Choice Theory:

Choice theory — developed in the 1950s-1960s by psychiatrist William Glasser, later refined and published as Choice Theory in 1998 — states we’re motivated by a constant, needed quest to satisfy five genetically-based psychological needs: love, power, freedom, fun, and survival. Glasser: “No matter how well-nourished and intellectually stimulated a child is, going without human touch can stunt his mental, emotional, and even physical growth.” Glasser’s Ten Axioms of Choice:

• Only person whose behavior we can control is ourselves.
• All we can give another person is information.
• All long-lasting psychological problems are relationship problems.
• Problem relationship is always part of our present life.
• What happened in the past has everything to do with who we are today, but we can only satisfy our basic needs right now and plan to continue satisfying them in the future.
• We can only satisfy our needs by satisfying the pictures in our quality world.
• All we do is behave.
• All behavior is total behavior and is made up of four components: acting, thinking, feeling, and physiology.
• All of our total behavior is chosen, but we only have direct control over the acting and thinking components. We can only control our feelings and physiology indirectly through how we choose to act and think.
• All total behavior is designated by verbs and named by the part that is the most recognizable.