Gestalt Psychotherapy Training Institute Malta

Master in Gestalt Psychotherapy

Module: HISTORY OF GESTALT THERAPY

Influence of Gestalt Psychology on Gestalt Psychotherapy

Student: Adrian Xuereb Archer

Mentor/s: Lidija Pecotic

MALTA
FEBRUARY 2021
History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Contents

Contents .......................................................................................................................................... 2

Abstract ........................................................................................................................................... 3

Influence Of Gestalt Psychology On Gestalt Therapy .................................................................... 4

Defining The Word Gestalt ......................................................................................................... 4

Gestalt Origin In Gestalt Psychology .......................................................................................... 5

Gestalt & How We Distort Reality? ............................................................................................... 6

Law of Figure/Ground ................................................................................................................. 7

Law of Unified Connectedness ................................................................................................... 8

Law of Similarity ........................................................................................................................ 8

Gestalt Therapy As An Integrator Of Reality ................................................................................. 9

Conclusions ................................................................................................................................... 10

References ..................................................................................................................................... 11

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Abstract

Purpose – To explore the link between Gestalt Psychology and Gestalt Therapy.

Methodology – an argumentative academic essay with a blend of literature that is linked to an

experiment to apply it in the context of Maltese language.

Findings – Perls, inspired by the German word Gestalt which means configuration, created a

therapy that helped a person to find wholeness. Some concepts in Gestalt Therapy were borrowed

from Gestalt Psychology but the link between the two is dubious.

Research Implications – At the root of Gestalt Psychology is the fact that we tend to organise our

reality not on what is present but on our interpretation. Gestalt Therapy helps a person to have a

whole awareness of reality rather than a disjointed interpretation.

Practical Implications – Gestalt Therapy helps the client to be aware of how they are organising

their ‘gestalt’ and let go of unhealthy distortions.

Originality/Value – The argument of the paper leads to the author suggesting that since Gestalt

Psychology is the science of how we distort reality and Gestalt Therapy is a practice of integrating

awareness of reality, finding ways to integrate the two could lead to better facilitation of therapy.

Keywords: Gestalt Psychotherapy, Gestalt Psychology, Gestalt Psychotherapy Theory.

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Influence Of Gestalt Psychology On Gestalt Therapy

Upon deciding to embark on my Masters in Gestalt Psychotherapy adventure, the first question

that came to my mind was: ‘What is Gestalt?’ This paper delves into the direct and implied

meaning of the word Gestalt and its journey from Gestalt Psychology to Gestalt Psychotherapy

Theory.

Defining The Word Gestalt

Gestalt is a German word that translates to ‘form’ or ‘configuration’. In verb form, ‘gestalten’

means to ‘organise’ or to ‘structure’ (Sabar, 2013). When coming up with the phrase Gestalt

Therapy, Perls borrowed the word ‘gestalt’ from Gestalt Psychology. Perls was introduced to the

concepts of Gestalt Psychology through Goldstein, Laura Perls and later by Wertheimer (Witchel,

1973). Laura Perls, herself a Gestalt Psychologist, was a major influence on the choice of the word

‘gestalt’ in Gestalt Psychotherapy (Clarkson, 2014). Others argue that she wanted to call the

therapy ‘Existential Therapy’ whilst Hefferline wanted to call it ‘Integrative Therapy’.

Fritz Perls chose ‘Gestalt’ in Gestalt Therapy as he saw the revolutionary implication of the word

‘gestalt’ and its meaning of wholeness, rather than because it matches Gestalt Psychology

(Bonnici, 2020). Walter (1983) debates how much Gestalt Psychology and Gestalt Psychotherapy

have the same meaning for the word ‘Gestalt’. To this effect, Henle, a Gestalt Psychologist, put a

direct distance between Gestalt Psychology and Gestalt Therapy, subtly calling Gestalt Therapy

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

unscientific. For Henle, Perls took several words from Gestalt psychology and then changed their

meaning beyond recognition (Henle, 1978).

Gestalt Origin In Gestalt Psychology

Gestalt Psychology uses scientific techniques to understand the laws on how to have meaningful

perceptions in a chaotic world (Bonnici, 2020). Its roots can be traced to the studies of Max

Wertheimer who posited that the apparent movement of two black bars led to human eyes seeing

shadows that were not present on the image holding the black bars. He coined his observation as

‘phi-phenomenology’ (Wertheimer, 1912). Based on these findings Wertheimer wanted to

understand the relationship between a physical stimulus and how it is perceived. Through

observation, Wertheimer demonstrated the idea that our mind creates elements that are not present

in the physical reality (Braungardt, 2019).

