PYC4809 Assignment
3 (COMPLETE
ANSWERS) 2024
(635198) - DUE 25
September 2024
,PYC4809 Assignment 3 (COMPLETE ANSWERS) 2024 (635198) - DUE 25
September 2024
Task 1: Case study READ THE FOLLOWING CASE STUDY AND ANSWER
THE QUESTIONS THAT FOLLOW: Case study Karen: Anxiety over choosing
for herself Assume the perspective of a Gestalt therapist, and show how you
would proceed with Karen, 27-year-old women who is struggling with value
conflicts relating to her religion, culture, and sex-role expectations. Here is
what she has related to you during the first session. Throughout her life Karen
has identified herself as a ‘good Catholic’ who has not questioned much of her
upbringing. She has never really seen herself as an independent woman; in
many ways she feels like a child, one who is strongly seeking approval and
directions from those whom she considers authorities. Karen tells you that in
her culture she was taught to respect and honour her parents, teachers,
priests, and other elders. Whenever she tries to assert her own will, if it differs
from the expectations of any authority figure, she experiences guilt and self-
doubt. She went to Catholic schools, including college, and she has followed
the morals and teachings of her church very closely. She has not been
married, nor has she even had a long-term relationship with a man. Karen has
not had sexual intercourse, not because she has not wanted to but because
she is afraid that she could not live with herself and her guilt. She feels very
restricted by the codes she lives by, and in many ways, she sees them as rigid
For assistance with assignments whatsapp +254702715801
, and unrealistic. Yet she is frightened of breaking away from what she was
taught, even though she is seriously questioning much of its validity and is
aware that her views on morality are growing more and more divergent from
those that she at one time accepted. Basically, Karen asks: ‘What if I am
wrong? Who am I to decide what is moral and immoral? I’ve always been
taught that morals are clear-cut and do 2 not allow for individual
conveniences. I find it difficult to accept many of the teachings of my church,
but I’m not able to really leave behind those notions that I don’t accept. What if
there is a hell, and I’ll be damned forever if I follow my own path? What if I
discover that I “go wild” and thus lose any measure of self-respect. Will I be
able to live with my guilt if I don’t follow the morality I’ve been taught?’ Karen
is also struggling with the impact of cultural restraints on her view of what it
means to be a woman. Generally, she sees herself as being dependent,
unassertive, fearful of those in authority, emotionally reserved, socially
inhibited, and unable to make decisions about her life. Although she thinks
that she would like to be more assertive and would like to feel freer to be
herself around people, she is highly selfconscious and ‘hears voices in her
head’ that tell her how she should and should not be. She wishes she could
be different in some important respects, but she wonders if she is strong
enough to swim against what she has learned from her culture, her parents,
and her church. Assume that Karen is coming for a series of counselling
For assistance with assignments whatsapp +254702715801
3 (COMPLETE
ANSWERS) 2024
(635198) - DUE 25
September 2024
,PYC4809 Assignment 3 (COMPLETE ANSWERS) 2024 (635198) - DUE 25
September 2024
Task 1: Case study READ THE FOLLOWING CASE STUDY AND ANSWER
THE QUESTIONS THAT FOLLOW: Case study Karen: Anxiety over choosing
for herself Assume the perspective of a Gestalt therapist, and show how you
would proceed with Karen, 27-year-old women who is struggling with value
conflicts relating to her religion, culture, and sex-role expectations. Here is
what she has related to you during the first session. Throughout her life Karen
has identified herself as a ‘good Catholic’ who has not questioned much of her
upbringing. She has never really seen herself as an independent woman; in
many ways she feels like a child, one who is strongly seeking approval and
directions from those whom she considers authorities. Karen tells you that in
her culture she was taught to respect and honour her parents, teachers,
priests, and other elders. Whenever she tries to assert her own will, if it differs
from the expectations of any authority figure, she experiences guilt and self-
doubt. She went to Catholic schools, including college, and she has followed
the morals and teachings of her church very closely. She has not been
married, nor has she even had a long-term relationship with a man. Karen has
not had sexual intercourse, not because she has not wanted to but because
she is afraid that she could not live with herself and her guilt. She feels very
restricted by the codes she lives by, and in many ways, she sees them as rigid
For assistance with assignments whatsapp +254702715801
, and unrealistic. Yet she is frightened of breaking away from what she was
taught, even though she is seriously questioning much of its validity and is
aware that her views on morality are growing more and more divergent from
those that she at one time accepted. Basically, Karen asks: ‘What if I am
wrong? Who am I to decide what is moral and immoral? I’ve always been
taught that morals are clear-cut and do 2 not allow for individual
conveniences. I find it difficult to accept many of the teachings of my church,
but I’m not able to really leave behind those notions that I don’t accept. What if
there is a hell, and I’ll be damned forever if I follow my own path? What if I
discover that I “go wild” and thus lose any measure of self-respect. Will I be
able to live with my guilt if I don’t follow the morality I’ve been taught?’ Karen
is also struggling with the impact of cultural restraints on her view of what it
means to be a woman. Generally, she sees herself as being dependent,
unassertive, fearful of those in authority, emotionally reserved, socially
inhibited, and unable to make decisions about her life. Although she thinks
that she would like to be more assertive and would like to feel freer to be
herself around people, she is highly selfconscious and ‘hears voices in her
head’ that tell her how she should and should not be. She wishes she could
be different in some important respects, but she wonders if she is strong
enough to swim against what she has learned from her culture, her parents,
and her church. Assume that Karen is coming for a series of counselling
For assistance with assignments whatsapp +254702715801
