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CHAPTER 4
GESTALT PLAY THERAPY TECHNIQUES

1. OVERVIEW OF GESTALT THEORY OF THERAPY

According to Zinker (1977:24) “Psychotherapy is a lively process of stoking the client’s

inner fires of awareness and contact”. The following sections cover some important aspects
of the theory of Gestalt therapy. The researcher is of the opinion that it is important to know
the theoretical base on which a therapeutic programme has been developed. It is important
for the therapist who uses the intervention programme of this study to have a knowledgeable
foundation to work from. This chapter covers the theoretical background of the techniques
used and provides suggestions for the application thereof. All applications of the discussed
theory in the following sections will therefore be handled as suggestions, which should be or
can be applied to the intervention programme.

1.1 Background

Fritz and Laura Perls founded Gestalt therapy in the 1940’s (Yontef, 1993:2). It teaches a
phenomenological method of awareness. The therapist and client perceive, feel and act in the
present moment, rather than to interpret the past. Therapists and clients engage in dialogue
with each other, communicating their phenomenological perspectives. The differences in
these perspectives are discussed and experimented with. The goal of therapy is for the client
to become aware of his true self as being presented in the present time and place. The client
also learns how he can change himself and at the same time comes to value and accept
himself.
Gestalt therapy focuses on the process of therapy and not really on the content, thus rather on
what is happening (being done, thought and felt) than on what is being said about what was,
might be, could be or should be. (Yontef, 1993:2)
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1.2 A phenomenological and existential perspective

1.2.1 Discussion of concepts

A phenomenological perspective helps a person to stand aside and perceive himself as he
really is. Existentialism uses this phenomenological method to help a person to focus on his
existence and to continuously grow and develop. (Yontef, 1993:2-3)
The researcher understands these two concepts better through the views of Zinker (1977:77).
He describes the phenomenological perspective as whatever it is a person is experiencing as
uniquely one’s own. A person’s world is the totality of experiences of oneself as you are.
Phenomenology is thus the experience of the self as it is.
Zinker (1977:77) adds the experience of self (phenomenology) to the present moment.
“…adding the dimensions of here and now gives these personal phenomena an existential
immediacy:…”.
The researcher concludes that a phenomenological perspective focuses on the person’s
experiences of himself and of his world. It is an existential experience, because it will come
to an end. Existentialism thus relates to having a meaningful life. The person develops and
grows to reach his full potential in the present time – existentialism is the urgency to grow
and develop, because we don’t live forever. A person has an existential experience when he
realises that he needs to fulfil his full potential within a given time.

1.2.2 Application
As the focus of the programme of the current study is greatly awareness and growth, it
adheres to the two concepts above. In this emotional intelligence programme, children grow
and develop through a process of being aware and experimenting with alternatives during the
therapy sessions.

1.3 Figure-ground

Koffka and Wertheimer (in Zinker, 1977:92) described the figure and the ground in relation
to perception and cognition. A person experiences his environment visually. He chooses to
focus on one perspective, which is embedded in a fuzzy background. The background is
fuzzy because he does not focus on that part and therefore it is not important enough to be
clear. That on which the person focuses is the figure, it stands out. The rest is the ground. If
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one will change perspective and focus on something else, that part will be the figure and the
rest the ground. (Zinker, 1977:92) It is also important to note here that the figure never stands
in isolation from the ground. It is always viewed against a background. And as already stated
here, perspectives change and therefore the succession of figure and ground is continuously
changing. (Compare Harris, 1998a:13; Mackewn, 2004:179.)
In this study the members of the research groups focused on a specific part of themselves and
their emotional intelligence as well as applications of these in their lives during a session.
That part on which they are focusing during a specific moment will be the figure. The
context, in which that part of their selves exists, is the ground. This ground can include the
culture of the child and / or his process or behaviour style and his cognitive processes. The
child’s foreground issues at a specific moment are part of and are influenced by his greater
context (Mackewn, 2004:181). The researcher as therapist focused on specific foreground
issues, which at that moment act as the child’s figure. This figure is always part of the child’s
bigger context or ground. The figure and ground of the children were never isolated from
each other, because this is a culturally sensitive programme. The researcher as therapist was
continuously aware of the influence of the children’s cultures or the ground in which the
figure was embedded.

1.3.1 Figure-ground and the healthy individual

According to Zinker (1977:93) a healthy person can distinguish clearly between what is on
his foreground, thus what interests him at that moment, and what is not that important or
interesting. He experiences the sharpness and clarity of the figure and is not interested in the
faded ground.

1.3.2 Figure-ground and the unhealthy person

Disturbed people, on the other hand, cannot distinguish clearly between figure and ground.
They do not have a clear purpose or focus. When they consider a certain situation they
cannot decide what they would like or not. They are unable to separate what is important
from the unimportant. (Zinker, 1977:93)

The researcher understands the previous two paragraphs in relation to the current study as
follows: A healthy child in the research group will be able to focus on the specific part of
himself, which is addressed at that moment. He would be aware of that part of himself and be
able to address any unfinished business and growth needs. The unhealthy child, might be
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ignorant of the parts of himself, which are not healthy and which needs to change and grow
so he can develop his full potential. Such a child might not be aware of that part of himself,
which is addressed at a specific moment during a session.

1.3.3 Figure-ground, emotional intelligence and culture

This relates to goal setting in emotional intelligence themes. Children should be aware of
what is really important for them – their values and priorities – and should also be aware of
where they are heading. These are specific themes in the current emotional intelligence
programme. In order to teach this in a Gestalt way, the children can engage in activities to
heighten the awareness of their own values, priorities and goals. The latter might be
influenced by the children’s culture, but it is acceptable if the children in the group differ
from each other on their values and goals. The most important thing is that each individual
should gain awareness of these and start to develop this through their lives. As Zinker
(1977:93) states, a child who cannot define which values and priorities are important to him
might need help. His differentiation between figure and ground might not be clear enough
and he might therefore experience some unfinished business.
The researcher also connects an inability to distinguish between figure and ground to an
introject (1.10 Boundary and contact boundary disturbances). This introject can manifest in
situations where people would follow the values and principles of their culture as their own
without questioning it. In the current study the children is in a stage of moral reasoning
where they would follow moral rules to avoid punishment and to contribute to their own
happiness, according to the theory of Kohlberg (Mwamwenda, 1996:150). The researcher is
of the opinion that the children can already question these moral rules of their culture.
According to Smetana (in Leman, 2001:208) children can make a distinction between morals
and conventional rules from the age of three. According to the researcher the children in
primary school can thus make choices concerning values and does not only have to use
cultural values as introjects. As stated in chapter 2, 1.4 Moral development, the current study
should not attempt to change the values of children, but help them to be aware of these and to
grow to higher levels of emotional intelligence. The latter might equip them not to have
unhealthy introjects. In such a way they can operate as healthier individuals, who can clearly
distinguish between what is important for them as persons – thus having a clear distinction
between figure and ground.
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1.4 The therapeutic relationship

The basis of Gestalt therapy involves both a focus on the therapeutic relationship and on
process. The relationship in Gestalt therapy is one of the curing factors in therapy.
(Jarosewitsch, 1005:1) The relationship grows out of contact between the therapist and client.
Through such contact people can grow and form their identities. (Yontef, 1993:3)
According to Ivens ([sa]:4) the relationship between therapist and client is authentic and an
end in itself, not a means to an end. The therapist takes active part in the process of change
by sharing and revealing anything that seems useful to enhance this curing relationship.
The relationship is discussed in more depth in this chapter in, 2.2.4 More theoretical
principles: The therapeutic relationship in Gestalt play therapy.
The researcher wants to emphasise the healing properties of a true and accepting relationship
between the therapist and children in the current study. The therapist should be very aware of
her self and her experience of the relationship, as this will be the main healing factor here.
This could create the safe environment within which the children can learn the important
skills needed for good emotional intelligence.

1.5 Gestalt therapy as a process

1.5.1 Discussion
As stated in 1.4, the basis of Gestalt therapy involves both a focus on the therapeutic
relationship and on process. The latter means to exist in a process of change. It is a constant
flow where it is impossible not to change, although it is possible to get stuck. This process
reflects life, reflecting every aspect of a person. In Gestalt therapy we are not focused on a
goal, but it is part of a process – being alive in the “now”. (Jarosewisch, 1995:1) According
to Yontef (1993:17) Gestalt therapy has a very big range of styles and modalities. Although
this is the case, the emphasis of Gestalt therapy is not on the techniques or what has been
discussed in therapy, but on what is done, the process itself. The emphasis is rather on direct
experience and experiments, a healing relationship, true presence, real contact and working
on what and how in the present. The process rather focuses on work than on talking about
things. “Techniques are just techniques: the overall method, relationship and attitude are the
vital aspects” (Yontef, 1993:17).
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Life and its problems and solutions are made real in the therapy situation. The researcher
understands the process of therapy with Yontef’s (1993:17) focus on it as a continuous
process of being aware of one self and experimenting with different ways of being and then
being aware of what one would learn from this experience. The process of Gestalt therapy is
thus focused on awareness and experiments with change as a result.

1.5.2 Application
In the current study the groups thus always used different types of techniques with the goal of
awareness of the children’s current way of being. These techniques might include
experiments with different ways of being. Although the process of therapy’s goal was to
heighten emotional intelligence using Gestalt therapy techniques, it was still a process. Its
focus was to make the children aware of the process of their lives. The ultimate goal was to
help the children to continue with this process of growth after the therapy sessions were
terminated.

1.6 Unfinished business

1.6.1 Discussion
Unfinished business is one of the important concepts with regard to the process
(Jarosewitsch, 1995:1). An ultimate goal of therapy is to resolve unfinished business that
demands satisfaction and thus interrupts contact (Ivens, [sa]:3), as effective contact with the
self, others and the environment cannot exist if there are things which are not settled and
which demand immediate attention. The person should thus first attend to these things before
he focuses on effective contact. Ivens ([sa]:3) states that a person can only handle unfinished
business if he is aware and understands his own functioning. If an unmet need arises, his
mode of operation will show it. If he understands his usual mode of operation, he will be
aware of the change in operation much easier than when he was not aware of it. In such a
way a person can identify polarities, split parts and the energy required to resolve these
again. (Ivens, [sa]:3)

1.6.2 Application
The researcher sees the process of dealing with unfinished business as energising. The
person, who deals with unfinished business and resolves it, will get the energy wasted on
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maintaining the unfinished business back again. In the therapy sessions of this study the
therapist had to be sensitive to unfinished business of the children in the group. Unfinished
business should have been handled immediately to help the children not to waste their energy
on maintaining it. In such a way the children could be able to grow and actualise their true
selves. They could then rather use their energy for growth than to maintain unfinished
business.

1.7 Here and now

According to the researcher Gestalt therapy does not dwell in the past. The person
immediately deals with the unfinished business, which is different from his usual operation
and blocking healthy contact with himself, others and the environment.

In the following paragraphs the researcher distinguishes in a way between here (as a place)
and now (as a specific point in time). It should be noted that these two concepts are not
completely separate and can be understood in relation to each other. The discussions under
different headings might thus still overlap with each other.

1.7.1 Now as the present time

Zinker (1977:79) states, “My sensory exploration enlivens me in this moment”. This
description of sensory awareness, relating to the self, again shows to the body-mind
connection, the holistic approach of this study and of Gestalt therapy. The physical body
(physical experience of sensations) connects to cognition (attaching a cognitive value to a
sensory experience) and to emotions and will (exploring a sense of self).

According to Yontef (1993:16), “now” starts with the present awareness of the patient. It is
not what happened in the past. Present awareness might focus on what happened before, but
the process of awareness is “now”. The “now” refers to the present hour of therapy. Other
experiences that are of importance in the present moment are dealt with. Part of handling
issues in the present is to experiment with it during the therapy time, rather than to talk about
it. (Yontef, 1993:16) Zinker (1977:79) states that reality always exists in the present. There is
no way in which a person can live his past again or live his future in the present moment.
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1.7.2 Now and sensory awareness

The researcher wants to emphasise the importance of sensory awareness exercises in the
beginning of therapy sessions. Being aware of one’s senses is connecting a person to his state
of self in the immediate environment at this moment. This is pulling the person towards
contact with himself. (Zinker, 1977:79) This discussion elaborates the researcher’s
understanding of the meaning and value of sensory awareness. If a person is aware of his
sensory experience, he is aware of the cognitive connections attached to it and is aware of his
sense of self. As the researcher is working within a Gestalt perspective in this study, it is
important to focus on the self as it is presented in the present moment. Sensory awareness
connects the person to his self at this moment, so that he can explore his way of being now.

1.7.3 Here
The “here” of “here and now” relates to the space where a person is at the moment. Zinker
(1977:83) states, “The range of my ‘here’ is determined by the space I occupy and by the
range of my senses … The here and now represents a highly personal sensorically-anchored
experience at this moment in time and at this place where I am”.
Zinker (1977:78-82) discusses here and now in relation to sensation and time. He states that
the experience of here and now starts with sensation. The researcher understands sensory
awareness, as discussed by Zinker (1977:78) as “here”. In the human being, sensory
experience is automatically named and connected to cognition. Our language is rooted in
sensory experience, as they represent a concrete experience. To explore oneself a person is
getting aware of what he experiences sensorically here – at this moment. The human brain
will add cognition to the sensory experiences and the person will be consciously aware of his
self.

1.7.4 Application in the present study

In the present study this meant that children needed to deal with the way they were
experiencing the behaviour and / or feelings related to the theme of that present session right
there. We thus did not discuss behaviour and feelings, which occurred in the past. Emotional
intelligence skills were taught using the behaviour of the children presented during the
sessions. It is thus important that the therapist worked on building a relationship and safe
environment so children feel free to honestly show and share their true selves during the
sessions. In such a way children could be aware of and able to work on their true selves. To
be able to really focus on themselves, sessions will always begin with a sensory awareness
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exercise. If the children were aware of their senses in this place at this moment, they would
be more able to connect to their sense of self here and now.

1.8 Dialogue

1.8.1 Discussion and definition of Dialogue in Gestalt therapy

According to Jarosewitsch (1995:1) and Yontef (1993:3) the relationship between the
therapist and client is healing and dialogue is the therapist’s best tool for enhancing the
therapeutic process. According to Yontef (1993:3) existential dialogue is a very important
method in Gestalt therapy and relates to the relationship. As stated in 1.4 The therapeutic
relationship, the latter grows out of contact. This contact between therapist and client means
to establish a boundary between “me” and “not me”. Making contact means to interact with
someone else while maintaining the self. Buber (in Yontef, 1993:3) states that the “I-Thou”
relationship is the one used by Gestalt therapists. This means that the “I” has meaning in
relationship with the “Thou”. It is not an “I-It” manipulative relationship though. In Gestalt
therapy the therapist will therefore rather discuss (dialogue) options than to manipulate the
client to some therapeutic goal. (Yontef, 1993:3-4) Mackewn (2004:86) differs slightly from
the focus of Yontef (1993:3-4) away from the I-It relationship. She states that in a healing
relationship I-Thou moments arise as a subjective connection between therapist and client.
The latter is also balanced by I-It moments, which are more objective discussions (Mackewn,
2004:84-85). The client should be responsible for his own growth and self-support and not be
led by the therapist. Such contact (including the dialogue) is caring, warm, and based on
acceptance and on self-responsibility. Dialogue is thus based on being true to the self and
honest, showing and being aware of the real self. (Yontef, 1993:3-4) Mackewn (2004:82)
relates to this type of I-Thou relationship contributing to effective dialogue. She states that
the I-Thou attitude involves “turning your being to their being, addressing them with real
respect, being genuinely interested, accepting and confirming of them as they are now and
not as a means to an end” (Mackewn, 2004:82). In this relationship the client and therapist
are equal in humanity, although they bring different qualities and skills to share. This type of
horizontal relationship and the use of the same language (present-centred and responsible)
are important in the Gestalt dialogue. (Mackewn, 2004:82-83) It is thus a real person-to-
person type of dialogue.
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1.8.2 Characteristics of dialogue

The following are four characteristics of dialogue in Gestalt therapy as listed by Yontef
(1993:4):

1.8.2.1 Inclusion
This means to provide a safe atmosphere for the other person by placing oneself as far
as possible in the other person’s situation without judging, analysing or interpreting.
At the same time the therapist will remain his own separate self.

1.8.2.2 Presence
The therapist is personally present, sharing and expressing her own experiences,
preferences, feelings, etcetera. This should be an example to encourage the clients to
regulate themselves autonomously.

1.8.2.3 Commitment to dialogue

Contact happens between two people out of the interaction between them. The
therapist needs to surrender to this process, let it happen without manipulating the
outcome, only controlling it.

1.8.2.4 Dialogue is lived

Dialogue is actually an action, it is done, applied, not only talked about. It happens
during the therapy session. It can happen in any mode like dancing, singing or
talking, but the energy between the participants is moved. Dialogue can thus also be
by means of non-verbal communication. (Yontef, 1993:4)

1.8.3 Implications for the current study

In the current study the therapist will thus attempt to create a safe environment where any
feelings or behaviour can be expressed and of which the therapist will provide an example.
The latter happens because the therapist lives the dialogue, it should also be done in the
therapy session. The researcher as therapist interacted with the children in the group, they
engaged in dialogue actions, even though non-verbal at times. In the present study the
therapist controlled the dialogue a little by taking the lead, but attempted not to manipulate
what the children should say or do. The children in these groups therefore learned by doing
in interaction with the researcher as therapist.
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The therapist in similar groups should thus not get stuck with the exercises presented, but be
sensitive to the dialogue needs of the children. If a need arises, a polarity is sensed or an
unfulfilled need is picked up, it should be addressed by the means of contact through
dialogue.

