Group Midterm

processing

The majority of the ___ will occur among the entire group

middle; working

The most important stage of the group is the ____ or ____ stage, because this is when the members should be working, learning, and deriving maximum benefit from being in group

cutting off; drawing out; holding, shifting, and deepening

To make the group a valuable and worthwhile experience, the most important skills to remember are ___ __, ___ ___, and ___, ____, and ___the focus

processing

Understanding the _____ of exercises is essential because the ____of the exercise is by far the most important phase of any exercise

writing

___ can be used after exercises where members have many thoughts and feelings they might want to express but not share with anyone else

Processing

___ means spending time discussing thoughts, feelings, and ideas that result from doing the exercise

proper introduction

____ of an exercise means giving clear instructions to members on how to carry out the exercise

existential factors

accepting responsibility for one's life

benefits of rounds

are extremely helpful in gathering information involving members

benefits of dyads

are immensely valuable because they can be used for so many different reasons

group cohesiveness

closeness among members

Feedback exercises

explain the value of giving helpful kind Give examples

catharsis

expressing feelings never expressed before

instillation of hope

feeling hopeful about one's life

Tuckman's 5 stages of group

forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning

imparting of information

gaining information about healthy living

altruism

giving to other members corrective

Fantasy exercises

leaders should speak slowly to evoke the feelings and images necessary. • It is also important to suggest that members close their eyes during the exercise, but also give them the option to leave their eyes open

development of socialization techniques

learning social skills

interpersonal learning

learning to interact with others

Time needed for adequate processing

make sure there is enough of this for the desired depth

imitative behavior

modeling positive behaviors from other members

what makes an effective group leader

o Caring, openness, flexibility, warmth, objectivity, trustworthiness, honesty, strength, patience, and sensitivity o Leaders be actively involved in their own personal growth o Experience with individuals o Experience with groups o Planning and organizational skills o Knowledge of the topic o A good understanding of basic human conflicts and dilemmas o A good understanding of counseling theory

Benefits of using group counseling

o Efficiency o Greater variety of resources and viewpoints o Experiences of commonality o Sense of belonging o Skills practice o Feedback o Vicarious learning o Real-life approximation o commitment

Considerations to account for when conducting an exercise

o Ensuring that members follow instructions o Allowing members to not share o Handling emotional reactions o Changing or stopping the exercise o Informing members of the time o Deciding whether the leader will participate

problems that arise in groups

o Skip from topic to topic o Dominate the discussion o Be chit-chatty rather than personal and focused o Attend sporadically o Be shy and withdrawn o Get angry at the leader o Get angry at one another o Pressure (force) others to speak o Preach their personal morality o Be resistant because forced to attend o Dislike other members o Stop attending the group

recapitulation of the primary family group

opportunity to experience dynamics similar to early childhood experiences

confusion; boredom; unproductive

problems that could arise if the leader is unclear about the purpose of the group, session, or activity

universality

realizing others have similar concerns

group content

refers to the purpose or task of the group

Kinds of exercises

written exercises movement exercises dyads and triads rounds creative props arts and crafts exercises fantasy exercises common reading exercises trust exercises experiential exercises moral dilemma exercises group-decision exercises touching exercises

ways to cut off

• Cut and stay with the person • Cut and stay with the topic • Cut and leave the person and topic

Common error in introducing an exercise

• Failure to tell members how long an exercise will last is another mistake of beginning leaders

reasons for drawing out

• Greater involvement • Help members who have a difficult time sharing in a group • Getting members to go deeper is a form of drawing out that is very helpful to members

movement exercises

• It is also important that the leader not give the instructions while the members are moving around, because they will not be paying attention

trust exercises

• Rounds o Initiate discussion of trust • trust lifts o members stand in a tight circle with one person in the center. Lift member o discussion both on being lifted and on being responsible for lifting • trust fall o one member falls, two catch them • blind trust walk o one person blindfolded and the other serves as a guide

Goals of processing

• To stimulate sharing and discussion about topics or issues • To stimulate members to delve deeper into thoughts and feelings • To stimulate sharing and discussion related to the group dynamics and group process

Ways to draw out

• Use of dyads or drawing out members • Use of rounds for drawing out members • Use of written exercises for drawing out members • Use of eyes to draw out • Use of movement to draw out

Reasons for cutting-off

• When a member's comments conflict with the group's purpose • When a member is saying something hurtful • When a member is saying something inaccurate • When the leader wants to shift the focus • When it is near the end of the session • When members are arguing • When members are rescuing other members

inform members of the purpose and procedure

• When introducing an exercise, the leader will want to inform the members of the purpose and how the exercise will be conducted. • A straightforward introduction allows members to have more understanding of the exercise and increases cooperation

Summarizing

A good summary pulls together the major points and can serve to deepen or sharpen the focus

why cut off

A group leader is responsible for ensuring positive group outcomes, and when group members' comments are counterproductive, the leader should intervene

assessing interest and commitment

Address with group and make it broad, so no one is singled out Meet with the person individually