Together with Köhler and Koffka, Wertheimer formed a school of philosophy called Gestalt

Psychology which aimed to examine how the mind interprets external visual and auditory figures

(Witchel, 1973). Through their work, Gestalt Psychology looked at understanding the nature of

how we form ‘Gestalts’ or the structures within our psyche to interpret reality. Koffka argued that

in the formation of gestalt, “the whole is other than the sum of the parts,” implying that when

Gestalt is formed, the reality we make out of it is different (not greater) than the elements that

make the whole (Heider, 1977).

It was through Perls’ collaboration with Goldstein, a Gestalt Psychologist, that many concepts

were translated from Gestalt Psychology to Gestalt Therapy. Goldstein added perception of body

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

and the relationship of the individual with the environment over the concepts of Gestalt

Psychology (Witchel, 1973). One can argue that Goldstein’s adoption of Smuts’ holism and his

influence on the Perls took Gestalt Psychology from a perceptual based science to an existential

and phenomenological practice (Brownell, 2015). His work on ‘organismic theory’ set the

foundation for organism-environment concepts used in Gestalt Therapy whereas his isolation

studies became the foundation for what Gestalt Therapy refers to as polarities (Tabone, 2018).

Gestalt Psychology is famous for creating Gestalt Laws which govern how we form and organise

our perceptions. One of these is the Law of Closure which states that we tend to want to close gaps.

The principle of Unfinished Business in Gestalt Therapy is based on this law. Polster (1973) states

that “Closure must come either through the return to the old business or by relating to a parallel

circumstance in the present.” Childhood unresolved issues can be experienced as unfinished

business when the child becomes an adult. These issues can then disrupt life through stress and

exhaustion. Through Gestalt therapy, the adult resolves these issues by closing them and hence

restore wholeness (Clarkson, 2014).

Gestalt & How We Distort Reality?

The premise of Gestalt Psychology is that we use our eyes, not to see reality objectively, but to

interpret it and make meaning subjectively. Gestalt Psychology started as an exploratory study of

the subjective interpretation and meaning of what people observed in reality (Sabar, 2013).

To illustrate what Gestalt Psychology understood and to explore the implications of their thought

on Gestalt Psychotherapy, I will create an experiment as a demonstration. If we look at the shape

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

in Figure 1 objectively, one can argue that they are two elliptical lines joining at two points.

However, the below figure may illicit different interpretations. Using Koffka, Wertheimer and

Köhler’s Gestalt Laws of Figure Ground, Unified Connectedness and Similarity, I will

demonstrate the possible distortions of reality (Verlaers, 2015).

Figure 1: An experiment to examine distortion of reality.

Law of Figure/Ground

Rubin’s 1915 vase-faces image forces a person to focus on one area. Upon focusing one’s attention

on one area, the area of focus becomes the ‘figure’ whereas the areas behind it would be its

‘ground’ (Wagemans, 2012). Perls applied the concept of ‘Figure’ as being the most prominent

need of the organism and ‘Ground’ the other needs that go into the background (Perls, 1969). Mann

(2021) suggests that the ground can affect the way the figure is formed profoundly. Should a

hungry person see Figure 1, they could project their hunger (the ground) onto Figure 1 (the figure)

and they could interpret the shape as a Maltese pastizz (a local pastry with the same shape).

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Law of Unified Connectedness

In Maltese, the word pastizz is used as a slang word for vulva. Since the pastry and the woman’s

genitilia are similar in shape, the word pastizz is used to imply vulva. The Law of Unified

Connectedness states that when elements are connected in shape they can be perceived as a single

element (Soegaard, 2021).

Law of Similarity

The Polsters (1973) argue that the perceiver is not a passive victim of what is happening in the

environment, but organises and imposes order on their own perception. In Malta, the word pastizz

is also used to refer to a person of weak constitution in the same way an English person might use

the word cunt. In slang, the character of a person may be associated with gender genitilia.

Historically men were considered stronger and women weaker, therefore the word ‘balls’ is

associated with strength whereas ‘cunt’ with weakness. Ironically men’s genitilia are extremely

fragile compared to its counterpart. Yet the gender associations, albeit not based on reality, have

taken a cultural twist that still lives on with the word pastizz till this very day. As the Polsters

(1973) suggested, the motivations (being cultural, biological or otherwise) shape the interpretation

of reality. This is perhaps the most disturbing application of the Law of Similarity which states

that people seeing similar patterns tend to group them together (Mann, 2021).

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Figure 2, 3 & 4: The 3 Associations of the word Pastizz.

Left: Pastizz as a Maltese pastry that has the same shape as figure 1.
Middle: Pastizz as a slang word for vulva. Right:
Pastizz as a sign towards a person of weak constitution.