1.9 Contact

The researcher already started to discuss contact in the previous paragraphs on dialogue.
According to the researcher contact is the true and honest connection between the therapist
and client.
According to Ivens ([sa]:2) contact relates to the cycle in which needs arise and are met, such
as in the paragraphs in 1.6 Unfinished business. The researcher reasons that, in order to meet
unfulfilled needs or complete unfinished business, the therapist needs to engage in a healing
relationship, in which healthy contact exists between therapist and client. This contact
happens in the following cycle:

1.9.1 The cycle of contact:

Ivens ([sa]:2) explains contact as happening in the following four phases:

1.9.1.1 Fore-contact
A need arises and the client or person is aware that his balance is disturbed.

1.9.1.2 Contact
Possibilities to meet the need are evaluated, attempting to find a way to restore balance again.

1.9.1.3 Final contact

The client is very involved with himself and the quality of contact in therapy will now
determine whether the need can effectively be met or not. Good contact is only possible if the
client can maintain a good sense of uniqueness and difference from the therapist.
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1.9.1.4 Post contact

It is at this point where growth takes place. The client should feel satisfied by good contact
and thus a safe environment for change and growth. Now balance is restored again when
unfinished business is completed. His needs are fulfilled.

1.9.2 Contact boundary

Contact takes place within a contact boundary. This is a metaphor to explain the difference
between a person and his environment – where one stops and the other begins. It can be
described like a skin, separating the body from the world around it. Disturbances in this
boundary can have a negative effect on the effectiveness of contact and growth. (Ivens,
[sa]:2)

1.9.3 Researcher’s view and application to the current study

The researcher sees unfinished business, contact and the therapeutic relationship as parts of a
whole process, which cannot be separated. The client has an unfulfilled need (unfinished
business), which can be treated within a caring and safe environment (the relationship)
through the process of making healthy contact.
In the current study the children engaged in this process of healthy contact with the therapist
and with each other. Hereby their self-awareness concerning possible unfinished business
could be raised so the process of growth can continue. All of this took place in the caring,
positive and safe environment of the Gestalt play therapy group.

There are some ways of being though, which has a negative influence on the effectiveness of
contact. These are the contact boundary disturbances discussed below.

1.10 Boundary and contact boundary disturbances

1.10.1 The Boundary

The boundary is where two people meet. It is the metaphor for the environment or the place
where contact takes place. A healthy boundary is semi-permeable and flexible. It fulfils the
following two functions:
It contains and provides a sense of identity
It allows exchange to happen (give and receive)
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Boundary processes also involve some personal difficulties, which might present intra
personal problems. (Jarosewitsch, 1995:1-2)
In this study the boundary was the group environment and the relationships in the groups. It
was also the personal environments of the group members as stated by Jarosewitsch (1995:1-
2) above.

1.10.2 Contact boundary disturbances

Ivens ([sa]:3) states that the cycle of contact can be interrupted when a person does not want
to face the pain of his unfulfilled need/s. This person will then prevent contact by some kind
of neurotic mechanism. These mechanisms are then called contact boundary disturbances
such as those listed by Van Wyk, Aronstam, Clarkson, Yontef & Simkin, Yontef, Clarkson &
Mackewn and Oaklander in Blom (2004:6). Contact boundary disturbances include amongst
others: projections, introjects, confluence, and retroflection (Ivens, [sa]:3).
These contact boundary disturbances are discussed in more detail in the section on Gestalt
play therapy (2. GESTALT PLAY THERAPY), where it could more specifically be applied
to the current research.

1.11 Awareness

1.11.1 Discussion and definition of awareness

According to the researcher awareness in Gestalt therapy means to know what is going on
and also understanding it in such a way that one can adapt to a healthier pattern if necessary.

“Awareness is the key term in Gestalt Therapy” (Jarosewitsch, 1995:1). Humans tend to
function according to what feels familiar rather than according to what is more enhancing for
them. Awareness gives the human being the opportunity to change to more enhancing ways
of being. Through the awareness and experience of different options of being, humans gain
the freedom of choice. In such a way change happens naturally. Awareness is therefore the
goal and path of therapy. Jarosewitsch (1995:1), Yontef (1993:2) and Zinker (1977:90)
compare awareness to insight or understanding. Insight in Gestalt therapy means to clearly
understand the structure of the situation at hand. In order to develop insight in a situation,
awareness should be accompanied by systematic exploration, thus focused awareness, and
investigation. The researcher understands the latter as follows: The person is aware of and
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understands or has insight in the fragments in his life, which leads to a disturbance in the
whole.
Ivens ([sa]:3) defines awareness as the ability to be in touch with one’s present situation and
existence. He states that our functioning at a specific moment is designed to meet our most
dominant need/s at that moment. If we get aware of present operations like breathing
patterns, voice, posture and gestures, we can realise how we attempt to meet our needs at that
moment. The researcher is of the opinion that awareness of how we meet our needs, mean
that we are also on the way to be aware of what the needs really are. Awareness of these
more concrete operations of ourselves, such as breathing and our senses, will thus lead to
awareness of the more abstract dimensions of ourselves like emotional needs. Clarkson and
Mackewn in Ivens ([sa]:3) states “You can only be aware of that which you can contact at
first hand, that is through your senses”. We are aware of things that happen in the present
(the here and now), obvious things. People’s mode of operation is revealed in these obvious
things.

1.11.2 Researcher’s view

The researcher is therefore of the opinion that we change ourselves when we are really aware
of our ineffective ways of being – thus having insight in the behaviour and emotional
patterns, which lead to unhappiness or any other kind of problem. This goes along with the
paradoxical theory of change in Gestalt therapy. Change to the way you really are is
discussed in the next section. This happens when the person gets aware of ineffective, not-
self, ways of being.

1.11.3 Application to the current study

In the current study the theme of awareness was present throughout the programme.
Awareness is a salient theme in most of the applications of the theoretical theories of Gestalt
therapy as discussed here. Although the programme in this study aimed to enhance emotional
intelligence, which implies teaching of emotional intelligence skills, it was done through the
process of awareness and the paradoxical theory of change. In the current study children
were led to awareness of their selves in each session. Sessions had a sensory awareness
exercise during the first part of the session to help the children to be in conscious contact
with their real selves. All emotional intelligence themes were carried over to the children by
making them aware of how it already occurs in their lives or the absence thereof. The current
programme is focused on being culturally sensitive therefore both the group members and the
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therapist should have been aware of how people differ, their own attitudes towards different
people and how they handle this. The therapist using this programme should continuously be
aware of himself and his own process as well as the processes of the children in the group.
The children in the research groups were led to awareness and insight in their own and the
group members’ processes.

1.12 Change

1.12.1 Becoming what you are

Beisser (1970:1) defined the theory of change as follows: “...change occurs when one
becomes what he is, not when he tries to become what he is not”.
He explains this further by stating that one will not change if he himself tries to change him,
nor when somebody else tries to change him. Change can only take place when the person
takes time and effort to be what he really is.
In Gestalt therapy, the role of the changer is thus rejected. The client comes to the therapist
to help him to change. Instead of helping the client to be something or someone different,
the Gestalt therapist will lead the client to be fully aware of who, what and how he really is –
“to be fully invested in his current positions” (Beisser, 1970:1). Change will thus not take
place while trying to change. Change will only occur when the client abandons what he
would like to be and just be aware of what he is – to be and become what he really is.

1.12.2 The process of change

Change happens, according to Ivens ([sa]:4), when a person completes unfinished business
and that can only happen with awareness. The paradox of change is that when a person
changes he becomes what he really is, not what he is not. Jarosewitsch (1995:2) states that it
is impossible not to change, because according to the researcher, a person is in the process of
becoming who he really while being in the process of change. People get blocked in this
process and then needs therapy to continue again. The researcher understands the process of
change using the following diagram:
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Road of life before therapy, with obstacles blocking the way

(aware of obstacles / fragments blocking true road of life –

this process is removing the obstacles…)

Road of life after / during therapy, with obstacles removed through awareness

Figure 4.1 Process of change

1.12.3 Application
The children in this programme were led to change towards higher levels of emotional
intelligence through the process of awareness as discussed above in 1.11 Awareness.

1.13 Responsibility

“…it’s you – nobody else – who determine your destiny and decide your fate. Nobody else
can be alive for you nor can you be alive for anyone else” (Cummings in Zinker, 1977:77).

According to Jarosewitsch (1995:1) a person can only take responsibility for his own life
through awareness of (thus insight in one’s fragmented life), acknowledging and owning the
process of his life. The person recognises how he contributed to his life’s fragments or the
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difficult current life situation. He increases his personal power to resolve this, rather than to
feel and act like a victim.
The researcher sees this responsibility as dealing with life honestly, without blaming others
and/or reflecting it to one’s physical self / making yourself sick and/or ignoring the problems
etcetera. The person will thus be aware of his problems and will deal with it himself, without
these ineffective contact boundary disturbances, which will be discussed hereafter.
Yontef (1993:11) states responsibility in Gestalt therapy as being able to respond, not react
(Jarosewitsch, 1995:1), being the primary agents in determining their own life. Yontef
(1993:11) states that a person can only take responsibility for what he chooses to be. If a
person tries to take responsibility for things that happened without his choice, it causes a
disturbance, named deception. The person has a shame reaction, thus feels sorry for himself.

The researcher therefore sees responsibility as a person’s total honesty about his own life and
a healthy open way to respond to whatever is going wrong. The person is thus attempting to
be his true self by being aware of the parts, which are not part of himself and getting rid of
those. This responsibility was a continuous theme in the intervention programme of this
study.

1.14 Self organising principles

According to Jarosewitsch (1995:2) Gestalt therapy has a radical trust in the human being’s
ability to always organise himself to the best possible option and come to a creative solution
for his problems. These are the self-organising principles of the organism.
The researcher sees these as the solutions, which the children in the present study created
through awareness. It incorporated the emotional intelligence skills, which they could use in
their everyday lives.

1.15 Self-actualisation

The researcher sees self-actualisation as closely related to the self-organising principles. Here
the person will become more fully what he can be and realise his full potential through a
process where he uses self-organising principles. According to Jarosewitsch (1995:2) the
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person who actualises himself has a high degree of awareness, autonomy, responsibility and
availability for healthy contact. Such a person can fully be himself, free from trying to be
someone else.
In the current research study the children needed to be equipped with the necessary skills and
levels of self-awareness to be able to really become what they are and can be, thus to reach
their potential.

1.16 Holism

1.16.1 Discussion of holism

“Holism runs throughout gestalt thinking … Mind, body and emotions function as a whole
process…” (Ivens, [sa]:2). Ivens ([sa]:2) also reasons that the different parts of the whole
cannot be divided into separate parts. Should one try to deal with separate parts without
considering the whole, it is not healthy and can lead to neurosis. Mackewn (2004:43)
supports this by stating that a person is at all times a whole person. The human being’s
“body, emotions, thoughts and perceptions function interrelatedly as one complex relational
whole” (Mackewn, 2004:43). This interrelatedness of the whole makes up for the whole to
be more than the sum of its parts (compare Aware relations, 1997:4; Mackewn, 2004:43).
Schoeman (1996:56) also states that it is important that a human being function as a whole or
a gestalt. If this is the case, the person has a lot of strength and power.

1.16.2 Applying holism to the current study

Holism is even more important in the current study because the children in the research
groups are in the primary school (7-12 years). According to Fourie’s (1998:83)
developmental theory, children in this age group specifically focus on whole brain thinking.
They tend to combine knowledge and insight and form a new strategy. Holism is thus
naturally present in their thinking processes. In the current study children were thus viewed
as a whole. The researcher reasons that different parts of self are interrelated. The researcher
is of the opinion that if a child experience problems concerning a specific part of himself or
is not in healing contact with a part of himself, he might not be able to fulfil his true
potential. Awareness of such difficulties concerning a specific part or parts of himself is,
according to the researcher, the first step of healing. The researcher reasons that healing
happens when the child can function as a whole again. If certain parts of a child are not well,
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it influences the child as a whole. If a child does not feel good about himself, he will suffer to
achieve good grades in school and might present physical symptoms of tension –
psychosomatic symptoms (retroflection in Gestalt theory). The therapist who uses this
intervention programme should be sensitive to physical symptoms as indicators of emotional
stressors such as contact boundary disturbances like retroflection. In such a way the therapist
can be a catalyst for the child to heal the parts of himself that need attention. The child can
then function as a healthy whole.

The principles of Gestalt theory will, in the following paragraphs, be applied to play therapy.
The intervention programme developed in this research study utilised and tested the
effectiveness of Gestalt play therapy techniques to increase emotional intelligence in a
culturally sensitive way.

2. GESTALT PLAY THERAPY

2.1 Introduction

Gouws (in Blom, 2004:3) describes play therapy as a psychotherapeutic technique where the
therapist tries to give the child the opportunity to express his feelings in a verbal or non-
verbal way. The therapist assumes that the child will communicate his emotional problems in
a symbolic way through play. Through play the child will learn to know his emotions and
will learn to canalise his emotions more effectively and will learn to engage in a trusting
relationship with somebody else. In such a way negative behaviour can be normalised.
Oaklander (in Blom, 2004:3) describes Gestalt play therapy by using some theoretical
principles of Gestalt therapy, which has an influence on the therapeutic process with
children. The following are Gestalt principles, which also has an influence on therapy with
children: the relationship, organismic self-regulation, contact boundary disturbances,
awareness, experience and resistance. She describes the therapeutic process of Gestalt play
therapy as relating to the philosophy, theory and practice of Gestalt therapy. Gestalt therapy
starts with the building of a therapeutic relationship as prerequisite for effective therapy.
Making contact with the child, strengthening his sense of self and his expression of emotions,
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follows the former. This is followed by self-nurturing and termination of the therapy session.
Oaklander in Blom (2004:4) states the following forms of play to be included in the play
therapy process: clay, fantasy, stories, puppets, sand tray work, music, movement, and
sensory awareness exercises.

The researcher provides, in the following paragraphs, a summary overview of some

theoretical principles of Gestalt play therapy, connected with Gestalt principles in general as
discussed by Blom (2004:4-9), Jarosewitsch (1995:1-2), Schoeman (2004b:78-80) and
Yontef (1993:1-33).

2.2 Theoretical principles of Gestalt play therapy

2.2.1 Holism in Gestalt play therapy

Blom (2004:4) states that the human being is seen as a whole in Gestalt theory. The whole is
more than the sum of the parts (Aware relations, 1997:4). The parts including the physical
body, emotions, psyche, language, cognition and behaviour are interrelated and cannot be
separated from each other (Blom, 2004:4). The whole is different from all the parts together.
The whole can only be understood fully in its entirety, although it is composed of different
elements. “In fact, it cannot be understood essentially at all except as a whole” (Aware
relations, 1997:4). Holism has been discussed in this study in Chapter 2 (2.2 The operation of
emotions).
According to Blom (2004:4) Gestalt play therapy will therefore focus on the child as a whole
with all his different processes of self as interacting. A Gestalt play therapy programme will
therefore focus on aspects like the child’s physical body, psyche, emotions and religious
aspects, language, cognition and behaviour.
The current programme focused on enhancing the emotional intelligence of the children, thus
focusing mainly on emotions. Although the latter is the case, the child was viewed as a
whole. Other parts of the children as holistic beings were thus also included. It was important
to the researcher to achieve a certain balance when working with the children in this
programme. A certain amount of time was thus spent on the children’s physical and cognitive
selves too.
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2.2.2 Homeostasis, organismic self-regulation and awareness

According to Blom (2004:4) this is the self-regulating process of the child. This process
focuses on gaining balance in different circumstances. New needs are created from both the
child’s inner being as well as from the environment. When new needs arise, which are not
fulfilled yet, the child experiences discomfort – there is then a disturbance in his homeostasis
or balance. If a way is found to fulfil in his needs, growth takes place. The process by which
the child fulfils his needs is called organismic self-regulation.
Jarosewitsch (1995:1) states that awareness provides the opportunity for change. According
to the researcher the child in play therapy will be helped to be aware of himself and his
needs. This awareness disturbs the homeostasis of the child and the child’s self-regulating
process can be initiated. Schoeman (2004a:79) states though that organismic self-regulation
does not ensure health. The child will only do all he can with what is available to fulfil in his
needs. The researcher thus sees the need here for guidance from the play therapist to lead the
child to healthy alternatives to fulfil his needs.

2.2.3 Contact boundary disturbances

Blom (2004:5-6) states that contact boundary disturbances originates when a person cannot
maintain a good balance between himself and the world outside anymore. The person, or
child in play therapy, is not able to be effectively aware of his needs and can thus not respond
according to his needs anymore. The boundary between him and his environment then gets
disturbed.
The researcher sees this as a confusion of what the person’s own needs are and of what is
inflicted, expected or caused by his environment. He therefore does not know where his own
needs stop and where the needs of the environment start.
Blom (2004:6) states that such a person will continuously ask other people to tell him how he
should be. He will therefore not grow towards self-actualisation anymore. The child is
therefore not able to be aware of his own needs and cannot be in a healthy contact with his
environment.
The following are contact boundary disturbances as discussed by Blom (2004:6-9).

2.2.3.1 Introjections
This is the uncritical acceptance of rules, patterns and behaviour as imposed by
authority figures or important others like parents, family, teachers etcetera (compare
Schoeman, 2004a:79; Yontef, 1993:9).
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According to Blom (2004:6) children take patterns of behaviour, rules on how to act
and manners as introjects. Through these they learn to communicate and develop their
sense of self, thus who they are in relation to the rest of the world. Many of these
introjects can contribute to the healthy growth of a child. It is also the case that some
introjects may interfere with growth and thus with the organismic self-regulating
mechanism of the child. The function of the therapist is thus to find which introjects
interfere with the child’s healthy growth and help the child to be aware of these. If the
child just accepts the introjects he never makes it his own. This will still influence his
behaviour, but is not part of himself. In therapy the child needs to be made aware of
such introjects and either leave it or really make it his own. (Blom, 2004:7)

In the current programme children discussed themselves, the way they are, their
behaviour and their feelings. Through these discussions the therapist had to be
sensitive for introjects, which were not accepted as part of the children’s selves. This
could be discussed and an alternative could be developed and experimented with.

