Choice theory
Encyclopedia
This article is about choice theory in psychology and education. For choice theory in economics, see rational choice theory
.
The term choice theory is the work of William Glasser
, MD
, author of the book so named, and is the culmination of some 50 years of theory and practice in psychology
and counseling.
Choice Theory posits that behavior is central to our existence and is driven by five genetically driven needs, similar to those of Abraham Maslow
:
and four fundamental psychological needs:
Choice Theory posits the existence of a "Quality World." The phrase "Quality World" represents a person's total outlook and understanding of the world around them as it relates to people, possessions, beliefs, etc. Starting from birth and continuing throughout our lives, we place the people who are important to us, things we prize, and systems of belief (religion
, cultural values, and icon
s, etc.) within the framework of our "Quality World." Glasser also posits a "Comparing Place" in which we compare and contrast our real world experiences against our Quality World perspective. We behave to achieve as best we can a real world experience consistent with our Quality World.
Behavior ("Total Behavior" in Glasser's terms) is made up of these four components: acting
, thinking, feeling
and physiology
. Glasser suggests that we have considerable control or choice over the first two of these, and little ability to directly choose the latter two. As these four components are closely intertwined, the choices we make in our thinking and acting greatly affect our feeling and physiology.
The source of much unhappiness is the failing or failed relationships
with those who are important to us: spouses, parents, children, friends & colleagues. The symptoms of unhappiness are widely variable and are often seen as mental illness
. Glasser believes that "pleasure" and "happiness" are related but are far from synonymous. Sex
, for example, is a "pleasure" but may well be divorced from a "satisfactory relationship" which is a precondition for lasting "happiness
" in life
. Hence the intense focus on the improvement of relationships in counselling with Choice Theory—the "new Reality Therapy".
Choice Theory posits that most mental illness is, in fact, an expression of unhappiness and that we are able to learn how to choose alternate behaviors that will result in greater satisfaction. Reality Therapy
is the Choice Theory-based counseling process focussed on helping clients to learn to make those choices.
The Ten Axioms of Choice Theory
1. The only person whose behavior we can control is our own.
2. All we can give another person is information.
3. All long-lasting psychological problems are relationship problems.
4. The problem relationship is always part of our present life.
5. What happened in the past has everything to do with what we are today, but we can only satisfy our basic needs right now and plan to continue satisfying them in the future.
6. We can only satisfy our needs by satisfying the pictures in our Quality World.
7. All we do is behave.
8. All behavior is Total Behavior and is made up of four components: acting, thinking, feeling and physiology
9. All Total Behavior is chosen, but we only have direct control over the acting and thinking components. We can only control our feeling and physiology indirectly through how we choose to act and think.
10. All Total Behavior is designated by verbs and named by the part that is the most recognizable.
where people decide for themselves how to spend their days. In these schools, students of all ages determine what they will do, as well as when, how, and where they will do it. This freedom is at the heart of the school; it belongs to the students as their right, not to be violated. The fundamental premises of the school are simple: that all people are curious by nature; that the most efficient, long-lasting, and profound learning takes place when started and pursued by the learner; that all people are creative if they are allowed to develop their unique talents; that age-mixing among students promotes growth in all members of the group; and that freedom is essential to the development of personal responsibility. In practice this means that students initiate all their own activities and create their own environments. The physical plant, the staff, and the equipment are there for the students to use as the need arises. The school provides a setting in which students are independent, are trusted, and are treated as responsible people; and a community in which students are exposed to the complexities of life in the framework of a participatory democracy.
Sudbury schools choose to recognize that students are personally responsible for their acts, in opposition to virtually all schools today that deny it. The denial is threefold: schools do not permit students to choose their course of action fully; they do not permit students to embark on the course, once chosen; and they do not permit students to suffer the consequences of the course, once taken. Freedom of choice, freedom of action, freedom to bear the results of action—these are the three great freedoms that constitute personal responsibility. Thus, members of these schools learn democracy by experience, and enjoy the rights of individuals.
Sudbury schools do not perform and do not offer evaluations, assessments, or recommendations, asserting that they do not rate people, and that school is not a judge; comparing students to each other, or to some standard that has been set is for them a violation of the student's right to privacy and to self-determination. Students decide for themselves how to measure their progress as self-starting learners as a process of self-evaluation: real life-long learning and the proper educational evaluation for the 21st Century, they adduce.
