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EP00 Topical Panel 18 - Homework Assignments - Alexander Lowen, MD; Miriam Polster, PhD; Paul Watzlawick, PhD; Jeffrey Zeig, PhD


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Topic Areas:
Topical Panels |  Homework |  Psychotherapy |  Therapist Development |  Depression |  Resistance |  Family Therapy |  Paradox |  Strategic Therapy
Categories:
Evolution of Psychotherapy |  Evolution of Psychotherapy 2000 |  Pioneers in Couples and Family Therapy
Faculty:
Alexander Lowen, MD |  Miriam Polster |  Paul Watzlawick, PhD |  Jeffrey Zeig, PhD
Duration:
55 Minutes
Format:
Audio Only
Original Program Date:
May 28, 2000
License:
Never Expires.



Description

Description:

Educational Objectives:

  1. To compare and contrast clinical and philosphical perspectives of experts.

*Sessions may be edited for content and to preserve confidentiality*

Outline:

Evolution of Psychotherapy and Introduction to Homework Assignments

  • Bernhard Trenkle from Germany initiates the session on homework assignments, naming panelists Jeffrey Zeig, Paul Watzlawick, Miriam Polster, and Alexander Lowen

  • A body-oriented therapist emphasizes the importance of caring for the body—especially the legs—for maintaining good health

  • The concept of “homework” in bioenergetics is explained, encouraging patients to perform simple physical exercises to feel their bodies and reduce tension

Importance of Body Awareness and Exercises

  • Breathing and body awareness are highlighted as crucial to health, with recommendations like dancing and swimming

  • Personal experiences are shared regarding chronic neck tension and specific exercises used to alleviate it

  • Emphasis is placed on truly feeling the body during exercises to avoid harm and enhance effectiveness

  • Exercises from a co-authored book are referenced, with a call for proper therapeutic guidance to ensure the exercises are meaningful

Homework Assignments in Therapy

  • Homework assignments are described as a way to extend therapy into clients’ real lives

  • Examples include having a shy person make three phone calls a day, or using gradual exposure for phobias

  • Following up on homework successes or failures is emphasized to inform ongoing therapeutic direction

  • Celebrating client success is seen as a key motivator for taking on more difficult tasks

Behavior Prescriptions and Non-Congruent Assignments

  • The idea of behavior prescriptions is introduced, such as Erickson’s letter-writing task for a man afraid to cross streets

  • A client with rejection anxiety is assigned to practice getting rejected as a form of exposure

  • Congruent and non-congruent assignments, including paradoxical interventions and symptom prescriptions, are explained

  • Absurd or symbolic tasks are shared as ways to shift emotional meaning and disrupt dysfunctional thinking

Therapist's Role in Homework and Resistance

  • Therapists are encouraged to assign themselves homework to model change and vulnerability

  • A group discussion addresses therapist responsibility in handling resistance and maintaining therapeutic momentum

  • Strategies for resistance include pulling back when necessary and empowering parents in family systems

  • The importance of allowing patients to express hostility is noted as a path to releasing underlying pain

Homework for Specific Conditions and Social Network Involvement

  • For bulimia, one example is assigning the patient to “salaam” the toilet and write “mother” and “father” on paper before purging

  • For skeptical family members, small behavioral commitments are suggested to gradually shift attitudes

  • Caution is advised against relying on diagnostic labels—each case requires tailored interventions

Couples Therapy and Behavior Prescriptions

  • One suggestion for couples includes alternating decision-making days to lower conflict

  • A case is shared where a woman’s fear of submersion was explored and addressed through specific physical exercises tied to intimacy

  • Carl Whitaker’s view is mentioned: couples therapy is about becoming better therapists for one another

  • The therapist’s role is to assign structured behavioral tasks that help disrupt entrenched patterns and foster emotional reconnection

Credits



Faculty

Alexander Lowen, MD's Profile

Alexander Lowen, MD Related Seminars and Products


Alexander Lowen, MD, was an American physician and psychotherapist. A student of Wilhelm Reich in the 1940s and early 1950s in New York, he developed bioenergetic analysis, a form of mind-body psychotherapy, with his then-colleague, John Pierrakos. Lowen was the founder and former executive director of the International Institute for Bioenergetic Analysis in New York City.


Miriam Polster's Profile

Miriam Polster Related Seminars and Products


Miriam Polster, Ph.D, is co-director of the Gestalt Training Center in San Diego, and Assistant Clinical Professor at the Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of California, San Diego. Along with her husband, Erving Polster, she is co-author of a book on Gestalt therapy. She received her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from Case Western Reserve University in 1967.


Paul Watzlawick, PhD's Profile

Paul Watzlawick, PhD Related Seminars and Products


Paul Watzlawick, received his Ph.D. from the University of Venice in 1949. He has an Analyst's Diploma from the C.G. Jung Institute for Analytic Psychology in Zurich. Watzlawick has practiced psychotherapy for more than 30 years. He was research associate and principal investigator at the Mental Research Institute. He was Clinical Professor at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University Medical Center. Watzlawick is a noted family therapist; he is recipient of the Distinguished Achievement Award from the American Family Therapy Association. Also, he is author, co-author or editor of eight books on the topics of interactional psychotherapy, human communication and constructivist philosophy.

He formulated five axioms. They are:

  1. It is not possible to not communicate. Every behavior is some kind of non-verbal communication.
  2. Every communication has a content. In addition, there is 'metainformation', which says how the communicator wants to be understood.
  3. All partners involved in a communication process also interpret their own behaviour during communication.
  4. Human communication involves both verbal and non-verbal communication. In addition to the spoken words, there are is also a non-spoken part (gestures, behavior, intonation..) which is part of the communication.
  5. Communication between humans is either symmetric or complementary. This is based on whether the relationship of those communicating is based on differences or parity.


Jeffrey Zeig, PhD's Profile

Jeffrey Zeig, PhD Related Seminars and Products


Jeffrey K. Zeig, PhD, is the Founder and Director of the Milton H. Erickson Foundation and is president of Zeig, Tucker & Theisen, Inc., publishers in the behavioral sciences. He has edited, co-edited, authored or coauthored more than 20 books on psychotherapy that appear in twelve foreign languages. Dr. Zeig is a psychologist and marriage and family therapist in private practice in Phoenix, Arizona. 


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