Counseling theory Essays - Clinical Psychology, Gestalt Therapy

Counseling theory Week 7 Case Study center850009088120 Feburary 19th, 2017 Denisha Sydney 1000000 Feburary 19th, 2017 Denisha Sydney CASE STUDY - CHAPTER 8 - GESTALT THERAPY KAREN: Anxiety over choosing for herself 1). What do you see as Karen's basic conflict? How would you summarize the nature of her struggle? Child roles vs Adult roles: Catholic morals vs non-Catholic morals Asian influences vs Western influences Karen stated that she felt self-conscious, weak willed, lacking i n assertiveness and dependent. Gradually Karen will beco me aware of her passivity through this exercise, and her tendency to allow others t o dictate how she should live. S he explained some of the value s that she saw in behaving in accordance with the beliefs of her parents. She wanted to make her own choices, but she wanted her parent's approval to do so. She was afraid that they would not tolerate her decisions. She explained that some of her parent's expectations included having supervised dates with young men, living at home until she was married, preferably marrying a Japanese man, wearing skirts and dresses and generally keeping a feminine appearance. 2). Do you think that in some ways she might be looking to you as another authority figure to tell her that it is all right for her to reject some of the moral codes she was taught and to follow her own? How might you test out this possibility? How could you help her without becoming another source of either approval or disapproval for her? Since I am a Western, non-Catholic woman and realises my own biases in these arguments may lead her to influence Karen's away from traditional, Asian and Catholic codes of living. I would consider that Karen may be looking to me s someone in authority to grant her permission to act more in accordance with her own views. I would therefore start with a warm up exercise with Karen. I would ask Karen to summarise the way she was feeling about herself. I would discuss these opinions further with Karen and ask her questions such as "How are you dependent? Who is responsible for your self-consciousness? What do you take responsibility for?" Karen would become aware of her passivity through this exercise, and her tendency to allow others to dictate how she should live. I would then ask Karen to use the "I take responsibility for." exercise where she repeated out-loud, all the current feelings that she was responsible for. I would also encourage Karen to take responsibility for the goals she wanted to achieve. I would also add some responsibilities of my own such as: I am responsible for helping you explore your blockages. I am responsible for allowing you to make your own choices. I will not take responsibility for your decision making. 3). This case raises several key issues for you to consider, a few of which are: a. Can you respect her cultural values and at the same time help her make the changes she wants, even if they go against some of her traditions? Yes, I would respect her cultural values. In fact, we are all members of various cultural groups and our cultural identities develop based on the influence of these memberships. Like most things that make you who you are, the development of your cultural identity is an ongoing process. As we are exposed to different sets of beliefs and values, we may adopt other cultural beliefs that were not part of our original makeup. In this way, culture is dynamic and complex. b. Perhaps the values of her culture specify that women should be somewhat reserved, unassertive, emotionally restrained, and deferential to authority. Would you attempt to help her adjust to these cultural norms, or would you encourage her to live by a new set of standards? I would allow her to take sides of her assertive vs unassertive self . In fact, we are all members of various cultural groups and our cultural identities develop based on the influence of these memberships. Like most things that make you who you are, the development of your cultural identity is an ongoing process. As we are exposed to different sets of beliefs and values,