There are many unfounded criticisms of the Sudbury Model, namely:
Glasser’s theories and teachings have not gone without criticism. Some question the assumptions that Glasser makes in devising his theory. W. Thomas Bourbon had two criticisms about the assumptions: First, the teacher or school is responsible for creating an environment that meets the needs of the students; however, a students chooses his behavior based on his own needs. A teacher may go to great lengths to promote a positive environment, but the student may not choose appropriate behavior. In Glasser’s theory, when a student misbehaves, the teacher is responsible for when he fails to meet the needs of the student, although as stated in Choice Theory the students chooses his own "total behavior." (Bourbon 1994) Bourbon also argues that a paradox exists between the idea that a student chooses his own behavior but does not use behavior to control his own perceptions. He explains this using the "too hot, too cold, just right" exercise (Bourbon 1994). Imagine a room with an air conditioner and thermostat. A student can walk in and change the setting if too hot or too cold, until the room feels just right. But what happens when 29 other students have different perceptions of what is "just right" in the room? It is impossible, Bourbon argues, to create a classroom that meets the needs of every individual student simultaneously, because students have different perceptions of the same physical conditions.
Another criticism of Glasser’s approach is raised by Jay Weinstein. He argues that people are not always aware of all the choices in behavior that they can make and that they will not always "select the option that they believe will maximize the benefits forthcoming to them." (Weinstein 2000) This makes sense, as it is truly impossible to consider all possible actions or reactions that a student could do and then behave in a way that would meet the needs as defined by Glasser. Weinstein makes another good point when considering the dynamics of group behavior in the school setting in that people do not always act as individuals because sometimes they "representatives of others, members of a group, faces in a crowd, etc." (Weinstein 2000). This is important for educators to consider when applying Glasser’s theory as sometimes one cannot distill the psychology of and individual’s behavior but must review the sociology of a group’s behavior.
More criticism is from an observation in professional experience. This is not a criticism of Glasser’s actual teachings but of how his ideas can be spun out of control by untrained or poorly trained teachers. Many teachers are very familiar with the vocabulary expressed by Glasser, such as making good choice and being responsible for one’s behavior. However, it is difficult for a student to make the "right" choices if an environment of support for students’ needs is not in place in the classroom. Educators have seen one teacher lecture various students in the classroom using steps from Schools Without Failure, such as helping the student make a value judgement on the inappropriate behavior. However, the teacher, now retired, does not set up a positive learning environment in the classroom and seems to care very little about her students. The work assigned is not very well organized, very little direct vocabulary instruction in provided, and the class is largely filled by boring, outdated grammar drills (Observation 1996-2005). It is hard for any student to consistently make the "right" behavior choices in an environment like that, even when the teacher seems at least partially verses in Reality Therapy and Choice Theory.
Rational choice theory
Rational choice theory, also known as choice theory or rational action theory, is a framework for understanding and often formally modeling social and economic behavior. It is the main theoretical paradigm in the currently-dominant school of microeconomics...
.
The term choice theory is the work of William Glasser
William Glasser
William Glasser, M.D. is an American psychiatrist.Born in Cleveland, Ohio, he is the developer of reality therapy and choice theory...
, MD
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine is a doctoral degree for physicians. The degree is granted by medical schools...
, author of the book so named, and is the culmination of some 50 years of theory and practice in psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
and counseling.
Choice Theory posits that behavior is central to our existence and is driven by five genetically driven needs, similar to those of Abraham Maslow
Abraham Maslow
Abraham Harold Maslow was an American professor of psychology at Brandeis University, Brooklyn College, New School for Social Research and Columbia University who created Maslow's hierarchy of needs...
:
- Survival (foodFoodFood is any substance consumed to provide nutritional support for the body. It is usually of plant or animal origin, and contains essential nutrients, such as carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, or minerals...
, clothing, shelter, breathing, personal safety and others)
and four fundamental psychological needs:
- Belonging/connecting/loveLoveLove is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...
- PowerPower (sociology)Power is a measurement of an entity's ability to control its environment, including the behavior of other entities. The term authority is often used for power perceived as legitimate by the social structure. Power can be seen as evil or unjust, but the exercise of power is accepted as endemic to...
