gestalt

views updated Jun 11 2018

ge·stalt / gəˈshtält; -ˈshtôlt/ (also Ge·stalt) • n. (pl. -stalt·en / shtältn; -ˈshtôltn/ or -stalts) Psychol. an organized whole that is perceived as more than the sum of its parts.DERIVATIVES: ge·stalt·ism n.ge·stalt·ist n.

gestalt

views updated Jun 11 2018

gestalt in psychology, an organized whole that is perceived as more than the sum of its parts; the word is German (recorded in English from the 1920s), and means literally ‘form, shape’.
Gestalt psychology a movement in psychology founded in Germany in 1912, seeking to explain perceptions in terms of gestalts rather than by analysing their constituents.
Gestalt psychotherapy a psychotherapeutic approach developed by Fritz Perls (1893–1970). It focuses on insight into gestalts in patients and their relations to the world, and often uses role playing to aid the resolution of past conflicts.

gestalt

views updated May 14 2018

gestalt The perception of a pattern or structure as a whole, not as a sum of its constituent parts. The German word Gestalt means ‘form’ or ‘shape’.

gestalt

views updated May 23 2018

gestalt The perception of a pattern or structure as a whole, not as a sum of its constituent parts. The German word Gestalt means ‘form’ or ‘shape’.

gestalt

views updated May 18 2018

gestalt (psych.) XX. — G., ‘form, aspect’.