Comprehension of the security and risk binomial: perspectives in dialogue

Abstract

The paper seeks to develop an understanding of the creative adjustments of maintaining the status quo and security and the impossibility or non-existence of security as risk-free. Despite this impossibility, the search for safety and risk avoidance are striking in contemporary society and often present in the psychological clinic. This is often understood as a space that will provide answers and security in the imagination of both the seeker and the psychotherapist. Reflecting on the subject, we seek to establish a dialogue between sociological perspectives, the philosophy of Paul Tilich and the theoretical references of Gestalt Therapy. It is argued that, from modern societies, scientific knowledge, including psychology, is sought as a promise of security. From Paul Tilich's work, risk is pointed out as inherent in existence, illustrated by the certainty of death. It is also indicated that anxiety is experienced by man in the face of awareness of his finitude, and this anxiety can be faced by an act of courage. It is resorted to the theoretical framework of Gestalt Therapy, which considers the fantasy of safety and avoidance of risk as possible neurotic adjustments, understood as obstacles to growth by avoiding contact with novelty. It also notes that the clinical practice of Gestalt therapy is not intended to offer an absence of risks to its clients, but, supported by the environmental support built in the therapeutic relationship, seeks to facilitate contact with the way these risks are lived, thus enabling the development of self-support.