Gestalt Therapy

Review the brief biographies of Fritz and Laura Perls at the beginning of
the chapter.

Gestalt therapy is holistic. Holism is one of the foundational principles

of Fritz Perls, psychiatrist: humans should be viewed as a whole rather
than as a sum of discretely functioning parts. Goal in therapy is the
integration of all the parts: thoughts, feelings, behaviors, body, and
dreams.

Gestalt therapy is humanistic in that the therapeutic relationship is

Rogerian( genuine, UPR, empathic), and the necessary awareness for
the client comes as a result of the I/Thou relating between therapist and
client.

Gestalt therapy is existential in that the belief is that people are always
in the process of becoming, remaking and rediscovering themselves.
Goal in therapy is to encourage the client to assume ownership of his
experiences.

Gestalt therapy is phenomenological in that it focuses on the client’s

perceptions of reality. If that reality is made known through increased
awareness, then change can take place.

Gestalt therapy is experiential, promoting awareness and the direct

experiencing of the present rather than on the abstractness of talking
about an experience. The here-and-now focus is a primary
characteristic of this type of therapy. It is important that the client
knows what and how she is thinking, feeling, and doing as she interacts
with the therapist. The goal: “Fully present in a genuine encounter.”
Focus in on the present with “what” and ‘how” questions asked, rather
than “why” questions (see p. 195 for examples)

Gestalt therapy is teleological, or goal-oriented, moving the client

toward self-support, but “interdependent” with the environment, and
helping the client to “reintegrate the disowned parts of personality.”
Values and skills are developed that will allow the client to satisfy her
needs without violating the rights of others.
Gestalt therapy is based on field theory; one’s personal field is both the
internal (psyche) and external (object) environments with which one
comes into contact. Everything is relational, in flux, interrelated, and in
process. The goal: to be aware of figure-and-ground dynamics and to
learn to effectively “self-regulate” as figure changes, so that a
psychological equilibrium can be restored.

Gestalt therapy focuses on unfinished business of the client which is

often manifested in the present by resentment, rage, hatred, pain,
anxiety, grief, guilt and abandonment, or in experiencing a stuck point
Goal: to face and deal with unexpressed feelings; awareness of bodily
sensations and psychosomatic responses that may be the result of
unfinished business. “Unacknowledged feelings create unnecessary
emotional debris that clutters present-centered awareness.”

Gestalt therapy focuses on social connectedness, the lifeblood of growth.

Humans must interact with nature and with other humans without
losing one’s sense of individuality. Prerequisites for healthy contact:
clear awareness, full energy, good communication skills; there are levels
of contact, and following an intense contact there is typically a
withdrawal to integrate what has been learned. Boundaries are
necessary for both healthy connection and separateness.

Gestalt therapy recognizes defense mechanisms or strategies, and refers

to them as channels of resistance. They identify five such channels:
introjection, projection, retroflection, deflection and confluence (see pp.
197-198 for definitions). These strategies serve to block contact with
others. Blocked energy may be manifested by physical sensations or
actions that the therapist will recognize and make the client aware of.

The Therapeutic Process

The Gestalt therapist

• Creates a climate that is safe, where trying out new thoughts and
feelings and behaviors are accepted, within a context of the
I/Thou dialogue in a here-and-now framework
• Calls attention to the nonverbal cues presented by the client and
any incongruities between what the body is saying and the
language that is being used for expression

• Emphasizes the use of language or speech patterns that are used

to convey emotions, thoughts and/or attitudes. Note the examples
presented on pp. 201-202.

• Does not interpret or explain behaviors, but assume the client will
be an active participant who will make her own interpretations.

• Sets the stage for the client to experience a three-stage integration

sequence that characterizes personal growth. The three stages:
discovery about the self in relation to the environment;
accommodation to the new discoveries by trying out new
behaviors, making new choices, carrying out homework
assignments; and, assimilation, where the client learns how to
influence his environment, take a stand, improvise responses to
new challenges, become confident as a powerful person

• Remains herself, expressing their reactions and observations,

sharing her personal experiences in significant ways, giving
honest feedback, with gentleness and empathy, “artistic
participants in the creation of new life.”

• Prepares clients for Gestalt experiments that will emphasize the

present emotional or cognitive aspects of an encounter with the
environment. See the useful guidelines on page 208 for preparing
clients for Gestalt experiments. Experiments that are reviewed in
the text include The Internal Dialogue Exercise, Making the
Rounds, The Reversal Exercise, The Rehearsal Exercise, The
Exaggeration Exercise, Staying with the Feeling, Dream Work (see
pp. 210-214).

• Takes a confirming stance as a therapy style, rather than an

imposing or competing one, where he is interested in
acknowledging the needs and experiences of the client, attending
to the client’s phenomenology, and promoting free function and
change.