7 factors which produce therapeutic change
1) Instillation of hope
2) Universality
3) Imparting information
4) Altruism
5) The corrective recapitulation of the primary family group
6) Development of socializing techniques
7) Imitative behaviour
Therapeutic Groups: Purpose
- To increase members’ knowledge of themselves and others;
- To help members clarify the changes they most want to make in their lives;
- To provide members with the tools they need to make changes;
- To support their changes.
Instillation of hope
Keeps clients in therapy
Faith in a treatment model can in itself be therapeutically effective
Universality
Clients believe they are unique and “the only one”.
Modelling Imitative behaviour
Modeling certain behaviour.
Altruism
Clients receive through giving.
Psychiatric patients beginning therapy are demoralized and possess a deep sense of having nothing of value to offer others.
In the group they are tremendously helpful to each other.
Imparting information
Direct advice – comes from group members to each other.
The corrective recapitulation of the primary family group
Great majority entering groups have a background of a highly unsatisfactory experience in their first and most important group – family.
Our groups mimic our family of origin
Development of socializing techniques
Direct or indirect learning
How do you order food at a restaurant?
Group process
all the elements that are basic to the unfolding of a group from beginning to end
Examples
Group norms
Generating trust and cohesion
Conflict and reluctance
Intermember feedback
Healing forces within the group
Stages of group development
Four Specialized Groups
Task Groups
Psychoeducational Groups
Counselling Groups
Psychotherapy Groups
Task Groups
Focus is on using group process to improve and facilitate the functioning of the group.
Main purposes:
Meeting client needs;
Meeting organizational needs;
Meeting community needs.
Focused on specific task
Ex. Committee group…policy committee.
Psychoeducational Groups
- Comprised of group members who are relatively well-functioning individuals.
- May have an information deficit in a certain area. (Corey)
- Are a blend of educational and counselling groups that combine cognitive and affective materials and issues. (Brown)
- What examples of psychoeducational groups can you think of?
Ex. Diabeties group is gonna have education on how to do blood sugar but then also group activities
Teaching + Group
Ex. Parents of kids with “x” illness. Teaching family about the diagnosis but also providing support for how to cope with it
Counselling Groups
- Helps participants resolve the usual, but difficult, problems of living.
- Focus on interpersonal process and problem-solving strategies that stress conscious thoughts, feelings and behaviour.
- Having preventive and remedial aims
- Having a specific focus
- Involving an interpersonal process that stresses conscious thoughts, feelings, and behaviour
- Often being problem centered
Generally oriented toward the resolution of specific short-term issues.
Is not concerned with treatment of the more severe psychological and behavioral disorders.
Psychotherapy Groups
- Group members have acute or chronic mental or emotional disorders that evidence marked distress, impairment oin functioning, or both.
- Goal is to aid each individual in reconstructing major personality dimensions.
Brown classifies psychoeducational groups into four catagories
Personal development
Support and therapy-related
Life transitions
Families and caretakers
Pro’s of Psycho educational
Time boundaries: easy to plan
Limited length of sessions, often brief
Can have bigger group sizes as you’re mostly proving information
Personal Development Groups
Not formed to address a crisis
Help members develop inner resources to better cope with life and possible adversity.
Resilience
Hardiness
Strength building
Self-help or Support Groups
Allow people with a common problem or life predicament to create a support system that protects them from psychological stress and gives them the incentive to begin changing their lives.
Life Transition Groups
General - expected life situations and events that can have a significant emotional component.
Specific – a particular life transition that is expected, but does not occur for everyone.
Families and Caretakers Groups
Families of individuals experiencing such things as cancer, eating disorders, psychiatric disorders.
Create understanding of the issues and specifics.
Inpatient groups
Specific to situations where clients live in the institution or agency
Eg. Hospitals, Crisis Centres, Community Agencies
Out- patient groups
Specific to situations where clients live in the community and come to the agency for services
Brief Group Therapy
- Time limited, structured, lasts 2 to 3 months, and consists of 8 to 12 weekly sessions
- Facilitators need training in group process and brief therapy
- Advantages of brief group therapy
- Well suited to the needs of both clients and managed care
- Cost-effective
- Widely applicable to diverse client populations and problems
- Can be used in different settings
