Literature Review Undergraduate 2,157 words

Existential, Person-Centered, and Gestalt Therapy Compared

~11 min read 6 sections Therapy

Abstract

This paper provides a literature review of three major humanistic therapeutic frameworks—existential therapy, person-centered therapy, and gestalt therapy—examining how each is practiced in the 21st century. Drawing on foundational theorists such as Rollo May, Carl Rogers, and gestalt psychology scholars, the paper outlines each therapy's philosophical underpinnings, the role of the therapist, key techniques, and treatment goals. It then identifies core similarities shared across all three approaches—including phenomenological orientation, emphasis on personal empowerment, and openness to spirituality—before highlighting their most significant differences in therapeutic method, therapist role, and focal concerns.

Key Takeaways

Introduction: Three humanistic therapies introduced and framed
Existential Therapy: Existential themes, freedom, meaning, and therapist role
Person-Centered Therapy: Rogers, self-actualization, and passive therapist role
Gestalt Therapy: Holism, patterns, and systematic therapeutic methods
Core Similarities: Shared humanistic values across all three therapies
Core Differences: Diverging roles, techniques, and therapeutic focal points

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What makes this paper effective

The paper uses a consistent comparative structure, presenting each therapy on its own terms before synthesizing similarities and differences, which makes the analysis easy to follow.
It grounds each framework in its philosophical origins (existentialism, Rogerian theory, gestalt psychology), giving the comparative claims a solid conceptual foundation.
The dedicated "Core Similarities" and "Core Differences" sections distill the preceding analysis into clear, usable takeaways without simply restating earlier content.

Key academic technique demonstrated

The paper demonstrates systematic comparative literature review: each therapy is introduced with its defining theoretical commitments, then positioned relative to the others. Direct quotations from primary scholarly sources are used to anchor descriptive claims, while the author's own synthesis appears in the comparative sections—a clean separation of source evidence from analytical argument.

Structure breakdown

The paper opens with a framing introduction that establishes the three therapies as related but distinct humanistic traditions. Three body sections (one per therapy) follow in parallel order. Two closing sections—"Core Similarities" and "Core Differences"—synthesize the earlier material under thematic subheadings. The references list follows APA format with full source details including chapter locations within edited volumes.

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Essay 2,157 words

Introduction

Existential therapy, person-centered therapy, and gestalt therapy all fall under the rubric of humanistic psychology. They share a considerable amount of theory, philosophy, and practice. Yet each of these approaches is grounded in its own theoretical framework; therefore, existential, person-centered, and gestalt therapies differ in key ways. Recent scholarship on all three traditions builds on a rich canon of literature but is more than merely summative. The following review of literature shows how existential therapy, person-centered therapy, and gestalt therapy are practiced in the 21st century, and in so doing reveals the similarities and differences between these three humanistic psychological frameworks.

Existential Therapy

Existential therapy has been called "a way of thinking rather than…a particular style of practicing" (Corey, 2008, p. 216). Corey (2008) claims that existential therapy is "not a separate school or a neatly defined, systematic model with specific therapeutic techniques" (p. 216). Instead, there are several existential therapies that can be loosely grouped together due to their common concerns with existential themes. These themes eschew behaviorism and emphasize personal freedom of choice (Corey, 2008). The four ultimate focal points of existential therapy are death, freedom, existential isolation, and meaninglessness (Corey, 2008). The universal themes addressed in existential therapy are therefore applicable to a modern counseling scenario in which the client population may come from diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds, hold different political points of view, and bring different life experiences (Schneider & Krug, 2010). Emphasis on diversity in therapy is a relatively new trend within existential therapy (Schneider & Krug, 2010).

Because of its emphasis on personal freedom and free will, existential therapists stress personal responsibility when working with clients. An existential therapist will shun even the word "victim," and instead asks the client to choose his or her reality (Corey, 2008). The therapist will also coach the client to explore various alternatives, especially those that had not previously been considered.

The search for meaning is central to existential therapy. Existential therapists can integrate spiritual and transpersonal issues into practice (Schneider & Krug, 2010). The therapist helps the client explore deep-rooted values and beliefs that can either support or hinder growth, and encourages self-insight and honest self-awareness. Finding a purpose in life can be a primary goal of existential therapy, which is why it interfaces well with life coaching (Corey, 2008). Therapy from an existential viewpoint is classified as a "journey" (Corey, 2008, p. 217). The therapist is expected to travel that journey with the client, rather than remaining detached as is suggested in other therapeutic frameworks. Instead, "existential therapists are personally engaged in their work and are willing to be affected by their clients' experiences in therapy" (Corey, 2008, p. 217). This means the therapist is encouraged—and even expected—to grow and change through the course of helping others (Corey, 2008). Geller (2003) points out that in existential therapy, self-disclosure "is the product of a fluctuating matrix of interpersonal and intrapsychic variables" (p. 541).

Existentialism is the philosophical framework that gave shape to existential therapy. It acknowledges the inevitability of human suffering while simultaneously celebrating the capacity of human beings for choice, change, and thriving. Rollo May is credited with the first translation of existential philosophy into psychotherapeutic practice (Corey, 2008). James Bugenthal, Irvin Yalom, Kirk Schneider, Emmy van Deurzen, Orah Krug, and Laing & Cooper have all contributed significantly to the evolution of existential psychotherapies (Corey, 2008; Schneider & Krug, 2010).

