What is group psychotherapy?
A treatment modality in which one or more therapists treat multiple clients together in a group.
What’s the difference between a training group and group therapy?
A training group focuses on training a skill (emotion regulation, assertiveness, etc.), trainers are more active and there is no intervention on interaction in the group as long as the group climate is safe.
In group therapy the group is used as a therapy vehicle, it’s focused on limited refamilying and reparenting, and therapists guide the process.
What are the 12 therapeutic principles of group therapy (Yalom)?
Universality, altruism, installation of hope, imparting, corrective recapitulation of the primary family, development of socializing techniques, imitative behavior, cohesion, existential factors, catharsis, interpersonal learning and self-understanding
What are the 5 stages of group development (Tuckerman)?
- Forming (orientation and dependence)
- Storming (intragroup conflict and differentiation)
- Norming (interpersonal intimacy and cohesion)
- Performing (work and functional role relatedness)
- Adjourning (loss and autonomy)
What are the 5 main process variables that predict outcome?
- Group cohesion
- Constructive therapeutic environment
- Group flow
- Personal involvement
- Therapeutic work
What are 3 group member variables that predict outcome?
- Quality of object relations (QOR) (when high, better in interpretive group; when low, better in supportive groups)
- Psychological mindedness
- Alignment of therapy style and leader values
Which patient populations is group therapy most effective for?
Mood disorders, social phobia, panic disorder and eating disorder
Pros of group therapy for PD treatment
- long-term format
- lower cost
- stimulation of multiple transferences and dilution of transferences to the therapist
- awareness and working through maladaptive personality traits in the here and now
