Group Counseling and Group Work (2/2) Flashcards
Counseling Theory applied to group work
Newer trends and approaches are also important:
family groups
brief and narrative therapy groups
groups working from a feminist therapy perspective
Person-Centered Group
Content
- feelings
- personal meanings
- attitudes
- sense of trust in group
Person-Centered Group
Leader
- group member centered and process oriented
- leader creates climate, conveys acceptance, facilitates, links
Person-Centered Group
Techniques
- active listening/reflection
- support and “being there”
- altering self-concepts
- few structured techinques
Person-Centered Group
Focus
insight and affect oriented
Gestalt Group
Focus
action/insight and affect oriented
Gestalt Group
Goal
- awareness
- experience in the moment
- personality change
Person-Centered Group
Goal
- encourage openness
- explore full range of feelings
- increasing self-understanding
- develop openness, honesty, spontaneity
Person-Centered Group
Multicultural
- respects cultural values
- encourages active listening
- members may not like the ‘lack of direction’
- may want more structure/more directive problem-solving approach
Gestalt Group
Techniques
- focus on the here and now
- experiential
- use of exercises including confrontation, empty chair, guided fantasy
- catharsis
Gestalt Group
Content
- clients have responsibility for moment-to-moment experiencing and awareness
- deal with unfinished business
Gestalt Group
Leader
- group member centered and process oriented
- leader brings structure to group
- serves as catalyst for change
- encourages working through unfinished business
Transactional Analysis Group
Focus
a combination of insight/action and rational/affect oriented
Transactional Analysis Group
Goal
- awareness
- making new decisions
- become free of scripts and games
- altering course of life
Transactional Analysis Group
Techniques
- interacting with others
- making contracts
- use of script-analysis checklist
- teaching/learning
- role-playing
Gestalt Group
Multicultural
- different techniques can be addapted to different clients
- focus may be on nonverbals and what they mean
- many clients are less apt to respond with intense feelings and be less willing to participate in some techniques
Transactional Analysis Group
Content
- life script
- three dynamic ego states - parent, adult, child
- games people play
Transactional Analysis Group
Leader
- leader is teacher adn diagnostician
- group is leader-centered with equal process and outcome orientation
Transactional Analysis Group
Multicultural
- clients like the structure
- the contracts they design can account for cultural values
- clients may have difficulty understanding some TA concepts and processes
- narrow interpretation of human nature
Cognitive Behavior Group
Goal
eliminate problem behaviors and teach self-management skills
Cognitive Behavior Group
Techniques
- examine the learning process nad find ways fo changing/learning behaviors, cognitions, emotions
- use of reinforcement/contracts
- modeling
Cognitive Behavior Group
Content
target behavior, environmental circumstances maintaining the behavior, environmental changes/intervention strategies that can change the behavior
Cognitive Behavior Group
Focus
action and rational oriented
Cognitive Behavior Group
Leader
- leader centered and action oriented (teacher, expert)
- teaches coping skills and methods of modifying behavior
Cognitive Behavior Group
Multicultural
- behavioral groups de-empathsize focus on feelings
- often short-term and structured; work toward specific goals
- learn new coping strategies
- may learn new behaviors they will have to integrate with family and cultural values as well as with historical/systemic factors
Rational Emotive Behavior Group
Goal
- constructive changes in client’s thinking and behavior leading to greater acceptance of self
- move past self-defeating behaviors
Rational Emotive Behavior Group
Techniques
- learning A-B-C theory
- practicing disputing
- exercising self-discipline
- role-playing
- homework assignments
Rational Emotive Behavior Group
Content
irrational beliefs and values and consequent problem behaviors
Rational Emotive Behavior Group
Focus
action/insight and rational oriented
Rational Emotive Behavior Group
Leader
- centered and both process/outcome oriented
- confronts illogical thinking
- serves as model for others
Rational Emotive Behavior Group
Multicultural
- counselor would be viewed as a teacher vs a therapist and teaches clients to cope better with life = eliminate self-defeating behvaiors
- many clients will value expert role and leader directedness
- REBT may be too directive/forceful for some clients and the highly active role of the leader could create dependence
- what leader views as irrational behavior may not be
Reality Group
Goal
- improve quality of life by achieving increasing control over life
- taking responsibility
Reality Group
Techniques
- confront and encourage honest self-examination
- evaluate behavior
- formulate plan for change (contract)
- commit to such a plan and follow through
Reality Group
Content
- members’ awareness and present behavior
- wants and needs
- responsibility
Reality Group
Focus
rational and action oriented
Reality Group
Leader
- centered and outcome oriented
- assist members make choices, formulate, implement a plan
Reality Group
Multicultural
- group work takes on a teaching/learning approach often resulting with contracts by group members
- contracts can be consistent with their own identity and cultural values
- no strong emphasis on feelings
- members may feel leaders do not understand strong influence of discrimination and other socio-historical factors
- cultural emphasis may be to work for the community good and not just for individual
Adlerian Group
Techniques
- psychoeducational
- analysis and assessment
- explore family constellation
- cognitive restructuring
Adlerian Group
Goal
- explore basic life assumptions
- understand lifestyles
- recognize strengths and accept responsibility
- increase self-esteem
- develop social interest
Adlerian Group
Content
- cognitive, behavioral, affective sides of human nature
- early history
- lifestyles
- belief system
Adlerian Group
Focus
- action oriented
- goal directed
Adlerian Group
Leader
- leader centered
- challenges beliefs and goals
- models
- encourages members to action
Adlerian Group
Multicultural
- members can view culture from own unique perspective and background
- can create own meaning from own personal experiences
- may be reluctant to share family background details in the group
Existential Group
Goal
- self-awareness
- help members use freedom amd assume responsibility
Existential Group
Technique
- members determine issues to explore
- self-disclosure of group leader
- counseling
- psychoeducation
Existential Group
Content
- search for meaning
- dealing with freedom/anxiety/guilt
Existential Group
Focus
insight oriented
Existential Group
Leader
- active and reflective
- builds relationshipswiht members
- confronts members in a caring way
Existential Group
Multicultural
- encourages understanding clients in their own cultural and phenomenological world
- encourages empowerment
- explores values/lifestyle
- emphasis on individual may conflict with culture’s focus on collectivism
Adlerian Influences
Adlerian theory mantains
belief in strong social nature of people
- focus is on the individual in the group (individual psychology)
Adlerian Influences
Adlerian Theory
- holistic view of the person with more emphasis on interpersonal than intrapersonal factors
- role of family is critical. The meaning clients give to their position in the family, sibling relationships, birth order is important
- individual’s orientation to life and its themes called Lifestyle are addressed
- has been successfully implemented into family counseling
Remote telemental group work
both possible and positive
- travel, weather, transportation become non issues