/significance/competence - FreedomLibertyLiberty is a moral and political principle, or Right, that identifies the condition in which human beings are able to govern themselves, to behave according to their own free will, and take responsibility for their actions...
/autonomy, and - Fun/learning
Choice Theory posits the existence of a "Quality World." The phrase "Quality World" represents a person's total outlook and understanding of the world around them as it relates to people, possessions, beliefs, etc. Starting from birth and continuing throughout our lives, we place the people who are important to us, things we prize, and systems of belief (religion
Religion
Religion is a collection of cultural systems, belief systems, and worldviews that establishes symbols that relate humanity to spirituality and, sometimes, to moral values. Many religions have narratives, symbols, traditions and sacred histories that are intended to give meaning to life or to...
, cultural values, and icon
Icon
An icon is a religious work of art, most commonly a painting, from Eastern Christianity and in certain Eastern Catholic churches...
s, etc.) within the framework of our "Quality World." Glasser also posits a "Comparing Place" in which we compare and contrast our real world experiences against our Quality World perspective. We behave to achieve as best we can a real world experience consistent with our Quality World.
Behavior ("Total Behavior" in Glasser's terms) is made up of these four components: acting
Acting
Acting is the work of an actor or actress, which is a person in theatre, television, film, or any other storytelling medium who tells the story by portraying a character and, usually, speaking or singing the written text or play....
, thinking, feeling
Feeling
Feeling is the nominalization of the verb to feel. The word was first used in the English language to describe the physical sensation of touch through either experience or perception. The word is also used to describe experiences, other than the physical sensation of touch, such as "a feeling of...
and physiology
Physiology
Physiology is the science of the function of living systems. This includes how organisms, organ systems, organs, cells, and bio-molecules carry out the chemical or physical functions that exist in a living system. The highest honor awarded in physiology is the Nobel Prize in Physiology or...
. Glasser suggests that we have considerable control or choice over the first two of these, and little ability to directly choose the latter two. As these four components are closely intertwined, the choices we make in our thinking and acting greatly affect our feeling and physiology.
The source of much unhappiness is the failing or failed relationships
Interpersonal relationship
An interpersonal relationship is an association between two or more people that may range from fleeting to enduring. This association may be based on limerence, love, solidarity, regular business interactions, or some other type of social commitment. Interpersonal relationships are formed in the...
with those who are important to us: spouses, parents, children, friends & colleagues. The symptoms of unhappiness are widely variable and are often seen as mental illness
Mental illness
A mental disorder or mental illness is a psychological or behavioral pattern generally associated with subjective distress or disability that occurs in an individual, and which is not a part of normal development or culture. Such a disorder may consist of a combination of affective, behavioural,...
. Glasser believes that "pleasure" and "happiness" are related but are far from synonymous. Sex
Sex
In biology, sex is a process of combining and mixing genetic traits, often resulting in the specialization of organisms into a male or female variety . Sexual reproduction involves combining specialized cells to form offspring that inherit traits from both parents...
, for example, is a "pleasure" but may well be divorced from a "satisfactory relationship" which is a precondition for lasting "happiness
Happiness
Happiness is a mental state of well-being characterized by positive emotions ranging from contentment to intense joy. A variety of biological, psychological, religious, and philosophical approaches have striven to define happiness and identify its sources....
" in life
Life
Life is a characteristic that distinguishes objects that have signaling and self-sustaining processes from those that do not, either because such functions have ceased , or else because they lack such functions and are classified as inanimate...
. Hence the intense focus on the improvement of relationships in counselling with Choice Theory—the "new Reality Therapy".
Choice Theory posits that most mental illness is, in fact, an expression of unhappiness and that we are able to learn how to choose alternate behaviors that will result in greater satisfaction. Reality Therapy
Reality Therapy
Reality therapy is an approach to psychotherapy and counseling. It was developed by the psychiatrist Dr. William Glasser in 1965. Reality therapy is considered a cognitive-behavioural approach to treatment ....
is the Choice Theory-based counseling process focussed on helping clients to learn to make those choices.
