26 - Support Groups

Abstract

A support group is composed of 6 to 10 people who share a similar life stressor, transition, affliction, or noxious habit; receive expert information and training; and exchange mutual aid for a predetermined period of time in order to foster improved coping and adjustment. This chapter presents the rationales for and core characteristics of support groups, reviews the evidence concerning their impacts on participants, and discusses the various ways in which the groups' structures and formats affect the support process. It sets out the distinguishing characteristics of support groups, including their basic structural properties and formats; explains the theoretical justification for this type of psychosocial intervention; and delves into the social influence processes that arise during the course of the intervention. By drawing on recent reviews of support groups for cancer patients and family caregivers of elderly persons, the empirical evidence concerning the mental health impact of such groups, spotlighting aspects of their design, composition, and process that deserve greater attention in the future, are presented.