Chapter 10: Guidance/ Psychoeducational Groups

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Chapter 10 Guidance/Psychoeducational Groups

• Introduction to Group Work, 5th Edition
• Edited by David Capuzzi, Douglas R. Gross, and
  Mark D. Stauffer

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Definition of Guidance/Psychoeducational Groups

• Structured, issue specific, and leader directed
• Emphasis on learning about a problem or issue
• Purpose prevention, growth, or remediation
• Promote growth through knowledge and skill
  building
• May emphasize self-awareness and self-empowerment
• Combine some of the therapeutic aspects of
  traditional group counseling with the
  goal-directed emphasis of psychoeducation

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Benefits

• Knowledge is empowering.
• Clients benefit from the universality inherent in
  an issue-specific group.
• Guidance/psychoeducational groups fit well with
  multiculturalism.
• They may attract clients who may not be attracted
  to traditional therapy groups.
• They can be more cost effective because the size
  of the group can be larger.

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Examples of Guidance/Psychoeducational Groups

• Groups offered by school counselors addressing
  responsible sexual behavior
• Groups offered by college counselors addressing
  stress management, relationship skills, diversity
  awareness, conflict resolution, or career
  readiness
• Groups offered by agency counselors emphasizing
  healthy lifestyle choices for seniors or
  effective parenting strategies for parents of
  adolescents

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History of Guidance/Psychoeducational Groups

• Joseph Pratt is credited with beginning the group
  movement by offering groups to tuberculosis
  patients.
• At the turn of the 20th century, schools began
  offering vocational and moral guidance groups.
• Since these groups focus on prevention, personal
  responsibility, and empowerment as well as
  incorporating emotional, behavioral, and
  spiritual aspects of change, psychoeducational
  groups are consistent with the current wellness
  model.

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Primary Purposes of Guidance/ Psychoeducational
Groups

• Educational Teach members new material through
  lecture, discussion, observation, or
  participation.
• Skills training Have a strong experiential
  component. The leader models the desired skills.
  Feedback is important.
• Self-understanding/self-knowledge May resemble
  counseling groups but differ in their lack of
  emphasis on self-disclosure, working through
  resistance, or exploring past relationships.
• Many groups contain elements of all three.

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Incorporating Learning Principles

• When designing learning activities for the group,
  leaders must consider
• The general characteristics of the group (e.g.,
  age, developmental level, education, cultural
  factors)
• The learning styles of the group (e.g., auditory,
  kinesthetic, visual)
• Motivation of the group
• Anxiety level of the group or individual members

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Strategies for Incorporating Learning Principles

• Develop goals and objectives that are specific,
  realistic, and clearly articulated.
• Incorporate culturally meaningful learning
  activities.
• Vary methods of introduction to accommodate
  different learning styles.
• Incorporate active and/or discovery teaching
  methods (e.g., hands on activities, games, etc.)

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Strategies for Incorporating Learning Principles

• Tie content to relevant stories or examples.
• When teaching behavioral skills, break the
  overall task into small stages or component
  parts.
• Give opportunities for feedback.

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Planning and Implementing a Psychoeducational
Group

• Conceptual Phase
• Developing a statement of purpose
• This must be an explicit statement of the reason
  for the groups existence and the approach that
  will be taken.
• A theoretical perspective must be chosen (e.g.,
  insight oriented, behavioral).
• Group must be conceptualized (e.g., skills based,
  self-awareness, educational, or a combination).

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Planning and Implementing a Psychoeducational
Group

• Conceptual Phase
• Establishing goals
• Goals indicate how participants may change as a
  result of group involvement.
• Goals must be consistent with the theoretical
  approach defined in the statement of purpose.
• Goals should be reasonable and attainable.

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Planning and Implementing a Psychoeducational
Group

• Conceptual Phase
• Setting objectives
• Objectives specify, generally in behavioral
  terms, the steps needed to reach each group goal.
• The completion of the objectives should signal
  successful mastery of the goal.

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Planning and Implementing a Psychoeducational
Group

• Operational Phase
• Selecting the content
• Group content may be organized into three
  categories
• Didactic Leader uses teaching strategies that
  take into account member development and
  attention span.
• Experiential Helps members understand the
  material on a personal level. Should be chosen to
  reinforce didactic content.
• Process Helps members connect the didactic and
  experiential components of the group.

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Planning and Implementing a Psychoeducational
Group

• Operational Phase
• Designing exercises
• Group exercises must be tailored to address group
  goals and objectives.
• Exercises should be brief, simple to implement,
  and require active participation.

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Planning and Implementing a Psychoeducational
Group

• Operational Phase
• Performing evaluations
• Process evaluation Involves soliciting feedback
  during each session and incorporating changes
  when necessary
• Outcome evaluation Assesses the success of the
  group and can involve measuring goal attainment,
  member satisfaction, or both

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Effective Group Leadership

• Develop a clear understanding of the needs of
  group members.
• Clearly inform group members about the scope and
  nature of the group.
• Use stage-appropriate interventions.
• Be aware of therapeutic factors at play.
• Take the role of therapeutic mentor (e.g., group
  leaders must integrate counseling and teaching
  strategies to provide structured intervention
  that allows for personal reflection and meaning
  making).

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PsychoeducationalGroups in Clinical Practice

• Increasing in popularity because of the
  following
• They can address common needs of clients.
• They can address serious mental health issues by
  incorporating problem solving and life skills
  components.
• They can be used to educate persons with
  psychiatric disabilities.
• They can be used in vocational counseling,
  marriage counseling, family counseling, etc.

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Guidance Groups in Schools

• Essential in schools because they can do the
  following
• Be an effective means of addressing the emotional
  needs of a large number of students as well as a
  myriad of prevention and adjustment issues
• Can be used to address schoolwide wellness issues
  (e.g., substance abuse, self-esteem, conflict
  resolution)
• Can be used to address mental health issues in
  schoolchildren (e.g., depression, eating
  disorders)
• Can be used to help students with vocational and
  academic goals

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Psychoeducational Groups on College Campuses

• Benefits
• They are economical.
• They can provide an intensity of focus on the
  developmental issue of concern.
• They provide a natural mode for many of the
  strategies in student development.
• They provide peer affiliations for the
  traditional-age college populations.

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Multicultural Considerations

• Group goals must be congruent with the values of
  the group members.

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Ethical Considerations

• A leader must follow all the relevant ethical
  guidelines that all counselors and group leaders
  must follow. Special considerations include the
  following
• Leaders must clearly articulate the nature of the
  group including criteria for membership
  exclusion.
• Leaders must stress that confidentiality still
  applies even though the group format may seem
  like a class.
• Leaders must still communicate with a group
  members other mental health service providers.
• Leaders must provide referral resources for any
  member in need.