The Ten Axioms of Choice Theory
1. The only person whose behavior we can control is our own.
2. All we can give another person is information.
3. All long-lasting psychological problems are relationship problems.
4. The problem relationship is always part of our present life.
5. What happened in the past has everything to do with what we are today, but we can only satisfy our basic needs right now and plan to continue satisfying them in the future.
6. We can only satisfy our needs by satisfying the pictures in our Quality World.
7. All we do is behave.
8. All behavior is Total Behavior and is made up of four components: acting, thinking, feeling and physiology
9. All Total Behavior is chosen, but we only have direct control over the acting and thinking components. We can only control our feeling and physiology indirectly through how we choose to act and think.
10. All Total Behavior is designated by verbs and named by the part that is the most recognizable.
Choice Theory in Classroom Management
William Glasser’s Choice Theory is the theory that we all choose how to behave at any time, and cannot control anyone’s behavior but our own. Glasser also believed in the importance of classroom meetings that are held for communication and solving problems. In the classroom it will be important for teachers to “help students envision a quality existence in school and plan the choices that lead to it." For example, Johnny Waits is an 18-year-old high school senior and plans on attending college to become a computer programmer. Glasser suggests that Johnny should be learning as much as he can about computers instead of reading Plato. This concept is called quality curriculum; which consists of topics students find useful and enjoyable. Under Glasser’s strategy, the teacher would hold discussions with students when introducing new topics and ask them to identify what they would like to explore in depth. As part of the process, students need to explain why the material is valuable in life.Choice Theory and education
An example of Choice Theory and education are Sudbury Model schoolsSudbury school
A Sudbury school is a school that practices a form of democratic education in which students individually decide what to do with their time, and learn as a by-product of ordinary experience rather than adopting a descriptive educational syllabus or standardized instruction by classes following a...
where people decide for themselves how to spend their days. In these schools, students of all ages determine what they will do, as well as when, how, and where they will do it. This freedom is at the heart of the school; it belongs to the students as their right, not to be violated. The fundamental premises of the school are simple: that all people are curious by nature; that the most efficient, long-lasting, and profound learning takes place when started and pursued by the learner; that all people are creative if they are allowed to develop their unique talents; that age-mixing among students promotes growth in all members of the group; and that freedom is essential to the development of personal responsibility. In practice this means that students initiate all their own activities and create their own environments. The physical plant, the staff, and the equipment are there for the students to use as the need arises. The school provides a setting in which students are independent, are trusted, and are treated as responsible people; and a community in which students are exposed to the complexities of life in the framework of a participatory democracy.
Sudbury schools choose to recognize that students are personally responsible for their acts, in opposition to virtually all schools today that deny it. The denial is threefold: schools do not permit students to choose their course of action fully; they do not permit students to embark on the course, once chosen; and they do not permit students to suffer the consequences of the course, once taken. Freedom of choice, freedom of action, freedom to bear the results of action—these are the three great freedoms that constitute personal responsibility. Thus, members of these schools learn democracy by experience, and enjoy the rights of individuals.
Sudbury schools do not perform and do not offer evaluations, assessments, or recommendations, asserting that they do not rate people, and that school is not a judge; comparing students to each other, or to some standard that has been set is for them a violation of the student's right to privacy and to self-determination. Students decide for themselves how to measure their progress as self-starting learners as a process of self-evaluation: real life-long learning and the proper educational evaluation for the 21st Century, they adduce.
There are many unfounded criticisms of the Sudbury Model, namely:
- Children may receive a sub-standard education from non-credentialed, uneducated caregivers.
- Children won't learn the things they will need to know in their adult lives.
- A child may not learn the same things a regular-schooling peer does, unless an educational professional controls what material is covered.
- Because schools provide a ready-made source of peers, unschooling children will have to have other ways to make friends in their age group
- A child's only opportunity to experience people of other cultures and worldviews would be in a religious community, scout group, sports teams, etc. If a child isn't exposed to anything "extra", they might not be exposed to other socio-economic groups.
- Fear that a child may be completely unmotivated and never learn anything on their own if raised in a non-manipulated environment.
- A parent may fear they do not have the parenting skills required to guide and advise their children in life skills or help them pursue their interests.
