The Contribution of the Cape Cod Model to the Evolution of the Gestalt Approach
di Joseph Melnick
ABSTRACT
In questo articolo ripercorro le origini del Cape Cod Model, sviluppato alla Gestalt International Study Center, e i suoi contributi all’evoluzione dell’approccio gestaltico. Particolare attenzione viene data alle sue radici presso il Gestalt Institute of Cleveland. Si presta attenzione anche a come questo modello è stato applicato alle organizzazioni come più recentemente alle iniziative di cambiamento sociale. Il Cape Cod Model è un approccio in continua evoluzione rispetto alla teoria e alla pratica della Terapia della Gestalt. Sebbene fondato sui principi della Gestalt, è un modello che va oltre l’esperienza individuale verso quella di diadi, coppie, famiglie, gruppi di lavoro, organizzazioni, paesi, culture e il mondo, data la sua recente enfasi sugli aspetti sociali.
In this article I trace the origins of the Cape Cod Model developed at the Gestalt International Study Center, and its contributions to the evolution of the Gestalt Approach. Specific attention is given to it roots at the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland. Attention is also given to how this model has been applied to organizations as well as more recently to social change initiatives. The Cape Cod Model is a constantly evolving approach to the theory and practice of Gestalt Therapy. While grounded in Gestalt principles, it moves beyond the individual and internal experience to dyads, couples, families, work teams, groups, organizations, countries, cultures, and the world, given its recent emphasis on social change.
PhD, lives in Portland, Maine, where he works as a clinical and organizational psychologist. He is co-chair of the Cape Cod Training Program and board member of the Gestalt Review, he has authored more than 100 publications. He is especially proud of co-editing, with Edwin Nevis, Mending the World: Social Healing Interventions by Gestalt Practitioners Worldwide. He trains and teaches internationally.