Gestalt Therapy As An Integrator Of Reality

If Gestalt Psychology examines how our perception distorts the reality through its Gestalt Laws,

Gestalt Psychotherapy aims to help a person be integrated with the here and now. In Gestalt

Therapy, Fritz, Hefferline and Goodman explain how this process happens:

“By working on the unity or disunity of this structure of the experience in the here and now, it is

possible to remake the dynamic relations of the figure and ground until the contact is heightened,

the awareness brightened, and the behaviour energized. Most important of all, the achievement of

a strong gestalt is itself the cure, for the figure of contact is not a sign of but is itself the creative

integration of experience.“

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Conclusions

The word gestalt takes from a German word that means configuration. Perls defined Gestalt as the

“sum of all the awareness as you experience here and now” (Mann, 2010). The use of gestalt and

figure formation is loosely inspired from Gestalt Psychology which is the science and study of

perception and its interpretation (Henle, 1978). Gestalt Therapy eventually became an existential

phenomenology that helps a person to experience reality as it is rather than the explorations of

scientific concepts. Although distinctly different, either school cannot take away the contribution

they gave to the understanding and appreciation of reality. In Gestalt Psychotherapy fashion,

Walter (1983) tries to integrate the two and create a new approach he terms ‘Gestalt Theoretical

Psychotherapy’. In the future I hope Gestalt Psychotherapy incorporates more recent research from

Gestalt Psychology. This will help Gestalt Psychotherapy update its understanding of Gestalt

Psychology inspired theories such as Figure/Ground & Unfinished Business. Secondly it could

give Gestalt Therapy a more scientific basis for understanding how people distort the meaning of

reality in the hope of better informing therapists on how to improve a client’s experience of the

here and now.

GESTALT
GESTALT
PSYCHOLOGY PSYCHOTHERAPY
• Application of PRACTICE
• Word Implying
'to structure'or Principles to
people's • Removing Gaps
'to turn • Principles and laws In Perception
randomness into of how the mind perception of the
here and now. Between Reality
pattern and creates meaning and
form' and organises them Interpretation of
into structures. GESTALT Reality.
GESTALT/EN (PSYCHOTHERAPY)
THEORY

Figure 5: The Gestalt Journey From Word To Therapy.

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

References

Bonnici, J. (2020). The Philosophical roots of Gestalt Therapy. EAPTI-GPTIM.

Braungardt, J. (2019). Gestalt Psychology. Retrieved from Philosophical Explorations:

http://braungardt.trialectics.com/sciences/psychology/gestalt-psychology-2/

Brownell, P. (2015). Gestalt Therapy. In R. C. Lilienfeld, Encyclopedia of Clinical Psychology.

Wiley.

Clarkson, P. (2014). Gestalt Counselling in Action. SAGE.

Heider, G. (1977). More About Hull and Koffka. American Psychologist, 383, 32.

Henle, M. (1978). Gestalt Psychology And Gestalt Therapy. Journal of the Hintow of the

Behavioral Sciences, 14, 23-32.

Mann, D. (2021). Gestalt Therapy: 100 Key Points and Techniques. Routeledge.

Perls. (1969). Ego, Hunger and Aggression. Woking. Unwin Bros.

Perls, F. H. (1990). Gestalt therapy: Excitement and growth in the human personality. New York:

Julian Press, 232.

Polster, E. &. (1973). Gestalt Therapy Integrated. Vintage Books.

Sabar, S. (2013). What's Gestalt? Gestalt Review, 17.

Soegaard, M. (2021, January 30). Laws of Proximity, Uniform Connectedness, and Continuation

– Gestalt Principles. Retrieved from https://www.interaction-

design.org/literature/article/laws-of-proximity-uniform-connectedness-and-continuation-

gestalt-principles-

2#:~:text=The%20law%20of%20unified%20connectedness%20states%20that%20eleme

nts%20that%20are,linked%20in%20the%20same%20manner.

Tabone, A. (2018). The History and Roots of Gestalt Psychotherapy. GPTIM.

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History of Gestalt Therapy Influence of Gestalt Psychology

Verlaers, K. W. (2015). The effect of perceptual grouping on haptic numerosity perception. 77(1),

353-367.

Wagemans, J. e. (2012). A Centruy of Gestalt Psychology in Visual Perception: Perceptual

Grouping and Figure-Ground Organisation. Psychological Bullettin, 138(6), 1172-1217.

Walter, H.-J. (1983). What do Gestalt therapy and Gestalt theory have to do with each other? The

Gestalt Journal, XXII(1), 45-68.

Wertheimer, M. (1912). Experimentelle Studien über das Sehen von Bewegung. Zeitschrift für

Psychologie,, 60, 161–265.

Witchel, R. (1973). Gestalt Therapy: Development, Theory, and Techniques. AMERICAN

PERSONNEL Ai:D GUIDANCE ASSOCIATION.

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