What are the differences between Gestalt and Existential?

Answer 1

Gestalt therapy is founded on the integration of the parts of a person into their whole being. it focuses on being who you are rather than who you think you should be. It has existential premises, in that it focuses on the present rather than past, and is anti-deterministic but unlike existentialism, it has actual techniques that are typical to the field. For example, Gestalt uses the 'empty chair technique' where a client will talk to an empty chair, imaging that a person is in it, in order to experience emotions relating to that person. Existentialism focuses more on finding purpose and meaning in one's life as a way to feel whole and does not have any specific techniques that are always used. It borrows techniques from different forms of therapy depending on the client and the therapist. Both Gestalt and Existentialism emphasize 'living authentically'.