Assessing each member's participation

Although there is no "correct" way to participate in the group, active, verbal participation is usually better for most members than merely observing or occasionally commenting It is desirable to try to get quiet members to share their thoughts and feelings, in the hope that they will become more comfortable sharing in the group To change the level of participation the leader can • Change his voice • Can mention her observation of what is happening and suggest that the level of participation change • He can shift to an exercise or activity that has the potential for generating more serious discussion

Holding and shifting the focus

An error commonly made by inexperienced group leaders when processing an exercise is to focus the group for too long on the first person who talks. It is usually best for the leader to give all or most of the members a chance to talk before holding the focus on any one person or issue. Exercises should create energy and interest among all members Also, be aware that the first person who speaks may be speaking out of anxiety, a need for attrition, or a desire to please the leader

Multicultural understanding

Awareness of multicultural issues is very important in groups, because most groups are made up of diverse cultural backgrounds Multicultural is inherent in all group work The leader not only needs to understand how each member's cultures of the group members, but also need to understand how each member's culture affects his participation in the group

forming

Beginning stage of group Most team members are positive and polite Some members may be anxious because they aren't fully comfortable with the group

Movement exercises

Changing seats Milling around Values continuum Goal walk How far have you come? Sculpt your feeling about the group? Family sculpture Group Sculpture Home Spot Personal space Become a statue Trust

Assessing the benefit

Conduct a 1-10 round on how valuable the group has been Conduct a comment round in which the leader asks each member to comment on the value of the group Initiate a discussion of the value of the group Have members review each topic discussed Ask members to write 5 to 10 minutes on what they gained from the group up to this point Leaders can have members write at the end of the session and leave what they write, or leaders can assign out-of-group projects to be bought in at the next meeting or mailed in

assessing trust

Continuing to focus on what people are talking about and if it is appropriate for the group session. How much are they revealing? Through exercises

Tone Setting

Creating the mood for the group Scanning for Nonverbal Cues • Head Nods • Facial Expressions • Tears • Body Shifts Getting Members to Look at Other Members Drawing Out Members Cutting off members

Uses for dyads

Developing comfort Warming up members and building energy Processing information and group exercises Finishing a topic Getting certain members together Providing leader/member interaction Changing the format Providing time for the leader to think

adjourning

Disband the group Difficult for the group

Identifying allies

Discovering who your allies are in the group; that is, which members you can count on to be cooperative and helpful

Active Listening

Entails listening to the content, voice, and body language of the person speaking. It also involves communicating to the person speaking that you are really listening

To provide an opportunity for experiential learning

Exercises can also be used to provide an alternative approach to exploring issues other than through discussion

to deepen the focus

Exercises can be quite powerful and cause members to gain insights into themselves

to increase the comfort

Getting-acquainted exercises often increase comfort among members Written exercises help with comfort because members often feel more comfortable reading what they wrote; that is they know they have something to say

Use of leader's energy

Good leader's have enthusiasm for what they are doing

Reflection

In counseling, to reflect is to restate it, conveying that you understand the content, the feeling behind it, or both The purpose of reflecting is twofold: (1) to help the group member who is peaking become more aware of what he is saying, and (2) to communicate to him that you are aware of how he is feeling

Linking

Is the process of connecting people together to facilitate bonding. We also call this trying together

Focusing on members or on the entire group

It is usually best at the beginning of the processing phase or hear from all the members who feel like sharing in order to get a sense of what is going on with the members

Use of Eyes

Knowing how to use eyes is important when leading groups 4 ways • Scanning for nonverbal cues • Getting married to look at other members • Drawing out members • Cutting off members

Counseling Groups

Members come to the group because of certain problems in their lives The leader focuses the group on different individuals and their problems, then, members try to help one another with the leader's guidance In our approach, the leader is primarily responsible for making sure that individuals working on issues get the best help possible

Assessing members' interest and commitment

Observes the frequency of absences and late arrivals Observes the energy throughout the session Look for patterns of disinterest If a few members have lost interest, the leader can • Bring up the issue with the entire group • Meet with those whose interest seems low • Give members permission to drop out of the group

Storming

Occurs in groups where there is tension due to the makeup of the group, the commitment of the members, the purpose of the group, and/or the approach of the leader People start to push against the boundaries established in the forming stage

To provide fun and relaxation

One common mistake of school counselors is that they spend too much time making the group fun and relaxing and not enough time making the experience meaningful

Modeling and Self-Disclosure

One of the best ways to teach desired behaviors is by modeling those behaviors in the group Self-disclosure by the leader should not be of such intensity that the leader becomes the focus of the group

Norming

People start to resolve their differences, appreciate colleagues' strengths, and respect your authority as a leader The group starts to know each other better, socialize together, and are able to give feedback Group becomes more comfortable

performing

People start to resolve their differences, appreciate colleagues' strengths, and respect your authority as a leader The group starts to know each other better, socialize together, and are able to give feedback Group becomes more comfortable

Mini-lecturing and information giving

Provide information and expertise on a given subject

kind of processing questions

Questions direct the focus of the processing Questions can cause members to focus on the exercise, the group, issue or topics, or on individuals Questions to go deeper: • What insights did you get from doing this? • What feelings were stirred up for you? • How can you use this exercise to help you in your life?

