Gestalt Counselling in Action

Petruska Clarkson was a professor and fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Fellow of the British Psychological Society. A Consultant Psychologist, Psychotherapist Supervisor and Management Consultant, she worked and taught at universities and private institutions internationally. Petruska sadly passed away in 2006.Simon Cavicchia divides his time between teaching, working as a psychotherapist and supervisor and as an executive coach and consultant to leadership teams in public and private sector organisations.  He has held teaching roles at Metanoia Institute where he was primary tutor on the Gestalt psychotherapy programme and Joint Programme Leader for the Masters in Coaching Psychology.  He is currently a member of faculty on the Masters in Executive coaching at Ashridge Hult Business School, UK.   He has published a number of papers on relational coaching, and co-authored The Theory and Practice of Relational Coaching - Complexity, Paradox and Integration (Routledge, 2018) with Maria Gilbert.  In all his work Simon is interested in exploring the centrality of human relationships in how individuals experience themselves, think and behave together.  He is particularly interested in the role shame plays in inhibiting human connection and collaboration and how to reduce shame in order to create conditions for creative and meaningful relationships.

This popular and well written book which is now in its 4th edition,  provides an accessible and thorough introduction to the Gestalt approach. At the time she wrote this book, Petruska Clarkson brought an extensive experience both as a practitioner and trainer/supervisor to outline the theoretical and philosophical basis of Gestalt therapy. She provides an interesting framework using the cycle of awareness to explore ‘healthy’ and ‘dysfunctional’ functioning of the individual in relation to our environment. The book also outlines the developmental stages of the therapy process and provides a nice balance of theory and practice. I would recommend this as essential reading to anyone with an interest in Gestalt therapy.

• Introduction to GestaltFundamentals of the Gestalt Approach to CounsellingThe Cycle of Experience and its Application to the Counselling ProcessInterruptions in the CycleSensation and the Necessary Preconditions for CounsellingAwareness and the Initial Phases of the Counselling ProcessMobilisation and the post-preliminary phases of the counselling processAction and the middle phases of the counselling processFinal contact and the later phases of the counselling processSatisfaction and the penultimate phases of the counselling processWithdrawal and the final phases of the counselling processResponsibility and freedom in counsellingConcluding reflections on gestalt′s future frontiers and integrations