional psychological approaches that can broaden and make more effective its processes and scope. The approach of individual psychology carries a high degree of correlation with the contemporary model used in ethical education, and at the same time brings new inspiring insights that stabilize it within psychological knowledge. Therefore, the purpose of the article is, based on an analysis of selected aspects of individual psychology, to point out its contributions and inspirations in the context of teachers’ professional development in ethical education for pedagogical practice. The article offers concrete reflections, ideas, questions, and prompts for teachers (not only of ethical education), which can directly contribute positively to high-quality performance in their profession, but above all improve understanding and teacher-student relationships. At the centre of our interest is the ethical education teacher as a reflective personality—not as an executor of the curriculum, but as a person who, through knowledge of the student and oneself, develops ethical culture in the classroom.

Methods and Methodological Research Approach To fulfil the main goal of this article—to point to the contributions of individual psychology for the professional development of ethical education teachers—a specific methodological procedure was selected. The first step was a systematic analysis of individual psychology based on scholarly sources, with emphasis on the key principles of this psychological approach. Through descriptive method, the main motifs and concepts of Alfred Adler concerning personality, motivation, and the social action of the human being were identified and characterized. On the basis of this descriptive analysis, a comparison was then made between the premises of individual psychology and the humanistic concept of ethical education. This step enabled the identification of synergistic connections and possible extensions that support the expansion of the psychological framework for teaching practice. The analysis confirmed that the humanistic approach in ethical education is firmly rooted in psychologically validated principles, and it also showed where individual psychology can contribute to its development and stabilization. The next step was to focus on selected publications by Alfred Adler that concern education. From these sources, key elements were identified that have the potential to strengthen pedagogical practice for teachers. On the basis of this selection, three thematic clusters were chosen for more detailed attention. For each cluster, specific prompts for pedagogical practice were formulated as theoretical insights and practical questions that support the development of critical, creative, and analytical thinking, as well as teacher reflection and sensitization to students’ needs. The goal of the methodological approach was therefore not merely theoretical study of individual psychology, but also the creation of an applied framework for teachers’ professional development. The article presents a theoretical- applied reflection, analyses the principles of individual psychology in the context of ethical education, and provides recommendations for pedagogical practice focused on developing teacher self-reflection, ethical culture in the classroom, and the quality of interpersonal relationships.

The impetus for processing the topic became the author’s personal participation in the 2025 Summer School of Adlerian Psychology, organized by the Slovak Association of Individual Psychology, which provided the practical starting point for deeper reflection of individual-psychological principles in a pedagogical context. Experiences from this educational format became the starting point for a theoretical-applied treatment of the issue.

Ethical Education as a Humanistic Dimension of Education and Teaching

The basic areas of the current curriculum reform underway in basic schools in Slovakia are the development of metacognition and the development of character (iŠVP, s. 5). These domains form the foundation of educational action on the pupil and thus create a compact whole that pays attention not only to the cognitive but also to the character side of personality. Pre-service education in ethical education is primarily oriented toward a creative-humanistic concept of education, and the foundations of this approach are constituted by humanistic psychology. Even though this psychological approach is truly a theoretically and practically valuable basis for the ethical-educational dimension of understanding and developing personality, it is still necessary to consider its significant limitations. These limitations do not arise from the humanistic-psychological approach as such, but precisely from the low degree of variability and flexibility of the psychological component that is important for practicing the teaching profession. These limitations can be effectively addressed primarily through an innovative approach in pre-service preparation of future teachers, as well as by integrating this knowledge into continuous teacher education in pedagogical practice. The psychological component of the teaching profession is one of its roles and enables the teacher not only to diagnose and know students, but also to interact with them appropriately and intervene in critical situations. According to Čáp, the teaching profession is fulfilled with joy and satisfaction, as well as burden and disappointment, because it demands considerable contact with people. Society expects teachers to possess a truly diverse range of capabilities, which do not include only educational activity itself. A teacher should have substantial knowledge in the relevant subject area, have mastered pedagogical and psychological knowledge, methods, and ways of thinking for understanding students, which are then applied in practice in their upbringing and education. A teacher must also organize their own varied activities and adequately realize interaction and communication with students and parents. It is also important to monitor current social developments and take care of one’s physical and mental health (1997, s. 325).

