self within. By focusing on particular selves—naming them, address- ing them, influencing them, ereating dialogue among them—ther- apist and patient can see how each plays a role in the complex life of the person, how each contributes to a dependable integration of selves. Some ofthese representations of self—for example, the gen- the erful and enduring sense of a greater self ‘The main purpose of this book is to show therapists how they ‘can work with dssonant selves: frst to recognize characteristics that can be transformed into selves and then to help the patient develop a live-and-letlive attitude, neither excluding necessary selves nor whole tree. Dissor selves individually heard within the diversity each person houses. subject of diversity and synthesis, [have been challenged therapist, s therapis cal orientation are, fying gestalt therapy by tuning in only to its most highly aspect: its focus on the raw expetience of what people feel. vere, indeed, oversimplifying gestalt therapy, but they react xalso expressing another truth: that gestalt therapy theorists had themselves deemphasized the contrapuntal principles for showing ‘what people furdamentally are. The seminar group felt that the gestalt notions of the self were necessarily at odds with its experi- myself arguing that they were not at ‘be made. Whether the self or merely applied it, the concept had taken a back seat to the emphasis on direct experience. Gestalt therapy had indeed swept itself into the primacy of raw experience rather than focusing on the question of who people are. “These priorities resulted from the way the basic theory had been skewed, not only by others but also by myself I determined to explore the self freshly, to emphasize what is apy: compatibility between experiences themselves and the clas sification of experiences represented in the self. This exploration ‘grew close to my heart, and i is the basis for this book. “To make A Population of Selves useful for practitioners as well 2s students, I have used many case examples from my own practice— with names, occupations, and other identifying traits changed, of ‘course, to protect the privacy of my patients. In these, L have given considerable detail about the interaction between myself and my patients. Each chapter highlights one or another of the primary therapeutic pathways to the person's selves and shows how thera- pists can use these principles to identify and restructure the patients sense of self. Among my aii in this book are the broadening of theoretical principles and an expansion of procedural diversity. As a result, | have fill with the thinking of therapists from a wide range of theoretical persuasions, ineluding those with an eclectic back- ground. The nateral is ako relevant for professionals in the men- tal health field who are not therapists but are interested in how people may discover who they are. The book also adresses the con- P ‘Nine addresses the importance of merger as a funda- nental human need, joined inextricably with contaci s, injecting liveliness as well as clearer identity into a patient'siv Prurace sense of self Chapter Eleven closes the book by pointing the way to action, the outward creator of a strong sense of self in relation to the extemal world. ‘Not surprisingly, this book has itself turned out to contain mul- tiple aspects, anc here is a final one: through the models and ideas con these pages, | would like to encourage versatility in therapists and the development of individual repertoires and styles. | see it as par of the therapist's task to recognize and honor the ‘multiplicity of elves that make all people the various, complex beings they ae. In doing so, the many selves of therapists will be reg- istered in their work, so that they can take advantage of their own wide variety of human traits. Wisecracking, sympathetic, impatient, workmanlike, analytical, inspirational—within the technical requirements of therapy, there is room for the therapists to be reg- ular people, professionally tuned in to their patients and yet engaged with them on a human level. I hope to show that through theoret- ‘cal, emotional, and procedural versatility, every therapist can bring more timeliness and inspiration to every session, and so help patients in cheir search for self Acknowledgments ‘A writer is a funnel through which the ideas of many people flow: | want to thank Tom Pace for pressing me to expand and clarify my ‘views of the self Lalo want to thank my editors at Jossey-Bass for acts. Grim though I fist fele about the process, | felt ll the more _rateful to er for enabling me to express what I wanted to get across.