Gestalt theory: principles and applications

Abstract
Gestalt is a German word signifying a pattern or shape. The roots of Gestalt therapy can be traced to Max Wertheimer, who studied human perceptual illusions. Wertheimer’s research led to a holistic view of the human psyche that provided a necessary counterpoint to the fragmented, reductionist, and structuralist views that prevailed in research psychology. Gestalt therapy emerged after blending the principles of Gestalt with the goals of psychotherapy. In particular, Gestalt therapists like Frederick “Fritz” Perls used the concept of a Gestalt to emphasize the importance of holism in psychotherapy. Humanism also became a cornerstone of Gestalt therapy, which promotes an “I/Thou” therapeutic relationship based on points of contact between individuals who are connected in an integrated social network. Group therapy and art therapy are also methods used in Gestalt psychology.
Although the phrase may seem out of vogue, Gestalt psychology underwrites a lot of contemporary psychotherapies and therapeutic interventions, particularly those with a humanistic outlook. Gestalt psychology started off with firm empirical grounding in the science of perception and cognition, and then merged with prevailing psychotherapies to become an integrated type of holistic therapy that promotes self-awareness, self-empowerment, and acceptance.
Origin and History of Gestalt
In 1912, Max Wertheimer offered a new paradigm for the field of psychology. Reacting against the reductionist tendencies of his colleagues, Wertheimer postulated that the best way to understand human behavior, the human psyche, and the human condition was to zoom out, viewing it as a whole instead of merely a sum of discrete and distinct parts. Gestalt is a German word meaning “pattern,” or “shape,” and Wertheimer provided some empirical support for his theory first by publishing the results of his research in human perception. Wertheimer studied a phenomenon called apparent motion, a type of visual illusion that occurs when watching a film reel. The individual perceives motion where there is really just a series of static images. From this early experiment, Wertheimer showed how all manner of human perceptions generated “emergent properties,” which were “overall qualities of an experience that are not inherent in its components,” (Rock & Palmer, 1990, p. 84). The concept of emergence in psychology, cognitive science, and social systems has become so engrained, that it is easy to forget to credit the Gestalt psychology movement.
Gestalt psychology draws from philosophies of Immanuel Kant, Ernst Mach, and Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (Cherry, 2019). Other prominent Gestalt psychologists include Wolfgang Kohler, who is credited with saying “the whole is different than the sum of its parts,” and Kurt Koffka (Cherry, 2019, p. 1). Early Gestalt researchers focused mainly on the application of theory to understanding human perception, but later researchers merged Gestalt tenets with psychotherapy. The most notable form of Gestalt therapy was developed by Frederick “Fritz” Perls. Fritz Perls’s Gestalt therapy blended psychoanalysis with humanistic, experiential, and interpersonal interventions (Yontef & Jacobs, n.d.). Especially when it comes to perception and cognition, Gestalt propositions can be empirically tested, making it a good fit for the increasing rigor of the social sciences. While reductionism and structuralism remain important lenses through which to view some aspects of human perception, cognition, and behavior, the Gestalt tradition reminds researchers not to surrender appreciation for the forest when examining an individual tree.
Framework and Concepts
The concept of Gestalt can be defined as a type of framework: asking researchers to step back and view variables as a system, watching for patterns and interconnectedness. A melody in music is one example of a Gestalt experience: one cannot perceive a melody by looking at one note or one chord. Rather, the listener must hear a sequence of notes and chords over time to make out a melody (Rock & Palmer, 1990). Visual perception is of course another way to test the theories of Gestalt psychology. A shape is comprised of many smaller elements. Those constituent parts, such as the lines that make up a square, are worthy in and of themselves. Yet only a Gestalt vantage point allows the shape to emerge in conscious awareness.
Gestalts emerge according to certain patterns and laws of perceptual and cognitive organization. Some of the fundamental laws of Gestalt psychology include the law of similarity, the law of proximity, the law of continuity, and the law of closure (Cherry, 2019). Gestalt psychologists also accounted for perceptual inaccuracies and cognitive biases that arise due to factors like emotional states, motivation, expectation, and prior experience (Covey, 2017). Perhaps quite appropriately, Gestalt psychology has dissipated rather than remaining a distinct segment of psychology.
Therapeutic Practices and Techniques
Unlike cognitive-behavioral psychology or psychodynamics, Gestalt psychology never bequeathed a prominent method of therapeutic intervention used in clinical settings. This is not to say that Gestalt contributed nothing to the evolution of therapeutic practices and techniques in social science. On the contrary, Gestalt psychology did contribute much to the gamut of psychotherapeutic interventions.
The basic concepts of Gestalt therapy are grounded in the work of Fritz Perls and his colleagues, who developed a holistic and integrated system—naturally—that includes “affective, sensory, cognitive, interpersonal, and behavioral components,” (Yontef & Jacobs, n.d., p. 1). A central aspect of Gestalt therapy is the generation of self-awareness—which can be cultivated both via techniques of mindfulness and also with guided methods of recognizing patterns of behavior, thought, and affect that constitute the holistic self and which can be either constructive or destructive (Yontef & Jacobs, n.d.). Gestalt practices may also involve systems orientations that take into account intervening variables such as physical health, social support networks, culture, religion, and socioeconomic class. Another central element in Gestalt therapy is “organismic self-regulation,” which is a means by which the individual attains homeostasis on psychological, social, and physical levels (Oaklander, 1994, p. 143). Gestalt, healing, and wholeness are all interrelated concepts.
