National Certified Addiction Counselor, Level 2 (NCAC II) Practice Exam Exam

What is the primary focus of Gestalt Therapy?

1. Changing dysfunctional behaviors

2. Integrating different aspects of personality

3. Understanding unconscious drives

4. Client-centered listening

The correct answer is: Integrating different aspects of personality

The primary focus of Gestalt Therapy is indeed on integrating different aspects of personality. This therapeutic approach emphasizes self-awareness and personal responsibility, helping clients to understand and accept all parts of themselves, including their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors. By fostering a greater awareness of one's current experience and the context in which it occurs, Gestalt Therapy encourages individuals to recognize patterns that may be limiting their growth or contributing to emotional distress. Furthermore, this approach utilizes experiential exercises to promote awareness and insight, allowing clients to explore how past experiences may impact their present lives. Integrating different aspects of personality means bringing together various facets of the self, including fragmented emotions and conflicting desires, to promote a sense of wholeness and authenticity. While the other options touch upon important aspects of therapy, they do not encapsulate the core focus of Gestalt Therapy. Changing dysfunctional behaviors may occur as a result of increased awareness, but it is not the primary aim. Understanding unconscious drives relates more closely to psychodynamic approaches, while client-centered listening is a fundamental technique in person-centered therapy, rather than Gestalt Therapy specifically.