Toward a Developmental Perspective in Gestalt Therapy Theory and Practice: The Polyphonic Development of Domains

Abstract

AbstractTo answer the question, “What developmental theory is coherent for a Gestalt therapist?” the author states that, as clinicians, Gestalt therapists are not interested in a theory of development in itself, but in a “developmental mind” (a map to understand how the past reveals itself in the present) that can help them intuit both the evolution of contact modes in clients and their interrupted movement – the blocked intentionality for contact that calls to be freed in the present moment. She presents a model to observe how the resources of our clients have either kept their freshness or have become dormant.As a key theme in this work, the author proposes the concept of polyphonic development of domains, a suitable way of looking at the client's development in the here-and-now of the session, in order to support the excitement for contact which has lost its spontaneity in development. She describes Gestalt domains, with their characteristics and risks. Finally, she illustrates these concepts with a clinical example.