Group Therapy Training Research Articles

A Data Visualization Procedure for the Evaluation of Group Treatment Outcomes Across Units of Analysis

This study presents a novel method for the collection and graphical representation of group evaluation data that enables the simultaneous display of outcomes across units of analysis. This method affords the researcher/practitioner improved options for simultaneously evaluating and comparing individual and group change over time. Data for this study are drawn from 10 experiential, group psychotherapy training groups that met on a weekly basis. A total of 185, second-year graduate social work students evaluated their satisfaction with their personal and group experience across eight dimensions. A multiple page Excel spreadsheet was developed for the collection, computation, and visual representation of scores from the evaluation instrument. Three-dimensional surface plots are used here to simultaneously represent individual and group outcomes. Surface plots provide a visual display of the topography of group and individual change over time. This data visualization method utilizes readily available technology to display group outcomes at multiple levels of analysis.

Countertransference in the Development of Graduate Student Group Counselors: Recommendations for Training

Teaching beginning group counselors to become aware of countertransference and understand the application of this to practice is an area that has not received much attention. This article presents a discussion of the phenomenon of countertransference in group work and provides recommendations about how to incorporate countertransference as a key aspect of training in group therapy.

Inside an art therapy group: the student perspective

Group work is an important aspect of our profession as art therapists. There are many formats for teaching art therapy students about group dynamics; however, in this paper, we will call our group time an art therapy training group (T-group) because it was a specific time for observing and learning group dynamics first hand. The T-group is one of students’ first formal introductions to group art therapy, and is often their only exposure to groups before internship and employment. T-groups offer art therapy students an opportunity to experience group dynamics firsthand, and allow them to find more authentic relationships with fellow students while enhancing selfawareness. In the ever changing clinical climate that challenges art therapists to wear several hats and to be flexible with their professional identities, group training offers an important format for expanding self-awareness and skill (Malchiodi, 1999). Although therapists in the creative arts remember their T-groups as pivotal markers in their education, the student perspective of T-group experiences is rarely discussed (Carter et al., 1978; McClure, 1998; Wadeson, 1987; Waller, 1993). Literature on group work and art therapy group work is broad and extensive, but there is a pronounced absence of literature documenting an art therapy T-group from the student perspective (Carter et al., 1978; Swan–Foster, Lawlor & Scott, 1999). This paper seeks to partially remedy that situation by documenting a 15-week art therapy T-group of 13 women and 1 female leader. Weekly progress notes made by all the group members as well as a follow-up questionnaire yielded substantial comments on specific group dynamics and themes from which the authors focused on relevant subsections that were later woven together into this paper. Although the whole T-group participated in making this possible, the paper predominately reflects the experiences of these authors. The T-group was regularly held at the end of a class, after the discussion of academic and ethical readings. The T-group was scheduled in the first semester of the second year when the members had established subgroups from their first year of classes. The leader entered the group as a newcomer. The leader’s goals for students within the T-group portion of the class were to experiment with personal expression through talking and art, to experiment with roles and boundaries, and to expand the capacity to tolerate the uncovering of group conflict and tension. Two themes dominated this art therapy T-group: 1) how to interpose words with art within an art therapy group, and 2) how to clarify and understand group conflict and resistance within a multirelationship environment. * Corresponding author. E-mail address: NswanFos@aol.com (N. Swan–Foster). The Arts in Psychotherapy 28 (2001) 161–174

Group Psychotherapy Training and Effectiveness

This study surveyed accredited programs in psychiatry, psychology, and social work, replicating and extending previous work in group training. Results detail the curriculum, group faculty/student participation, and predicted future therapy trends in four different formats of group treatment. The number of group courses in the curriculum, the number required, and the percent of students participating in these courses significantly varies among the three disciplines, indicating a discrepancy among those disciplines responsible for training in group therapy regarding the value and role of group training. Consensus does exist among the disciplines in forecasting that individual therapy will decrease and group treatment will increase, but what programs deliver in their training does not coincide with their predicted trends for group therapy use in the future. Ratings of the differential effectiveness of the four group modalities vs. individual are not consistent with empirical evidence. Results call for consensual clarity, accord of values and knowledge, and the integration of science, training, and practice across the three disciplines.

