Social Work with groups

What is Group work and Group therapy ?

The intellectual, emotional and social development of individuals may be furthered through group activities. In contrast to Case work or Group therapy, Group work is not primarily therapeutic except in broader sense. Different groups have different objectives such as, socialization, information exchange, curbing, delinquency, recreation, changing socially unacceptable values and helping achieve better relations between cultural and racial groups.
Activities and focuses of group vary: arts and crafts, vocational. first aid or training oriented, educational etc

Social Group Work is a method of social work which helps individuals to enhance their social functioning through purposeful group experiences and to cope more effectively with their personal, group or community problems (Konapka -1963)

Group therapy is aimed at facilitating the social, behavioral and emotional adjustment of individuals through the group process. Participants in group therapy usually have emotional, international or behavioral difficulties. Group therapy has several advantages over one-one counseling, such as the operation of the helper therapy principle which maintains it is therapeutic for the helper to feel he/she has been helpful to others. in contrast to one-one counseling, group pressure is often more effective in changing individual's maladaptive behavior, and group therapy is a time saver as it enables the therapist to treat several people simultaneously. eg: group therapy might be focused on individuals who are severely depressed, having drinking problems or psychologically addicted to drugs, those having an eating disorder etc.

Types of Groups

1. Recreation Groups - objective is to provide activities for enjoyment and exercise- groups are leaderless- eg,YMCA,YWCA,spontaneous playground activities.
2. Recreation skill groups - objective is to improve a set of skills while providing enjoyment - this group has an adviser, coach or instructor- more of task oriented eg golf, arts and crafts club, swimming etc. groups are led by professionals with recreational training rather social work training.
3. Educational groups - focus is to help members acquire knowledge and learn more complex skills. the leader is generally a professional person with considerable training and expertise in subject area eg, child rearing practices,assertiveness training, effective parenting, training volunteers. these groups may resemble a class with considerable group interaction and discussion being encouraged
4. Task groups - formed to achieve specific set of task or objectives- a group established for specific purpose like a committee in an agency. this group is disbanded after the group has completed the task.
5. Problem solving/decision making groups - service providers and consumers use these kind of group. three issues are important in this type of groups: group vs individual decision making, group think, decision by consensus vs majority vote.
6.  focus groups - closely related to task and prblem solving groups. these groups are formed for a variety of purposes. like representative group. the members have been selected specifically to represent different perspectives or point of view of community. someone who can bring diverse views to the table.
7. self help groups - these are voluntary small group structures for mutual aid, and accomplishment of a specific purpose. there are 5 kinds of self help groups: acc to katz and bender groups that focus on self fulfillment or personal growth like AA groups and weight watchers and grops that focus on social advocacy like Welfare rights organizations, groups that focus on creating alternative patterns of living like gay liberation, outcast haven or rock bottom groups like ex drug addict organizations where people seek refuge to maintain their health without getting into relase due to societal or other life pressures and have a safe living arrangement. groups of mixed types

 

8. socialization groups - focus is to develop or change attitudes and behaviors of group members to become more socially acceptable. developing social skills, increasing self confidence, or any other focus. 

9. therapy groups- composed of members with severe emotional or personal problems. leadership in this group requires skill, perceptiveness, knowledge of human behavior and group dynamics, group counseling capacities to use the group to bring about behavioral or other therapeutic changes. similar to individual therapy the goal of the therapy  in groups in generally to have members explore their problems in depth and develop one or more strategies for resolving them. the therapist uses one or more therapy approaches such as psychoanalysis, reality therapy, learning theory, TA, rational therapy, client centered therapy and psychodramam to help promoting change in attitudes and behaviors. 

10. encounter groups - EG or sensitivity training groups refer to a group experience in which people relate to each other in a close interpersonal manner and self disclosure is required. the goal is to improve interpersonal awareness.  Acc to Baker a sensitivity group is a training and consciousness raising group rather than one that meets to resolve psychological or mental disorders. the process in encounter groups are 3 stages. Unfreezing, change and refreezing. 

Types of Therapeutic Groups

Categorized by Corey and Corey

1. T groups /Therapeutic groups include encounter, awareness, self help, consciousness raising, sensitivity training and personal growth groups.

Gazda recognizes 3 types of groups

1. Guidance - primarily for prevention of problems facing high risk population, this group focus on improvement of life skills and overall direction of members
2. Counseling- for secondary prevention or correction, these groups include encounter, sensitivity and organizational developmental groups 
3. Psychotherapy- tertiary prevention groups with the purpose of reeducating, rehabilitating and generally bringing members to healthy function.

Concepts related to Problem solving and decision making groups

Leadership and Communication

Groups think

Group decision making
Task/ role of group leader

Group stages

Stages of group development according to Bruce tuckman in 1965 - Forming, norming, storming, performing

 

Some Group therapy videos :

these videos should make clear the text content covered above from practical point of view.

  

Group therapy with Substance abuse groups



Selecting group members





Reference :
http://www.pearsonhighered.com/samplechapter/0205376061.pdf

The Practice of Social Work by Charles zastrow, pg 22, 116

Social Work Practice a generalist approach by Louise C Johnson , pg : 190

Theory and Practice of group psychotherapy : https://archive.org/stream/theorypracticeof00yalo#page/6/mode/1up

Definition and types of Groups - http://www.sagepub.com/vip/cpiseries/conyne/materials/chapter1_GroupWorkLdrshp.pdf