Overview
Chapter 8 describes the empty chair technique, which originated in 1958 and was later incorporated into Gestalt therapy by Fritz Perls. When the person the client needs to address is not present or is too threatening to engage, the empty chair technique can be helpful. A group member can put a loved one who has died suddenly in the empty chair and tell her things she meant to say but did not get the chance. The group leader serves as the Director and stands beside the client for support. Other group members (if you have them) can rotate in and take turns putting someone in the chair and offering support to the client utilizing the approach.
MOCK GROUP PRACTICE
1) Identify Participant /s- (need 1-2 participants). For this exercise, you will need to identify an individual(s) with whom you can practice the approach. You can gather a willing friend, family members, coworkers, or classmates! They can respond based on their own experiences or "act" as a member of a particular type of group. The GOAL is for you to get PRACTICE using these approaches. You do not have to produce a video of your interactions. Completing the exercise via telehealth is acceptable when an in-person session option is unavailable.
2) Conduct Mock Session—
- Complete the Empty chair exercise with your individual(s)
- Create a scenario with the individual/s and allow them to carry out the empty chair exercise with you serving as the Director
- Examples – enacting an encounter or discussion with a loved one who has passed, expressing feelings of hurt or betrayal to someone they are estranged from, or feeling unable to express them for safety reasons.
- Review the phases of the psychodrama process: the warm-up, action sharing, and discussion. Use those phrases as headings in your report, ensuring they are a guide to lead the experience.
3) Report on Your Experience - Provide a written summary of your experiences in APA format.
- Write about your experience as the Director.
- Your response should include applications from the three different phases (warm-up, action, and sharing) (make these headings)
- Your response should have applications from the text and other research sources to support your work.
- In addition to the 3 phases, your response should identify what you did, how it went, your thoughts/reflections on the process, and your performance. For instance, "Did it go well?" Were there areas you could improve on? Did you like this approach? Is there anything you would change? (This should be your final heading: Overall Impression of Exercise.
- Cite the information within your paper when you reference information you used from the text and other research.
Your response should be in APA format:
- No abstract needed
- Title & Reference page
- Proper headings
- Correct citations
- need a minimum of 3-5 scholarly sources (in addition to the text) for this assignment