According to Corey (2008), "the existential perspective focuses on understanding the person's subjective view of the world," and as such "is a phenomenological approach" (p. 217). The existential therapies do not view the client as being "ill" in any way, and do not offer clients a cut-and-dried system by which to achieve wholeness. Instead, the therapist helps the client to "come to terms with life in all its contradictions" (p. 218). This entails an emphasis on acceptance, responsibility, and personal choice in the therapeutic process. Existential therapy can be practiced as individual or one-on-one therapy or as group therapy. In a group context, individual clients have the opportunity to learn from other members.

Person-Centered Therapy

Person-centered therapy "implies a form of therapy whereby the therapist takes the backseat and allows the client to play the major role during the counseling session" (Ceil, 2012, p. 1). The role of the therapist is more passive in person-centered therapy than it is in existential therapy. Ceil (2012) points out that person-centered therapy is also called client-centered, and it is a "non-directive method of counseling as it does not involve any prominent role of the therapist who only assists the client" (p. 1). The origin of person-centered therapy is traced to Carl Rogers, whose theory of personality development informs practice (Williams, 2007). For this reason, person-centered therapy is occasionally called Rogerian therapy.

Some of the core tenets of person-centered therapy include a view of the person as "inherently trustworthy," with a "vast potential for self-understanding," and possessing a "self-directed capability to resolve their difficulties if they have a genuine, accepting, and empathetic environment" (Luke, 2010, p. 157). The framework of person-centered therapy is thus similarly humanistic in tone to existential therapy.

Person-centered therapy is similar to existential therapy in that both stress personal empowerment. Rogers' theory "postulates that all people have within themselves the desire and the capacity to evolve into fully functioning, self-actualized individuals" who can "guide their lives" (Williams, 2007, p. 223). However, person-centered therapy differs from existential therapy in two main ways. First, the role of the therapist in the therapeutic relationship is radically different. In person-centered therapy, the therapist is passive while actively listening. In existential therapy, the therapist is more actively engaged in the process of learning that occurs during therapy. Second, the focal point of person-centered therapy is self-actualization, not the search for and discovery of existential meaning.

There are other differences between existential and person-centered therapy. For example, existential therapy might incidentally address issues related to the past and childhood, but as Williams (2007) points out, person-centered therapy more deliberately encourages reflection on the past. The goal of such reflection is to understand the evolution of the self-concept. Existential therapy is not as concerned with self-concept as person-centered therapy, as the name suggests. Person-centered therapy also engages with psychopathology, positing that psychological maladies and conditions can be traced to ineffective self-concepts. "Psychological maladjustment is a result of incongruence between what individuals experience firsthand…and how they want to believe they are in the world" (Williams, 2007, p. 224). A goal of person-centered therapy is total transformation: "the ultimate restructuring of his or her personality" (Williams, 2007, p. 225). As with existential therapy, the client is empowered to take responsibility for his or her own choices, attitudes, and beliefs. There is no formal program or set of recommendations, and the concept of victimhood is similarly avoided.

The therapeutic relationship is based on passive interaction but also on "unconditional positive regard, empathy, and congruence" (Williams, 2007, p. 225). The concern with empathy places person-centered therapy much closer to existential therapy. Both existential and person-centered therapies are humanistic, emphasizing personal responsibility and self-empowerment.

3 Sections Hidden · 690 words

Gestalt Therapy330 words

The theoretical framework of gestalt therapy is gestalt psychology, and its underlying philosophy is holistic in nature. Gestalt therapy is non-reductionistic and non-deterministic, just as are existential and…

Core Similarities200 words

Similar historical evolution. Each of these humanistic therapies—existential, person-centered, and gestalt—evolved throughout the 20th…

Core Differences160 words

Role of the therapist. In existential therapy, the therapist facilitates and empathizes, and may even…

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References

Ceil, C. (2012). Person-centered therapy. Social Science Electronic Publishing. Available at SSRN: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2051484

Corey, G. (2008). The existential approach to groups. Chapter 9 in Theory and Practice of Group Counseling. Cengage.

Crocker, S. F., & Philippson, P. (2005). Phenomenology, existentialism, and Eastern thought in gestalt therapy. Chapter 4 in Gestalt Therapy: History, Theory and Practice. Sage.

Geller, J. D. (2003). Self-disclosure in psychoanalytic-existential therapy. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 59(5), 541–554.

Ingersoll, R. E., & O'Neill, B. (2005). Gestalt therapy and spirituality. Chapter 8 in Gestalt Therapy: History, Theory and Practice. Sage.

Luke, M. (2010). Person-centered therapy. Chapter 9 in Integrating the Expressive Arts into Counseling Practice. Springer.

Melnick, J., Nevis, S. M., & Shub, N. (2005). Gestalt therapy methodology. Chapter 6 in Gestalt Therapy: History, Theory and Practice. Sage.

Parlett, M., & Lee, R. G. (2005). Contemporary gestalt therapy: Field theory. Chapter 3 in Gestalt Therapy: History, Theory and Practice. Sage.

Schneider, K. J., & Krug, O. T. (2010). Existential-Humanistic Therapy. Washington, DC: APA Books.

Williams, S. A. (2007). Person-centered therapy. Chapter 10 in Anxiety Disorders: A Practitioner's Guide to Comparative Treatments. Ed. DiTomaso, R. A. Springer Publishing.

Key Concepts in This Paper

Humanistic Psychology Existential Therapy Person-Centered Therapy Gestalt Therapy Self-Actualization Phenomenology Therapeutic Relationship Personal Empowerment Meaning-Making Therapist Role