© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved. Chapter 7 Group Work 1

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Can be viewed from systemic and cybernetics perspective  Dynamic interaction of its members  Communication patterns  Power dynamics  Hierarchies  Homeostasis 2 Groups: A Systemic Perspective

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Groups have become much more popular  But, why choose a group over individual counseling?  See advantages and disadvantages, Table 7.1, p Why Have Groups?

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Prior to 1900:  Functional and pragmatic groups (e.g., daily living skills)  Often moralistic in nature  Jane Addams and Mary Richmond--community groups to make systemic change  Turn of century:  Vocational and moral guidance in schools  Dr. Henry Pratt: Physician--groups with tuberculosis patients  Started with a lecture  Then had patients tell personal stories about their illness 4 History of Group Work: Early History

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Around 1900: Psychoanalytic principles explained groups behavior  Primal urges, instincts, parental influences  Herb instincts  Mob instincts  Recapitulation of family issues  1914: Moreno started “psychodrama” and coined the phrase “group psychotherapy” 5 Early History

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  1 920s and 1930s:  Adler’s influence: birth order and social connectedness  First non psychoanalytically oriented groups  More group guidance in the schools  Emergence of Modern-Day Groups  1947, Kurt Lewin and others: NTL  1940s: Rogers worked with returning GIs from WWII– led to first encounter groups 6 Early History

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  1960s: Groups reflect freedom and love  Esalen, Michael Murphy, and encounter Groups emerge  Encounter Group Leaders: Rogers, Maslow, Perls, Schutz  Read quote, bottom of p. 223  Soon, other groups arise: marathon groups, confrontational groups, gestalt groups.  APA publishes “Guidelines for Psychologists Conducting Growth Groups” (1973)  1960s and 1970s: books on group counseling flourish  1973: ASGW 7 Popularity of Groups Surges

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Groups become alternative to individual counseling  Decline of more “outrageous” groups  Common-theme, task groups, and time-limited (brief groups) become popular  Rise in self-help groups  ASGW:  Best Practice Guidelines  Professional Standards for the Training of Group Workers  CACREP requires group work  Almost all programs now include group work 8 Recent Trends

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Five Categories of Groups:  1. Self-help groups  2. Task groups  3. Psychoeducational groups  4. Counseling groups  5. Psychotherapy groups  Group dynamics and group process occur in all groups  Group dynamics: internal dynamics  Group process: how group unravels over time 9 Defining Modern-Day Groups

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Around for more than 50 years  Particularly popular for last 30 years  Purpose: education, affirmation, and enhancement of strengths  No paid leader, usually  Sometimes, no leader  Leader is not trained in group process, usually  Leader does help “organize” group  Nominal fee  Often focus on specific issues (AA, eating disorders)  See Box 7.1, p Self-Help Groups

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Focus on conscious behaviors and group dynamics  National Training Laboratory (NTL) first group to do this  Task group specialists usually enter a system and help to analyze and diagnose problems  Task group leaders help facilitate changes in system  Often focuses on differences among people in a system and how to help people get a long  See Box 7.2, p Task Groups

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Formerly called “Guidance Groups”  Focus: Disseminate mental health education to promote personal group and empowerment  Found in many settings  Designated, well-trained group leader  Focuses on preventive education  Often begins with didactic presentation and then leaders to discussion that may included limited self-disclosure  See Box 7.3, p Psychoeducational Groups

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Usually, focused on prevention and wellness, self- enhancement, increased insight, self-actualization  Focus more on conscious than unconscious  Usually, not dealing with severe pathology  Often, focuses on issues related to normal human development  Usually, 4-12 members  Well-trained leader 13 Counseling Groups

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Focus on:  Deep-seated, long-term issues  Remediation of severe pathology and personality reconstruction  Well-trained leader  Usually 4-12 members  Usually meets for a minimum of 8 sessions, at least once a week for 1-3 hours  Leader facilitates deep expression of feelings and helps clients work on change  See Box 7.4, p Group Therapy

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Comparison of Psychoeducational, Counseling, and Therapy Groups  See Figure 7.1, p Modern-Day Groups

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Theory in reference to group counseling: 1.Gives us a comprehensive system 2.Assists us in understanding our client 3.Helps us in deciding which techniques to apply 4.Is useful in predicting the course of treatment 5.Is researchable, and thus can provide us with information about efficacy 16 Use of Theory in Group Work

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Most theories can be applied to group work  Use their basic tenets along with a systems framework  Theories that have been successfully applied include:  Psychoanalytic  Existential-Humanistic  Cognitive-behavioral  Post-Modern 17 Use of Theory in Group Work

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Getting Members  Group Composition  Closed or Open Group  Size Of Group  Duration Of Meetings  Frequency Of Meetings  Securing Appropriate Space  Group Leadership Style 18 Preparing for the Group

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Pregroup Stage (Forming a Group)  Pregroup meeting  Interview with potential members  Identifying expectations  Challenge myths  Screen out (or in) members  Informed consent document 19 Stages of Group Development

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Initial Stage (Forming)  Members anxious, apprehensive, and want to get started  Focus on others, not self  There and then conversation, not “here and now”  Resistance exhibited  Leader task: define ground rules and build trust  Structure, empathy, and positive regard important  Leaders: genuine and only slightly self-disclosing  Leaders: watch for scapegoating 20 Stages of Group Development

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Transition Stage (Storming and then Norming)  Beginning to feel comfortable with technical issues and ground rules– but still some anxiety initially  Members positioning themselves in groups  May project onto leader and have transference to leader  As stage continues, attacking and scapegoating may occur  Slowly, trust builds and resistance diminishes  Ownership of feelings occurs; here-and-now focus begins  Identification of problems and goals  Systemically: Goal is to build a highly functioning system 21 Stages of Group Development

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Work Stage (Performing)  Trust occurs, conflict lessens, cohesion occurs  Can give and hear feedback  Work on identified behavioral change  Gain in self-esteem from positive feedback and sense of accomplishment  Use of advanced counseling skills by leader  Systemically: A system has been developed– but make sure the system continues to encourage change and forward movement 22 Stages of Group Development

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Closure Stage (Adjourning)  Increased sense of accomplishment  Saying good-bye  Share what has been learned  Express feelings about one another  Summarize with use of empathy  Consider who might want follow-up in counseling  Evaluation of group? 23 Stages of Group Development

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Principles for Diversity-- Competent Group Workers (ASGW)  Social Justice in Group Work:  Can help “privileged” clients see their privilege  Prejudice and the Group as Microcosm of Society  Groups can mimic what happens in society  Cultural Differences between a Group Member and the Group Leader  If group leader of different culture than members, members may project feelings about leader’s culture onto the leader  Offers leader opportunity to have client’s understand their biases 24 Multicultural/Social Justice Focus

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Ethical Issues  Ethical code of ACA and Best Practices Statement of ASGW  Informed Consent and Confidentiality (see p. 245)  Can you ensure confidentiality?  Professional Associations:  A number exist; ASGW is division of ACA  Group vs. Individual Counseling (see top of p. 246)  Legal Issues  Confidentiality and the Third Party Rule 25 Ethical, Professional, and Legal Issues

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Allowing Groups to Unfold Naturally  “Push a group to open up to quickly, and it will push back”  Thus, your ability at facilitating growth in a group is the key mark to allowing the group process to occur 26 The Counselor in Process

© Cengage Learning. All rights reserved.  Allowing Groups to Unfold Naturally  “Push a group to open up to quickly, and it will push back”  Thus, your ability at facilitating growth in a group is the key mark to allowing the group process to occur 27 The Counselor in Process