Gestalt Theory Flashcards
Gestalt psychology was first developed by ___ and later by ___ and ___.
Max Wertheimer; Wolf- gang Kohler; Kurt Koffka
Essentially, gestalt psychology is based on the view that psychological phenomena are ___ rather than ___.
organized wholes; specific parts
In gestalt psychology, the “field” can be viewed in terms of “___” and “___.” The figure is what ___, and the ground is the ___.
figure; ground; stands out; background
___ is the lifeblood of growth, means for changing oneself, and one’s experi- ence of the world (Polster & Polster, 1973, p. 101).
Contact
Contact differs from ___, as contact exists when a sense of separateness is maintained. In ___, there is no sep- arateness
fusion
Levels of contact have been described by Perls (1969b, 1969c, 1970) as ___.
five layers of neuroses
Levels of Contact:
The ___ layer refers to reacting to others in unauthentic or patterned ways.
phony
Levels of Contact:
Examples are “How are you?” and “Have a nice day.” More substantial examples include trying to be nice to someone so they will buy something from you.
phony
Levels of Contact:
At the ___ layer is an avoidance of psychological pain.
phobic
Levels of Contact:
Levels of Contact:
___ is the point at which we are afraid to change or move. We may feel
very little, only a sense of being stuck.
Impasse
Levels of Contact:
Perls (1970, p. 25) gives an example of
a marriage in which the partners are no longer in love; they have ideas of what the other should be but no ideas of what the other is really like. They blame each other and are at an impasse. Individuals feel little internal or external support. This is a particularly significant level for making therapeutic
change.
Impasse
At the ___ level we experience our feelings, start to become aware of the
real self, but may do little about the feelings.
implosive
Levels of Contact:
Contact with the ___ layer is authentic and without pretense. For Perls it
was necessary to experience the ___ to become truly alive and authentic.
explosive
___ are the process of connecting to or separating from other or
objects.
Contact boundaries
More specifically, ___ are those that distinguish between one person and another, a person and an object, or the person and a quality of the person (Polster & Polster, 1973, pp. 107–108). ___ are formed by an
individual’s life experiences.
I-boundaries
I-boundaries:
___ are those that may restrict sensations or place them off limits.
Body-boundaries
I-bounderies:
___ refer to values we hold that we are resistant to changing.
Value-boundaries
I-bounderies:
___ refer to events that are often repeated but may not be
thought about or challenged.
Familiarity-boundaries
I-bounderies:
___ are learned at an early age. We learn not to yell, not to
whine, not to touch, and so forth.
Expressive-bounderies
