Re-socialization through the Adolescent Family Group Process

Abstract

The Adolescent Family: People Helping People Project is a dynamic community group intervention process to counteract social fragmentation and enhance resocialization in the Bahamas. This paper reviews three hundred and thirty four (334) group process sessions from September 2013 to March 2015 illustrating the pervasive negativity of shame manifested by loneliness, hurt, pain, anger, violence, family dysfunction, grief and loss. The majority of the Bahamian population is under thirty (30), making this intervention not only innovative but essential for the future development of the country. Introduction The Bahamas is an archipelagic nation situated between the coast of Florida and Cuba. It is a very young nation with 60% of its population under the age of thirty (30), and its two major industries are tourism and offshore banking. The primary Religion is Christianity and its population includes a majority of persons of African descent, and a minority of persons with loyalist-European heritage. Like many other countries in Caribbean and the inner cities of North America, the Bahamas is facing widespread social fragmentation as a result of a) the country wide cocaine epidemic in the 1980’s [1] and its continuing sequelae; and b) high unemployment rates especially among young people related to the recent international economic downturn [2]. The social fragmentation involves the formation of violent youth gangs associated with burgeoning rates of violent crime and murder, along with relationship dysfunction, domestic violence and child abuse. The average age of a murderer ranges from 16-24 years old. This intervention for adolescents to enhance resocialization hits at the heart of the culture of violence and death in the country. Description of the program The Adolescent Family Group was developed as a key component in the Family: People Helping People Project. It is a dynamic, supportive, group process model in which adolescents share their story, undergo self-examination and reflection and experience transformation using the psychotherapy principles in the Contemplative Discovery Pathway Theory (CDPT) [3]. This theory posits that the individual develops through a series of selves. Starting with the natural self at birth, as a person experiences hurt and anger through their life, they experience the shame self involving abandonment, rejection and humiliation. Shame is so painful to the human psyche that the brain develops a shame false self involving self-absorption, self-gratification and control to block the fear of falling back into shame. The goal of CDPT is to reduce social fragmentation by liberating persons from being victims of the negativity of shame, to experience the positive feelings of love, gratitude and meaningful community in the process of resocialization [4]. In The Bahamas, the program is currently offered in nine (9) centers; boys and girls reform schools, an orphanage, program for teen mothers, junior and senior high schools and marginalized communities. Awarded a grant from the Templeton World Charity Foundation in 2013, the adolescent program has hosted over 800 sessions which are conducted by trained therapists assisted by trained Family Group Facilitators. After the completion of each group, a written report called a praxis is submitted which outlines the interactions, overt and covert themes and personal reflections by the therapist.