{{Short description|Clinical psycholgist}}
'''Miriam Polster''' (July 7, 1924–December 19, 2001) was a clinical psychologist who was raised in Cleveland, Ohio, United States of America.<ref name=":0" /> Polster had an interest in music, which happened to be her undergraduate major and a subject she integrated into her work. Once reaching graduate school, she became an advocate for Gestalt therapy; a therapy aimed towards self-awareness. Polster was the co-founder of The Gestalt Training Centre. Polster was the co-author of two books on Gestalt therapy theory (''Gestalt Therapy Integrated'' and ''From the Radical Centre''), and the sole author of ''Eve’s Daughters.'' Miriam Polster died due to cancer, in 2001.<ref name=":0">{{Cite journal|last=Miller|first=Michael V.|date=2003|title=Obituaries: Miriam F. Polster (1924-2001).|journal=American Psychologist|language=en|volume=58|issue=1|pages=77|doi=10.1037/0003-066X.58.1.77b|issn=0003-066X}}</ref>
==Early life== Miriam Polster was born '''Miriam Friedman''' on July 7, 1924, to Aaron Friedman and Minnie Rachbuch, a Jewish family in Cleveland, Ohio.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">Parlett, M. (2002). Miriam Polster. ''The British Gestalt Journal'', ''11''(1). Retrieved from https://www.britishgestaltjournal.com/shop/volume-11-1-2002-1</ref><ref name=":2">Gold, E., & Zahm, S. (2002). At the end of the day: In memory of Miriam Polster. ''Gestalt Review'', ''6''(2), 124–134. {{doi|10.5325/gestaltreview.6.2.0124}}</ref> Polster's family was consistently described as being loving and supportive of Polster's aspirations.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" /> Her father worked for the U.S. Postal Service at the time of the Great Depression, despite having a degree in law.<ref name=":0" /> Her mother was a housewife.<ref name=":0" /> Polster had one brother who was five years older than her, Larry.<ref name=":2" />
==Career== Polster's initial passion was music. She attended Miami University and completed her bachelor's degree in music in 1946.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" /> She did additional studies at the Cleveland Institute of Music in regard to vocal performance.<ref name=":0" />
Miriam Polster met Erving Polster in 1949, and the two were married in October.<ref name=":2" /> They have two children, Adam and Sarah. Both children had poor health as Adam had cerebral palsy and Sarah died from colon cancer in July 2001.<ref name=":2" />
In 1953, the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland was founded by key figures in the history of Gestalt theory, including Fritz Perls, Laura Perls, Isadore From, and Paul Goodman.<ref name=":0" /><ref>Gestalt Institute of Cleveland. (2016, August 31). Our story. Retrieved from https://www.gestaltcleveland.org/our-story</ref> Her husband, Erving Polster, was among the founding faculty members, and his involvement in workshops that trained individuals in new Gestalt therapeutic techniques piqued her interest in psychology.<ref name=":0" /> Polster went back to school and received her doctorate in clinical psychology from Case Western Reserve University in 1967.<ref name=":1" />
==Theory== Gestalt therapy is an experiential and humanistic approach that aims to develop self-knowledge, acceptance, and growth.<ref>Yontef, G., & Jacobs, L. (2008, January). Gestalt therapy . Retrieved November 3, 2019, from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/283407833_Gestalt_therapy.</ref> One aspect of therapy is establishing contact with the environment and self through our sensory organs which is essential to healthy development.<ref>O'Leary, E. (2013). Gestalt therapy around the world. Chichester, West Sussex, UK: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.</ref> Polster and her husband Erving Polster are responsible for furthering the development of the concept of contact-boundary. Boundaries function to help people to connect to their environment and withdraw from it when necessary. A disturbance of these boundaries can result in ''confluence'', ''isolation'', ''retroflection'', ''introjection'', ''projection'', and ''deflection''. ''Confluence'' refers to losing the boundary between self and others which is on the opposite spectrum of ''isolation'' in which the boundary becomes impermeable and connection to others is lost. ''Retroflection'' is restraining parts of your self from being expressed. ''Introjection'' is the passive acceptance of other people's ideas. ''Projection'' refers to attributing parts of self onto others and Deflection is the fear of conflict. All of these disturbances can fluctuate between healthy and unhealthy depending on your level of awareness.<ref name=":3">Polster, E. & Polster, M. (1973) Gestalt therapy integrated: Contours of theory and practice. New York, NY: Brunner-Mazel.</ref>
