Title......Page 4
Copyright......Page 5
Contents......Page 6
Preface......Page 10
Acknowledgements......Page 13
Part 1: MAPS FOR A GESTALT THERAPY JOURNEY: THEORETICAL ASSUMPTIONS UNDERPINNING THE APPROACH......Page 16
1 What is gestalt?......Page 18
2 What is a gestalt?......Page 21
3 Creative adjustment......Page 23
4 Figure and ground......Page 26
5 The here and now......Page 30
6 Self as process: selfing......Page 33
7 The self: concepts of id, ego and personality......Page 35
8 Holism and the orientation towards health......Page 38
9 Gestalt’s relationship to the psychiatric/biomedical model......Page 41
10 The awareness continuum......Page 44
11 Individualism and field paradigms......Page 47
12 The contact boundary......Page 49
13 The gestalt cycle of experience: early formulations......Page 51
14 The gestalt cycle of experience: later developments......Page 53
15 Resistances, interruptions, moderations to contact......Page 56
16 Introjection......Page 59
17 Retroflection......Page 62
18 Projection......Page 65
19 Confluence......Page 68
20 Dimensions of contact......Page 70
21 Unfinished business: the Zeigarnik effect......Page 72
22 Caring and creative indifference......Page 75
23 The Paradoxical Theory of Change......Page 77
24 Autonomous and aesthetic criterion......Page 80
25 Support as ‘that which enables’......Page 83
26 Contact and resistance......Page 86
27 The five abilities......Page 88
Part 2: BEGINNING THE THERAPY JOURNEY: PREPARATIONS AND SETTING OFF......Page 90
28 The therapy setting and context......Page 92
29 Expectations explored, contracts established......Page 94
30 Listening to the client’s story......Page 98
31 Process diagnosis......Page 100
32 Assessment......Page 103
33 The client’s situation......Page 106
34 The client’s contact functions......Page 108
35 The client’s awareness (three zones of awareness)......Page 111
36 Transference, counter-transference and co-transference possibilities......Page 113
37 How the client ‘bodies forth’......Page 116
38 Treatment planning: planning the journey......Page 119
Part 3: THE THERAPY JOURNEY......Page 122
Part 3.1 Exploring the client’s ‘lifespace’, field or situation......Page 124
39 The lifespace and the field......Page 126
40 Viewing the lifespace through a developmental lens......Page 129
41 The therapy space as present situation......Page 132
42 The need organizes the field......Page 134
43 Investigating supports......Page 136
44 Shame and guilt as functions of the field......Page 139
45 A setting for challenge and experiment......Page 142
46 The cultural field......Page 144
47 Creative experimentation......Page 147
48 Use of metaphor and fantasy......Page 150
49 Homework and practising......Page 153
Part 3.2 Focus on experience: phenomenology in gestalt therapy......Page 156
50 Sensations and feelings......Page 158
51 Co-creation, temporality and horizontalism......Page 160
52 Intentionality: reaching out and making sense of my world......Page 163
53 Transcendental phenomenology and Husserl......Page 165
54 The discipline of phenomenological reduction......Page 167
55 Existential phenomenology: ‘I am’......Page 169
56 Intersubjectivity: I am always embedded in my experience......Page 171
57 Attending to the bodily ‘felt sense’......Page 173
58 Projective identification......Page 175
59 Energy, interests, needs, vitality......Page 178
60 Awareness and diminished awareness......Page 180
61 Patterns of contacting......Page 182
62 Working with dreams......Page 185
Part 3.3 Dialogue: emerging through relationship......Page 188
63 Martin Buber: I–Thou and I–It relating......Page 190
64 The between......Page 192
65 Inclusion – a cautionary note regarding empathy......Page 194
66 Presence......Page 196
67 Confirmation......Page 198
68 Commitment to dialogue......Page 200
69 Non-exploitation......Page 202
70 Living the relationship......Page 204
71 Attunement......Page 206
72 The I–Thou attitude, the I–Thou moment......Page 208
73 Self-disclosure......Page 210
74 Language......Page 213
75 Rupture and repair......Page 215
Part 4: BECOMING: TRANSITIONS ALONG THE JOURNEY......Page 218
76 Aggressing on the environment......Page 220
77 Developmental theory......Page 222
78 The five layer model......Page 225
79 Experimentation......Page 228
80 Developing supports......Page 231
81 Polarities and the top dog/under dog......Page 234
82 ‘Aha’ experience......Page 237
83 Catharsis and release......Page 239
84 Developing awareness of awareness......Page 242
85 Individual and group therapy......Page 244
86 Endings......Page 247
87 On-going self-therapy......Page 250
Part 5: ETHICS AND VALUES: KEY SIGNPOSTS FOR ALL JOURNEYS......Page 252
88 Therapeutic boundaries......Page 254
89 Assessing risk......Page 257
90 Attending to the wider field......Page 260
91 Working with difference......Page 263
92 Sexual issues......Page 266
93 Touch in therapy......Page 269
94 Gestalt supervision......Page 272
95 Therapist support......Page 275
Part 6: RESEARCH AND EVALUATING THE APPROACH: DESTINATION AND LOOKING BACK......Page 278
96 Gestalt’s spiritual traditions and the transpersonal......Page 280
97 Research and appropriate research paradigms......Page 282
98 Applications of gestalt beyond 1:1 and group therapy......Page 285
99 Looking back and reviewing......Page 287
100 On uncertainty......Page 289
References......Page 291