Group psychotherapy training

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Joining With Resistance: Addressing Reluctance to Engage in Group Therapy Training

Although research has documented the effectiveness of group psychotherapy, trainees are often reluctant to embrace this modality. This reluctance may reflect an informed choice based on knowledge, interest, and skill. Alternatively, reluctance may reflect misinformation or resistance due to conflicted feelings that arise from group dynamics. The latter are a major obstacle to the success of group therapy training and treatment programs. Understanding the origins of this reluctance and the developmental challenges of group therapy for trainees better equips supervisors to address this difficulty. This article uses case examples to illustrate how trainee reluctance emerges. It also provides strategies for working with hesitant trainees. The success of group therapy programs rests on the supervisor’s ability to manage trainees’ inhibitions to group therapy.

The Widening Gulf: Group Therapy Training and Traditional Training Models

The decline of training programs using traditional methods in group psychotherapy training may correspond to a static growth in membership and certifications in the two recognized national group associations. In addition, the increasing distance of group therapy from family therapy, two modalities that utilize group principles, may further illustrate the isolation of group training from the reality of today's practice. New ideas are needed for training programs to combine the varieties of group practice and settings, and the various practitioners, with standards of competency. A three-tiered training model may serve as an example of a training model that moves in a much needed, new direction.

The Future of Training and Credentialing in Group Psychotherapy

High-quality group psychotherapy training is seen as more important than ever in the current health care environment. The training opportunities available at present are assessed. It is argued that there is a body of knowledge about generic group psychotherapy that can and should be taught, and that there are appropriate people to teach it. Credentialing is discussed, and it is suggested that the assessment of actual work in clinical situations must be emphasized if such efforts are to be meaningful.

Psychotherapy teaching in psychiatric training

There is considerable uncertainty about the extent of training in the different psychotherapies that psychiatric trainees received in their training. There is considerable anecdotal evidence from both teachers and trainees that the level of psychotherapy teaching has declined in standard and quantity in recent years. However there has been no objective evaluation until now.Method: 280 Questionnaires were sent out to senior trainees (i.e. those who have completed 3 years of training) in Australia and New Zealand with questions on their satisfaction in the quality and quantity of different aspects of training in Dynamic Therapy, Cognitive Therapy (CBT), Family Therapy, Group Therapy and Supportive Therapy. Problem areas in training were delineated and suggestions for improvement detailed.Results: 96 Questionnaires were returned. In terms of satisfaction in quality of training, 41% were satisfied or very satisfied with teaching in Dynamic Therapy as compared to 31% in CBT, 19% in Family, 9% in Group and 37% ...

Comparison of Integrated Group Therapy and Group Relaxation Training for Fibromyalgia

Abstract:Objective:The efficacy of an integrated, psychological treatment program was tested in a controlled study involving 27 patients with chronic musculoskeletal pain (fibromyalgia).Design:The experimental treatment program consisted of instruction in various selfhelp techniques(e.g., cognitive

Group Supervision Meets Technology: A Model for Computer-Mediated Group Training at a Distance

ABSTRACTTechnological advances make the application of computer-mediated communication a supervision tool for group psychotherapy training when students and faculty are at a distance. A brief review of the literature on computer-mediated group dynamics provides the context for training applications. A model group psychotherapy training program that combines face-to-face and computer-mediated group supervision is described and clinical training examples are presented. Recommendations and guidelines for using computer-mediated supervision are proposed.

Block Training in Group Psychotherapy in the Baltic States

During the last 15 to 20 years, block training in group psychotherapy and group analysis has gained increasing popularity in several European countries. One obvious benefit of concentrating the training to a few designated periods each year is the possibility of educating professionals from remote areas who might not otherwise get the chance to train in psychotherapy. Another benefit is the opportunity to bring expertise to an area which lacks experienced teachers. This article analyses a Baltic programme with a view to evaluating its overall effectiveness and compares it with experiences in a similar Norwegian programme.

Academic training in group psychotherapy in clinical psychology doctoral programs.

We surveyed 185 clinical psychology doctoral programs accredited by the American Psychological Association to examine whether and how group psychotherapy was taught. While respondents of all Psy.D: programs to the survey offered a course in group psychotherapy, less than one-third of Ph.D. programs offered one. Among programs that offered a course in group psychotherapy, less than half required that students take it. Most instructors had an in-class experiential component, focused either primarily or exclusively on outpatient therapy and used Yalom's interpersonal approach. Discussion focused on the importance of making group psychotherapy a higher priority and the suggestion that courses include a variety of theoretical approaches and important specialty groups such as psychiatric inpatients.