==Literature==
===1973: ''Gestalt Therapy Integrated: Contours of Theory and Practice''=== ''Gestalt Therapy Integrated'' is the first book on Gestalt therapy theory written by Erving and Miriam Polster. The Polsters wanted their book to serve as an extensive overview of Gestalt theory and therapeutic techniques, a textbook on the practices of Gestalt.<ref name=":3" /> In addition, Erving wanted to include personal interpretations of wider Gestalt theory and incorporated his own theories, including contact-boundary.<ref name=":2" /> Polster did not contribute a large part of her own theories and interpretations, but she aided Erving by discussing concepts in his theories with him that had been developed through his teachings and workshops at the Gestalt Institute of Cleveland.<ref name=":2" /> The book is regarded by many scholars and students as a comprehensive introduction to Gestalt therapy.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />
===1992: ''Eve’s Daughters: The Forbidden Heroism of Women''=== ''Eve’s Daughters'' is a work of non-fiction that Miriam Polster wrote alone.<ref name=":0" /> It emphasizes women's abilities to be heroes in a world that views heroism as a male dominated role. Polster explains that heroism appears in different forms. Polster mentions that the trend of gender roles, places limits to the potential of everyone. ''Eve’s Daughters'' exemplifies the discrepancies of the male and female gender through the story of Eve, and the story of Prometheus. Prometheus stole fire from the Gods and received punishment. After sanction, Prometheus was seen viewed as a brave and likeable character. In the story of Eve, she had eaten an apple despite being told otherwise by God. Unlike Prometheus, Eve is disciplined and perceived as an unlikable and disobedient figure. Polster points out that, in a sense, Eve leads a wave of women making their own decisions on how they live because of her choice not to follow an unrationalized command. Furthermore, ''Eve’s Daughters'' maintains, Eve's story provides lessons used today (i.e. the concept of consequences following our actions).<ref>Polster, M. F. (1992). Eve's daughters: The forbidden heroism of women. San Francisco.</ref>
===1999: ''From the Radical Centre: The Heart of Gestalt Therapy''===
''From the Radical Center: The Heart of Gestalt Therapy'' is a collection of essays written by Miriam and Erving Polster. It is a collection of their selected writings that covers the history of psychotherapy touching on theoretical and practical applications. The novel first sets the stage by describing the principles of Gestalt therapy, illustrating the application and transformation of the theories. They then discuss the role and implications of the community on the individual. Various aspects of theory and therapy are integrated in this novel to encompass the full spectrum of psychotherapy.<ref>Polster, E., & Polster, M. (2000). From The Radical Center: the heart of gestalt therapy (1st ed.). New York: Gestalt Press. doi: https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203766910</ref>
==Legacy== Miriam Polster and her husband Erving Polster started out by running couple and family workshops. They led groups together but did not do so in their own fields as much.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://login.library.utoronto.ca/index.php?url=https://journals.scholarsportal.info/pdf/10596011/v01i0002/140_i.xml|title=Interview|last=Reilly|first=Anthony J.|date=|website=login.library.utoronto.ca|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-11-04}}</ref> Miriam and Erving Polster founded the Gestalt Training Centre in San Diego, California. They taught and trained many professionals in Gestalt therapy all around the world. Literature stated that they were known as some of the most influential Gestalt therapists, and their training inspired others to take on Gestalt therapy training themselves.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":2" />
Polster was also a member of the faculty of the Gestalt Institute in Cleveland, Ohio. She was involved with the Institute before and after she was a graduate student and was present at many workshops.<ref name=":2" />
==Death== In 1994, Polster was diagnosed with, and survived, both breast cancer and endometrial cancer; she died on December 19, 2001, at the age of 77 after a relapse in the endometrial cancer.<ref name=":2" />
==References== {{Reflist}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Polster, Miriam}} Category:1924 births Category:2001 deaths Category:20th-century American writers Category:20th-century American psychologists Category:Miami University alumni