Social Psychology Network

Maintained by Scott Plous, Wesleyan University

Jonathan Adler

Jonathan Adler

  • Media Contact

My research focuses on the interface between adult identity development and clinical psychology. Broadly conceived, my research interests revolve around the reciprocal relationships between self/identity processes and psychological functioning. I am especially interested in the most productive ways people make sense of the difficult things that happen to them and how that personal meaning facilitates changes in identity. In other words, I am interested in how the process of making sense of negative experiences influences important life outcomes, including physical and mental health, personality maturity, and the process and outcome of psychotherapy treatment. I draw on diverse methodologies and analytical approaches in my research, encompassing the analysis of rich narrative data and multilevel modeling.

Primary Interests:

  • Health Psychology
  • Life Satisfaction, Well-Being
  • Personality, Individual Differences
  • Self and Identity

Note from the Network: The holder of this profile has certified having all necessary rights, licenses, and authorization to post the files listed below. Visitors are welcome to copy or use any files for noncommercial or journalistic purposes provided they credit the profile holder and cite this page as the source.

Image Gallery

Journal Articles:

  • Adler, J.M. (2013). Clients’ and therapists’ stories about psychotherapy. Journal of Personality, 86(5), 595-605.
  • Adler, J. M. (2012). Living into the story: Agency and coherence in a longitudinal study of narrative identity development and mental health over the course of psychotherapy. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 102(2), 367-389.
  • Adler, J.M. (2011). Epistemological tension in the future of personality disorder diagnosis. American Journal of Psychiatry,168,11, 1221-1222.
  • Adler, J.M. (2008). Two modes of thought: The narrative/paradigmatic disconnect in the Bailey book controversy. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 37(3), 42-425.
  • Adler, J.M., Chin, E.D., Kolisetty, A.P., & Oltmanns, T.F. (2012). The distinguishing characteristics of narrative identity in adults with features of Borderline Personality Disorder: An empirical investigation. Journal of Personality Disorders, 26, 498-512.
  • Adler, J.M., Kissel, E.C., McAdams, D.P. (2006). Emerging from the CAVE: Attributional style and the narrative study of identity in midlife adults. Cognitive Therapy and Research, 30(1), 39-51.
  • Adler, J.M., Lodi-Smith, J., Philippe, F.L., Houle, I. (2016). The incremental validity of narrative identity in predicting well-being: A review of the field and recommendations for the future. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 20(2), 142-175.
  • Adler, J.M. & Matthews, E.A. (2009). Encouraging epistemological exploration in the undergraduate psychology classroom: Impacts on retention and application of course material. Teaching of Psychology, 36(2), 122-125.
  • Adler, J.M. & McAdams, D.P. (2007). The narrative reconstruction of psychotherapy. Narrative Inquiry, 17(2), 179-202.
  • Adler, J.M. & McAdams, D.P. (2007). Time, culture, and stories of the self. Psychological Inquiry, 18(2), 97-99.
  • Adler, J. M., & Poulin, M. (2009). The political is personal: Narrating 9/11 and psychological well-being. Journal of Personality, 74(4), 903-932.
  • Adler, J. M., Skalina, L. M., & McAdams, D.P. (2008). The narrative reconstruction of psychotherapy and psychological health. Psychotherapy Research, 18(6), 719-734.
  • Adler, J.M., Turner, A.F., Brookshier, K.M., Monahan, C., Walder-Biesanz, I., Harmeling, L.H., Albaugh, M., McAdams, D.P., Oltmans, T.F. (2015). Variation in narrative identity is associated with trajectories of mental health over several years. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 108(3), 476-496.
  • Adler, J. M., Wagner, J. W., McAdams, D. P. (2007). Personality and the coherence of psychotherapy narratives. Journal of Research in Personality, 41(6), 1179-1198.
  • Zinbarg, R. E., Uliaszek, A. A., & Adler, J. M. (2008). The role of personality in psychotherapy for anxiety and depression. Journal of Personality, 76(6), 1649-1688.

Other Publications:

  • Adler, J.M. (2012). Sitting at the nexus of epistemological traditions: Narrative psychological perspectives on self-knowledge. In S. Vazire & T.D. Wilson (Eds.) Handbook of self-knowledge (pp. 327-342). New York: Guilford Press.
  • McAdams, D. P., & Adler, J. M. (2010). Autobiographical memory and the construction of a narrative identity: Theory, research, and clinical implications. In J. E. Maddux & J. Tangney (Eds.), Social psychological foundations of clinical psychology (pp. 36-50). New York: Guilford Press.
  • McAdams, D. P., & Adler, J. M. (2006). How does personality develop? In D. Mroczek & T. Little (Eds.), Handbook of Personality Development (pp. 469-492). Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Courses Taught:

  • Foundations of Psychology
  • Identity from the Mind and the Brain
  • Narrative Identity

Jonathan Adler
Olin Way, MH 368
Needham, Massachusetts 02492
United States of America

  • Phone: http://faculty.olin.edu/jadler

Send a message to Jonathan Adler

Note: You will be emailed a copy of your message.

Psychology Headlines

From Around the World

News Feed (35,797 subscribers)