Monkswood Associates Newsletter: June 2003
Gestalt cycle of experience and its application

There is a natural flow of experience and any interruptions in the process interfere with how you perceive, think and behave. Being aware of what may cause barriers gives me some pointers

where exploration may bear fruit.
The typical disruptions associated with the cycle are:

• Desensitisation: diluting, disregarding or neglecting the senses;
• Deflection: reducing, avoiding or turning aside from direct contact or awareness, making it vague, generalised or bland;
• Introjection: being ruled by internalised ‘shoulds’, habitual ways of being;
• Projection: seeing in other what I do not acknowledge is in myself;
• Retroflection: doing to yourself what you want to do to or with someone or something;
• egotism: self-monitoring which prevents true involvement in any experience, blocking spontaneity by control; and
• confluence: process of merging with the environment so that the awareness of separateness is lost.
  

Application
Deflection is quite often displayed through humour or a person goes onto another topic. When humour is involved I check what may be the hidden purpose of the humour – to avoid the topic under discussion? To reduce the tension? To cover embarrassment? Or is it honest play on words?

As for introjections, when people say “should”, I wonder whether the “should” relates to current policies and procedures, how often this “should” is broken and when, what would happen if the “should” is or is not done. Some people appear not to take ownership of a situation or accept what they are told without question. This can guide me as to what assistance they may need eg coaching for them and/or for their manager. I can heighten their awareness and, in this way, increase their options. They may decide to continue the same way, but at least this way it is a conscious decision rather than habit.

When people use words like “you” or “everyone” or “all [specific label]” I check whether what they are saying is valid or displaced. This is particularly important during selection interviewing. The example in the May newsletter was a person saying “You shouldn’t shout at people’ when in reality he wants to say “I don’t like been shouted at”. Another example is “all townies are rude” when you don’t want to come to terms with your own tendency on occasions to be rude in certain situations. If this came up in an interview I might ask “In what situations are you rude?” However, it also may be a sign that the person is very tied to a particular group or person. In these circumstances (confluence), I would be concerned about that person’s response to change related to that group or person. How would s/he cope if that group/person left or was made redundant? How does s/he respond to people be critical of the group/person?

Some people may be frightened of expressing controversial views (possibly because of a rule or introjection they have) or go over the top with berating themselves rather than show anger or disagreement (ie retroflection). When I hearing someone blaming themselves or calling themselves ‘stupid’ I do a reality check and, if unfounded self-criticism I do some probing. I might come across someone who is so controlled s/he displays no spontaneity – s/he may talk about him/herself in the third person, a very distancing characteristic. Egoism may be the cause of this trait.

The above examples relate to individuals. Another way this cycle can be used relates to examining the culture of an organisation. Thus, when an organisation wants to change its culture, I look at the characteristics it has and compare them with the interruptions associated with the cycle. Firefighting – going straight into action without consideration of any assessments of needs, be they real or perceived - indicates to me a culture that gives itself little opportunity to reflect, learn and change. Increasing their awareness in stages and promoting change in smaller steps increases the likelihood that the required cultural change will happen. Indecision or going round in circles might be due to fear of failure, a pattern that might have been initiated in early life but is now exacerbated by a blame culture. Being encouraged to recognise this pattern and then coached through to take risks in a supportive environment starts challenging the belief and permits change to occur.

So what?
There are many frameworks or models to help you – this is one I happen to find easy to keep in mind and heightens my awareness.
You may be wondering what approach I take in bringing the matter up with a person. When I want to bring a behaviour or trait to someone’s attention I quite often say:

• “I notice …. [then describe factually what I have noticed]”. Sticking to facts is important as this reduces the potential for conflict.

Sometimes I will continue on and say:

• I imagine …[and state factually what I imagine]. You may want to skip this and go straight to:
• I feel … [if feelings come to mind and/or will add to the discussion].

The person may respond at any stage and I might go back to “I notice …”. If I think looking at options is important I continue:

• Let’s consider what the options are … [and pull out the various options from both parties].
• Keeping in mind the knock-on effects of each option and the consequences of not making a choice, make sure a decision is made about which route to take.

If you find this newsletter of use, please forward it to people you think may also find it of use and/or interest: for instance, directors and managers in Human Resources and People Development or other directors and managers who deal with these sorts of issues.

You are welcome to reprint any part of this newsletter as long as you acknowledge the source, including full authorship, copyright, and subscription information.
  
Please ask any questions that the topic has raised, or share your thoughts and experiences with me, Helen Wade, at:


Monkswood Associates
Bankview, Shortwood, Nailsworth, Glos GL6 0RZ, UK
Tel: +44 (0)1453.835263
Email: helen@monkswoodassociates.co.uk

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