Existential Dialogue 2026: "Applied" with Dr. Betty Cannon

Existential Dialogues 2026: "A Chorus of Voices"

Topic: "Applied" between Prof. Ernesto Spinelli and Dr. Betty Cannon

“So, what is Applied Existential Psychotherapy (AEP)? I should know since I invented it and have taught it at the Boulder Psychotherapy Institute since 1989. However, I didn’t call it that in the beginning. My first colleagues at the Institute were fellow graduates of the Gestalt Institute of Denver – so I called it “Gestalt Therapy and Related Approaches.” I had, however, always been influenced by Sartre, Gestalt therapy, existential humanistic psychology (especially Carl Rogers), body-oriented psychotherapy, and classical and contemporary psychoanalysis (especially Freud, Laing, and Winnicott). Finally, my friend and writing buddy Pat Ogden, who founded another approach (Sensorimotor Psychotherapy), said to me one day as we sat writing in a cafe: “Betty, you’re not really doing Fritz Perls’ version of Gestalt––why don’t you call it something else?” I said, “What?” She said, “How about Applied Existential Psychotherapy?” I thought it made sense because, while I don’t usually talk philosophy in therapy (unless the client is interested), I do apply existential ideas to how I do therapy. Also, I had just published a book on Sartre and Psychoanalysis. Winnicott’s idea that “psychotherapy has to do with two [or more] people playing together” is another foundational premise.” – Dr. Betty Cannon

Betty Cannon, PhD, is a licensed psychologist who has taught and practiced in Boulder, Colorado, for over 40 years. She is Professor Emerita of the Colorado School of Mines and president and founder of the Boulder Psychotherapy Institute, which trains mental health professionals in Applied Existential Psychotherapy. In addition to existential philosophy, especially the philosophy of Sartre, AEP has roots in Gestalt therapy, classical and contemporary psychoanalysis, humanistic psychology (especially the person-centered therapy of Carl Rogers), and body-oriented psychotherapy. Betty is a member of the editorial boards of the Journal for the Society of Existential Analysis and Sartre Studies International. She is the author of Sartre and Psychoanalysis and numerous articles and chapters on existential therapy. Her mentor was Hazel E. Barnes, who translated Sartre into English and who was the world’s foremost Sartre scholar until her death in 2008. Betty is her literary executor, and her book on Sartre is dedicated to Hazel. She is presently working on another book with the working title: In the Spirit of Play: Applied Existential Psychotherapy.

Recommended readings for “Applied”:

Cannon, B. (1991): Sartre and Psychoanalysis: An Existentialist Challenge to Clinical Metatheory. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas (French Translation by Laurent Bury, Presses Universitaires de France, 1993)

Cannon, B. & R. Lindberg. (2015) “In the Spirit of Play: Applied Existential Psychotherapy,” International Journal of Psychotherapy 19:1

Cannon, B. (2012) “Applied Existential Psychotherapy: An Experiential Psychodynamic Approach” Chapter 7 in Existential Therapy: Legacy, Vibrancy and Dialogue, ed. Laura Barnette and Greg Madison. London: Routledge

Cannon. B. (July 2009) “Nothingness as the Ground for Change: Gestalt Therapy and Existential Psychoanalysis,” Existential Analysis 20:2

Articles and chapters can be found on Academia.edu or my Therapist Directory Page on the Boulder Psychotherapy Institute Website under Documents: https://boulderpsych.com/directory/member/Betty_Cannon.14

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