Ways of processing

Rounds Dyads or triads Writing In the entire group In any combination of the preceding four ways The round is a good way to start the processing

written exercises

Sentence-Completion exercises Listing exercises Written-Response Exercises Diaries

focus should be shifted when

The focus has been on one person for too long The focus has been on one topic for too long The focus does not fit the purpose of the group The time left dictates the need for change The leader feels the members need to change to re-energize the group The leader wants to draw another member into the group The leader wants to introduce a new topic or activity

time spent discussing the actual exercise

The main purpose of processing is to get them to talk about what feelings they encounter The processing is initially on what it felt like when they had to struggle, but the leader would want to rather quickly center the discussion on the struggles thay are having in their lives, not the struggle in the exercise

Encouraging and Supporting

The skilled leader must take the initiative in providing support and encouragement that will help put members at ease Acknowledging that some discomfort is normal often eases members' anxiety

Clarification and Questioning

There are several techniques for clarification that you may find useful, questioning, restating, and using other members to clarify The leader has the responsibility trying to maintain clear communication in the group

cut off

There are two situations when the leader will want to use cutting off skill • When a members has the floor but is either rambling, storytelling, or avoiding going deeper • When a member is saying something inappropriate

Person-centered or past-centered exercises

There is no right or wrong about where exercises should focus In most cases, focusing in the present about the past is usually more productive then just focusing on the past Group members cannot change their past, but they can change how they are affected by it The leader should almost always be considering how to help members in the present even when conducting a past-centered exercise

when to deepen the focus

Two considerations • Phase of the session, because deepening the focus should be done inly during the middle phase of a group, not during the warm-up or the ending phase • When there is an opportunity to deepen the focus during the middle phase, the leader should also consider if there is enough time to adequately cover the issue or topic

When to use rounds

Use of rounds to build comfort, trust, and cohesion Use of rounds to get members focused Use of rounds to gather information and locate energy Use of rounds to shift the focus to involve all members Use of rounds to draw out quiet members Use of rounds to deepen the focus Use of rounds to process exercises Use of rounds to summarize

to generate discussion and focus the group

Using group exercises increases member participation by providing a common experience

techniques

Using progress reports Introducing topics for discussion Stimulating members' thoughts Varying the format Changing leadership style, if warranted Changing the structure of the group, if warranted Using voice to get members to think Using outside materials and assignments Meeting with members individually Informing members in advance when the group is ending

Self-help groups

Very popular Ex: AA Group that provides support to seeking help for a specific purpose

Questions regarding processing

What is the goal of the processing? How much time is needed for adequate processing? What processing methods should be used? What kinds of processing questions should be used? How much time should be spent discussing the actual exercise? Should the focus be on the entire group or on one individual? When should the focus be held and when should it be shifted? Is the exercise present-centered or past centered? Do I want to focus on the past or present?

Task groups

have a specific task to be discussed meets just once or a few times and ends when the task is accomplished leader's role is to keep the group on task and to facilitate discussion and interaction

Use of Voice

to help set the tone to energize the group Pacing the group • The leader's voice pattern - which includes tone, pitch, volume, and rate - can be instrumental in leading an effective group

General considerations for introducing a exercise

-inform members of the purpose and procedures -avoid confusing directions -avoid lengthy directions

Yalom's curative factors

-instillation of hope -universality -imparting of information -Altruism -corrective recapitulation of the primary family group -development of socialization techniques -imitative behavior -interpersonal learning -group cohesiveness -catharsis -existential factors

group process

-refers to the interaction and energy exchange between members and leaders, how the leader reacts to the members, and how the member talk to one another and the leader -includes stages of group, group dynamics, and therapeutic forces

reasons for using exercises

-to increase the comfort -to provide the leader with useful information -to generate discussion and focus the group -to shift the focus -to deepen the focus -to provide an opportunity for experiential learning -to provide fun and relaxation

dyads; triads

A leader may want to use ---or ---when there seems to be a lot of energy and members can benefit from sharing their thoughts and feelings.

clear; purpose

Being ___ about the ____ of the group is perhaps the most important group leadership concept to be learned

right tone

During the introduction of an exercise, it is important to set the ___ ___

catalysts

Exercises merely act as ___for initiating discussion by triggering thoughts and feelings

productive;useful

For exercises to be __ and ___, they must be introduced properly, conducted properly, and processed in a way that is helpful for members.

right

IT should be made clear that members have the ___ not to participate if they so desire