Louis Ormont

Ormont earned a BA from Temple University, an MFA from the Yale School of Drama, and a PhD from the Columbia University clinical psychology program.{{cite web |url=https://www.boswellbooks.com/book/9781519100290 |title=About the Author |website=www.boswellbooks.com |access-date=October 9, 2024 }}{{cite journal |title=Obituary: Dr. Louis R. Ormont, 1918-2008 |first=Elliot M. |last=Zeisel |journal=Group |volume=33 |number=2 |date=June 2009 |pages=101–102 |jstor=41719225 }} He also received training at the National Psychological Association for Psychoanalysis.{{cite journal |title=Personal and Professional Reflections on the Life and Work of Louis Ormont |first=Michael |last=Brook |journal=Group |volume=33 |number=2 |date=June 2009 |pages=103–106 |jstor=41719226 }}

At the beginning of his career in 1942 there were fewer than 20 people who identified themselves as group therapists.{{cite journal |title=Review: The Technique of Group Treatment: The Collected Papers of Louis R. Ormont |last=Godby |first=Dale C. |journal=International Journal of Group Psychotherapy |volume=54 |issue=2 |date=April 2004 |pages=261–263 |doi=10.1521/ijgp.54.2.261.40389 |id={{ProQuest|194779657}} }} Ormont studied group psychotherapy with Alexander Wolf, Asya Kadis, Fritz Perls, and Hyman Spotnitz, with whom he worked for more than 45 years. In 1960, he switched to an all-group private practice, the first psychotherapist to do so. In 1964, he and two co-authors Morton M. Hunt and Rena Corman published the book “The Talking Cure: A Concise and Practical Guide to Psychoanalysis Today” which aimed to educate readers about psychoanalysis, explaining not only technical terms but presenting the material in a panel format with four composite characters representing clients interacting with a fictional psychotherapist.{{cite news |url=https://newspaperarchive.com/oakland-tribune-jan-27-1964-p-58/ |title='The Talking Cure' Views Psychoanalysis |first=Dennis |last=Powers |publisher=Oakland Tribune |date=January 27, 1964 |page=58 }}

In 1974, he was appointed clinical professor of psychology at Adelphi University’s Gordon Werner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies and was the founder of the Center for Modern Psychoanalytic Studies. In 1989, Ormont and colleagues who had benefited from his work founded the Center for Group Studies (CGS). CGS is an independent educational institution in New York City focused on teaching group leadership skills to both therapists and non-therapists.

He was also a prolific playwright who produced more than fifty manuscripts for the stage, television, and films.{{Cite web|url=https://libguides.adelphi.edu/az.php?t=30106&q=Louis%20Ormont |title=Archives and Special Collections: Louis Ormont |publisher=Adelphi University |access-date=October 6, 2024 }}

Ormont's group therapy expertise lay in navigating complex interpersonal dynamics of his group members and supporting them as they faced resistance to their feelings, without forcing them to confront them directly. His ability to help individuals find the right words to unlock this resistance played a key role in helping them foster deeper understanding and insight. Ormont believed that if people could tune into their own feelings they would more skillfully navigate their interactions with others and themselves rather than heading on a negative track.{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/image/473339106/?terms=Ormont |title=Try seven-year project plan |first=Marilynn |last=Nereo |date=June 1, 1989 |publisher=The Post Review |location=Ridgewood, New Jersey |page=9 }} He noted the advantages of group therapy included that groups created the conditions for people to act out and become aware of unhealthy behaviors and see how others responded to them. It also allowed for people to try out new behaviors.{{cite news |url= https://www.newspapers.com/image/473471724/?&terms=Ormont |title=Group therapy is yet another tool that enables us to grow |first=Marilynn |last=Nereo |date=February 2, 1992 |publisher=The Post Review |location=Ridgewood, New Jersey |page=12 }}

In his 1992 book “The Group Therapy Experience: From Theory to Practice” he published a comprehensive guide to how group therapy is practiced. He shared his theoretical understanding of group therapy and provided a more concrete explanation of its major concepts which was noted to be understandable by both laypersons as well as therapists.{{cite journal |title=Book Reviews: The Group Therapy Experience: From Theory to Practice. By Louis R. Ormont. |first=Bonnie J. |last=Buchele |journal=International Journal of Group Psychotherapy |volume=43 |issue=2 |year=1993 |doi=10.1080/00207284.1994.11491224 }} He discussed the concepts of resistance, transference, and countertransference, with resistances noted as subtle yet desirable. When resistances manifest in a group setting, the therapist can help the client understand and change their behavior. He proposed a three-part standard to ensure productive group therapy sessions and to help the therapist effectively assess the group's progress. This standard enabled the therapist to recognize when the group was on track or when something was going wrong and required intervention. The standard consists of three key points: (1) members must verbalize their emotions, (2) their expressed feelings should be directed toward one another, and (3) the communication must be progressive, revealing new emotions. Any deviation from this is seen as resistance.{{cite journal |title=Commentary on Article by Louis R. Ormont |first=John |last=Gordon |journal=Group Analysis |volume=32 |issue=1 |year=1999 |publisher=Sage Publications |pages=151–155 |doi=10.1177/05333169922076464 }}

• Group Psychologist of the Year award from the American Psychological Association (1998){{cite web |url=https://www.apadivisions.org/division-49/awards/psychologist?tab=4 |title=Arthur Teicher Group Psychologist of the Year Award {{!}} Past Recipients |website=www.apadivisions.org |access-date=October 8, 2024 }}
• Distinguished Fellow of the American Group Psychotherapy Association (AGPA) (2000)

Ormont actively published papers from 1958 through 2004 in the American Journal of Psychotherapy, The British Journal of Medical Psychology, Marriage and Family Living, The Psychoanalytic Review, American Journal of Psychiatry, other journals, and the following books:

• {{cite book |title=The Talking Cure: A Concise and Practical Guide to Psychoanalysis Today |first1=Morton M. |last1=Hunt |first2=Rena |last2=Corman |first3=Louis R. |last3=Ormont |publisher=Harper & Row |location=New York |year=1964 |url=https://archive.org/details/talkingcureconc00hunt/mode/2up |url-access=registration }}
• {{cite book|title=The Practice of Conjoint Therapy: Combining individual and Group Treatment |first1=Louis R. |last1=Ormont |first2=Herbert S. |last2=Strean |publisher=Human Sciences Press |year=1978 |isbn=978-0877053552 |url=https://archive.org/details/practiceofconjoi0000ormo/page/2/mode/2up |url-access=registration }}
• {{cite book |title=The Group Therapy Experience: From Theory to Practice |first=Louis R. |last=Ormont |publisher=St. Martin’s Press |location=New York |year=1992 |isbn=978-0312070366 |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9780312070366 |url-access=registration }}
• {{cite book |title=The Technique of Group Treatment: The Collected Papers of Louis R. Ormont |first=Louis R. |last=Ormont |editor-first=Lena Blanco |editor-last=Furgeri |publisher=Psychosocial Press |location=Madison, Connecticut |year=2001 |isbn=978-1887841351 }}

{{reflist}}

• [https://www.groupcenter.org/ The Center for Group Studies]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20090505062835/http://www.ormont.org/default.cfm Ormont.org Home]

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Category:1918 births

Category:2008 deaths

Category:20th-century American psychologists

Category:Group psychotherapists

Category:Adelphi University faculty

Category:Temple University alumni

Category:Yale University alumni