Influence of Culture and Language In Therapy
Moderator: Esra Canpolat
A third language field in therapy room as an integrative field
Esra Canpolat / Psychologist Psychotherapy Institute, Istanbul, Turkey psikologesracanpolat@gmail.com
Field theory as a psychological theory, which is rooted to Gestalt theories, examines patterns of interaction between the individual and the environment. The environment perceived by the person can be a field or the person himself/ herself as an organism can be thought of as a field formed by a dynamic system formed by the interaction of related parts. The slightest change in this dynamic system affects the whole system. Field theory underlined interpersonal conflict, individual personalities, and situational variables. In the therapy room, language is an important interper- sonal factor that affects therapeutic alliance between client and therapist and at the same time it forms a field in the room. Language field in therapy room can diversify in different context. One of these context is when the therapist and the client have different languages. They can conduct the session with a common language and a third language field is appeared. The third language become the field itself in the therapy room. Everything that happens and will happen in the moment are transmitted via this language. When the therapy session begins, the baseline of field is formed by language and the subjectivity of both client and therapist appears. The mind of therapist and clients start to think in this common language. Their mind encounter together in the field, the change begins and both therapist and client meet another version of themselves by using second language that is not native one. The field changes the people and people changes the field, also language as a factor that change the field or people affects field and people. So, the common language field affects the whole and contains the power of healing. In this paper, the language field in therapy room via 2 different clients who have different native language with therapist will be discussed.
Keywords: field theory, language field, therapy session