What Is Relational Gestalt Therapy?
Gestalt Therapy Principles
Gary Yontef summarizes gestalt therapy as follows: “Three principles define Gestalt therapy. Any therapy regulated by these is indistinguishable from Gestalt therapy, regardless of label, technique or style of the therapist…
Principle One: Gestalt therapy is phenomenological; its only goal is awareness and its methodology is the methodology of awareness.
Principle Two: Gestalt therapy is based wholly on dialogic existentialism, i.e., the I-Thou contact/withdrawal process.
Principle Three: Gestalt therapy’s conceptual foundation or world view is Gestalt, i.e., based on holism and field theory.”*
To explain in other words:
1) In gestalt therapy theory, the goal of therapy is greater awareness, including your awareness of yourself, your choices, responsibility, your environment.
2) Gestalt therapy is based on dialogue, and a dialogic relationship means the therapist and client engage in an authentic, trusting dialogue where both express their experiences and observations as two humans, not just as a patient and an expert. Sessions with me consist of a dialogue, this is how I engage in the awareness-raising process; therapy with me is not reliant on “techniques,” so to speak, but rather I use dialogic counseling skills.
3) The worldview that underlies how gestalt therapists work is field theory, which is basically a holistic view of the world, and sees humans as wholes, seeking to meet their needs and self-regulate as they encounter their world and other people. Gestalt’s holistic, field-theory view means always considering the client as part of a larger environment.
Relational Gestalt Therapy
I align with relational gestalt therapy, which is a more recent movement in gestalt therapy toward acceptance, receptivity to the client’s subjective experience, and an attitude of support rather than taking a challenging, confronting stance. This is a style that differs from therapists who, on the other hand, tend to utilize more of a directive, active, experimental, or challenging attitude in therapy.
Gestalt Therapy’s Founding
Gestalt theory’s origins come from German gestalt psychology, and was developed under the name “gestalt therapy” by Fritz and Laura Perls, Paul Goodman, Ralph Hefferline, Gary Yontef, Erving and Miriam Polster, and others. It is a globally established, humanistic theory of therapy with training centers worldwide. While Fritz Perls popularized gestalt therapy in America with flashy demonstrations of things like the “empty chair technique” with his theatrical personality, other gestalt therapists, like his wife Laura Perls meaningfully contributed to the theory’s development, and their contributions deserve more recognition in order to have a fuller understanding of what gestalt therapy theory actually is. Gestalt theory is in fact a whole philosophy of the human person, and a theoretical orientation within the umbrella of humanistic theoretical approaches, along with Person-Centered/Rogerian therapy with which it shares a lot in common. Gestalt theory is primarily a system of ideas and essential concepts about the human person and the world rather than a set of techniques.
Diversity of Approaches in Therapy
Each therapist’s integration of therapy theory is ultimately their own. Some people may have only a stereotypical understanding of gestalt, such as the idea that gestalt therapists are technique-heavy on things like the empty chair technique. Some practitioners do have more of a technique-driven approach, but many of us offer a dialogue-focused approach that often appears very similar to Person-Centered and Existential therapy. Relational gestalt therapy has not been in the spotlight in America as much as the flashy, more experimental style of Fritz Perls’ which was trending in the 60’s and 70’s. This youtube channel offers a view of the many faces of gestalt therapy around the globe.
References:
Gary Yontef, “Gestalt Therapy: A Dialogic Method”