2.2.3.2 Projection
This is the tendency to blame the environment, anything- or anyone else for
something that is really only an attribute of the self (compare Blom, 2004:7;
Schoeman, 2004b:79; Yontef, 1993:9). According to Yontef (1993:9) pathological
projection results when a person is not aware of what is projected and also does not
take responsibility for this. According to Blom (2004:7) this usually happens when
the person (or child in this case) learned that certain personality traits and behaviour
is unacceptable. He will then blame something else for this. The emotions are
projected because it is too painful to accept. Oaklander (in Blom, 2004:7) states that
projection is a way to defend the vulnerable self of the child and may lead to a loss of
his own possibilities. According to the researcher the child will therefore not be aware
of his own potential to solve problems, but will only blame it on other people, things
or circumstances. He will thus never continue on the road to self-actualisation. He
skips this road and takes the road of least resistance, namely the blaming game. This
also relates to the important Gestalt principle of taking responsibility (compare
Schoeman, 2004b:79; Yontef, 1993:11) for your own life.
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Blom (2004:7) states the possibility that the child might use projections to rather
blame others for his introjects to justify his behaviour, than to be aware of these and
take responsibility for it.
As awareness is a very important part of Gestalt therapy as well as emotional
intelligence (compare Aware Relations, 1997; Goleman, 1996:43,46-48,68;
Jarosewitch, 1995:1; Lynn in Maree, 2004:69; Yontef, 1997:10), the therapist in the
current programme had to be very sensitive for projections. The researcher is of the
opinion that handling projections incorporates many important aspects of both Gestalt
theory as well as emotional intelligence, including awareness, responsibility, self-
regulation, homeostasis and effective communication.

2.2.3.3 Confluence
According to the researcher, confluence as a contact boundary disturbance, is not
completely the same as confluence as an objective of the therapeutic relationship
(3.2.1.2 Objectives of the therapeutic relationship). Confluence in the relationship
means to relate to the child to be able to make better contact. Confluence as a contact
boundary disturbance is when this sameness diminishes the boundary between the
person (child in this case) and the environment (Blom, 2004:7). This lack of
boundaries inhibits effective contact with other people. According to Oaklander (in
Blom, 2004:7) children who use confluence are people pleasers. They do things to
please others and are thus not true to themselves. They have a poor sense of self.
Blom (2004:8) states that, such children cannot differentiate between themselves and
others. Their own identity is lost and they do not develop a strong sense of self.
The researcher again relates this to self-awareness of Gestalt theory and building of a
positive self-image of emotional intelligence. Here the same principles apply to both
Gestalt theory as well as emotional intelligence. It makes a programme using Gestalt
therapy to improve emotional intelligence so much more effective.

2.2.3.4 Retroflection
According to Blom (2004:8), Yontef (1993:9) and Ivens ([sa]:3) retroflection means
that the child will treat himself in the same way he would like to treat someone else.
According to Blom (2004:8) children will experience symptoms like headaches,
stomach pain, asthma or hyperactivity as a reaction on feelings of sadness or anger
towards someone else. Psychosomatic symptoms might thus be symptoms of
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retroflection. She also states that introjections, which gives the impression that
emotions like anger is unacceptable, may lead to retroflection of emotions.
The researcher wants to emphasise the concept of holism (compare Awareness
Relations, 1997:4-5; Ivens, [sa]:2; Jarosewitsch, 1995:1; Schoeman, 2004b:80) in
Gestalt theory. The child’s emotions and emotional awareness has a direct influence
on his physical well-being. Physical ailments should not be treated without
considering the emotional indications too.

2.2.3.5 Deflection
This means to avoid contact with other people or the environment for example not
making eye contact, changing the subject (Blom, 2004:8) or being polite instead of
direct (Yontef, 1993:9). Children use this as a coping mechanism for painful
experiences, according to Blom (2004:8). They may get anger outbursts, act out,
fantasise extremely or daydream. This is a short-term solution for problems, giving
the child a sense of self and energy. The child is not able to know that his behaviour
is unacceptable for the fulfilling of his needs. He will rather try more ineffective (and
more extreme) ways of behaving. Deflection can thus manifest in different ways in a
child. This is a way to defend himself against emotional pain.
According to the researcher this is also denial of self and the child needs to be helped
to become aware of this behaviour and the reason for it. As self-awareness is also an
important concept of emotional intelligence, awareness of deflection was necessary to
include in the current programme.

2.2.3.6 Desensitisation
Children who experienced physical or emotional harm and/or pain desensitise
themselves by ignoring sensory experiences. They cannot make contact with their
senses and therefore also not with their emotions. (Blom, 2004:9) The researcher will
associate this with a child who is sensory not in tact. He is thus not really aware of
what it is he touches, tastes, hears, smells or feels. Such a child will find it very
difficult to be aware of his true self or true feelings. Schoeman (2004b:137) states that
a child’s senses are his contact with the outer world. Oaklander (in Schoeman,
2004b:138) furthermore states that children loose their full awareness of their senses
at times. In this study the researcher perceives this lost contact of sensory experience
as break of contact with the outer world. If the child’s environment is dangerous, sad,
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hurting etcetera he might cut it out by breaking contact through his senses. This is a
self-protective mechanism of the child, although ineffective because he is not in
contact with his real self and cannot develop positive coping strategies. To help a
child in the current programme the researcher had to be sensitive to those children
who are not in tact with their senses. Should that have happened, the researcher
should have spent time on sensory awareness of that group member. The other group
members should have been part of the process by sharing their experiences and
engaging in dialogue with the specific member. It is important to make that child
aware of his senses again to open him up to his true self.

2.2.4 More theoretical principles: The therapeutic relationship in Gestalt play therapy

2.2.4.1 The value of the therapeutic relationship

“According to the Gestalt approach, the healing process does not occur as a result of
the therapist’s interpretation of the client’s symptoms, thereby giving the client
insight into his symptoms, but rather as a result of the relationship built between the
therapist and the client” (Schoeman, 2004b:120). It is thus the relationship that heals
in Gestalt play therapy and not only the techniques used. Jarosewitsch (1995:1) also
states that the relationship is a curative factor. For the relationship to be curative some
aims and objectives can contribute to its effectiveness. Jarosewitsch (1995:1) also
states that the therapist is his own best tool to increase the effectiveness of such a
relationship. He emphasises that the therapist should be fully available for dialogue
and that contact on inter- and intra personal levels can be increased in such a way.

2.2.4.2 Aims of the therapeutic relationship

According to Schoeman (1996b:29,30) the following are the therapist’s main aims
when building a relationship:
The therapist should know the problem leading to the necessity for therapy – in
the case of the current study the children all need to increase their emotional
intelligence. Although this is the case, each child has his own cause for the lack of
emotional intelligence.
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The therapist should bring the child into contact with his sensory, emotional and
cognitive needs. In the current study the children will do a sensory exercise in the
beginning of each session and will work with their emotional and cognitive
selves.
The therapist should help the child to fulfil his own needs and to have realistic
expectations. In the current study this will be part of the therapeutic process to
help the children to be aware of their own needs.
The children should know that some situations would be painful, but necessary to
explore. In the current study the children might come across themes, which are
painful, but it will be handled within the safety of the caring group environment.
The children will need to know that they are going to make choices and take
responsibility for their own lives. In this study responsibility is one of the main
themes.
The children must be willing to relate to his environment and other people. They
should also be aware of their influence in their world. These aspects will be
handled in the current study when the group focus on interpersonal relationships.
The therapist should study the children’s processes. In this study it is done with
tools like the DISC instrument, “All About Bots” (Rohm, 1998) and a learning
style questionnaire (Bradway & Hill, 2004:153) completed by parents or primary
caretakers of the children. Some play therapy techniques, like the use of animals
as projections, can also be applied.
The children should be empowered by the therapist so they can take responsibility
for their own lives. In the current study this will be done in every session through
encouragement, praise and positive expectations.

According to Schoeman (1996b:30) the therapist can establish and stabilise a

relationship with the children by being their friend and playmate. A child will not be
able to share secrets and be spontaneous with a total stranger.
For the researcher as therapist in this programme she also had to share herself with the
children to be their true friend. The researcher as therapist thus also participated in the
activities and truly shared herself. She was thus part of the friends in the group.
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2.2.4.3 Objectives of the therapeutic relationship

Objectives of the relationship are the requirements of such a relationship. Some of
these requirements are related to the therapist, others to the children and others to
both. (Schoeman, 1996b:30) In the current study these objectives, although discussed
as part of the principles for Gestalt play therapy, will also be part of the techniques
being used to increase emotional intelligence. It has been divided as far as possible
into relationship objectives more applicable to the therapist and then to the children.
The following is a list of these requirements and techniques, with a very short
description and guidelines that could be applied to this programme and/or other
similar ones:

Objectives more applicable to the therapist:

Biding one’s time
The children should be able to take their time to explore themselves. The therapist
should not hurry the child. This might be a difficult objective to meet in the
current study, as the group has a time constraint of 90 minutes. The therapist
should therefore be aware not to try to fit too many things into one session. Rather
do one exercise without haste, than to try to fit in too many things.

Clichés and confluence

This means being in a way the same than the children, to let the children be open
to the therapist, so the therapist can experience their selves with them. It can also
mean that they (the children) drop their boundaries and be the same than the
therapist. The danger of this may be that the children will then not take
responsibility for their own lives or decisions. It is therefore clear here that the
therapist should be in confluence with the children and not the other way around.
In the current study the therapist lead the children to awareness of themselves by
truly sharing their experiences and feeling with them. Reflecting their experiences
and selves to them, should thus make them aware of themselves.
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Friendship
The therapist must become the children’s friend, as she is their playmate. The
researcher as therapist should attempt to be on the same level as the children. It
should be a give and take relationship and the child can feel at ease and can
experience a sense of fairness. Again children will share their selves much easier
to a friend than to a grownup therapist. In this study the therapist should
participate in all the exercises and be a friend. She should model an example of a
good friend and in such a way create a true friendship experiment with the
children in the group.

Guardianship
The therapist should not only be the children’s friend but also their guardian. The
children should still get the message that they are able to take responsibility for
their own lives. The therapist should only be there for the children when they
need assistance. Then they can function in a safe environment and feel free to step
out of their comfort zones and try out the new things they are learning. This
should be precisely the case in the current study. The therapist should be the
children’s adult friend, who can help and create a safe environment.

Humility
The therapist should be humble to be a friend. In such a case the children can take
risks and develop a positive relationship with her. In the current study the
therapist should continuously work on her self not to think of herself as somebody
higher than the children.

Information
To supply the children with information is part of guardianship. Children have the
right to know about certain aspects of their lives. The therapist should be aware of
the dangers of half-knowledge around which a child can build the wrong story. In
the current study much of the information will be about the themes handled and
emotional intelligence.
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Kindness and honesty

To be a good friend and guardian, kindness and honesty are needed characteristics
of the therapist. The therapist should show integrity not to share the children’s
secrets with others. In the current study honesty and confidentiality should be part
of the group rules. The therapist should remember to be kind and soft-hearted
with the children.

Laughter
This is part of play and friendship. The therapist should laugh with the children
and not at them. It should be a shared experience. Humour can reduce tension and
stress. In the current study funny activities can be created and used as an
instrument for shared laughter.

Making contact
Contact can only happen if therapy is a passion of the therapist. The therapist in
this study should be passionate about children, their development and importance
and about the value of emotional intelligence.

Critique
The therapist also has the role of a critic. Critique is often a very negative
experience for children. The therapist should teach the children that it is their
actions, which are criticised and not themselves. In the current study, children will
thus be made aware of this fact continuously so that they can understand and
apply this to their own lives.

Transference
This is an obstacle for the therapist to be aware of. The children or a child might
transfer their negative experiences of other people to the therapist. The therapist
cannot force the child not to transfer. The child should be free enough to be aware
of this and so should the therapist. In the current study the latter should be the
case and the therapist can also try to make the child aware of the possibility of
transference, without trying to take it away.
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Warmth
The therapist gives herself. Warmth should be experienced through the therapist’s
body language. It is his tone of voice, and gentleness in attitude and posture. The
therapist should be aware whether the warmth he is feeling is carried over in his
communication with the children. In the current study the therapist should work
on himself to increase his sincere feelings of warmth and compassion.

“X-ray vision”
The therapist should be very sensitive to the children in the groups. He should
look beyond the verbal communication and be sensitive to the depths of the
children’s experiences and true feelings.

Zest
The therapist should have a zest for life and his example may encourage the
children to have the same zest. This means to have energy and be enthusiastic
about life. In this study it is an important emotional intelligence skill to teach.

Objectives more applicable to the children / group members

Awareness
The children will do experiments to bring their experiences in their environment,
their feelings, thoughts and actions to life. If they are aware of these, they will
start to heal themselves. In this study the children will use experiments to be
aware of themselves.

Dialogue
This is communicating in the therapeutic situation. The children should bargain
with the therapist and with each other in the group about their feelings, thoughts
and experiences. The therapist should also share feelings, preferences and
personal experiences. The therapist and children should agree on contact to
happen. In the current study dialogue should be included as one of the group
rules. Dialogue is a live thing. It can happen through talking, dancing, singing,
making music or other sounds etcetera. According to the researcher as therapist,
these different types of dialogue can contribute much to the fun of the sessions.
This makes the emotional intelligence groups a fun experience for the children.
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Children learn better in a positive environment. Children should have resistance to

new information, they should reason with it, otherwise they “swallow without
digestion” (Yontef in Schoeman, 1996b:32).

Equilibrium
According to Schoeman (1996b:33) equilibrium is especially important to
children in their middle childhood. This makes this programme very applicable to
the developmental phase of the selected participants, all of them being in their
middle childhood. These children are constantly worried about what other people
think of them and whether they approve of them. Children would then ignore their
own needs just to be acceptable to other people. The children want to create
equilibrium by ignoring their own needs to rather be acceptable in the group
situation in this study. Schoeman (1996b:33) states that the therapist should be
sensitive to this kind of behaviour. Children might thus sometimes present
themselves differently from what they really are. According to the researcher this
is the process of awareness in the intervention programme. The children should be
aware of whom they really are and that they can be acceptable this way.

Joy
The sessions should be enjoyable otherwise the children will not be keen to come
back. This is therefore one of the reasons why the group sessions of the current
study should be fun.

Now
It is important to know what the child needs at the present moment to be able to
focus on awareness, contact and new solutions. The children and the therapist
should be able to be what they are at that moment, to share their present feelings,
experiences, preferences and dislikes. The groups in this study will thus not work
with what they can remember, but with what they are doing now.

Organismic self-regulation
This aspect of the children as clients can be problematic to the therapist. The
children’s specific needs need to be met for them to develop healthily. If the
children’s needs are not met, they will experience disturbance or disequilibrium
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and the relationship will not promote growth. Sometimes children just use what
they have available to create equilibrium. The child’s needs thus always come
first so it can be met and so the child can be able to regulate himself. The
researcher as therapist is of the opinion that if enough means to meet needs can be
available the child will have more resources for self-regulation. The latter should
be one of the aims of the group play therapy sessions. The children will thus work
on their emotional intelligence themselves. They will thus reach a state of
equilibrium by increasing their emotional intelligence.

Polarities
The children should also understand opposites and polarities and learn through
that. Children and also people in general experience life in polarities. Happiness
can only be well understood in relation to its opposite of unhappiness. Sometimes
children might experience two opposite emotions for the same person, like respect
and hate. It is therefore important to help them to understand this too. Oaklander
(1988:158) states, “An integration, reconciliation, or synthesis of one’s opposing
sides, positive and negative, is a prerequisite to a dynamic and healthy life
process”. In this study the latter understanding will be important when it comes
up. Furthermore the emotions can be comprehended much better when it is
compared to its polarity. Polarities will therefore be used to understand emotions
and to integrate opposing sides of the self and its emotions.

Responsibility
This means to grow in self-image and self-nurturing. This is a very important
aspect of emotional intelligence too (compare Le Roux & De Klerk, 2003:60;
Vermeulen, 1999:158; Yontef, 1993:3,9) and therefore a very important aspect of
Gestalt theory in the current research groups. If the children take responsibility for
themselves, they need to stop blaming other things and people for their own
problems, to take responsibility to be who they really are and feel what they really
do. According to Landreth (in Schoeman, 1996b:36) children can only learn
responsibility by experience. If a child has permission to be himself, he can be
free to experience and learn to be responsible for his own life. In the current study
there should be an atmosphere of acceptance so the children can be free to be who
they are.
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Sincerity
If the children can develop their true and honest selves, then they can be in
contact with themselves and with the other people with whom they are in
relationship with. It is thus of the utmost importance that both the therapist as well
as the children in the groups in this study be very sincere. The therapist should
model this honesty and sincerity. The children can use this as a healthy introject
(acceptance of rules, patterns, behaviours etcetera from others) and also learn to
be true to themselves.

Unfinished business
This is associated with transference. This is unexpressed feelings or concerns and
unsatisfied needs. If a child is not in touch with his potential, he might have
unsatisfied needs. The unfinished business tends to accumulate and the child gets
clogged. His awareness is then usually too blocked and he has too little energy to
live up to his full self. Then he cannot completely participate in the group
activities. The unfinished business never goes away. It may show in the form of
different symbols, insecurities or hidden agendas. In the current study the
therapist should be sensitive for unfinished business and guide the children to deal
with this in order to experience a healing relationship.

Violence
Violence or aggression might be symptoms of unfinished business. This might be
behaviour, which is aimed to hurt other group members to evade the child’s own
unfinished business. Children should get mechanisms to get rid of the anger so to
be able to verbalise the negative feelings and work through it. Techniques to
handle anger should be taught and practiced in the sessions of the current study.
Children should be taught to explain their negative feelings without blaming or
hurting other people.

Yes, I can!
It is important that both the therapist as well as the children be willing to believe
in themselves and then also to take risks. The children then also learn to take
responsibility for their actions. They should be allowed to fail and then without
being blamed learn to take responsibility for this and rectify it. Children learn this
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easier if they have a role model to follow. In this study the therapist should model
such behaviour and also allow the children to make mistakes and take
responsibility for it.
(Schoeman, 1996b:30-38)

The researcher is of the opinion that much of the theory of the Gestalt therapeutic
orientation has been included in the above discussion of the therapeutic relationship by
Schoeman (1996b:30-38). This includes some special characteristics and attitudes
needed by the therapist, the child’s orientation and the nature of therapy. The aspects of
the relationship specifically focused on the therapist are of utmost importance in the
current study. The therapist worked on herself to operate from this paradigm. The
healing relationship with the children was the catalyst of all change and learning, which
took place in the emotional intelligence groups in this research study.