Rajský and colleagues state that the philosophical premises of ethical education lie in axiology, whose outcome is the ethical culture of personality, but from the psychological point of view the authors primarily mention developmental psychology and personality psychology. Ethical education, in its philosophical-psychological basis, is therefore based on knowledge about the conditions for forming the ethical culture of personality, which it links to concrete relationships of developmental conditions of the given age (2016, s. 104). In the context of the goals and aspirations of ethical education, one can speak of a very high correlation with the premises of humanistic philosophy and psychology. Their axiological, but also pragmatic, affinity arises from the idea of respect for the human person, from the aspiration for mutual understanding and cooperation, culminating in favourable human relationships (Čáp, 1997, s. 82). The aspect of ethical education deeply connected to the humanistic concept of upbringing is also one of its key goals: creating an educative community in the classroom. Humanistic education places emphasis on the collective, where there is an assumption that sincere love and respect for the child’s personality are expressed regardless of its positive or negative aspects. The education of a person should primarily be founded on forming a humane relationship with people, based on pillars of respect, understanding, cooperation, and mutual help (Čáp, 1997, s. 290). The main goal of ethical education is the development of a comprehensively prosocial personality of the pupil. This goal is achieved by the gradual development and deepening of aspects of student personality and of cognitive-emotional competencies through topics that shape the student’s moral-social personality. The moral dimension of ethical education is based on self-understanding and self-acceptance, through which the student discovers oneself, identifies one’s own opinions, emotions, and attitudes, and in the social dimension can apply this information in appropriate ways, for example, in assertive dialogue, self-regulation, and many other activities. One of the key premises in educational influence on a pupil is knowledge of their personality, which allows for their further development. For this reason it is necessary to expand, revise, and update applied psychological approaches so that pedagogical practice reflects changing social needs. This is especially important in the preparation of future ethical education educators and in further teacher education in practice, where it is necessary to educate teachers holistically and integrate knowledge from various psychological perspectives. Ethical education at present is based primarily on principles of humanistic psychology, which represents a stable and validated theoretical framework. The aim of this scholarly contribution is therefore to analyse and identify the benefits of individual psychology that can enrich the existing humanistic model of ethical education and contribute to improving pre-service preparation of future teachers as well as further professional development of practitioners. Expanding the portfolio of psychological approaches in ethical education thus represents a promising path to deeper understanding of student personality and more effective fulfilment of the goals of value education. This approach has, however, a much wider reach, because developing the teacher’s personality also positively contributes to the quality and effectiveness of education. Čáp, in this respect, states that students’ attitudes toward the teacher, toward learning, and the outcomes of pedagogical influence depend primarily on teachers’ personality traits, and likewise on their attitude and humane relationship toward students (1997, s. 326).

Through thorough and diverse deepening of psychological knowledge, we can fulfil these premises, in which the personality of the teacher is developed either in pre-service preparation or in practice, as well as the personality of the student. For the pedagogue, it is truly an important task during lifelong development and expansion of professional competencies to know oneself. A teacher should possess sincere knowledge and an attitude toward oneself that does not include only knowledge of one’s strengths and weaknesses, values, and competencies, but also knowledge of one’s past, including aspects that shaped the person in childhood and adolescence, as well as what drives one’s own life and what is considered its meaning. Only through thorough self-understanding and self-acceptance can a teacher truly give themselves as a person, and thus act on students in a truthful and authentic spirit, because the synergy of inner processes and external expressions creates a compact and coherent whole. The congruence between a person’s inner experience, including their knowing, and how they present themselves externally, creates an important premise of humane, compassionate, and sincere contact. Awareness of what a pedagogue brings, what they carry in their unconscious and experiences (whether positive or negative), who they are, and who they would like to become in their profession, but also in personal life, opens an important aspect of inner motivation for lifelong learning and human development.

