Group Session Summary

Psychoeducational Group Summary 1

Donnis Lemon

HSER 511 D11

April 22, 2012

Liberty University

Groups gather to meet on many occasions for a variety of reason. No matter the goal or level of performance of these groups, they generally have something in common. These groups come from people of all backgrounds and have different views based on their own experiences. Groups will usually work on accomplishing tasks set before them, but they also hope to have continued success, normally because a level of trust becomes established which builds rapport among members. This paper will summarize the first session of the psychoeducational group that I am leading currently by identifying the stages of the group also the challenges, and explain the group’s leadership dynamics. Course study material as well as biblical views will also be considered as related to the group’s dynamics.

Group Stage

The beginning stages of the group process as shared by Corey, Corey, and Haynes (2006) state that the following group characteristics are typically observed in a group operating in the initial stage, “Members are deciding with whom they can trust, how much they will disclose, how safe the group is, whom they are drawn to and with whom they feel distant, and how much to get involved.” (p.37) No one in the group openly expressed that they would not share during this session due to not trusting others, one spouse did express her concerns about openly discussing her business to others. I sensed that some of the hesitance to reveal much about her marriage stemmed from her fear of being scrutinized. In order to get all group members to share, I made use of the comments and thoughts shared by those that were more vocal to encourage a response from those who did not volunteer a response to questions I posed. I noticed that my verbal and non-verbal cues, as well as those of group participants who were not speaking seemed to encourage those who did not contribute as much to not...