3. APPLICABLE TECHNIQUES

In this section the researcher is focusing on techniques of Gestalt therapy in general and of
Gestalt play therapy, which is more specific to the unit of analysis of this study. The
researcher will therefore first discuss the bigger picture of the techniques and then focus on
the more specific techniques. A wide variety of possible techniques will be discussed to
provide an understanding of the type of techniques available. The techniques listed also has
the goal of enriching the reader’s creative process to develop and adapt the provided
intervention programme to his / her needs. The researcher did therefore not apply all of the
listed techniques in the final intervention programme. A selection was made based on the
principle of confidence intervals, thus by selecting those techniques that were most likely to
“give acceptable precision for the effect” (Hopkins, 2000:8) studied. (Compare Chapter 1,
10.4.2.3 Size of a sample; Chapter 6, 3.1 The sample of Gestalt play therapy techniques;
Hopkins, 2000:8.) The next section covers the wider picture of Gestalt therapy techniques
and is followed by more specific Gestalt play therapy techniques.
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3.1 Gestalt therapy techniques

“Techniques used in gestalt therapy are designed to heighten awareness of present

functioning” (Ivens, [sa]:4). These types of techniques are very important in an intervention
programme such as the current one, which attempts to improve emotional intelligence.
Goleman (1996:43) states that, “Self-awareness…is the keystone of emotional intelligence”.
If Gestalt therapy techniques are designed to heighten self-awareness, it should be very
effective to use for the improvement of emotional intelligence.
Although some of the most famous Gestalt therapy techniques, like psychodrama, fantasy,
empty chair, tasks and dream work are listed, the therapist is still encouraged to be creative
and develop techniques that will suit his clients’ needs (Ivens, [sa]:4). The researcher as
therapist therefore used some of the existing techniques as it is and also adapted some
techniques to fit the needs of primary school children.

Zinker (1977:120-121) is of the opinion that the Gestalt therapist uses a different orientation
towards therapy than those therapists using most other therapies, which focus on the
symptoms resulting from frustration of ordinary human needs. The Gestalt therapist is
focused on resolving frustration concerning meta-needs. The latter are those needs in
Maslow’s hierarchy of needs (Maslow in Zinker, 1977:120), which are no longer reducible to
smaller parts – purity, justice, beauty or truth. If a person is deprived concerning his meta-
needs, it requires a curative methodology, which is trans-personal and more insightful in its
orientation. The Gestalt therapist is in essence moving beyond symptomatic techniques,
growing in personal expansiveness, depth and spirituality. Such therapist might rather focus
on meta-illnesses, thus illnesses caused by unfulfilled higher or meta-needs on Maslow’s
hierarchy of needs. These are the self-actualisation needs (Maree, 2004:85). The latter relate
to the Gestalt principle of taking responsibility for your own life (1.13 Responsibility). The
researcher reasons that taking responsibility for your own life in this case includes a decision
of the individual to develop and grow towards his full potential.

Gestalt methods include both insight as well as behavioural change. Many people understand
themselves well, but do not change their behaviour. Gestalt therapy then exposes the person
to experiential insights. It is also true, although Gestalt therapists focus on meta-needs, that
we need to address the more basic needs or goals first. “We must acquire internal richness
before being able to distill a range of life experiences into personal essences…becoming
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fixed in any system…is to imprison ourselves” (Zinker, 1977:122). Zinker (1977:123) also
states that Gestalt therapy emphasises the modification of a client’s behaviour in the therapy
situation itself. This happens because Gestalt therapy is rooted in the person’s internal
experience or own perspective and at the same time focused on the modification of
behaviour.

According to the researcher, this focus on meta-needs, thus self-actualisation needs, relates
very closely with emotional intelligence. The researcher sees emotional intelligence skills as
those personal attributes, which enhance self-actualisation. In such a way the children in the
current study are helped to increase their emotional intelligence with therapeutic techniques,
which focus on the same self-actualisation needs than that of the goal of the programme. The
programme makes use of experiments with behaviour in the therapy sessions, to bring the
fulfilment of self-actualisation needs to the present and therefor make it a concrete learning
experience. Gestalt therapy in this programme will thus be like Zinker (1977:123) states:
“…an integrated version of phenomenology and behaviorism”.

The following are some applicable techniques used in Gestalt therapy as discussed in
literature. These techniques can be used as a framework from which the techniques in this
programme are developed.

3.1.1 Experiments

3.1.1.1 Discussion and definition

From the work of Zinker (1977:123) it seems clear that Gestalt therapy is based on
learning through experience. Here the emphasis is placed on experimentation as
cornerstone of learning through experience. The experiment transforms mere talking
about a solution into doing it. (Zinker, 1977:123)
According to Corey (1996:245) it helps to differentiate between exercises and
experiments. Exercises are ready made techniques, which can be used to evoke
certain emotions. Experiments on the other hand grow out of the therapeutic
encounter between the therapist and client. This is the cornerstone of experiential
learning. Polster (in Corey, 1996:245) states that experiments help the client to make
an internal struggle an actual process. Thus by dramatising or playing out a problem
in the safe therapeutic environment, the client’s range and flexibility of effective
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behaviour can be increased. It encourages spontaneity and inventiveness when the

client can experiment with different kinds of possible behaviours in the therapeutic
environment. (Corey, 1996:245)

According to the researcher experiments teach important life skills to the client and
increases his learning abilities, as inventiveness is a right brain hemisphere attribute
(compare Brooke, 2004:2; Fourie, 1998:19; Maree, 2004:78). Experiments therefore
stimulate right hemisphere functioning, which is also related to insight, understanding
and intuition (Davis, 1997:5,101-103). It also helps the client to solve problems,
which is an attribute of the frontal lobes (compare Goldberg, 2001:24; Le Doux,
1998:177; Pert,1997:288), which is also the area seen as mainly connected to
emotional intelligence in this study. The researcher therefore sees the importance of
experiments in the latter statements. Experiments increase skills associated with the
frontal lobes where emotional intelligence is assessed in this study as skills related to
the right hemisphere of the brain. In this study the hypothesis that experiments can
increase emotional intelligence exists, because it stimulates problem solving, which is
a frontal lobe function. If experiments improve frontal lobe functions, it can have a
direct positive learning effect on emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence is
tested through the assessment of frontal lobe functioning in the current study.

3.1.1.2 Using experiments

Corey (1996:245) lists the following as forms of experiments to use in a therapeutic
situation:
“imagining a threatening future encounter; setting up a dialogue between a client and
some significant person in his or her life; dramatizing the memory of a painful event;
reliving a particularly profound early experience in the present; assuming the identity
of one’s mother or father through role playing; focusing on gestures, posture, and
other nonverbal signs of inner expression; or carrying on a dialogue between two
conflicting aspects within the person”. The main point of experiments is thus to bring
struggles to life and make it more possible to handle.
According to Corey (1996:245) it is important that a therapist also experience
experiments and feels comfortable to introduce it to their clients. The following are
guidelines from Passons and Zinker (in Corey, 1996:247) for preparing clients for
experiments and applying these:
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The therapist should be sensitive enough to know when to leave the client alone.
The therapist should be sensitive enough to introduce experiments at the right
time.
The nature of experiments depends on the client’s problems, his experiences and
that of the therapist also.
The client should actively explore himself.
Experiments work the best when the therapist respects the client’s cultural
background and is in good contact with the client.
It is important that the therapist is flexible when using these techniques, paying
attention to how the client is responding.
The therapist should not use a task, which is too advanced for the clients –
experiments should be adapted to the developmental phase of the client.
It is helpful if the therapist learn to know which type of experiment is best to use
in the therapy session itself and which can be practiced outside of therapy.

Clients also need to be prepared for taking part in experiments. They need to know
that it is their choice and that they can choose to either continue or stop whenever
they want to. The therapist should not force clients to take part in experiments.
Clients should rather be invited to explore and discover something new about
themselves through the experiment. The therapist in a group situation should be
sensitive to the clients’ state of mind, starting from where they are. In such a case it
might help group members to be more spontaneous. (Corey, 2000:320)

The researcher summarises this list of guidelines for applying experiments and
preparing clients for it in the current study as follows:
The therapist should feel comfortable to try out new and often strange exercises. He
should apply experiments when he senses that a child or the group as a whole need to
practice some behaviour in the therapy session. These exercises should be on the
developmental level of the children and should take the cultural background of the
children into consideration. The therapist should be focused on the reactions of the
children and should adapt experiments accordingly to ensure effective learning rather
than an empty negative experience.
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Zinker (1977:126) also listed a set of goals for creative experimentation. These goals
are focused on bettering contact boundary disturbances and resolving unfinished
business. The following is a short list of some of these goals:
Expand repertoire of behaviour
Take ownership of own life
Learn new self-concepts
Complete unfinished situations
Overcome blockages to awareness
Integrate understanding with behaviour
Discover unaware polarities
Remove and integrate introjects
Create a safe environment for exploration and experimentation

The researcher agrees with Polster and Polster (in Brownell[sa]:7) sees the whole
Gestalt therapy process as an experiment within a safe environment. As Zinker
(1977:123) states, it is the connection between cognitive insight and behaviour
modification. The client will practically apply what he has learned about himself and
his behaviour right there in the therapy session.

3.1.1.3 Examples of experiments

The following are examples of these experiments that can be used in a Gestalt therapy
session. These examples discussed in the following paragraphs are stated as
possibilities to use in the intervention programme. Not all of these were applied,
because experiments are not planned exercises as explained by Corey (2000:316) in
the following section (3.1.2 The researcher’s view). Zinker (1977:47) states that
certain Gestalt experiments have become classics including re-enactment, enactment,
around the world, and empty chair.

Re-enactment
In this experiment, a client is allowed to relive a life event with unfinished business.
This allows for the opportunity to finish the unfinished business in the here and now.
The client can also use the new competencies, which he gained during the therapy
process. (Zinker, 1977:147)
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He will thus try out his adapted self on the unfinished business in the therapy session.
It is like a trial in a safe environment, where he can still change and adapt his way of
being before he tries it out in a real life situation.
In the current study the children can for example imagine a situation where they
handled their anger ineffectively. They can then discuss a different way based on
what they have learned and practice it in the session on each other.

Enactment
Here the client works on a dream or fantasy. He can then act out his dream and its
significant components. He can also communicate with the different parts of the
dream or fantasy or let different parts communicate with each other. In such a way he
can get in touch with polarities in his being. (Compare Mackewn, 2004:144-145;
Oaklander, 1988:139; Schoeman, 2004b:113; Zinker, 1977:147.)
In the current study this experiment might be used as dream work or a fantasy
exercise where the children will be led through a fantasy exercise or daydream. They
can then make drawings of it, build it out in the sand tray or create the image with
clay. The different parts of the fantasy or the dream can then communicate so that the
therapist can be able to detect polarities to work on. A dream can be represented in
the same way and can be retold as if it is happening in the present.

Around the world

In this experiment the therapist give the client the opportunity to explore a negative or
unsatisfactory experience – of himself, his world, other people etcetera. He is allowed
to really dig deep and explore all the negatives. (Zinker, 1977:147) According to
Zinker (1977:147-148) the person will eventually come around to the opposite
polarity – going around the world.
The researcher connects this to the paradoxical theory of change (Philippsen,
2001:11) in Gestalt therapy. Here the client will change when he gets aware of the
fragments or unsatisfactory parts of his being. He will then develop towards being his
true self. Thru awareness the client will thus change himself and grow to reach his
potential.
In the current study, children will engage in activities and experiments to increase
their emotional intelligence and still have respect for each other’s different cultures.
In self-exploring exercises or in the interpersonal skills exercises, children might have
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very negative experiences of themselves or others. The group can explore these to
such an extent that the child gets aware of the polarity. The therapist should closely
monitor the exploration experiment. He (she in this case) should make sure that the
exploration experience is not only negative and the child leaves the session with
unresolved, negative feelings.

Empty chair
“The empty chair allows the person to come into dialogue with a polarity within
himself” (Zinker, 1977:150). It can also represent a person in the client’s past with
whom he has some unfinished business. In this experiment, a client places such a
person on an empty chair – as an imaginary object. The client then has the
opportunity to immediately direct his energy to the source of the unfinished business,
anger, sadness, disappointment, etcetera. He does not have to tell it to someone else,
expecting some kind of explanation or advice. He has the opportunity to handle the
problem directly. (Compare Mackewn, 2004:136-137; Oaklander, 1988: 151-152;
Zinker, 1977:150-151.)
The researcher experiences the empty chair experiment as also enhancing the client’s
responsibility for his own life. He handles his unfinished business himself, instead of
waiting for the advice of the therapist.
In the current study the therapist in the group sessions should focus on awareness of
not trying to give advice, but rather let the children handle their own unfinished
business. They can therefore practice difficult situations or anger or disappointment in
the group session, by speaking to an empty chair. They can share their experiences
and the other group members can represent what they have learned through this
experiment.

Other examples of experiments were listed and discussed by Corey (2000:320-330).

The researcher prefers these discussions of experiments as Corey (2000:316-320) is
discussing experiments within the group context. In the current study research is
based within the group environment. Group application of Gestalt principles is thus
more applicable than Gestalt principles in other environments. The following are
short summaries of the experiments listed by Corey (2000:320-330). These
experiments can therefore be used when necessary in the therapy groups. They might
not be planned for explicitly such as in the case of exercises (Corey, 2000:316).
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Experiments with internal dialogues

This involves fantasy dialogues, taking many different forms. It can include dialogues
between polarities like love and hate, also with a significant other, fantasised others
or other objects. The therapist should be sensitive to polarities in these dialogues.
These experiments are powerful to contact parts of our nature that we hide from
others. It is also used for awareness of introjects and projections. (Compare Corey,
2000:323; Yontef, 1993:14,17, Schoeman, 2004b:112.)
In the current research the children in the groups can use figures in the sand tray to
speak to each other or they can imagine speaking to something or somebody who is
absent at that moment. The therapist can make them aware of their polarities and the
type of language they are using. They might be using many “should’s, must’s, do’s
and don’ts”, which are taking the responsibility for their own emotions away from
them (Yontef, 1993:17). The therapist can notice contact boundary disturbances in the
language patterns of the children in the groups. The latter can be brought to the
awareness of the group members.

Fantasy approaches
“Experimenting with a diversity of fantasy situations in a group can lead to
significant growth. Fantasy can promote personal awareness in a number of ways, …”
(Corey, 2000:324). Oaklander (1988:11) states: “I take a child’s fantasies seriously,
as expressions of his feelings”. Fantasy can be used when group members feel too
threatened to deal concretely with a problem. It can be used when people have
catastrophic expectations of a situation. In such a case, a similar situation can be
played out in a fantasy situation. This can relieve a lot of suppressed frustrations,
which are not always possible to express in real life. It can also be a safe way to
explore the group members’ fears of exposing themselves in the group. (Compare
Corey, 2000:324-325; Schoeman, 2004b:113.)
The researcher wishes to describe a fantasy approach as an imaginary play-out of a
situation. The human brain does not know the difference between what really
happened or what has been imagined (Van Jaarsveld, 2005).
The researcher thus reasons that by working something through in a fantasy exercise
is to the human brain just as real as when it truly happened. Children in the research
groups can thus successfully work through unfinished business by using non-
threatening fantasy exercises.
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Rehearsal
“By participating in a rehearsal experiment, members say out loud what they are
thinking silently” (Corey, 2000:325). This type of experiment should be sensitively
timed and not be used to stir up emotions. It is only of value when it is necessary to
bring an unhealthy process of blocking contact by keeping quiet, into awareness.
(Corey, 2000:325)
According to the therapist this might not regularly be used in the current therapy
groups, but might be applied in situations where children never shares feelings. This
might be very difficult for children with lower self-confidence or for those who are
very introverted.

Reversal
This experiment includes making contact with those parts of one self that have been
denied or submerged and which are causing anxiety. In such an experiment the
therapist would ask a group member to play an opposite role from the way he usually
is. This can bring out important polarities in the person’s life and he can grow through
this awareness. (Compare Corey, 2000:326; Schoeman, 2004:113.)
In the current study, this might be a valuable experiment for group members who tend
not to participate at all in the group. Such a child can then be asked to be the leader of
a certain activity. A child might get aware of another side of himself that he never
knew existed.

Exaggeration
In this experiment subtle body language movements are exaggerated to make the
meanings they communicate clearer. “By exaggerating the movement or gesture
repeatedly, the person experiences more intensely the feelings associated with the
behaviour and becomes more aware of its inner meaning” (Corey, 2000:326)
Sometimes a group member can be asked to exaggerate something abstract like
having to carry others’ burdens by having to carry something very heavy. This
experiment goes along with reversal. Sometimes a group member needs to exaggerate
a part of himself that he does not like and in such a way become more aware of its
polarity – the part he likes about himself. (Corey, 2000:327)
In the current study the therapist should be very sensitive when applying experiments
like this in a group with pre-teen children. The experiment should not make fun of the
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child. The group member who did the exaggeration should be asked to discuss his
experience of it with the therapist as well as what he could learn from it. The other
group members can assist him in this and also give ideas of what one can learn from
such an exaggeration.

Dream work
Gestalt therapy does not interpret dreams. Gestalt therapy intend to bring back the
dream to the here and now and relive it. In groups the members don’t talk about
dreams they had in the past, but represent it as if it is happening in the present. The
group members convert themselves to parts of the dream and present the events.
(Compare Corey, 2000:328; Oaklander, 1988:151.) According to Perls (in Corey,
2000:328) dreams and parts of it are all projections of the self. The different parts
represent different inconsistencies and contradictions within oneself.
Some suggestions on how to handle a dream work situation include; reliving the
dream in the present, representing an element of the dream as if it is you, discussing
troublesome parts of the dream, becoming two contrasting objects in the dream,
finding what is missing in the dream, and also exploring the phenomenon of missing
dreams if you cannot remember any dreams. (Compare Corey, 2000:328-329;
Oaklander, 1988:145-151; Rainwater in Corey, 2000:329; Schoeman, 2004b:113-
114.)
In the current study dream work can be used as a specific experiment for awareness
of self, emotions or other possible unfinished business. Dream work can also be used
if a member wishes to tell the group about a dream he had. This might be an
indication that the dream was in a way significant. At such a moment the therapist can
employ some of the listed ways to deal with dreams.