Fifty Years of Training and Supervision for Group Psychotherapy with Children and Adolescents

Fifty Years of Training and Supervision for Group Psychotherapy with Children and Adolescents

Supervision and Staff Training for Children's Group Psychotherapy: General Principles and Applications with Cumulatively Traumatized, Inner-City Children

ABSTRACTCumulatively traumatized children frequently benefit from theme-centered, trauma-focused psychotherapy groups, which promote recovery from trauma and enhance ego functioning. Unfortunately, even as children's group programs proliferate, therapists are still routinely assigned to supervisors who neither understand nor appreciate the modality. Modality-specific supervision is critical in treating traumatized children in groups, because such children are at significant risk of retraumatization. This article surveys and discusses problematic supervisory practices; advocates modality-specific supervision focusing on peer interaction, multiple transference enactments, and group culture; and describes a process-oriented consultation group that facilitates modality-specific cognitive and affective learning.

Pain management in patients with chronic rheumatic pain--a model for primary medical care

A rheumatologist and a medical psychotherapist collaborate in offering periodically a cognitive behavioral treatment program for pain control for the patients of a rheumatological practice. The program consists of a biopsychosocial model of chronic pain, individualized relaxation training combining progressive muscle relaxation and some elements of autogenous training and meditation, several attention-related techniques and cognitive restructuring. From 1993 to 1995, 50 patients took part in five training courses. The compliance of the patients was satisfactory and the drop-out rate low (8%). In a post hoc interview 4 weeks later and another 2 years after the end of the training most of the patients assessed the program as useful for reduction of pain, increase of activity and enhancement of mood. Psychotherapeutic experience in group therapy or special training for non-psychotherapeutic physicians with continuous supervision is necessary in order to conduct a qualified treatment program. Within medical primary care, rheumatologists can motivate their patients towards active pain management, which can help to prepare patients for further psychotherapy in cases with psychiatric disorders and/or severe psychosocial strains.

The synergy of group and individual psychotherapy training.

Although this paper has focussed on ways in which group-therapy experience differs from the experience of individual therapy for the beginning therapist, all of the differences discussed are only matters of degree and thus are important in both individual and group therapy. Group-therapy experience tends to enhance the visibility of important aspects of all forms of psychotherapy and therefore should be looked at as a useful tool in learning all forms of psychotherapy. Experience in group psychotherapy should ideally precede or occur simultaneously with initial exposure to individual therapy rather than following afterwards as an option, as is usually the case in current psychotherapy training programs. The most important skill to acquire in learning psychotherapy is the sophisticated ability to listen. To do so involves attending to content, affect, the patient's and one's own verbal language, body language, and meta-communications, conscious as well as unconscious. Group psychotherapy experience early in one's development as a psychotherapist can be a powerful tool in developing this ability to listen. Being part of the group process allows a unique level of intimacy that is probably more equal and vulnerable than in other forms of therapy. The use of the self, and the ability to trust in the process without using theory as a barrier between ourselves and our patients, but rather as a bridge to greater understanding, can all flow from the unique experience of leading a psychodynamic group.

Some observations on the subjective experience of neophyte group therapy trainees.

Neophyte group therapy trainees often encounter significant difficulties in their initial experiences as group therapists. In this article, we report and discuss the results of a semistructured interview conducted with each of 16 neophyte group therapy trainees in an academic training program. The interview focused on the trainees' subjective experiences related to their initial training and group therapy clinical practice, with particular emphasis on their satisfaction with their training, and the role and impact of supervision. All trainees reported strong emotional reactions to their group experience and numerous technical concerns. However, trainees reported a broad range of degrees of satisfaction with their training Overall satisfaction with training strongly paralleled satisfaction with supervision and the supervisory relationship. Recommendations for improving the group therapy training experience that emerge from the evaluation of the trainees' subjective experiences are suggested.

Treating sexual abuse trauma with dually diagnosed women.

Women who are diagnosed with a major mental illness, who have a history of drug or alcohol abuse, and who have been episodically homeless are also likely to have been the victims of sexual or physical abuse. Treatment for these women needs to incorporate an active program of trauma recovery. A program of trauma-based treatment that includes supportive group therapy, cognitive reframing, and social skills training is discussed along with clinical examples.

Training Soviet immigrant therapists in the field of group psychotherapy

Between 1970 and 1990 about one-half million Jews immigrated to Israel, most of them from the former Soviet Union, including many mental health therapists who had trained and worked in the Soviet Union. This article addresses the special characteristics of this population, in general, and of the mental health therapists, in particular. It relates these characteristics to training for group psychotherapy. Key issues include their unique experience of the inner world as a source of danger, the specific defensive modes connected with this experience, their perception of authority as an agent of ideology, and their representation of the group as a persecutory entity and as a vehicle of indoctrination.