Facilitating Therapy Groups: Therapy Books, #3

Facilitating Therapy Groups

Buddy Wagner, PhD

Published by Buddy Wagner at Smashwords.com

Second edition

Copyright 2016 Buddy Wagner

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Disclaimer

This e-book is for educational and informational purposes only. No guarantees of results are implied, expressed or intended as a result of reading this material. The material is not intended as a cure or remedy for any mental health problem. Reading this book does not prepare or qualify you to facilitate therapy groups.

Table of Contents

Preface

Chapter 1 - Components of the Pre-Group Meeting

Chapter 2 - Sessions

Chapter 3 - Use of Logs and Other Homework

Chapter 4 - Curative Factors

Chapter 5 - Effective Group Therapists

Chapter 6 - Stages of Groups

Chapter 7 - Problem Group Behaviors

Chapter 8 - Groups in Schools

Chapter 9 – Other Important Aspects of Group Work

References

About the Author

Preface

I have taught classes in Theories of Group Counseling for almost twenty years. I have always taught these classes with an experiential component, where the students participate in an actual group experience. This book is based on how I have taught these classes and is used as the text for these classes. Because most of you reading this book are students training to become therapists, the text is intended to give you a model for how to facilitate a therapy group.

This book is not intended to be an in-depth discussion of facilitating therapy groups. My intention is to cover the important aspects in enough detail to give you an introductory understanding of the necessary components with the hopes of encouraging you to do further research and reading in the area. This book doesn’t claim to answer every question or address every challenge associated to group therapy. The intention is to give you enough information to understand what is required for a successful therapy group.

In chapter 1, I discuss the components of the pre-group meeting. These include the acceptance of the group contract, setting goals and the group members sharing with each other their fears and expectations for the group sessions.

In chapter 2, I discuss the group sessions. In the groups that I lead, there are eleven sessions. In the first session, the participants share their personal goals. In sessions 2 through 10, I use different theories, as appropriate, to assist the participants in achieving their goals. In the last session, we discuss what the participants have learned about themselves, how they have reached their goals and how they will apply what they have gained through the group experience.

In chapter 3, I discuss the use of logs and other homework for group members. I find logs to be a useful way to communicate privately with each group member between sessions. This is a way for the leader to know how each group member is experiencing the group.

In chapter 4, I discuss the curative factors of therapy groups. These factors are potentially powerful phenomena for creating changes in how and what the participants think and do.

In chapter 5, I discuss what it takes to be an effective group therapist. This includes the personal characteristics, the necessary skills and the basic tasks required of an effective group therapist.

In chapter 6, I discuss the stages of groups and some of the components of each stage. This information gives the therapist a general understanding of what to expect as the group progresses. It also gives the therapist a way to measure if the group is progressing in a normal way.

In chapter 7, I discuss behaviors of group members that can create problems for the group and/or group leader. I also give suggestions for how to respond to these behaviors in ways that will be helpful to the group and to the individual member.

In chapter 8, I discuss school counselors using groups in the school setting. I include this to assist those of you who are training to become school counselors.

In chapter 9, I discuss diversity and the importance of being aware of multicultural issues. I also discuss ethics and the research on the effectiveness of groups.

At the end of each chapter I give some questions to ponder. These are intended to help you think more deeply about the content of the chapters.

Chapter 1

Components of the Pre-Group Meeting

The pre-group meeting is important to set the tone for the group. I try to impress upon the participants the importance of taking the group experience seriously. In this meeting, I cover the group contract, the importance of group goals but also individual goals that each participant will set for herself. After we have discussed the contract and each participant has agreed to abide by it, they sign a copy of the following contract committing to abide by the contract.

Commitment to Contract

I, __________________________, acknowledge that the group counseling contract is important and I commit to following it to the best of my ability. I will be open and honest and participate in the group