3.1.2 The researcher’s view

According to the researcher Gestalt therapy is experiential and therefore include experiments.
Corey (2000:316) differentiated between experiments and techniques. He defined techniques
as exercises or procedures to bring about action or interaction. In the current study the
researcher also made use of such exercises, as it is attempted to teach some skills. The
teaching of the skills was done within a Gestalt play therapy environment. It is therefore very
important that a therapist using this type of programme will be aware of any polarities,
unfinished business or contact boundary disturbances presented by the children in the groups.
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Should the therapist be aware of the latter possibilities, he has the freedom to move away
from the planned exercise and experiment with what the child has given. It is thus important
for the therapist to have some knowledge of possible experiments to use. The creative
therapist can also make up his own experiments to fulfil in the children’s needs. Such
flexibility is very important in this Gestalt therapy programme. The researcher concludes this
section on experimentation with Zinker’s (1977:19) statement that “experimentation is
powerfully effective in groups”. Experiments were applied in the group setting in this study.
As Zinker (1977:19) states, experiments in groups are supported by the varied creativeness of
a community of different people. He reasons that, “No one person gets depleted and everyone
is nourished” (Zinker, 1977:19).
The researcher finds Zinker’s (1977) enthusiasm about Gestalt therapy inspiring. It therefore
seems that experiments in the group setting is a healing process where all group members can
gain growth and development.

Following this section focuses on the Gestalt play therapy techniques, where Gestalt
principles are applied in the play therapy setting.

3.2 Gestalt Play therapy techniques

A person who is content and functioning at an optimal level is according to Gestalt Therapy a
self-actualised person. Such a person is aware of himself, is responsible for his own life and
actions and has a high degree of autonomy. This person can be free to be himself without
trying or having the need to be something else. (Compare Ivens, [sa]:4; Jarosewitsch, 1995:2;
Yontef, 1993:2,10-11.)
The researcher as therapist used Gestalt play therapy techniques in this study to increase
emotional intelligence skills to help children to reach their full potential. Gestalt therapy was
used as a tool to increase emotional intelligence as both include themes like awareness of
self, responsibility, self-actualisation and a process of change and development. The
researcher was in a relationship with the children in the groups. The relationship in Gestalt
therapy is healing. This means a restoring of wholeness, with everything happening in the
here and now. It is “healing through meeting”. (Yontef in Schoeman, 1996a:29) The
relationship in Gestalt play therapy has been discussed above in, 2.2.4 More theoretical
principles: The therapeutic relationship in Gestalt play therapy.
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The researcher stated in the previous section the importance of being creative and flexible in
the current programme to be able to provide a learning experience through experimenting.
Although this is the case, the current study also made use of techniques or exercises.
Schoeman and Van der Merwe (1996:61-62) state that Gestalt therapy can also be structured
and goal-oriented. The child therapist can plan for certain techniques in the beginning of the
therapy process. The techniques discussed by Schoeman (1996c:61-82; 1996d:85-97) and
Van der Merwe (1996b:108-127; 1996c:128-137; 1996d:138-149), also covered in the
following sections, can be used in individual as well as group therapy. These techniques are
structured and goal-oriented. Two types of goals are used as part of play therapy, namely
process goals and content goals. Process goals are part of the helping process and specifically
applied in the beginning and end of the therapy process. Content goals are directly connected
to the current problem and applied in the middle part of the therapy process. (Schoeman and
Van der Merwe, 1996:61-62)
In the current study the process goals included the first two to three sessions as well as the
closure session or two at the end of the programme. In the beginning the children were being
motivated to join in the programme with more enthusiasm and where the relationship with
the therapist, each other and awareness of themselves were the main focus areas. At the end
of the programme the goal was directed to the children’s awareness of their growth and
development through the programme. The focus of the therapist to keep the programme
sensitive to the inclusion and acceptance of different cultures was also be a process goal. The
content goals of the current study were focused on the different themes relating to emotional
intelligence that was presented.
It was important though for the researcher to be aware of the experiential nature of Gestalt
therapy and therefore to not get too rigidly controlled by the planned techniques. The
researcher as therapist had to be open for the possibility to experiment all the time.

The following is a discussion of possible techniques to include in a play therapy programme.

3.2.1 Techniques to determine the child’s process

Schoeman (2004b:152) states that it is important to understand the process of the child in
order to really understand him. Each child is unique and will present his process or
personality in a unique way. Blom (in Schoeman, 2004b:153) defines a child’s process as
“what they do and how they do it” and “their process refers to the way they present
themselves to the world and satisfy their needs”. The researcher will use the term “process”
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in the same context as stated by Schoeman (2004b:153), namely: “The author uses the term
‘process’ interchangeably with ‘personality’ and the latter, in turn, is related to the child’s
unique temperament”. Schoeman (2004a:46) relates the techniques used for determining the
child’s process to his way of resolving obstacles. Through this process a variety of aspects
can be covered, including his problem solving, interpersonal relationships, willingness to
make contact, sensory awareness, energy levels and relationship with the therapist etcetera.
The researcher was working from another perspective though. In this study the researcher
attempted to get to know the child’s process in relation to the whole – his cognition,
behaviour and temperamental self. The researcher therefore used the following techniques to
determine the child’s process:
Cognitive processes (Naglieri & Das, 1997a)
Imaginary technique – comparing the self with an animal
DISC behaviour style (Rohm, 1994 and Rohm & Carey, 1998) and
Learning style (Bradway & Hill, 2004)
The first technique is discussed in chapter 2, 1.5.4 Learning style and preferred brain
dominance, and 1.5.5 Application of planning and attention processes of the PASS theory of
intelligence to the research study.
The second technique is discussed in the intervention programme attached to this research
report, Session 1. These last two techniques are discussed in more detail in the following
paragraphs:

3.2.1.1 DISC behaviour style

The researcher used the DISC behaviour style analysis (Rohm, 1998) to assess the
part of children’s processes that focus on temperament (related to personality style) or
behaviour style.
The following is the basis on which Rohm and Carey (1998:xi-xii) understand people
and on which the DISC behaviour style profiles are based:
People are special and worth understanding, all people are different by design and are
capable of growth and change. Rohm and Carey (1998:xiii) speak of DISC behaviour
style combinations in terms of personality styles. Most people have certain
predictable patterns of behaviour causing us to act in specific ways. Rohm and Carey
(1998:4) use personality style as a referral to these specific behaviour tendencies.
The focus of the current study is not to explore children’s personality or behaviour
styles, but only to use information about this for a better understanding of the process
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of the child. The researcher will therefore not give an in depth discussion on the
theoretical background of the DISC behaviour style assessment. In the programme
used in this research study the researcher applied the DISC behaviour style analysis
for pre-teens (Rohm, 1998). The latter choice is based on the fact that the children in
the research groups are in their primary school years, thus pre-teens. The instrument
used is named, “All About Bots! All About You!” (Rohm, 1998). Children were
assessed as a combination of styles. These include the styles that power our drives,
causing people to have either an outgoing or a reserved approach to life. The other
styles indicate the direction in which people are steered namely, towards tasks or
people. The combinations of these styles include that usually one trait is predominant,
another secondary trait(s) serve the primary trait and in each behavioural style there
are varying intensity levels in these traits. (Rohm & Carey, 1998:4,5) The following
is a diagrammatic representation of the behavioural traits of these combinations of
styles:

Outgoing – Task-Oriented Outgoing – People-Oriented

D – Dominant / determined Inspirational / influencing -I
Strong ego Outgoing, talkative
Dares to be different Expresses ideas, stories
Not afraid of risks Impulsive
Likes to be in control Usually optimistic
Goal oriented Likes entertaining others
Likes new, varied activities Persuasive, persistent
A self-starter Loves recognition
and rewards

Cautious / correct Supportive / steady

Precise Easygoing, mild-mannered
Dislikes confusion Dislike confrontation
Thinks things through Likes stable environment
Caution and curiosity Needs appreciation, security
Wants things to make sense Warm and friendly
Quiet and careful Understanding, patient
C – Enjoys learning the facts Avoids conflict, strife - S
Reserved – Task-Oriented Reserved – People-Oriented

Figure 4.2: DISC behaviour style quadrants (Rohm, 1998:35-36)

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Some children in the groups were thus more task-oriented and extroverted as listed
under the D-traits in the diagram above. Others were also extroverted, but more
people-oriented (I). The other children were more introverted, which is also divided
in task-oriented (C) and people-oriented (S) groups.

Introverted people tend to be energised by inner resources. They tend to keep their
thoughts and feelings to themselves, being less talkative. They think before they act
and thus need privacy where they can work contently alone. They like to understand
something before trying it and carefully consider an idea before discussing it.

Extroverted people tend to be energised by the external world. They show their
thoughts and feelings openly, being more talkative. They act and speak before
thinking, being more impulsive than introverts. They are friendly, talkative and need
relationships. They learn by doing and understand by talking the topic through with
others. They tend to say the first thing that comes to their minds. (Compare Briggs
Myers, 1998:9; Jopie van Rooyen & Partners SA. 2005:45-46; Meisgeier & Murphy,
1987:4.)

More task-oriented people tend to be analytical, they use cause-and-effect for

reasoning and solve problems with logical reasoning. They tend to be concerned with
truth and justice, need to achieve and be treated fairly. They enjoy arguments, look at
things objectively and is consistent.

More people-oriented people tend to be more empathetic, are guided by personal

values and assess the impacts of decisions on people. They are usually compassionate
and appear tender-hearted. They tend to be loyal and are good at making others feel
secure and comfortable. They spontaneously appreciate others and tend to avoid
conflict. They use their values to make decisions and need to be appreciated.
(Compare Briggs Myers, 1998:10; Meisgeier & Murphy, 1987:4.)

These basic attributes of behaviour and personality styles were used in the
intervention programme to gain a better understanding of the processes of the
children in the research groups.
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3.2.1.2 Learning style

The researcher used the children’s typical style of learning to gain a better
understanding of their ways of taking in information, as part of their processes. The
researcher is of the opinion that the way that children learn is important in the current
study as it is focused on learning some emotional intelligence skills. Although the
latter is the case, it is also a Gestalt play therapy programme. The researcher thus also
focused on experiential techniques where necessary and creative exercises led by the
current need of the children in the group. Still the children’s learning style was part of
their way of being and was seen as important information about their processes.
The researcher finds the following quote to be a good description of learning style
and the value thereof for the way that children in the research groups responded.
“It’s more than coincidence that you find yourself drawn above all else to the sights,
the sensations, or the sounds around you. Throughout out lives, we use all of our
senses to learn, but tend to consistently favor one sense over the others. This natural
preference dictates how we learn best – by looking, by listening, or by moving – as
well as what we learn and how quickly we are able to learn it” (Bradway & Hill,
2004:5).
The researcher finds that this quote about learning styles relates well to sensory
awareness in Gestalt theory. Certain children learned better using certain senses. The
researcher is of the opinion that the children were more open to awareness of
themselves when their senses were stimulated. It might also have been valuable to
stimulate the senses, which they do not usually use effectively to learn with. If their
awareness of these non-dominant senses is awakened, they could become aware of
other parts of themselves too.
Children’s learning styles were assessed in this study using a questionnaire completed
by parents or caretakers of the children. The children’s learning styles were divided in
three groups namely, lookers, listeners and movers (Bradway & Hill, 2004:6-7). The
specific ways in which lookers, listeners and movers learn are described in Chapter 1,
1.5 Cognitive development.

The researcher mentioned the importance of sensory awareness in the paragraphs

above. The following techniques cover awareness of sensory contact and the
importance there-of.
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3.2.2 Sensory awareness techniques

“Just as we can harness the power of our minds for physical healing, so can we do physical
things to help heal our feelings” (Pert, 1997:272). Pert (1997:273) states that when emotions
are expressed the biochemicals that are the substrate of emotion are flowing freely. When
this happens all systems of the human being are united and made whole, being a healing
process. When emotions are not expressed the network of pathways get blocked. The flow of
the feel-good chemicals, which unify all systems, is stopped. These chemicals run both our
biological as well as behaviour systems. Pert’s research showed that “the body can and must
be healed through the mind, and the mind can and must be healed through the body” (Pert,
1997:274).
Considering the research implications above, it is thus necessary to include bodywork or
using the senses to touch the mind or emotions. It is the researcher’s opinion that the physical
body and our senses are a little more concrete and visually available than our emotions,
which are more abstract and a less concrete experience. In this study the researcher as
therapist thus used physical awareness to make the children more aware of their emotions.
Fourie (1998:76) also states that active senses increase the brain’s ability to activate more
brain cells or neurons. The brain will thus be more alert. According to the researcher, the
brain will not only be cognitively more alert, but also emotionally, as all these processes
work as a whole (Pert, 1997:268-272).
According to Schoeman (1996b:42) it is important for children to be in touch with their
external environment through their senses. According to the discussions above, getting in
touch with their external environment helps children to get in touch with their mental and
emotional environments. According to Oaklander (1988:57) a child’s contact with his senses,
body, feelings and intellect is underlying his sense of self. A good self-image improves good
contact with one’s environment and people in the environment. The researcher relates this
latter statement of Oaklander to emotional intelligence. Good intra- and interpersonal
relationships are part of good emotional intelligence. Having a good sense of self, which can
be improved through sensory contact, can therefore improve emotional intelligence.

In the following sections the researcher will discuss some exercises to get children in touch
with five different senses namely sight, sound, taste, touch and smell:
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3.2.2.1 Sight
Tear (in Schoeman 1996b:43) lists the following exercises to enhance a child’s visual
perceptions:
Peeping through fingers
Looking through a cardboard tube
Looking through coloured cellophane or perspex
Looking through holes in a piece of paper
Looking through a magnifying glass or microscope
Using mirrors
Looking through binoculars either way around
Looking through a kaleidoscope or other tubes resembling kaleidoscopes like
an octoscope reflecting images eight times

Schoeman (1996b:43) states that visual exercises enhance sensory perception. The
children in the group of the current study can then represent all feelings and / or
memories evoked by this visual experience through mediums like clay, drawing
etcetera.
According to the researcher sight goes along or goes over to visualising exercises.
Pert (1997:146) states “There is no objective reality!”. Although Pert focuses here on
the brain’s ability to filter information, the researcher connects this to the brain’s
ability to visualise. Visualising experiences as well as visual stimuli have an impact
on emotions. Our sensing of the outer world is filtered along sensory way stations
with different emotional tones. (Pert, 1997:146) According to the researcher our
visual experiences are connected to emotional experiences. Certain visual experiences
will enhance a specific emotional tone, but can also enhance a specific emotional
memory. We can see in the mind and we can feel what we see.
The researcher therefore also added imaginary visualisation techniques to the list of
exercises to enhance visual perceptions.

3.2.2.2 Sound
According to Schoeman (1996b:45-46) children like to listen to and to make music
and it can help children to come into contact with what they hear. It can help the child
to be aware of things and or feelings that he could not previously have made contact
with. Music can be very effective in the therapeutic environment. It can create a
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peaceful atmosphere of ease and security. Oaklander (1988:115) states that the use of
music fits in very well in the therapeutic environment. According to Maree
(2004:122) sound can manipulate people’s emotions and influence their thinking. It
can also have an influence on concentration, memory and the ability to differentiate
between good or bad. Maree (2003:122) also states that music can calm the central
nervous system.
Children who are calm and relaxed can tap into their emotional system more
effectively as the brain functions optimally when it is calm. Children can have an
enhanced possibility to be creative when they listen to relaxing music. (Campbell,
2002:1)
The following are possibilities of exercises to increase children’s awareness of what
they hear:
Children can be asked to react on a variety of sounds like, an explosion, a military
band, a song on the radio, a baby crying, an intruder in the house when you are
sleeping etcetera. (Oaklander, 1988:140)
Children like to play rhythm patterns on drums or any other instruments like
tambourines, maracas or bells. They can express different feelings using the
rhythm instruments and can even combine movement with this. (Oaklander,
1988:118)
They have to close their eyes and listen to all the sounds they can hear, sharing
this in the group and / or also connecting it to feelings
Listening to music and share the feelings created by this or using drawing or clay
work to communicate the feelings
Listening to music, which tells a story and representing it visually afterwards,
discussing the message and / or feelings associated
Doing breathing exercises and listening to their breathing
Listening to positive messages and then sharing their feelings about this
Children can bring musical instruments and create their own music

Schoeman (1996b:45) also lists the following exercises for groups:

Musical chairs: changing chairs when music plays, one chair less than group, one
without a chair when music stops is out or has a specific task. This can also be
used as and exercise to identify the person who will make a projection for the day.
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Musical hats or mats: the person without a hat or mat when the music stops is out
or children jump over a mat and the last one to jump over when the music stops is
out or is identified for a task.

3.2.2.3 Taste
Schoeman (1996b:46-47) defines taste as being distinctly in touch, to assess or
evaluate. It is a combination of smell, texture and temperature. It is linked to several
other impulses like smell and illness. We taste mainly with our tongue, which is also
used to speak, thus to express emotions. People develop individual tastes for certain
things and that should be respected as part of their selves.

Taste exercises can include the following:

Put an assortment of definite tasting sweets in a bowl from which children
choose a sweet, taste it and describe what it reminds him of
A fruit like a nectarine can be used to include most senses, but also taste. After
seeing, smelling, and touching the fruit the children can taste it and share
associated memories and emotions
Children can look at pictures of edibles and describe best likes and dislikes and
how they imagine it tastes, they can be made aware of associated memories or
other bodily sensations experienced when they imagine a certain taste
Children can lick their hands and share what they taste and with what they
associate it with
Taste and smell can be combined: children smell something and share how they
think it would taste plus the memories and emotions it evokes

Oaklander (1988:141) lists the following ideas to use when awareness of taste needs
to be increased:
Mimic tasting a variety of things like, ice cream, a lemon, or sucking through a
straw, licking a lollipop etcetera
Imagine eating something and act it out, while the others in the group try to
guess what the person is eating
Try to taste something that the group members has never tasted before
Taste something very delicious or very sour
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3.2.2.4 Touch
According to Schoeman (1996b:47) the skin is the biggest organ in the body. Pert
(1997:274) reasons that the body and mind are not separate and that the one cannot
be treated without the other. The body can be healed by the mind and most
important in the current research “the mind can and must be healed through the
body” (Pert, 1997:274). She furthermore reasons that the mainstream healing
practices of both body and mind misses a lot by excluding touch. The body is really
the gateway to the mind (Pert, 1997:274).

