Social Work Practice

With Groups
 Guide for Facilitating Group
 Target group
 Size
 Needs of the Target group
 Theme/ Topic / Subject Matter
 Objectives
 Process
 Content/ Input
 Program / Time-Frame
 Tasking/ Responsible
 Logistics (Materials Needed)
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 Introduction
 Social work with groups has played an
important role in transforming the way we
think about clients and about the helping
process.
 Science has made the discovery that
infants who are isolated from other human
beings succumb to inattention.
 Psychologists have observed that learning
can actually be enhanced by associations
with others.
 Introduction
 Itis a well documented fact than many of
the physical and mental illnesses of
people are caused by social and
emotional malaise and that social needs
bring people to the office of social
workers, psychologists, and marriage
counselors.
 People not only need to be loved, they
need to know that they are wanted and
understood.
 Introduction
Human beings are strongly
dependent on interactions with
other humans.
Social work practice with groups
builds on the important impact of
groups on individuals and utilizes
group processes to accomplish
individual and group goals..
 Group Work Defined
 Group work is a method of working
with people in groups (two or more
people) for personal growth, the
enhancement of social functioning,
and for the achievement of socially
desirable goals.
 Group work is a method of reducing
or eliminating roadblocks to social
interaction and for accomplishing
socially desirable purposes.
 Group Work Defined
 Almost all social service agencies use group
work.
 The social group worker uses their knowledge
of group organization and functioning to affect
the performance and adjustment of the
individual.
 The individual remains the focus of concern
and the group the vehicle of growth and
change.
 Enhancement of social functioning through the
use of the group is the primary aim of group
work.
 Group Work Models
 Social Goals Model:
 Designed to bring about important social
gains for the group.
 It is likely to address itself to problems within
communities and is practiced in settlement
houses, P.T.A. organizations, and community
service and neighborhood councils.
 This Model has been used in addressing
social problems accompanying community
development and growth.
 Social Group Models
 The Remedial Model:
 Tends to be clinically oriented.
 Facilitates the interaction among members of
the group to achieve change for the
individual.
 The group supports the member,
encouraging new, more appropriate modes of
functioning.
 Intervention is reality focused and addresses
the problem of dysfunction in the group and
within the full range of the individual’s
relationships.
 Social Group Models
 The Reciprocal Model:
 Serves both the individual and society.
 Sees the individual largely as an abstraction
that can be studied, understood, and treated
only in relation to the many systems and
subsystems of which they are a part.
 It views the individual as being created,
influenced, and modified by their
relationships, social institutions, and the
interdependency between society and the
individual.
 Formation of Groups
 Worker Goals:
 Include the plans, methods, means, and
programming developed and used to help
members accomplish their goals and
purposes.
 Responsible for the organization, the
treatment process, and termination.
 Clarity of purpose, goal formulations, and
purpose are essential in group process.
 Structuring the Group
 The Setting:
 The setting is related to purpose.
 For children with limited self-control, activities
in a gymnasium or on a playground do not
provide essential boundaries for group.
 Privacy should be provided.
 The use of a table may represent a
psychological barrier to interaction for some
groups.
 Structuring the Group
 Group Size:
 The number of participants ought to be
determined by the objectives of each group.
 Seven to nine members are most often
thought to be small enough to allow for open
discussion and attention given to individuals.
 The recommended size for educational
groups is larger with groups as small as
twelve or as large as thirty.
 Structuring the Group
 Group Rules:
 A group that makes is own rules is more likely to
abide by them and to apply sanctions as needed to
reinforce them.
 Individual beliefs and values should be considered in
relation to group rules.
 Rules should be few in number and include only those
deemed essential to achieve the purposes of the
group.
 Some members may attempt to impose inappropriate
rules on the group.
 Structuring the Group
 Open or Closed Groups:
 Designations of “open” and “closed” pertain
to the timing of admissions to the group.
 Closed groups include only those members
selected at the group’s formation.
 Open groups are like a slice of life – birth,
separation, marriage, and death.
 Open systems tend to simulate reality and
provide transferability to real life situations.
 Structuring the Group
 Short-Term or Long-Term Groups:
 Adults and mature adolescents usually can
accept a time limit on the number of meetings
to accomplish their goals.
 Youngsters who have experienced repeated
rejections may see time limits negatively and
try to negotiate for more sessions rather than
invest themselves in the area of goal
attainment.
 Structuring the Group
 Meeting Days and Time:
 The day and time of meetings will be adapted
to the needs and wishes of the members as
part of initial planning.
 Groups usually meet weekly for one to two
hours.
 Groups living in institutions may meet more
frequently.
 As goals are achieved meetings can be
tapered off.
 Structuring the Group
 Leadership:
 Many group workers advocate the development of
leadership ability in all group members.
 Some workers advocate a revolving leadership
system, particularly in activity groups with children
and adults.
 Group workers continually must assess the
leadership development of their group as well as
the members ability to share leadership functions
and participate as both leaders and followers.
 Stages of Group
 Beginning:
 Group worker sets the stage
 Worker takes time to identify the purpose
 Clearly commit to the goals and procedures
 Members need to know what they can expect from
the worker
 This stage is characterized as a time to convene, to
organize, and to set a plan.
 Members are likely to remain distant or removed
until they have had time to develop relationships.
 Stages of Group
 Middle:
 Almost all of the group’s work will occur during this
stage.
 Relationships are strengthened as a group so that
the tasks can be worked on.
 Problem solving is a term often used to describe
this stage.
 Group leaders are usually less involved
 The leader may remind the group of their goals and
rules and confront relationships that may be
interfering with the overall purpose of the group.
 Stages of Group
 End:
 Marked by the accomplishment of the goals of the
group, production of results, and the evaluation of
the group’s work.
 Preparation for termination should begin with the
first session.
 The worker will help members deal with their
feelings associated with the termination of the
group.
 Help participants plan on ways to maintain and
generalize the gains each member has made.
 Group Work Settings
 Traditional Settings:
 The YMCA and YWCA are examples of
agencies that focus on the use of group
process in helping youths.
 The YMCA had 2,000 units in the United
States in l992, with a registered membership
of 12.8 million.
 The YWCA was operating out of thousands of
locations in the US and represented more
than 2 million members in l998.
 Group Work Settings
 Group Services in Host Agencies:
 Group process is being used considerably in the
field of corrections.
 In hospitals social workers often help patients in
groups understand some of their medical and
emotional problems.
 In psychiatric hospitals groups of patients join
together on a group basis under the guidance of a
group leader.
 Many school districts utilize group process in
working with boys and girls who have various kinds
of personal and family problems.