Title: Running Effective Groups
1Running Effective Groups With Children
Adolescents
2A Primer on Group TherapyYaloms Therapeutic
Factors
- Installation of Hope
- Patients belief in the efficacy of the group
mode - Things will improve during course of therapy
- Universality
- Disconfirm patients feelings of uniqueness
- See commonalities in each other, relief
3Yaloms Therapeutic Factors
- Imparting Information
- Didactic instruction
- Direct advice
- Examine misconceptions
- Altruism
- Learning to give of ones self
- Seeing the benefit in doing so
4Yaloms Therapeutic Factors
- Imparting Information
- Didactic instruction
- Direct advice
- Examine misconceptions
- Altruism
- Learning to give of ones self
- Seeing the benefit in doing so
5Yaloms Therapeutic Factors
- Corrective recapitulation of primary family group
- Correctly resolve early family conflicts
- Group symbolically resembles original family
- Development of socializing techniques
- Basic social skills
- Both direct (role play) and indirect (feedback)
6Yaloms Therapeutic Factors
- Imitative behavior
- Group members imitate behavior of other members
and therapist (vicarious-spectator) - Helps patients try new behaviors
- Interpersonal learning
- Diminish parataxic distortions
- Form rewarding relationships
7Yaloms Therapeutic Factors
- Group cohesiveness
- Increases tolerance of disagreement
- Facilitates feedback and disclosure
- Catharsis
- Strong emotional component
- Cognitive component promotes change (necessary)
- Existential factors
- Face ultimate concerns of existence death,
isolation, freedom, and meaninglessness
8Co-Therapist Model
- Advantages
- Reduce chance of burnout
- Shared attention, greater observational range
- Infrequent cancellation due to illness
- Explore reactions together
- Sensitivity to countertransference
- Split roles provocative v. nurturing
- Help maintain objectivity
9Co-Leadership Model (cont)
- Disadvantages
- Lack of synchronization
- Competition and rivalry
- Lack of trust in others competence
- Different theoretical orientation
- Openly siding with members against leader
10Working with Children and Adolescents
- Legal considerations
- Clarify what you can and cannot keep confidential
- Be aware of your legal responsibility to report
abuse or suspected abuse of minors - Secure written consent of parents or guardians
11Practical Considerations
- Frequency and Duration
- With children and adolescents it may be better to
meet more frequently and for a shorter period of
time to suit their attention span. - If meeting in a school setting, meeting times
should correspond to regularly scheduled class
periods (if possible) - Group Size
- elementary school children 3-4 people
- adolescents 6-8 people
- Setting
- Will the site provide privacy?
- Will there be enough room for all students?
12Practical Considerations (cont)
- Communicate expectations
- Set rules and follow through with firmness
- Preparation
- Avoid insisting on covering your agenda
- Parental involvement
- Meet with or write to parents about the group, if
appropriate
13Screening Process
- Define the following areas
- Population (age, gender, etc.)
- Frequency and Duration
- Length
- Size
- Open v. Closed
- Who will be present?
- What information do you want to collect?
- What information do you want to impart?
14Working with Children and Adolescents
- Strategies in the Group
- Self-Disclosure
- Direct child to express how affected by incident
rather than allow them to reveal everything about
it - Emphasize confidentiality
- Use language that is developmentally tailored to
convey importance of privacy - Encourage parents to avoid asking questions that
could lead to breach
15Working with Children and Adolescents
- Strategies in the Group (cont)
- Maintain neutrality
- Avoid siding with children or adolescents against
their parents or a particular institution - Use appropriate exercises and techniques
- Even though their unwillingness to participate
may stem from a lack of understanding, children
and adolescents have the same rights to not
participate in exercises they see as inappropriate
16Working with Children and Adolescents
- Strategies in the Group (cont)
- Listen and remain open
- Encourage young people to express themselves in
their own words - Be aware of preconceived labels and diagnoses
that subtly influence your interactions - Prepare for termination
- Let children know that the termination point is
not far off well before your group ends - This enables children to express their sadness
(or other feelings related to termination)
17Working with Reluctant Adolescents
- Explain the rationale of the group in jargon-free
language - Allow members to express reactions to being sent
to a group - Go with resistance Dont go against resistance
- Avoid getting defensive
- Be clear and firm with your boundaries
18Key Points Child Groups
- Get the support of administrators
- Communicate the importance of confidentiality in
their language - Not all children are ready for group therapy
- Some structure is important
- Think about methods for evaluating outcomes
19Key Points Adolescent Groups
- Understand and respect resistance
- Role-playing techniques can often be creatively
used in adolescent groups - Find ways to involve parents
- Co-leadership models are especially useful in
facilitating an adolescent group