According to the researcher children can therefore heal their emotions and be more
aware of themselves through touch. In the current study, the groups could do fun
touch or message exercises like the following:
They can message each other’s hands and even arms with aromatherapy oils
(also including smell)
Children can stand in a circle and message each other’s backs and necks
The children can do a group hug
The group can start a little ritual of hugging each other when they come to
meetings or go away
They can close their eyes taking chances to feel somebody else’s hand and
describing what they feel
Other touch awareness exercises can include the following:
Touch some objects in a pot and describing what they feel
Blindfolding someone and then that person should identify another group
member by touching his face
Touch clay or sand and represent associated memories or feelings
Progressive relaxation
Close eyes and identify what they feel against their skin
Stand barefoot in the room and describe what they feel under their feet, also
associate it with emotions and / or memories
Children can bring something with to touch and different touching exercises
can be done, like identifying each other’s objects just by touch or describing
the touch / feel of the objects and relate it to memories and emotions
Children can put their feet in a foot spa, with warm or cold water and with the
vibrating option on and off
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Vibration pillows can be used for relaxation and to describe the feeling it
creates in the body

Oaklander (1988:140) lists the following ideas to use when awareness of touch
needs to be increased:
Children can pass around an imaginary object described by the therapist or by
the children as they pass it on. They can mimic what it is like to touch it
Imagine the table is covered with imaginary objects. Each child takes one and
mimic what it is like to touch it, the others can guess what that child is
touching

3.2.2.5 Smell
According to Schoeman (1996b:45) people use their sense of smell to gather
information about their surroundings and what is happening. People distinguish
between pleasant and unpleasant smells. Smells can be connected to memories of
the past evoking pleasant or unpleasant feelings. Goleman (1996:10-11) discusses
the sense of smell as the most ancient root of our emotional life. Discriminating
good from bad was done by the rhinencephalon (nose brain), which is part of the
limbic wiring. The limbic system is the emotional system in the human brain. The
rhinencephalon is the undeveloped / most basic basis of the neocortex, which
contains the higher thinking processes of the human being.
It makes sense to the researcher that smell can very efficiently connect to emotions
and activate mental processes. Using smell as sensory exercises should therefore be
very effective to enhance awareness of emotions or the self.

The researcher could thus use exercises like the following:

Smell pots: different small pots or bottles with different essences are used for
children to smell and represent memories and / or feelings associated with the
smells
Aromatherapy can be used to relax (lavender) or to enhance concentration
(rosemary, mint) or to stabilise mood (geranium) (Hey, 1996:157-158)
Smell can be combined with touch when children message each other’s hands
or their own with aromatic oils – this can increase self awareness,
interpersonal connection and have an effect on mood
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Oaklander (1988:141) lists the following ideas to use when awareness of smell
needs to be increased:
The children can show how they will react if they smell certain odours like, af
flower, an onion, burnt rubber etcetera
Imagine situations involving smell like, walking in the woods and smelling a
campfire, smelling different perfumes, smelling something unpleasant and
trying to decide what it is, smelling cookies baking when you get home

The researcher reasons that smell can be a very powerful tool and emotions created
by this should be handled in the therapy session, especially if it creates extreme or
strange reactions.

3.2.2.6 Conscious breathing

Apart from the list of sensory awareness techniques listed and discussed above, the
researcher also add the value of conscious breathing.
Pert (1997:186) states that this is an extremely powerful technique. She states that the
rate and depth of breathing has a direct influence on the peptides released from the
brain stem, and vice versa. By bringing this process into consciousness or by
changing it causes the peptides to spread rapidly through the cerebrospinal fluid to
restore homeostasis. Many of these peptides are endorphins - endogenous morphine
or the body’s natural opiates (Pert, 1997:64,187). Pert (1997:33) described the action
of morphine as “distinctly euphoric”, filling her “with a bliss bordering on ecstasy, in
addition to relieving all pain”. The researcher therefore describes endorphins as a
feel-good peptide. Pert (1997:296) uses conscious breathing as an awareness exercise,
as well as to relax and increase her energy and a feeling of well-being. Oaklander
(1988:128-129) states that breathing is an important aspect of awareness. A lot of
energy is lost during shallow breathing when people are anxious. It is thus important
to teach children how to breathe deeply. She also states the relationship between
oxygen, anxiety, and excitement. She wrote that the body needs a lot of oxygen to
support excitement. If people take in less oxygen, they tend to feel more anxious than
pleasurable. Oaklander (1988:128) teaches deep breathing by comparing shallow
breathing with deep breathing and helping the children to be aware of bodily
sensations when they breathe deeply.
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The researcher as therapist therefore used conscious breathing exercises regularly

with other sensory awareness exercises. Using this the researcher aimed to increase
the children in the research groups’ awareness, energy and positive feelings. This
might contribute to a more positive growing and learning environment. The children
might have had more fun in the sessions if there was a release of endorphins to
increase positive feelings. The researcher as therapist applied conscious deep
breathing to skills to cope with test anxiety and controlling temper tantrums.
Oaklander (1988:128) also states that she uses deep breathing very successfully for a
coping skill for test anxiety.

The following are more techniques, which could be applied in a Gestalt play therapy
programme such as the present intervention:

3.2.3 Projection techniques

The researcher reasons that projection techniques should not be confused with projection as a
contact boundary disturbance. The latter is a confusion of the self and others, because the
child is attributing something of himself to the outside (Yontef in Schoeman, 1996c:64). It is
simpler described by Clark and Fraser in Schoeman (1996c:64) stating that “projection is
imagining that our own (unwanted) feelings belong to someone else”. Oaklander (1988:193)
also states that projection is often called a defence against the hurt of the inner self.
Projection according to Oaklander (1988:193) is the basis for all artistic and scientific
creativity and is a valuable therapeutic tool.
In projection as a technique the child projects his own feelings onto another object where the
latter serves as a screen on which he can project the things he cannot handle in reality. In
such a way the child can handle things that are usually too fearful or seemingly unimportant
to handle or which are not handled due to feelings of inadequacy on the child’s side.
(Compare Oaklander, 1988:193; Schoeman, 1996c:64.) Projections may express things in the
child like the following: anxiety, unfinished business, feelings unable to be expressed
otherwise, wishes, wants, needs, fantasies, questions, curiosities and attitudes. The projection
is a way to work through feelings and / or experiences that are too difficult to handle in
reality. The therapist should therefore not interpret the projection, thus attach his own
perception to it. The therapist should only give the child the opportunity, encouragement and
awareness of what he is expressing in the projection. The therapist can gently lead the child
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to own this, or to relate what he expressed in the projection to his own life and then start to
develop insight in it. (Oaklander, 1988:193-194)
Projection techniques were used in the current study as self-awareness exercises and as
experiments when a child needed to handle unfinished business or any other difficult-to-
handle part of his life. Some projection techniques were thus be planned for, like those used
in the process goals of therapy. It could also be used when children are gaining awareness of
themselves and need a non-threatening way to share something of themselves and their
emotions.

3.2.4 Relaxation techniques

The researcher understands relaxation techniques within the holistic framework of the study.
The researcher is of the opinion that relaxed children can gain better contact with themselves
and others, can have better awareness of themselves and also clearer cognitive processes.
Van der Merwe (1996a:77) also states that relaxation techniques assist the child to find the
helping process worthwhile. It is important that relaxation techniques are not therapy in
itself, but only part of other techniques in the programme. (Van der Merwe, 1996a:77) The
researcher sees relaxation techniques as preparation techniques to improve the quality of the
other techniques. Van der Merwe (1996a:77) lists some examples of relaxation techniques,
including music, progressive muscle relaxation, systemic desensitisation, puzzles, games,
trips and outings, and pets and animals.
The researcher mostly made use of relaxation techniques such as music and progressive
muscle relaxation in the current study. Several authors such as Maree (2004:122), Lozanov
(in Maree, 2004:122), Campbell (2002) and Naiman (2002) support the positive effects of the
use of baroque music. Campbell (2002:1) states that Baroque music can improve memory,
awareness and the integration of learning styles. It can also assist with imagery and
visualisation, activating creativity and reducing anxiety. The researcher made use of music
for the benefit of increased awareness and creativity and for the help with visualisation, as
stated by Campbell (2002:1). Music was used in the beginning and end of sessions as part of
relaxation and sensory awareness techniques. Van der Merwe (1996a:78) supports the latter
use of music. It will also be used to increase the effectiveness of visualisation, imaginary
techniques and creative exercises.
Progressive relaxation techniques should be used with care, according to Van der Merwe
(1996a:80). The therapist should have enough knowledge of the use of these. A progressive
process of relaxation and contraction of different muscles may increase she child’s awareness
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of himself and of possible tension. Breathing techniques together with progressive relaxation
are also valuable. These techniques were used to relax the children before and after sessions
or during stressful situations. It can also be used as an experiment to practice relaxation in
difficult situations in real life. (Van der Merwe, 1996a:80)
The researcher as therapist applied these techniques as described above. A step-by-step guide
on how to use the progressive muscle relaxation technique is included in the intervention
programme (Appendix 3 of Session 2) attached to this research report.

3.2.5 Fantasy and imagination techniques

According to Schoeman (1996d:85) “Fantasy forms a central part of the child’s
development”. Children need fantasy to solve problems, to think creatively and to deal with
their fears in a non-threatening way. “Fantasy thus offers the child a safe way of transforming
his world” (Schoeman, 1996d:85). As stated in the previous paragraphs on relaxation
techniques and music, music can enhance the effect of imaginary play. According to
Schoeman (1996d:95) music expands the child’s levels of consciousness and can make him
aware of sensory imagery. It can help the children to face their unfulfilled needs, but still
creates positive experiences when solving problems.
Fantasy techniques include the use of metaphors. Schoeman (1996d:86-94) states the
importance of using metaphors in play therapy. The use of metaphors can be described in the
following way. It includes telling stories to children in order to carry over real life messages,
lessons, possible solutions to problems and the opportunity to see alternative ways of
behaving and approaching life.
When using fantasy techniques the child uses his imagination and can live in another world.
Children’s imagination usually includes the supernatural. This can make seemingly
impossible situations more manageable. The supernatural is kept only in fantasy. The child
can learn solutions to problems or can express fearful experiences in such a fantasy
technique, because it is then not real. (Schoeman, 1996d:93)
Although this discussion of fantasy and imagination techniques has not been done in much
detail, the researcher wishes to conclude with a summary of her perception to clear the
practical use of this. In this research study, fantasy and imagination were used because these
are creative techniques and the Gestalt therapist is a creative therapist (Zinker, 1977).
Exercises and techniques where the children are allowed to play themselves as an imaginary
figure like an animal or clay character were imaginary techniques (Session 1, 1. Introduction
of all group members). The researcher used stories and fantasy trips in the children’s
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imagination. Children can be allowed to follow a daydream to place themselves in another

world in order to relax or increase awareness. The specific guidelines for the use of these
techniques are included in the intervention programme (Sessions 4, 6, 7, 8, attached to this
study.

3.2.6 Biblio play

In biblio play the therapist makes use of written and audio-visual material. It extends further
than only books, but also include things like life books, writing letters, life maps, calendars,
magazines, diaries or journals, newspapers, comics, emotional barometers and self-
descriptions. (Van der Merwe, 1996b:108)
The researcher differentiates biblio play from fantasy techniques. Fantasy techniques may
include books from which stories are read, but the emphasis is on the imaginary “trip”, the
fantasy. The researcher will use biblio play in the form of media-play as stated by Van der
Merwe (1996b:108). Any exercise where children make use of a variety of audio and / or
visual material is understood as biblio play.
Biblio play can also include the reading of children’s stories, which is different from a
fantasy technique where the fantasy is mostly created by the child and sometimes in
coordination with the therapist. The researcher understands the difference between biblio
play and fantasy in the focus thereof. The focus of fantasy play is the experiencing of a
threatening situation and possible solutions in a fantasy world – the focus is fantasising, In
biblio play when stories are used, a specific story is chosen or created by the therapist and
sometimes by both therapist and child. This story has a specific message and use, which is
explored through different phases (Van der Merwe, 1996b:114-115).

The current research programme made use of storytelling as part of biblio play, and used
different other media projects, which are also part of biblio play. The programme made use
of diaries or self- / life books and self-descriptions (making use of magazine pictures and
drawings to assist poor writing skills). The programme also includes posters with group rules
and the introduction of the themes of the programme, which is linked to time graphics (Van
der Merwe, 1996b:120-121). Cartoons and comic strips (Van der Merwe, 1996b:123) can be
used to teach awareness of certain emotional intelligence skills, especially in communication
sessions, although this was not applied in the current intervention programme. Here the
children can complete the dialogue boxes of the cartoon characters. Incomplete sentences
(Van der Merwe, 1996b:124) were used in the current programme in combination with the
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life book. Children needed to complete statements about themselves using different media,
like drawings, painting, photo’s or magazine cut-outs. Verbal emotional barometers were
used in the beginning of sessions to help children to be aware of their emotional state in the
beginning and, at times, also at the end of sessions or specific exercises.

3.2.7 Dramatic play

Through dramatic play children can experiment with situations. They can act out a certain
situation in a non-threatening and safe environment (Porter & Dunn in Van der Merwe,
1996c:128) Dramatic play focuses on problem-solving and is thus included in the change
phase of therapy. It takes a great deal from the therapist, who should have good knowledge
about the child’s situation and who should be very inventive. (Van der Merwe, 1996c:128)
Dramatic play progresses through three phases namely; warming up (focused fantasy and
creative movement), dramatising (change-oriented techniques) and conclusion (reducing
tension and providing feeling of progress). If the child is relaxed and comfortable, thus
relaxation techniques has been used, dramatic play might be more effective to evoke change.
(Van der Merwe, 1996c:130)
The following are a few examples listed by Van der Merwe (1996c:130-136):

3.2.7.1 Role-playing
Here the child might play him self or another person. Certain situations and ways of
behaving is practiced in the safe environment of the therapy room. (Van der Merwe,
1996c:130) This could be used in the current programme when specific situations
come up where children need to experiment with a certain way of behaviour.

3.2.7.2 Talking-feeling-doing game

This is a board game designed by Gardner (in Van der Merwe, 1996c:130). Children
choose cards, which indicate actions to do or to describe. It focuses on cognitive,
emotional and behavioural aspects and is divided into low and medium anxiety
categories. A play board, dice and pack of cards are needed. If a child picks up a card,
he needs to do what the card says. One example of such a card is: “Medium anxiety
card: Bad remark about mother, thoughts when unable to sleep” (Gardner in Van der
Merwe, 1996c:131)
This board game was adapted to be used in the current programme to assist the
children in the groups to be comfortable to share their feelings and thoughts. It was
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specifically focused on increasing interpersonal skills. It could teach the children to

be open and confident to share and explore themselves and their relationships with
friends.

3.2.7.3 Dramatising therapeutic communication

According to Gardner (in Van der Merwe, 1996c:132) children tend to dramatise their
life-stories. Here the therapist dramatise the child’s life story for him. It takes a lot of
courage and very little inhibitions from the therapist.
As the current study is not focused on dealing specifically with children’s life story
problems, this technique was not used regularly. Should a child present a specific
problem with his life during the course of the programme and needed to be aware of
this, it could be used so that the rest of the group could assist the child in
understanding and coping and also learn from it.

3.2.7.4 Dolls, puppets and paper dolls

The child, the therapist or both can tell a story using dolls or puppets, or paper dolls,
etcetera. The dolls / puppets can act out certain problematic situations or even
alternatives to problems. Therapists can use their own creativity and available
material to create the puppets needed. (Van der Merwe, 1996c:132-134)
In the current programme finger puppets could be used very effectively to model
certain behaviour or to safely share feelings. Feeling puppets could be used to help
children to share their feelings in a non-threatening way. Although feeling puppets
were not applied, puppets were used in the session focused on sharing family
cultures. The children represented themselves and their family members with paper
dolls.

3.2.7.5 Telephone play

Van der Merwe (1996c:135) calls this a non-toy toy. The child may use the telephone
as he wishes. He can talk to someone else or to himself. The child’s own functioning
will determine in which way the telephone will be used.
The researcher is of the opinion that this technique is also focused on a specific
child’s problematic situation that needs to be discussed, or feelings that need to be
aired. It could thus only be used in the current programme as an experiment when a
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child needs to practice to communicate a certain message to someone else or to the

therapist or to another group member.

3.2.7.6 Masks
Children can place themselves in a symbolic world, when putting on masks. This
might also incorporate fantasy play as discussed earlier, as well as creative play,
when making the masks. (Van der Merwe, 1996c:136) The children are allowed to be
something else and can say things that they would not have when they are themselves
(Oaklander, 1988:143). The researcher reasons that masks can provide an opportunity
for children to be free from the restrictions, which reality or expectations of others
place on them.
In the current study this could be a possibility to act out certain behaviours or to
experiment with certain possibilities or real life happenings and discuss it afterwards.
It could be a fun activity in the group as the creative play part, when making the
masks, can also contribute to the children’s relaxation and enjoyment. The researcher
did not plan masks as a technique in one of the sessions, but users of this intervention
programme are free to incorporate this as one of their techniques.

The researcher is of the opinion that the creative therapist can use a wide variety of dramatic
play techniques as it suits the situation or needs of the children. As stated above, many of
these are experiential and might not be planned for. It might be used in a certain situation
when a specific child presents a need to be addressed in a non-threatening way. It can be
much fun, but it is important that the group dramatising techniques is used when the group
already gelled. According to the researcher the group might find it difficult to dramatise
situations if they don’t know each other and don’t feel comfortable.

3.2.8 Creative play

The researcher finds creative play to have a very wide application in therapy and specifically
in the current group therapy programme. Children create something nearly all the time while
being busy in the group activities. Zinker (1977:3) describes creativity in a very enthusiastic
way. He uses phrases like: “Creativity is a celebration of one’s grandeur…”, “Creativity is a
celebration of life…”, “It is not only an expression of the full range of each person’s
experience and sense of uniqueness, but also a social act…”, “Creation is each person’s
statement of godliness, of transcending the daily struggle…an outcry of anguish and of
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celebration.”, “Creativity is the breaking of boundaries…” and “Finally, creativity is an act of

bravery”.
The researcher therefore defines creative play as creating something, which is representative
of one’s own process or perception, but which can also stretch beyond one’s current
boundaries. It is to use any material to make something new.
Porter (in Van der Merwe, 1996d:138) states that creative play can take place in various
forms and is inventive. It includes many variations of art and handcraft.
According to the researcher this is a very wide area of application. It really includes all
creation, especially combined with imaginary play and symbolic play, but also other creation.
The researcher therefore discussed the technique of creative play used in each specific lesson
in the current intervention programme in the users manual (attached intervention
programme). In order to make creative play a little clearer, the following list of examples of
creative play is included. The different forms will not be discussed, but only listed as an
elaboration of the definition of creative play.

