We should not seek to act on the other person but join with them in a search for understanding and possibility. Reid, K. E. (1981a) Formulation of a method, 1920-1936 in From Character Building to Social Treatment.The history of the use of groups in social work, Westport, Connecticut. In other words, workers need to keep their eyes on the individual and collective goals that the group may or does want to work towards. Lippitt, R. (1949) