Group Work Practice Leadership Chapter 4

Leadership Leadership is the process of guiding the development of the group and its members. The goal of effective leadership is to meet the socioemotional needs of members and to help the group as a whole, and each of its members, achieve goals that are consistent with the value base of social work practice Encouraging indigenous leadership helps to empower members

Leadership and Power New leaders have a tendency to either: Deny their power Exert too much power Should use your power to facilitate group and individual efforts to achieve goals LEADERSHIP AND POWER Workers who are new to the leadership roles are sometimes uncomfortable with their power and influence and react by denying their power or by trying to take too much control Workers use their influence as leaders within and outside the group to facilitate group and individual efforts to achieve desired goals.

Attributed vs. Actual Power Perception among group members or those external to group of worker’s ability to lead i.e. Worker age, educational status Actual Worker’s resources for changing conditions inside and outside the group i.e. connection, expert, legitimate, reference, reward, coercive Attributed power: comes from the perception among group members or others outside the group of the worker’s ability to lead. Workers who take on the responsibilities inherent in leading a group are rewarded by having attributed to them the power influence and the ability to lead The attributed power of the worker comes from a variety of sources. Among these sources are professional status, education, organizational position, experience, defined boundaries between worker and group members’ role, fee for service and the commonly held view that a group’s success or failures the result of it leadership Actual power refers to the worker’s resources for changing conditions inside and outside the group (1) Connection power- being able to call on and use influential people or resources (2) Expert power- having the knowledge or skill to facilitate the work of the group (3) In formation power- possessing information that is valuable to and needed by others (4) Legitimate power- holding a position of authority and the rights that accrue to that position in the organization or larger social system (5) Reference power- being liked and admired; the group members want to be identified with the worker (6) Reward power- being able to offer social or tangible rewards (7) Coercive power- being able to sanction, punish, or deny access to resources and privileges

Factors Influencing Leadership The leadership expectations held by group members The way leadership has been attained Whether there is competition between designated leaders and the leaders that emerge as groups develop The needs, tasks and goals of the group as a whole The task and socioemotional skills of members Te nature of authority within and outside of the group The environmental demands placed on the group and its leadership FACTORS INFLUENCING GROUP LEADERSHIP Situational factors help determine what skills and leadership style are most appropriate and effective for a particular group. The leadership expectations held by group members The way leadership has been attained Whether there is competition between designated leaders and the leaders that emerge as groups develop The needs, tasks and goals of the group as a whole The task and socioemotional skills of members Te nature of authority within and outside of the group The environmental demands placed on the group and its leadership Several group work practitioners have also suggested that leadership must be seen as a process within the context of the group and its environment. The worker’s leadership skills and intervention strategies should vary depending on the degree to which the group as a whole and it individual members can function autonomously.

Interactional Model Incorporates the empirical finding of others who have developed comprehensive models of group leadership. Represents leadership as a shared function that is not lodged solely in the designated group leader The model has six factors that should be considered when leading a task or treatment group. (1) The purposes of the group (2) The type of problem the group is working on (3) The environment in which the group works (4) the group as a whole (5) the members of the group (6) the leader of the group AN INTERACTIONAL MODEL OF LEADERSHIP The interactional model incorporates the empirical finding of others who have developed comprehensive models of group leadership. The interactional model represents leadership as a shared function that is not lodged solely in the designated group leader The model has six factors that should be considered when leading a task or treatment group. (1) The purposes of the group (2) The type of problem the group is working on (3) The environment in which the group works (4) the group as a whole (5) the members of the group (6) the leader of the group

Purpose of Group to perform tasks that require more than one or two people to meet individual needs to being people together who are involved in the same or similar problem to represent a larger collection of people to form the largest collection of people that can be managed together to help maintain an organization more economically than individuals to increase motivation PURPOSE OF THE GROUP to perform tasks that require more than one or two people to meet individual needs to being people together who are involved in the same or similar problem to represent a larger collection of people to form the largest collection of people that can be managed together to help maintain an organization more economically than individuals to increase motivation as a result of physical factors such as working together in the same office the worker should ensure that the purpose of the group and the type of problem to be worked on are consistent The purpose of a group helps determine how workers guide group process

Type of Problem TYPE OF PROBLEM Type of problem or task a group works on also has important implications for the leadership of a group. It has been found that groups do better than individuals on certain types of tasks by individuals working alone do better on others Whether the problem is of concern to the group as a whole, to a subgroup, or to an individual. When a member raises a problem unique to his or her particular situation, the worker should try to develop from this information generalized principles of child rearing of interest to all group members. This technique is often called universalizing.

Environment Environmental influences come primarily from three interrelated factors The immediate physical setting The agency or organization in which the group functions Other social systems and the social environment.

Setting The décor and comfort of the waiting room and meeting area and the availability of equipment and supplies such as tables, blackboard, or newsprint all influence the group’s leadership

Group as a Whole The size of the group The time Limit in which the group is expected to accomplish its goals Group dynamics- communication, interaction patterns, cohesion, social control and group culture. The stage of a group’s develop- the developmental tasks that face the group during each stage.

Group Members Through the unique characteristics and life experiences they bring to the group. By the extent to which they participate in the group By the extent to which they share in leading the group

Group Leader Leadership Skills Service technology refers to particular theories or methods of intervention used by a worker Leadership Skills Some of the basic skills necessary for group leadership are categorized in facilitating group processes data gathering and assessment action

Facilitating Group Process

Involve Group Members Essential for building group cohesiveness, developing a sense of mutual aid and encouraging shared decision making Helping members to take on leadership roles within the group

Attending Skills Nonverbal behaviours, such as eye contact and body position and verbal behaviour that convey empathy, respect, warmth, thrust, genuineness and honesty.

Expressive Skills Important for facilitating group processes. Workers should be able to help participants express thoughts and feelings about important problems, tasks or issues facing the group and to reiterate and summarize them when necessary

Responding Skills Skillful responses help the group as a whole and individual members accomplish tasks Workers can use responding skills selectively to elicit specific reactions that will affect future group processes

Focusing Skills The worker can facilitate group processes by focusing them in a particular direction

Making Group Process Explicit The skill of making group processes explicit helps members to become aware of how they are interacting

Clarifying Content The worker’s purpose in clarifying content helps members communicate effectively

Guiding Group Interactions To help a group accomplish the goals it has set for itself, the worker will often find it helpful to guide the group’s interaction in a particular direction

Data Gathering and Assessment Useful in developing a plan for influencing communication patterns as well as in deciding on the action skills to use to accomplish the group’s purpose

Identify and Describe Skills This skills allows elaboration of pertinent factors influencing a problem or task facing the group In using this skill, workers should attempt to elicit descriptions that specify the problem attributes as clearly and concretely as possible

Requesting Information, Questioning and Probing The skills of identifying and describing a situation are essential to workers’ attempts to gather data by requesting information, questioning and probing Using these skills, worker can clarify the problem or concern and broaden the scope of the group’s work by obtaining additional information that may be useful to all members

Summarizing and Partializing Summarizing skills enable a worker to present the core of what has been said in the group and provide members an opportunity to reflect on the problem

Synthesizing Synthesizing skills can be useful in providing feedback to members about how they are perceived by others

Analyzing Skills Analyzing skills include pointing out patterns in the data, identifying gaps in the data and establishing mechanisms or plans for obtaining data to complete an assessment.

Action Skills

Supporting Group Members Action skills are most often used by the worker to help the group accomplish its tasks Skills to support group members will not be effective unless members perceive the group to be a safe place in which their thoughts and feelings will be accepted Skills in supporting members often involve pointing out their strengths and indicating how their participation in the group can help to resolve their problems

Reframing and Redefining Redefining and reframing the problem can help members examine the problem form a new perspective. Thus, a worker may want to reframe or redefine an issue or concern facing group.

Linking Members’ Communications Asking members to share their reaction to the messages communicated by others in the group Asking members to respond to request for help by other members. Linking Members’ Communications The skill of linking members’ communications involves asking members to share their reaction to the messages communicated by others in the group Members have a tendency to communicate with the worker rather than with other members, especially in early group meetings The skill of linking members’ communications also involves asking members to respond to request for help by other members. Helping members respond to each other fosters information sharing mutual aid and the building of a consensus about how to approach a particular problem.

Directing Directing skills are most effective when coupled with efforts to increase members’ participation and input The worker should be aware of how each member reacts to being directed in a new component of the group’s work Directing skills are most effective when coupled with efforts to increase members’ participation and input The worker should be aware of how each member reacts to being directed in a new component of the group’s work

Advice, Suggestions and Instructions Advice, Suggestion and Instructions Workers use these skills to help group members acquire new behaviours, understand problems or change problematic situation Advice, suggestions and instructions should be timed appropriately so that group members are ready to accept them. They must be clear and geared to the comprehension level of the members for whom they are intended Workers should also be sensitive to the language and culture of the members of their groups

Providing Resources Organizations that sponsor groups have access to a wide variety of resources such as medical, home health care, financial assistance, job and rehabilitation counseling , family planning and financial management consultation, which the worker can make available to members In tasks groups, workers can also provide a variety of resources for member

Confrontation Skills Confrontation is a useful action skill for overcoming resistance and motivating members. Confrontation is the ability to clarify, examine and challenge behaviours to help members overcome distortions and discrepancies among behaviours thought and feelings. Confrontation skills should be used only when the worker has carefully assessed the situation and decided that the confrontation will not be rejected by a member. If a member is not ready to examine thoughts, behaviours or feelings, the member may react negatively to a confrontation by becoming passive, angry or hostile.

Resolving Conflicts Resolving Conflicts One of the most important action skills is helping resolve conflict among the members of the group and with individuals and social systems outside the group Group members may conflict with one another for a variety of reasons Moderating Skills: help workers keep meetings within specified bounds so that conflict is avoided Negotiating Skills: are used to help members come to an agreement or an understanding when initial opinions differ Mediating Skills: are used when two or more members are in conflict and action is necessary to help them reach an agreement and resolve the dispute Arbitration Skills: involve having an authoritative third person meet with the group

Learning Group Leadership Skills Person who are training to become group workers should begin by becoming thoroughly familiar with the theoretical knowledge about groups as a whole and the way members and leaders function in groups (1) Participate in exercises and role play illustrating how group dynamics operate (2) Observe other leading and being members of groups (3) Examine their participation as members of natural or formed groups (4) Lead or colead a group in a supervised field practicum.

Leadership Style LEADERSHIP STYLE In the psychoanalytic tradition, projection of feelings by members onto the leader is called transference Projection of feeling onto members by the leaders is called counter transference

Co-Leadership COLEADERSHIP Leaders have a source support Leaders have a source of feedback and an opportunity for professional development A leader’s objectivity is increased through alternative frames of references Inexperienced leaders can receive training Group members are provided with models for appropriate communication, interaction and resolution disputes Leaders have assistance during therapeutic interventions, particularly during role plays, simulations and program activities Leaders have help setting limits and structuring the group experience. During group meeting coleaders help each other facilitate the work of the group