In humanistic educational philosophy, the teacher is a person who accepts a student’s feelings, respects their uniqueness, originality, and individuality, and expresses authentic empathy in which the student is not judged or evaluated. This approach contrasts with traditional understandings of education that primarily focus on expertise. The humanistic teacher, through their approach, develops the student’s ability to empathize with the feelings of others, thereby gradually shaping a prosocial personality (Lomnický et al., 2020, s. 6). The ethical education teacher, from both a personality and content perspective, plays a key role in the development of the student’s personality. This aspect of ethical education therefore far exceeds the bounds of the school environment and prepares the student for entry into society as an integrated, authentic, and prosocial personality. Enrichment and expansion of the teacher’s knowledge dimension can have a markedly positive impact on the effectiveness and quality of educational outcomes in the educational process.

The Extension of Individual Psychology into the Humanistic Concept of Ethical Education

A key representative of individual psychology was psychologist Alfred Adler. From Adler’s approach to personality analysis, it is also possible to speak of a strongly humanistic understanding of the person, whom he himself considered primarily a social being and whose actions we can understand only if we comprehensively understand the social context of that person. Adler focused on the basic need of every person: to belong to the human community and to feel that one has one’s place in it. The name individual psychology is focused on the concept of the indivisibility and wholeness of each individual, and he viewed a high interdependence between the individual and society. He called this wholeness “style of life,” which describes the unique direction the individual seeks in life.

Adler’s approach is in line with holistic-utilitarian thinking, since one principle of human behavior, according to the author, is purposive behavior directed toward fulfilling a goal. This goal is a construct created by the person, and this goal is subjective, cognitive (it is a matter of choice and decision), and represents essential optimism in relation to a future orientation. Adler also based his philosophy on a theory in which human motivation stems from overcoming a sense of inferiority, achieving a sense of superiority, and, importantly, he also emphasized horizontal social striving for equivalence and cooperation (Dreikursová-Fergusonová, 2005, s. 7-8). In this regard, Adler considers the influence of society and education to be highly significant in the life of the individual. In his approach, he also addressed analysis of the past, memories, and experiences from early childhood (Čáp, 1997, s. 79). The influence of society is, for Adler, so fundamental that it becomes a key perspective in our evaluation of who is good and who is bad (Adler, 2020, s. 32). Evaluation thus becomes more a social, than an individual, concept. This approach is confirmed also by Zelina, who argues that a child has a system of evaluation built in from infancy; in the quest for obtaining and retaining love, recognition, and respect, this system gradually gives way and ceases to trust one’s own experiences. A person is therefore no longer the centre of their evaluative processes, because these are outside them. The author considers it important to return, through experiential learning, to a form of evaluation whose center lies within us, thereby positively contributing to rapprochement with our own self (Zelina, 2011. 166-167). The concept of life goal is an important step in deepening contact with one’s self, and pedagogy should constantly remember that with children we work with a temporary crystallization of this goal. With children our effort is to understand where their striving and actions lead, and we can achieve this only by trying to look at it with their eyes (Adler, 2020, s. 26). From the perspective of ethical education, these ideas are a true pillar of the ethical-educational influence of the teacher who knows oneself thoroughly, but also with sincere interest gets to know their students, has a heartfelt relationship with them, supports them in solving their own problems, and creates an atmosphere of respect, esteem, and acceptance (Lomnický, 2015, s. 103-104). On the opposite poles of indulgent and neglectful upbringing, Adler points out that either can cause the child the same difficulties in self-realization in society (Adler, 2020, s. 37). Pedagogical practice therefore often consists of seeking balance—not between indulgence and hostility (which should never be part of a pedagogue’s profession), but between a compassionate approach and helping and supporting the child’s independence and individual work. It is necessary to realize that a teacher’s task is not to pull the child out of problematic situations that they can solve themselves, nor to push them into taking up living and motivation to live life. At the same time, one must not be above the child, not elevate oneself, not be a coercive unnatural authority, but also not be below them, not humiliate oneself. The main task of the teacher (not only, but especially) in ethical education is to accompany the child by their side in equality, support them in independent, creative, and humane solving of problems, challenges, and obstacles, and thus prepare them for entry into society. According to Adler, individual psychology provides an answer to the question: “How can one person’s behavior affect the behavior of another person?” It is impossible to have a positive influence on a person to whom we are causing harm, and therefore this interdependent influence can be realized only when we guarantee the rights of the human person (Adler, 2020, s. 53-54). And it is precisely thanks to these premises that the dimension of ethical education—which emphasizes the social dimension of the person, their uniqueness, authenticity, and significance—can be enriched by individual psychology in several areas.