Critiques of Choice Theory
In a book review, W. Clay Jackson writes, "Dr. Glasser postulates that everything contained in the DM-IV-TR is a result of an individual's brain creatively expressing its unhappiness. ... Dr. Glasser demonizes the entire profession as charlatans who have been brainwashed by their predecessors or who simply misrepresent many of the psychiatric illnesses to patients as having a biological basis. ... Despite claiming to have an appendix full of references demonstrating that there is no evidence that medications have a role in curing mental illness, the book simply relies on a core group of antiestablishment authors. ... However, what is noticeably absent from the book is a set of randomized clinical trials demonstrating the success of his teachings."Glasser’s theories and teachings have not gone without criticism. Some question the assumptions that Glasser makes in devising his theory. W. Thomas Bourbon had two criticisms about the assumptions: First, the teacher or school is responsible for creating an environment that meets the needs of the students; however, a students chooses his behavior based on his own needs. A teacher may go to great lengths to promote a positive environment, but the student may not choose appropriate behavior. In Glasser’s theory, when a student misbehaves, the teacher is responsible for when he fails to meet the needs of the student, although as stated in Choice Theory the students chooses his own "total behavior." (Bourbon 1994) Bourbon also argues that a paradox exists between the idea that a student chooses his own behavior but does not use behavior to control his own perceptions. He explains this using the "too hot, too cold, just right" exercise (Bourbon 1994). Imagine a room with an air conditioner and thermostat. A student can walk in and change the setting if too hot or too cold, until the room feels just right. But what happens when 29 other students have different perceptions of what is "just right" in the room? It is impossible, Bourbon argues, to create a classroom that meets the needs of every individual student simultaneously, because students have different perceptions of the same physical conditions.
Another criticism of Glasser’s approach is raised by Jay Weinstein. He argues that people are not always aware of all the choices in behavior that they can make and that they will not always "select the option that they believe will maximize the benefits forthcoming to them." (Weinstein 2000) This makes sense, as it is truly impossible to consider all possible actions or reactions that a student could do and then behave in a way that would meet the needs as defined by Glasser. Weinstein makes another good point when considering the dynamics of group behavior in the school setting in that people do not always act as individuals because sometimes they "representatives of others, members of a group, faces in a crowd, etc." (Weinstein 2000). This is important for educators to consider when applying Glasser’s theory as sometimes one cannot distill the psychology of and individual’s behavior but must review the sociology of a group’s behavior.
More criticism is from an observation in professional experience. This is not a criticism of Glasser’s actual teachings but of how his ideas can be spun out of control by untrained or poorly trained teachers. Many teachers are very familiar with the vocabulary expressed by Glasser, such as making good choice and being responsible for one’s behavior. However, it is difficult for a student to make the "right" choices if an environment of support for students’ needs is not in place in the classroom. Educators have seen one teacher lecture various students in the classroom using steps from Schools Without Failure, such as helping the student make a value judgement on the inappropriate behavior. However, the teacher, now retired, does not set up a positive learning environment in the classroom and seems to care very little about her students. The work assigned is not very well organized, very little direct vocabulary instruction in provided, and the class is largely filled by boring, outdated grammar drills (Observation 1996-2005). It is hard for any student to consistently make the "right" behavior choices in an environment like that, even when the teacher seems at least partially verses in Reality Therapy and Choice Theory.
External links
- The William Glasser Institute official website
- The Sudbury Valley School official website
See also
- ChoiceChoiceChoice consists of the mental process of judging the merits of multiple options and selecting one of them. While a choice can be made between imagined options , often a choice is made between real options, and followed by the corresponding action...
- Introspection illusionIntrospection illusionThe introspection illusion is a cognitive illusion in which people wrongly think they have direct insight into the origins of their mental states, while treating others' introspections as unreliable...
- Cognitive psychologyCognitive psychologyCognitive psychology is a subdiscipline of psychology exploring internal mental processes.It is the study of how people perceive, remember, think, speak, and solve problems.Cognitive psychology differs from previous psychological approaches in two key ways....
- Sudbury schools
- Sudbury Valley SchoolSudbury Valley SchoolThe Sudbury Valley School was founded in 1968 in Framingham, Massachusetts, United States. There are now over 30 schools based on the Sudbury Model in the United States, Denmark, Israel, Japan, Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. The model has two basic tenets: educational freedom and democratic...