RAP: A Framework for Leadership of Multiracial Groups

Abstract

Despite social work's long tradition of serving multiracial groups and the growing opportunities to learn about racial dynamics, practitioners are often ill prepared to address racial issues in the groups they lead. The availability of information about the impact of race on group work practice does not necessarily ensure effective leadership of multiracial groups. Race is such an emotionally charged area of practice that leaders may fail to identify and deal with racial issues because they wish to avoid racial confrontations, are anxious, or perhaps are unsure about how to proceed. This article proposes a framework for practice with racially mixed groups that explicitly recognizes the interplay among the leader's ability to act, the racial dynamics of the group, and the imperatives for intervention. Influence of Race in Group Work Practice Social Forces Whenever people of different races come together in groups, leaders can assume that race is an issue, but not necessarily a problem. Race is an issue in multiracial groups because it is a very apparent difference among participants and one that is laden with highly sensitive social meaning. The racism and institutional discrimination found in society at large become a salient part of a group's social reality when group composition includes people of more than one race. Typically, observations of racial differences are accompanied by inferior-superior ascriptions of social class and status (Davis & Proctor, 1989). Although some practitioners continue to believe that the model of intervention transcends the importance of demographics when people of different races come together for a common purpose, this blind approach denies the significance of race (Davis & Proctor, 1989; Griffith, 1977; Lum, 1986). The issue of race and its influence on group work practice is of increasing importance for several reasons. Our population is rapidly becoming more racially diverse (for example, Chau, 1990b; Henry, 1990). The population groups with the fastest rate of growth - black people, Hispanics, Asians, and other people of color (for example, American Indians) - are most likely to require social work services because they are disproportionately at risk for social perils such as poverty, drug abuse, family violence, teenage pregnancy, and homelessness. These societal changes have increased the likelihood that social workers will be leading groups where racial differences exist among members and between leaders and members. Relationships among members and workers and between groups and their environments may be strained by the racism and institutional discrimination so prevalent in society. In response to these developments, group work frequently is the method of choice. Group methods that emphasize both individual change and institutional change are often the most appropriate approach for empowering clients, for advocating for more accessible and culturally responsive services, for affirming ethnic identity and heritage, and for promoting intercultural acceptance and interdependence (Chau, 1990b; Gutierrez, 1990; Northen, 1990). Practice Literature Coyle (1930) first alerted group workers to the impact of race, ethnicity, and culture in 1930, and attention to these factors has increased over the years, with a surge of publications in the past decade (Chau, 1990c; Davis, 1984a, 1984b; Davis & Proctor, 1989). Recent authors have described the impact of racial and cultural factors on groups formed for specific purposes ranging from counseling and stress reduction (Bilides, 1990; Child & Getzel, 1989; Malekoff, Levine, & Quaglia, 1987) to dealing with racial and cultural concerns (Ciullo & Toriani, 1988; Mullender, 1990; Rhule, 1988; Van Den Bergh, 1990). They have also reported on experiences in groups serving members with specific ethnic, racial, or cultural identities, including black people and Vietnamese and other Asians (Boyd-Franklin, 1987; Chan, 1990; Gutierrez, 1990; Lewis & Ford, 1990; Lewis & Kissman, 1989; Tsui & Schultz, 1988). …