Deepening the Teacher-Student Relationship. The education of an individual is threatened by two realities: the unresolved issues of inferiority and dominance (superiority). A person seeking a place in society where safety is linked with peace and social equilibrium becomes an inner struggle of personality, bounded by the two poles mentioned above: superiority and inferiority. Identifying a child’s intention to seek superiority is, according to Adler, relatively straightforward (2020, s. 59). This approach helps us substantially clarify and understand a child’s behavior, and thus allows us not only to intervene pedagogically in a suitable way, but also to predict inappropriate or dangerous behavior. In this context, the author states that a child feels weak, small, and unable to live independently since birth because the child grows up among adults. Therefore, demanding from a child more than they are able to realize is a key error in pedagogical influence. Such conduct causes the child to feel inferior, which is intensified by the fact that the child is not taken seriously, giving them the feeling of being nobody and having no rights. The feeling of inferiority therefore shapes not only the child’s immediate behaviour but also how the child may achieve peace and safety in the future, and even determines the formulation of their life goal, which stimulates all life steps toward its attainment (Adler, 2020, s. 58). The educational process affects both conscious and unconscious mental processes of the child and can provide understanding of the world in which the child lives through education and the development of social sensitivity. The danger is that if the feeling of inferiority intensifies so much that a child feels an excessive need to compensate for inferiority, power and strength, it may eventually develop into pathological patterns in behaviour (Adler, 2020, s. 62). Knowing the purpose of action is therefore key to understanding the needs and problems with which students struggle in their inner experience. An important insight for teachers of ethical education from this theory is therefore especially observation and identification of phenomena in a child’s behaviour that could indicate a feeling of inferiority and a desire for dominance. Understanding what truly motivates a student can significantly contribute to reducing inappropriate behavior and pathological expressions in school environments, as well as to deepening intrapersonal (student in relation to themselves) and interpersonal (teacher-student) relationships. Adler adds that it is necessary to approach such an individual as an equal human being and create an atmosphere in which they feel equal (Adler, 2020, s. 64). Ethical education in its current conception already emphasizes equality and acceptance of the student as they are, and individual psychology in this line helps the teacher identify the intent behind an individual’s behavior. From this it follows that the teacher can move from theoretical knowledge to practical reflection on concrete class situations.

The following questions can serve as a guide for sensitive observation and support of a student:

• What is the goal of this behaviour?
• Is the student, through this behaviour, trying to gain a sense of superiority?
• What causes their feeling of inferiority? Does this feeling arise from the family/school environment?
• How can I support them so that they feel equal and safe in my lesson?
• What steps can I take so that I do not deepen the feeling of inferiority?
• Were my requirements appropriate? Did I ask for more than the student was able to carry out?