Media and art forms – drawings, clay, making masks, painting etcetera
Children’s drawings – exploring the colour, size, space, lines omissions content,
environment and using it as a projection technique
Clay – making projections or using it to act out aggression or hostility
Handicrafts – includes making life books, paper dolls, masks, collages etcetera

Van der Merwe (1996d:148) states that, “creative play can be one of the most enjoyable
forms of play”. The researcher wishes to include the quote of Allan and Clark in Van der
Merwe (1996d:148), because this shows the value of creative activities in the growth process.
“Painting and drawing, especially in the counselling setting, activate growth and change; that
is, the images and symbols a child uses are both safe “containers” and “transformers” of
emotions and feelings. Once painful images have been expressed in this way, new growth
occurs both in the conscious and the unconscious.”

In the current programme, children created something in each session. The researcher
acknowledges the enjoyment of creation (compare Van der Merwe, 1996d:148; Zinker,
1977:19) to enhance the children’s enthusiasm and joyful, relaxed learning experiences in the
current programme. The researcher wishes the current programme to be an experience of the
joys of growth and development.
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4. MAKING THE APPLICABLE TECHNIQUES CULTURE FAIR

Experiments work the best when the therapist respects the client’s cultural background and is
in good contact with the client (Passons & Zinker in Corey, 1996:247).

The researcher is of the opinion that as the current programme will not only be used in
Namibia within the Namibian cultures, the programme should not be sensitive to only the
Namibian cultures. Culture sensitivity of the techniques used, should therefore include
sensitivity to culture in general. The therapist should therefore be sensitive to the differences
in thinking, feeling and acting of the children in the groups. Sensitivity to each other’s
otherness is also related to emotional intelligence skills. Emotional intelligence includes
understanding of the feelings of other people, respecting this and learning how to act and
communicate in respect to other people. (Compare Goleman, 1996; Jarosewitch, 1995;
Le Roux & De Klerk, 2001; Le Roux & De Klerk, 2003; Maree, 2004; Vermeulen, 1999;
Yontef in Schoeman, 1996b:29.)

According to Zinker (1977:74) the therapist is always responding to his social and personal
culture, thus his own ways of thinking, feeling and acting. Mackewn (2004:48-49) states that
Gestalt therapy is based in field theory. “In Gestalt the individual-environment entity is
known as the field… the field consists of all the complex interactive phenomena of
individuals and their environment” (Mackewn, 2004:48). The therapist therefore attempted to
understand and accept the children in the research groups as part of their cultural fields. The
researcher sees their field as part of their selves, because their fields determine the way they
think and feel about things (Chapter 3, 1.2.5 A conclusion on the definition of culture).
The researcher as therapist therefore aimed to make the current programme culture sensitive
by focusing on two aspects. These include the teaching of culture sensitivity as part of
emotional intelligence techniques, and also the attitudes, thoughts and behaviour of the
therapist self.

The following section covers the researcher’s discussion of the application of the relevant
techniques in an intervention programme.
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5. A PRELIMINARY GESTALT PLAY THERAPY PROGRAMME FOR

IMPROVING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN THE MIDDLE SCHOOL
YEARS

5.1 Introduction

The researcher used group therapy in this study. The decision for group therapy above
individual therapy was based on the specific advantages of group work related to the skills of
emotional intelligence. The researcher found that the skills, which are important to address in
an emotional intelligence programme, could be more effectively addressed in group work
than in individual therapy. The value of group work will be discussed in more depth in 5.2.2
Value, in the section on “Group therapy in general” below.
Children of nearly the same age were placed together in groups. All of the group members
were in the middle school years developmental phase.
This programme also has a goal of being culturally sensitive therefore children from different
cultural environments were included in the groups.
The common purpose for all children in the groups is to enhance their emotional intelligence
skills. All participants were assessed with the Das-Naglieri Cognitive Assessment System
(Naglieri & Das, 1997a). Their planning processes, which are executed from the frontal lobes
in the brain, were all significantly lower than other cognitive processes and / or needed
improvement to improve the functioning of other related mental processes.

5.2 Group therapy in general

5.2.1 Definition
Group psychotherapy is “a means of changing behaviour and emotional patterns, based on
the premise that much of human behaviour and feeling involves the individual’s adaptation
and response to other people” (Group Psychotherapy, 2001:1). This process is carried out in
formally organised groups, consisting of three or more participants who seek change. The
group situation becomes a simulation of the outside world and its difficulties. It resembles
interpersonal relationships in the outside world and the members can participate in observing
other group members’ motivation and interaction styles. Group members also attempt new
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behaviours and practice how to deal with the consequences of these new behaviours. The
latter results in the ability to employ the practiced behaviours outside the group too. “In
observing the totality of the events that take place in group therapy, the process by which
elements of personality are developed in each member is also studied” (Group
Psychotherapy, 2001:1).

5.2.2 Value
The value of group therapy is evident in the distinction between the value of group therapy
above individual therapy by Ginger and Ginger (2000:1). They found that many more
problems could be addressed in group therapy than in individual therapy.
Gestalt therapy groups also add interpersonal aspects to therapy, which is fundamental to
human relations. People coming to therapy also prefer relationship difficulties to be handled
in addition with internal uneasiness. Group therapy also facilitates experimentation in the
here-and-now of difficult situations, where in individual therapy this is most of the times
only possible as a discussion of what can happen. (Ginger & Ginger, 2000:6)
Interaction with other group members increases the courage of less expressive members to
win over timidity and modesty. Relationship and social behaviour patterns are more
effectively identified and experienced in groups than in individual therapy situations. (Ginger
& Ginger, 2000:7)

5.2.3 Process of a group therapy programme

The process of group therapy in the current research includes the following: the procedures
for selection of participants, the frequency and length of therapy sessions and the stages of
group development. These topics will be discussed in the following paragraphs and the
information will be applied to the Gestalt play therapy groups in this research study.

5.2.3.1 Procedure for selection of participants

ACA’s (in Corey, 2000:89) ethical standard for screening of group members reads as
follows: “Counselors screen prospective group counselling/therapy participants. To
the extent possible, counsellors select members whose needs and goals are compatible
with goals of the group, who will not impede the group process, and whose well-
being will not be jeopardized by the group experience”.
According to Corey (2000:89) the selection process is a two-way process. The
therapist should have a private screening interview with the group members. The
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members should have the opportunity to determine whether the group is right for
them and whether they are right for the group. The latter part indicates whether the
group member may in any way be disturbed by the group or will in any way create a
disturbance for the group. (Corey, 2000:89) In the case of the current study, the
private interview is held with the parents or primary care takers of the group members
as they (the potential group members) are under aged. The child’s placement in a
specific group should therefore be discussed on two levels.
The first is whether this group is right for the child, thus whether this group will
fulfil in the current needs of the child. The second level to consider is whether the
child’s profile fit the goal of this group or whether the child presents certain
characteristics, which might disturb the group or whether the child will be disturbed
by the goal of the group. The two-way process in the case of the current study was
thus to determine whether the child fits into a group for primary school children,
speaks either English or Afrikaans and is part of any cultural group. Will multi-
cultural emotional intelligence groups for primary school children be the right thing
to fulfil in this child’s current needs. The first level of selection was to place children
who really needed help with emotional intelligence in the groups.
The groups in this study was specifically focused on primary school children who
needed help with emotional intelligence, the groups were conducted in either English
or in Afrikaans and was multi-cultural. The groups were not fit for children with
serious emotional, cognitive or personality disturbances. The children had to be able
to function in a mainstream school, although they might be attending special classes.
On the second selection level, the children should not presented overt or salient
characteristics indicating that he or she cannot function in a group setting or will
disturb the process of a group setting. Any other personal characteristics of the child
indicating that a group setting, a multi-cultural environment or children in primary
school could cause a problem or disturbance to the child was an indication that this
child should not be included in the groups of the current study.

5.2.3.2 Frequency and length of therapy sessions

According to Corey (2000:93) there is very little or no systematic research available
on the length of sessions for specific types of clients. He makes the following
suggestions concerning the length and frequency of sessions. He states that most
therapy groups gather once a week. Groups with children and adolescents can meet
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more frequently depending on the group leader and type of group. The length of
sessions for children is a little shorter than for adults. Adults can extend sessions to
two hours. Sessions for children can be shorter. Outpatient sessions are usually 90-
minute sessions.
Corey (2000:93) also states that it is wise to determine a termination date so the group
members know the time limit in which they are working. Groups with a time limit
have a specific focus and the interventions then are as efficient as possible. Short-
term groups usually cover about 15 weeks with around 20 sessions. Many high school
groups run for the length of a trimester, which is about 15 weeks. The group should
exist long enough to allow for cohesion and productivity, but not so long that it drags
on endlessly. (Corey, 2000:93)
The length of sessions for the play therapy groups in the current research study thus
varied from 60 minutes to 90 minutes depending on practical issues like availability
of children for such a time limit, the content of the sessions and the concentration
span of the children. These practical issues were finalised in the pilot study.
The number of sessions were greatly determined by practical issues like; the content
of the programme, the year programme of the participants and the financial
implications for their parents. The children in the current study are all primary school
children and thus much under the supervision of their parents, making our group
therapy programme dependent on the resources of the parents. These resources
included time per day, activity programmes during the specific trimester and finances.
These issues were identified through the typical questions all the parents asked when
approached to include their child in the group sessions. The researcher as therapist
discussed a time limit of about 12 sessions with the parents. It was also stated that this
is not a very exact number. The number of sessions may vary a little depending on the
group members, their processes and their learning ability.
The pilot study started off with the minimum of time per session and the minimum
sessions necessary for an intervention programme. This helped the researcher as
therapist to determine the minimum time that could be used.

5.2.3.3 Stages of group development / group process

According to a variety of authors (compare Corey, 2000:93-136; Oaklander in
Sweeney and Hofmeyer, 1999:171; Rodney & Gershenfeld, 1993:535-536) group
therapy develops in certain stages.
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The following are stages of group development or process as indicated by Corey

(2000:98-113).

The first stage of group development is the pre-group issues.

It has been discussed above in 5.2.3.1 Procedure for selection of participants and
5.2.3.2 Frequency and length of therapy sessions.

The second stage of group development according to Corey (2000:98) is the

initial stage of orientation and exploration.
The primary tasks here are inclusion and identity. Children should find their identity
in the group as an active group member. This means finding a balance between
keeping one’s individuality and committing to be part of the group (Schutz in Corey,
2000:98).
The foundation of the group now is trust. If the members cannot trust the group then
they will not be free to express themselves, to explore and to grow. Trust can be
affected by group members’ negative feelings toward each other and the way these
negative feelings are handled. The following is a list of characteristics typical to this
stage:
The atmosphere is tested and members get acquainted
They learn norms and expectations
They display sociably acceptable behaviour
Cohesion and trust are build if members express the thoughts and feelings
Members start to define their place in the group
Trust versus mistrust get to be essential
Members learn about trusting each other and the group, involvement and what the
group is about
They learn basic attitudes of respect, empathy, acceptance, caring, and responding
– all components of building trust.
(Corey, 2000:104)

The third stage of group development according to Corey (2000:105-108) is the

transition stage of dealing with resistance.
The group usually goes through a rather difficult transition phase before it can really
do productive work. Group members tend to deal with anxieties, resistance and
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conflict during this stage. Group members might feel anxious and act in a defensive
way. As soon as they develop enough trust to share themselves without feeling that
they are being judged or misunderstood, they can move on to genuine openness and
trust.
Conflict may take place in the form of negative comments and criticism. There might
also be a struggle for control. (Corey, 2000:106)
The following are characteristics typical to the transition stage:
Members judge what they will think of themselves and what others will think of
their true selves as they get more aware of themselves
Members test the environment (leader and other members included) to determine
the safety
They struggle with the decision of getting involved in the group or not
Members might struggle for control and power
Group members learn to handle conflict and confrontation
Members might feel unsure whether other group members will care about their
own concerns
Look at the group leader and learn from him/her about trust and handling conflict
Members learn to express themselves in such a way that others will listen to them.
(Corey, 2000:111)

5.3 Gestalt play therapy groups

According to Yontef (1993:25) some Gestalt therapists use group therapy as individual
therapy in groups. The therapist will then focus on one client and deal with his unfinished
business while all the others are silent. After this the other participants share their
experiences of the session and how it affected them. Although this happens, not all Gestalt
therapists handle group therapy in such a way. Others do consider group dynamics too. This
includes involvement of all group members. Members work on individual themes in the
group, including everyone. The emphasis is on interrelationships (contact) and working with
the group process. Yontef (1993:23) states that Gestalt therapists usually start their sessions
with a group exercise to make members aware to share experiences in the here and now.
(Yontef, 1993:23) The researcher also used the latter in the Gestalt play therapy group
sessions as discussed here. Therapy sessions in the current study always started with a
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sensory awareness exercise to increase self-awareness in the here and now. The group
therapy sessions in this research resembled the latter discussion of groups, namely where the
focus is on all the group members and the group process itself. The researcher sees
communication and interpersonal growth as very important aspects of emotional intelligence,
which was the focus here. These could be enhanced in a group setting where interaction and
group process are important attributes.

5.3.1 Value
According to Oaklander in Sweeney and Hofmeyer (1999:165) the group is an ideal
environment, in which children can be aware of, can experiment with and can enhance their
contact skills. Contact skills or contact functions include the following: the use of all the
senses and moving in the environment; appropriate ways of awareness and expression of
emotions; using intellect to express emotions, thoughts, opinions, etcetera. Poor contact
skills show a poor sense of self, leading to poor social skills. It is natural and very important
for children to seek out other children. The group provides a safe place for those children
with social difficulties to discover and better the things blocking their effective relations with
other children.
In a group setting many self-strengthening activities are more fun, interesting and effective as
they are being done together with other children. The group is an ideal and safe place for
children to maintain their own selves while relating to others. Children with emotional
problems usually don’t have a good sense of self and will thus either get their sense of self
from others, thus trying to be like everyone else or retreat to a lonely place to find at least
something of the self. For these children the safe place of the group, the guidance of the
therapist and the clear boundaries helps him to find himself among others.
Finding that other children have similar problems, thoughts, feelings, worries, fears, and
experiences as themselves are usually a revelation to children. Through this linkage they
experience support from outside, which lead to support inside and therefore a stronger self
can develop. Now they feel more secure to reveal those parts of themselves, which are
different from the rest of the group. This leads to awareness and change. (Oaklander in
Sweeney and Hofmeyer 1999:165-169.)
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5.3.2 Group Process

"Gestalt groups, be they weekend workshops or ongoing groups, follow a developmental

pattern similar to that of other therapy groups. Our groups begin with initial social
superficiality and exploration and the cautious testing of trust levels; they then move into
identity conflicts and power struggles." (Zinker in Harris, 1998a:5)

A group has a distinctive life of its own, although it’s made up of individual children.
Groups tend to follow more or less the same pattern from the first session to the last. The
supposed pattern of a Gestalt play therapy group is as follows:

5.3.2.1 Children usually come to the group feeling very alone.

As children usually experience a lot of anxiety coming to a group. They manifest
many kinds of negative behaviour to cover up these anxieties. The therapist helps the
children to feel safe and respected and tries to get them to know each other through
non-invasive, safe and accepting activities. (Oaklander in Sweeney and Hofmeyer
1999:171)
This stage resembles the second stage of group therapy according to Corey
(2000:204), which is the stage of orientation and exploration.

5.3.2.2 The group begins to gel.

After about four to six weeks the group begins to gel – the children feel comfortable
and anxieties of sharing more deeply drop away. A feeling of companionship
develops and they know that the others will understand and support them when
needed. (Oaklander in Sweeney and Hofmeyer 1999:171)
According to the researcher Corey’s third stage of group process (Corey, 2000:106)
resembles partly the Gestalt play therapy process’s first stage and also the second
stage. In group therapy’s third stage members deal with anxieties, resistance and
conflict. These feelings get resolved in this stage. (Corey, 2000:106) In the Gestalt
play therapy group process anxiety and resistance mainly occur in the first stage and
get resolved in the second stage where the group begins to gel (Oaklander in Sweeney
and Hofmeyer 1999:171).
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5.3.2.3 Roles emerge.

Children start to develop different roles: one becomes the leader, another the clown,
the smart one and one who acts out for everyone. The therapist could bring these
roles into awareness of the group and with the children’s input and ideas start to
experiment with different roles. (Oaklander in Sweeney and Hofmeyer, 1999:171)

In the current study the researcher attempted to combine Oaklander’s (in Sweeney and
Hofmeyer, 1999) views on Gestalt play therapy group work and the Schoeman model for a
play therapy session or sessions.
According to Schoeman (2004b:118) this structure “is meant to give the therapist a
comfortable way to work with the most obvious issues first while staying with the child’s
foreground…The process within the Schoeman-model is a gentle flowing event”.
The researcher used two of Schoeman’s steps in the structure of therapy as part of the process
of group work. This continues through the whole process and is not specifically addressed as
activities in each individual session. These include building a relationship and determining
the children’s processes. (Schoeman, 2004b:118, 152-160)

The therapist should build a strong relationship with the children otherwise they will not feel
comfortable to share their inner feelings and issues (Schoeman, 2004b:118). In the current
programme the therapist spent at least the first two sessions, and if needed the first three
sessions specifically to build a relationship with the children and to determine their different
processes. Work on this relationship continued through the programme as Gestalt therapy is
focused on the relationship between the therapist and child. (Compare Jarosewitsch, 1995:1;
Schoeman, 1996b:29; Schoeman, 2004b:120.) The relationship in the Schoeman-model of
Gestalt play therapy has already been discussed in 2.2.4.2 Aims of the therapeutic
relationship of this study.