Individual and group talking therapies are used in Gestalt (Kepner, n.d.). In a group therapy environment, the Gestalt model is unique in that “the group is regarded not just as a collection of individuals, but as a potent psychosocial environment,” (Kepner, n.d., p. 1). The individual is better understood within the Gestalt framework of the therapy group and also the exogenous social groups and subcultures to which the person belongs. Borrowing from the terminology used in physics, Gestalt posited also that the individual is but a single particle in a unified social field (Kepner, n.d., p. 2). Given its roots in the study of human sensory perceptions, it is understandable also that Gestalt therapy became a cornerstone of art therapy, as well as play therapies used with children (Oaklander, 1994). Therefore, Gestalt provides no singular method or technique but combines many in order to reflect the organic complexity and heterogeneity of the human experience.
How Change Occurs Within the Gestalt Framework
Gestalt theory suggests that change is paradoxical in nature: that “the more one tries to become who one is not, the more one stays the same,” (Yontef & Jacobs, n.d., p. 1). Change occurs as a process of self-regulation, not struggle. The Gestalt framework shows that change is both inevitable and illusory; being fully accepting of the present condition and embracing whatever emerges in the moment leads to increased awareness, knowledge, and therefore self-fulfillment and self-actualization.
Change occurs according to the core parameters of self-knowledge, acceptance, contact, and experimentation, all of which are interconnected (Yontef & Jacobs, n.d.). Self-knowledge emerges through awareness and acceptance of what is, and experimentation enables organic change without resorting to the mechanized interventions that might be used in other modalities like cognitive-behavioral therapy (Yontef & Jacobs, n.d.). Change also occurs in a discursive practice, “through the relationship between therapist and client in the midst of a complex situation,” (Bronwell, 2016, p. 219). The therapist does not judge the client, and also helps the client to refrain from unnecessary self-judgment—for within the Gestalt framework, the impetus to change does not come from any “shoulds” that arise from artificial exogenous constructs. Change must come from within, an innate desire for wholeness and reunification of the disparate elements of self.
Role of the Counselor in Gestalt Theory
Relationship and dialogue happen to be central elements of Gestalt therapy because the client and counselor become part of an organic, holistic system. The counseling relationship, whether in a one-to-one session or in group dynamics, becomes an integral, meaningful system. As Jacobs (1989) puts it, the therapeutic relationship becomes a “curative factor,” (p. 1). Counselors serve many roles in the Gestalt therapeutic relationship: facilitating the client’s own self-awareness and empowering the client with the tools to achieve wholeness and understanding.
As with humanistic psychology domains, the Gestalt tradition promotes a non-hierarchical relationship between counselor and client. The counselor is more guide or helper than instructor. Using the metaphor of a unified field, as in physics, the individual is no longer considered separate but as part of an integrated, collective whole. The counselor may direct the client towards the means by which to achieve self-awareness; but there are no universal rules or techniques. Some therapists may employ art or role-playing to help the client to see things from a new perspective and gain insight. Gestalt therapists refer to the relationship as an “I-Thou” process of “contacting…through which each person realizes most fully their distinct humanity,” (Jacobs, n.d., p. 3). In many ways, the Gestalt therapist enters into the counseling relationship knowing that both parties are there to learn and grow.
The Gestalt method of discourse has been described in terms of points of contact and boundaries. Individuals are part of a broader social field, the Gestalt social network that binds all people, as well as special relationships like the one that develops between counselor and client. The counselor-client relationship itself has a boundary, which is respected via confidentiality and privacy agreements and mutual trust. Points of contact emerge between the counselor and client, and those points of contact become opportunities for growth, observation, self-awareness, and change. Likewise, in group counseling, there are points of contact between each and every individual in the group, and the group also has its own distinct social boundary differentiating it from other social networks.
When working with children, the role of the counselor in Gestalt therapy may be totally different than it is when working with adults. Keeping with the humanistic approach to the therapeutic relationship, compassion and unconditional positive regard are afforded to all clients. Yet with children, there may be “disturbances” in the contact-boundary that signal hindrances to change or to self-acceptance (Oaklander, 1994, p. 143). Oaklander (1994) also explains other contact-boundary disturbances that can arise when Gestalt therapists work with children, such as confluence, projection, and introjection. These disturbances can also arise when working with adults, especially when unresolved issues come to the fore.
Developmental Scheme and Etiological Assumptions in Gestalt
Gestalt psychology has no formal developmental model, but does imply that psychological problems stem from a lack of self-acceptance or a lack of wholeness. The individual needs to reach equilibrium; disturbances in one’s belief system or sense of selfhood cause conflicts, which may have problematic behavioral outcomes. Problems can arise due to fundamental misalignments: misalignments between the self and other people (such as interpersonal conflicts), misalignments between one’s values and one’s life conditions (such as a work/life imbalance), or misalignments between one’s goals and one’s current state of affairs. Development is akin to change, presented as a fundamental paradox in which homeostasis and transformation are concurrent. It is assumed that the individual’s increased level of awareness and understanding are signs of growth. Awareness would be the goal of Gestalt therapy rather than an absolute, unrealistic cure to some pathological condition.
References
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