Higher-Quality Adaptation of the Child in the School Environment. One of the key principles of ethical education is to create from the class an educative community that emphasizes the interdependence of mutual influence and impact of students on each other. Hollá speaks of an educative community as a safe environment in which students do not fear asking for help, develop their group work skills, learn to accept the opinions of others, and accept responsibility for their behaviour, actions, and learning. A key aspect in this issue is mutual respect, building trust, speaking with students as equal partners, and positive outcomes can also arise from involving students in the creation of rules and norms (2014, s. 79). How, however, should a student who feels inferior, or perhaps excessively superior, adapt to an educative community? In the context of inferiority, it is necessary to recognize that a student can feel a high degree of mistrust, whose source may be, for example, their family environment. A sense of acceptance and equality may be so unfamiliar that it triggers fear and activates psychological as well as physical defense mechanisms. Adler states in this context that for the child, school is something utterly new and brings much of their attention, while also being involved in substantial personality formation. Part of the art of the teaching profession is to maintain student interest and be able to identify when interest is absent or concentration is not possible. The author emphasizes that by criticizing a child’s approach to life and school we can discourage the child and even foster a pessimistic outlook on life (Adler, 1930, s. 166-168). A topic of positive self-evaluation and positive evaluation of others is already included in the current curriculum of ethical education, and, according to Adler, this topic also positively contributes to building and deepening equality. In this context, the author states that teachers and children are to a high degree able to evaluate individual progress. Children are able to name who is good at mathematics, writing, or athletics, and even though they do not always approach this evaluation fairly, they attempt to improve gradually. A major obstacle according to Adler is comparison, in which children minimize themselves into a shape in which they believe they will never be able to match peers in a given field. This wrong judgment should be addressed because a child who nurtures this thought and lets it become the central life idea will never be able to move forward and will remain stuck in one place. This approach, in which children evaluate and compare themselves and others, can lead to a sense of competition. Adler emphasizes that the class should be a whole in which everyone finds their place and feels they belong to it. For this reason, the author sees it as the teacher’s task to transform competitive energy into energy for creating cooperation (Adler, 1930, 173-174). The dimension of teaching in the current model of ethical education is aimed at developing cooperative forms of behaviour and building authentic intrinsic motivation toward a positive approach to life.

In this sense, the teacher can ask themselves:

• Do I create in the group a space for competitiveness/comparison?
• What impact does this aspect have on students’ psychological state?
• Does someone in my class/group feel inadequate?
• How can I identify and reduce these feelings?
• In what way can I motivate students toward mutual inspiration rather than competition?
• How can I build authentic interest in self-development in my class/group?
• How can I support my students so that they feel they can improve and move forward? (Can they “catch up to their classmates”?)
• What activities, in the long term, would strengthen my students’ cooperation in order to support their mutual self-development?

Pedagogical activities to support cooperation with the aim of developing selected elements can be implemented, for example, through cooperative teaching, in which the teacher supports and facilitates students so that they learn from one another. By identifying interests, strengths, or favourite activities, the teacher can individually encourage students to teach their classmates during class what they do best—for example, drawing, and even playing a musical instrument that can be brought to school. Through mutual learning, students may acquire the feeling that they can keep pace with one another, as they mutually develop selected skills through cooperative teaching. Application of this approach can thus significantly contribute to reducing feelings of inferiority and strengthening the educative community in the class. In this way, higher-quality, more effective, and above all more enjoyable adaptation of a student to the class is supported, because the student not only feels their distinctiveness but can also identify with their place in their community, in the classroom.

The Human Teacher, Even More Humane. The appeal of the creative-humanistic approach in education and training lies mainly in its focus on humanity, kindness, and emotional dimension. Problematic and pathological behaviour is becoming an increasingly typical phenomenon in school, and it can be said that inappropriate forms of behaviour are encountered by teachers in all types of schools. The Report on the State and Level of Upbringing and Education in Schools and Educational Institutions in the Slovak Republic in the 2023/2024 school year states that more than half of students report problems with inappropriate behaviour and discipline during lessons, and nearly 40% of respondents experienced negative behavioural expressions during breaks. In schools, bullying also appears at a high level, and almost half of respondents experience it as witnesses or protagonists. This concerns forms of aggressive behaviour from peers such as shouting or swearing, fights and arguments, mocking, ignoring, gossip, and destruction of students’ personal items (Štátna školská inšpekcia, 2024, s. 70). Identifying, addressing, and responding to these negative phenomena is often a test of teacher patience and also attentiveness, but a teacher should think holistically. Often, however, things lie beneath the surface that cannot be identified at first glance but play a major role in resolving this type of behaviour.