Schoeman (2004a:45-46) states the importance and value of knowing the child’s process
before the process of therapy can be continued successfully.
The first three sessions of the intervention programme were spent on specific exercises to
focus on determining the group members’ processes. The process of sharing characteristics
of the children’s processes can already be part of the first part of emotional intelligence,
namely self-awareness.
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Individual group sessions were conducted according to the following steps of the Schoeman-
model:
Sensory awareness, projection, owning the projection, alternatives, empowerment of the
child to be able to apply alternatives, conclusion and self-nurturing (Schoeman, 2004b:118-
119).

It is also important to note, that Gestalt therapy groups are not strictly bound to the group
process as discussed above. A certain amount of choice should still be an option. This was
stated in Chapter 3, 2.2.2.3 Principle of Singularity, as follows: “If a group’s process adheres
to a specific prescribed process, it misses the primary human characteristic of choice. Harris
(1998:11) says that without choice, one cannot be fully human. It is thus apparent that a
group therapist cannot work on definite rules and recipes. Each person, interaction and each
moment of group life is new and fresh”.

5.3.3 Content of group sessions

The content of the Gestalt play therapy group varies according to the age and needs of the
children. The group is structured unless the purpose is free play (Oaklander in Sweeney and
Hofmeyer, 1999:173). The activities are varied and generally enjoyable. The activities focus
on the expression of feelings, defining and strengthening the self, and experiencing healthier
aspects of the self. The activities include many projective techniques, like: drawings, clay,
collage, sand tray, puppets, music, movements, drama, stories, imagery and fantasy. Games
are also an important therapeutic vehicle. Themes that are relevant to the group’s needs are
handled. These themes come from the group or are suggested by the therapist. (Oaklander in
Sweeney and Hofmeyer 1999:173-174)
Schoeman (2004b:111-114) listed techniques, which can be used in group work. She
emphasises that the techniques are mainly used to increase awareness and to express feelings,
which can result in self-regulation. This supports the paradoxical theory of change. The client
/ child will heal himself when he becomes aware of his dysfunctional behaviour. He will
become what he really is – a whole human being, not an unhappy fragmented self. (Compare
Beisser, 1970:1; Jacobs, 1998:4; Jarosewitsch, 1995:2.)

The following are techniques listed by Schoeman (2004b:111-114), which are applicable to
the group work programme of the current research:
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5.3.3.1 Language exercises

As speech is usually an expression of our feelings, thoughts and attitudes (Corey in
Schoeman, 2004:111) the group can increase awareness by focusing on what and how
they say things. Children in the group should be taught to use “I” messages. They
need to take responsibility for what they say. They can for example change a sentence
like “You are always disrupting the group” to “I feel that you disrupt our group”. This
will increase the children’s responsibility in connection to their own feelings. It is
also less threatening and the other child / children might not feel it so necessary to
defend themselves.
Corey (2000:320) added the following changes. He states that “it” is a
depersonalisation of language. If children use “it” instead of “I”, they tend to keep
themselves distant from their experiences. In the current research the therapist can
bring this to the awareness of the children. Corey (2000:320) states that by replacing
impersonal pronouns with personal ones, the children assume responsibility for what
they said. He also notes the change of “you” to “I”, like “You feel hurt when someone
rejects you” to “I feel hurt when someone rejects me”. Responsibility is one of the
main themes of both Gestalt theory (1.13 Responsibility) and emotional intelligence
programmes (Chapter 2 – 3.2.2 Taking responsibility for your own life - controlling
your feelings, thoughts and behaviour).
According to the researcher more personal use of language creates a safer
environment where children can still feel free to be themselves. The researcher as
therapist also needs to focus on another preference of change in language as discussed
by Corey (2000:321-322). This includes “cannot” to “will not” and “should” to
“will”. Such language changes all increase a sense of responsibility for one’s own
feelings and life.

5.3.3.2 Non-verbal language

According to Perls (in Schoeman, 2004b:112) people express denied and blocked
aspects of themselves through movements, gestures, posture and voice. When these
non-verbal messages are explored or brought to attention of the group members, it
can increase their awareness of what they are experiencing.
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5.3.3.3 Experiments with dialogue

Schoeman (2004b:112) states the fantasy dialogue technique. This technique can be
used to integrate splits and polarities in a child’s personality or behaviour. A child can
use this to express feelings, which he cannot express in real life. This resembles the
empty chair technique (compare Schoeman, 2004a:63; Zinker, 1977:150-153). One
other person in the group can play the role of the other person and the child can say
all he wants to him. (Corey, 2000:325) The researcher would rather use the empty
chair technique here so that the child can express his feelings to an imaginary person
than to one of the group members. The researcher is afraid that transference may
occur or that the children in the group are still not emotionally strong enough to play
such a role. These children have vulnerable self-images and the researcher would not
like to risk possible damage to the growth of positive self-images.
According to Corey (2000:325) fantasy can also be very constructive and safe to
explore the fears of some group members who are afraid to participate in group
discussions and exercises or experiments. They can be asked to imagine the thing
they fear the most in the group. According to the researcher these fears can be
handled in the group with creative exercises like drawing the fear and then discussing
the drawing in the group. It might be difficult for primary school children to just
discuss these fears openly, as the children who fear rejection the most might have a
lower self-image.

5.3.3.4 Techniques that assume responsibility

These techniques attempt to make the children in the groups aware of their tendency
to rather blame others than to take responsibility for their own feelings. These
techniques are focused on changing the language and therefore also the attitudes and
behaviour of children. (Schoeman, 2004b: 113) The researcher relates this to the
language techniques discussed in the previous paragraph. These language exercises
are part of the techniques used to increase responsibility. According to Schoeman
(2004b:113) techniques are used to encourage the children to become aware of their
feelings, accept them, and take responsibility for them, rather than blaming others.
The researcher as therapist incorporated the focus on language as a way of taking
responsibility throughout the programme, thus during all the sessions as needed.
Although the latter is the case, the programme does include a specific session on
taking responsibility for one’s own feelings and own life. This is the third theme in
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the programme, which is usually covered in session five or six, depending on the
group’s progress.

5.3.3.5 Fantasy work

This technique has already been covered in the section on play therapy techniques
namely, 3.2.5 Fantasy and imagination techniques. Schoeman (2004b:113) discussed
this as part of group therapy techniques. The researcher notes the importance of being
aware that the general play therapy techniques discussed in this chapter are in a
smaller or bigger way applicable to the group therapy situation. This study is making
use of Gestalt theory and Gestalt play therapy techniques, applying these in a group
situation.
Schoeman (2004b:113) added something, which was not included in the previous
discussion (3.2.5 Fantasy and imagination techniques) namely the opportunity to
discuss feelings like guilt, shame and fear. The researcher sees this as a non-
threatening way to handle feelings, which can seem very threatening to children.

The following two techniques, discussed by Schoeman (2004b:113-114), are already

included in the discussion on Gestalt therapy techniques – 3.1.1.3 Examples of experiments,
together with the application to the current study:

5.3.3.6 Reversal techniques

Schoeman (2004b:113) notes that this increase awareness of what is being denied.
Such an experiment would be to ask a child who likes to please others, to ask others
to do things for him.

5.3.3.7 Dream work

According to Schoeman (2004b:113-114) dreams are projections of the child self.
Children can get closer to the existential message of their dream and can be aware of
their feelings and attitudes related to this.

The researcher listed these again as proof of the use of general Gestalt techniques in play
therapy groups.
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In the current research groups, the therapist suggested the themes and usually also the
techniques used. The activities were still varied and enjoyable, because the groups consisted
of primary school children. As already discussed in Chapter 2, 1.2 Physical development,
these children have lots of energy, which should be utilised in these groups. People (also
children) learn much easier when the learning situation is positive and enjoyable (Maree,
2004:101) and optimistic people have better success with learning (Van Jaarsveld, 2003:85).
It is thus very important to teach emotional intelligence with optimism, creating a positive
and exciting learning environment.

5.3.4 The role of the therapist

The researcher sees the role of the therapist as one of the most important catalysts of growth
and change in the current study. This relates to the conclusion of the previous paragraph,
where the importance of the type of learning environment has been stated.
The researcher therefore includes some very necessary skills and characteristics of the
therapist. The Gestalt therapist who uses the programme of this research study, should
therefore first do a lot of self-exploration and should be aware of his or her own process and
the application of this in the current programme. The latter is also an important element of
the focus on cultural sensitivity of the current programme (4. MAKING THE APPLICABLE
TECHNIQUES CULTURE FAIR).

5.3.4.1 The therapist’s creative role

The therapist using this programme should be flexible enough to use experiments
when needed (3.1.1 Experiments), to focus on the needs of the moment and still enjoy
the process. Being flexible and open is greatly associated with being creative
(compare Maree, 2004:77; Zinker, 1977). The researcher reasons that the therapist,
who applies the current programme or who, according to Zinker (1977:17-20),
practices Gestalt therapy should be a creative therapist. The following are aspects of
creativity, which the researcher finds important to consider when working as a
creative therapist:
Being able to create many new ideas
Being flexible and adaptable
Being original
Using existing ideas to create new ones (Buzan in Maree, 2004:77-78)
Creating new things out of usual material
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Solving problems in an original way

Reacting congenially to challenges
To value music and/or art
Acceptable expression of emotions
To use language correctly
To laugh – also at one self (Maree, 2004:78)

The researcher notes some similarities between this list of aspects of creativity,
emotional intelligence and Gestalt therapy. These include flexibility, being original,
expression of emotions, and use of language. The latter are included in the
discussions in this chapter, being an integral part of Gestalt theory and therapy.
The following is a list of skills needed by a creative therapist as listed by Zinker (in
Corey, 2000:315):
The therapist should be able to identify energy within the children and then
sensitively introduce appropriate experiments on the right time to use this energy.
He should be flexible enough to let go of something and move on to something
more lively.
He should be willing to push group members to get the work on themselves done,
but also know when to back off.
He should be able to assist group members to express their feelings and
summarise what they have learned after an experiment.
He should be wise enough to know when to leave group members to find their
own solutions to their difficulties and when not

5.3.4.2 The therapist’s roles during different stages of group development

Kepner (in Corey, 2000:315) states that the group leader or therapist commits to work
with both the individual members of the group as well as with the group itself in order
to enhance both. The group leader work in three processes: intrapersonal,
interpersonal and group as a system (Kepner in Corey, 2000:316).
In the first stage of the group process (5.2.3.3 Stages of group development / group
process) the key characteristics are identity and dependence. Group members depend
on how other members and the therapist perceives them. The role of the leader is that
of therapist, assisting members to cope and explore with other members’ questions
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about their roles in the group. The leader should now create a climate of trust where
members can be save enough to explore each other and get to know each other better.
In the second stage the key characteristics are influence and counter dependence. The
leader acts as a facilitator to help group members to work through reactions they have
toward what is taking place in the group. The leader can now heighten awareness on
what is happening in the group. Members can be helped to openly express differences
and dissatisfaction if necessary. They should differentiate roles from persons.
In the third stage intimacy and interdependence are the key characteristics. Now real
contact between group members start to appear. Members are now ready to move to a
deeper level of work, both on themselves as well as in the group. The group leader
does not lead anymore, but is more of a consultant who provides help to recognise
unfinished business.

5.3.4.3 The experiential role of the therapist

Schoeman (2004b:114) states that Gestalt group work therapists need other skills than
therapists who engage in individual Gestalt play therapy. These skills include an
attitude of using experiments. The therapist uses the group members and events that
take place in the group as well as himself to create “novel visions” (Corey in
Schoeman, 2004b:115) of the group members.
The researcher understands the latter as creating new insight into the selves and the
lives of the group members. Both the therapist as well as the group members will thus
come to better insights about the group members’ selves and their way of functioning.
The therapist needs the skill to create new applicable experiments to fit the situation
and group members in group therapy. The therapist should also assess whether a
certain experiment is safe enough or too risky for a certain member. It is important
here that group members always have a choice whether they want to participate in an
experiment or not. It is important that the therapist explain each experiment with
enough enthusiasm and with an “inviting attitude” (Schoeman, 2004b:114). This will
lead to greater willingness to participate.
The researcher sees the therapist’s positive attitude, enthusiasm, positive regard
towards members and the safe accepting environment created by the therapist as very
important contributions to the group members’ willingness to participate. The
therapist must pull the group along and create an environment in which they can be
free to fully be themselves.
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The researcher summarises the experiential role of the therapist in the following three
words: “Let them be…”. If children are free to be themselves without any need to
pretend, project, act out or defend, they can explore their possibilities, resolve their
unfinished business and grow and develop to reach their full potential.

5.3.5 Applicability to the current study

5.3.5.1 Summary of applicability of this chapter

In the current study the therapist attempted to make an impact and to promote growth
and change in the children in the groups’ lives. The current programme suggests
certain exercises to use in order to bring specific themes to the group members’
attention. These exercises are only suggestions though, the therapist needs to be
aware of opportunities to use experiments and adapt the programme to the children’s
needs. The creative therapist and his energy, enthusiasm and healing contact with the
children will be the catalyst for learning, growth and change. This therapist should
keep the focus of different types or examples of experiments in mind to use as a
backup when needed. The therapist should be aware of the possible contact boundary
disturbances that can occur, unfinished business and polarities in the children’s way
of being in the group. He should foremost be focused on the relationship between him
and the group members and all the applicable aspects of such a relationship. The
therapist will thus be knowledgeable, but leads by living Gestalt therapy. He will be
part of the process of change and he might also change, grow and develop through the
healing contact of the therapeutic relationship. The children in this programme need
the awareness of themselves and a safe and accepting environment to grow and
develop. The healing relationship with the therapist (and also with each other) is the
catalyst for this environment where children can be free to be their full selves – their
selves full of potential.

The following is a compilation of checkpoints from this chapter. The therapist can use
this as a quick reference to keep aware of the most important relationship
requirements concerning himself, contact boundary disturbances to be on the look-out
for and other points to be aware of.
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5.3.5.2 Checklist for the therapist – self-skills to enhance the therapeutic relationship
The children should be able to take their time to explore themselves
Being in a way the same than the children, to let the children be open to the
therapist, so the therapist can experience their selves with them
The therapist must become the children’s friend, as she is their playmate
The therapist should be humble to be a friend
Also be their guardian, thus be there for the children when they need assistance
Supply the children with the information they need
Be kind, soft-hearted and honest
Laugh with the children
Be passionate about children and the therapeutic process
Teach the children about critique - it is their actions, which are criticised and not
themselves
Be aware, children might transfer their negative experiences of other people to
the therapist – make the children also aware of this when it happens
Carry your feelings of warmth and compassion towards the children over
through body language
Look beyond the verbal communication and be sensitive to the depths of the
children’s experiences and true feelings
Have a zest for life; the therapist’s example may encourage the children to have
the same zest

5.3.5.3 Be sensitive for the following possible contact boundary disturbances

It is needed to keep these in mind, as it can block contact and thus disturb the
healing relationship.
Introjects – uncritical acceptance or rules, patterns and behaviour
Projections – tendency to play blaming games
Confluence – too much of a people pleaser, losing own identity
Retroflection – psychosomatic symptoms as a reaction to unhappy feelings
Deflection – avoid contact by avoiding eye contact, changing subject, being
overly polite – to cope with painful experience by avoiding it
Desensitisation – ignoring sensory experiences – no contact with senses
means no contact with them selves
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5.3.5.4 Checklist of experiments to keep in mind

The therapist can continually go through the following ideas of experiments, as
possibilities of experiments need to be at hand in the therapist’s mind when needed.
Re-enactment - relive a life event with unfinished business and finish it in the
therapy session
Enactment – act out a dream or fantasy
Around the world - the opportunity to explore a negative or unsatisfactory
experience and in so doing come around to the opposite polarity
Empty chair - to come into dialogue with a polarity within himself – place an
imaginary object or person in empty chair and resolve conflict or unfinished
business
Experiments with internal dialogues - to contact parts of our nature that we
hide from others – like dialogue between polarities of being gentle or hard /
harsh
Fantasy approaches - Fantasy can be used when group members feel too
threatened to deal concretely with a problem
Rehearsal – “members say out loud what they are thinking silently” (Corey,
2000:325)
Reversal – ask a group member to play an opposite role from the way he
usually is, thus making contact with those parts of one self that have been
denied or submerged and which are causing anxiety
Exaggeration – a group member can be asked to exaggerate something
abstract like having to carry others’ burdens by having to carry something
very heavy
Dream work – to bring the dream back to the here and now and relive it to
thus finish the unfinished business

5.3.5.5 Gestalt theory principles to be aware of

Unfinished business
Polarities
Make the children aware to be able to grow and develop
Lead children to take responsibility for their own lives – use language
Work with the child as a whole – holism
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6. CONCLUSION

This chapter covered the theoretical background for the programme researched in this study.

The intervention programme for this research includes the following four components
namely:
It is a Gestalt therapy programme
It makes use of play therapy techniques
It is set in a group therapy environment
Is culturally sensitive

Each one of these four theoretical components was discussed in this chapter, with group
therapy theory as part of the preliminary programme discussion. It also covered a theoretical
overview of the techniques that can be used in such a programme – both general Gestalt
theory techniques as well as Gestalt play therapy techniques. The whole programme is set
within a cultural sensitive environment and attitude. The group members in this programme
thus came from different cultural backgrounds. It is the aim of this study to present a Gestalt
play therapy programme in a cultural sensitive manner. A short section on the applicability of
the techniques within a cultural sensitive environment has therefore been included. The
complete theory of culture and cultural sensitivity has been covered in chapter 3 of this study.

The information of the current chapter is the last of the literature study, which forms the
theoretical base of the intervention programme researched and techniques in this study. The
following is a diagrammatic presentation of the main components of this chapter and their
links to each other:
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Figure 4.3 Overview of chapter

The following chapters in this study will cover the research process. The previous three
chapters covered the theoretical background of the following two chapters. The first part of
the research process is the pilot study, which will follow hereafter. Through the pilot study
the researcher tested the programme on a small research group. The function of the pilot
study is mainly to clear out necessary practical arrangements and to try out the preliminary
designed programme. This pre-run of the programme can also be an indication of some
adaptations in the programme itself.

Pilot study Final intervention

Chapter 5 Chapter 6

Figure 4.4: Framework of development of the final intervention (The literature study)