Questions in this area for the educator are:

• How can I address a student’s inappropriate behaviour?
• If it is a written warning or reprimand in the student record book or EduPage, what impact does a written note have on the student?
• How does the student’s family environment respond and cooperate?
• What are possible reactions of the family environment to the note I wrote?
• Will writing a note support a change in the student’s behaviour?
• In what ways can I guide a student toward reducing inappropriate behaviour?
• How can I support the student in implementing appropriate behaviour?

Writing a reprimand in the student notebook is only one example, but in pedagogical practice it is common that a student does not change their behaviour after a written reprimand. One concrete example from practice is a student from a truly neglectful and pathological environment; there, a written reprimand means the student receives a severe physical punishment at home. In this area, it is truly necessary to invite teachers to reflect on the impact a written reprimand can have on a student in the final analysis. The question therefore remains: what other forms of intervention and prevention are possible in such and other cases? How can we help the student without making their situation worse? From our pedagogical practice, we can say that the answer may be authentic teacherly love, because it can, even if not fully, replace the love absent in the family environment. Adler in this context directly and precisely confronts teachers with the child’s home reality, which can often be harsh. A child from such an environment will think twice before bringing bad news home from school. As a result of this psychological pressure, a child may not come home at all. The school system proves to be, in several dimensions, dysfunctional or inadequate, but even so, it is important that teachers are the people who alleviate these shortages with personal compassion and understanding. Through gentleness toward a student from a problematic family environment, a teacher can significantly support them and avoid causing even greater despair. In this context, Adler presents a very important idea, namely that by accepting the individual-psychology perspective, we also accept that no child can be considered hopeless. Even in the worst circumstances, there are concrete ways and methods by which we can help a child; these only need to be found (Adler, 1930, s. 177-178). This approach requires a high degree of sensitivity, patience, but also personal commitment from the teacher in order to ensure a safe environment for a student’s growth and development. In ethical education, creating a safe environment is one of its most important instructional attributes. Individual psychology therefore supports ethical education in a dimension already well known to it: accepting a student as they are, while simultaneously provoking thoughts and questions that analyze them even more deeply. This approach can further emphasise humanity and deepen authentic interpersonal relationships.

Conclusion The aim of the article was to analyse selected aspects of individual psychology and point to their contributions to the professional development of teachers of ethical education. Through systematic descriptive analysis of Alfred Adler’s basic principles and their comparison with the humanistic concept of ethical education, synergistic links and areas were identified in which individual psychology can enrich pedagogical practice. The results show that integrating individual psychology knowledge into pre-service preparation and continuous teacher education can significantly support the development of reflective, empathetic, and social competencies of teachers. This approach enables a teacher to know and understand their students better, but also to reflect more deeply on their own attitudes, values, and professional behaviour, thereby increasing the quality of interpersonal relationships in the classroom and the effectiveness of ethical-educational influence. From a practical perspective, the article provides concrete methodological prompts and questions that can guide educators toward developing self-reflection, sensitively identifying students’ needs, and supporting their comprehensive personality development. The integration of individual psychology into pedagogical practice therefore represents an effective tool for strengthening ethical culture, building an educative community, and fostering prosocial behavior of students. Overall, the article demonstrates that deepening psychological knowledge among ethical education teachers is not only a theoretical enrichment but directly contributes to improving educational process quality, the development of the teacher’s personality and that of their students, and to the fulfilment of the goals of value education in the dynamically changing school environment.

Author: Mgr. Simona Rusznyáková Univerzita Konštantína Filozofa v Nitre, Filozofická fakulta, Katedra etiky a estetiky Hodžova 1, 949 01 Nitra The contribution was created with support of project UGA 2025: Rozvoj učiteľských kompetencií v pregraduálnej príprave etickej výchovy.

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1 Author’s note: In this context, Adler uses the phrase “catch up,” meaning that children’s fear arises from their sense that they will not “catch up” with their classmates in the given areas (Adler, 1930, s. 174).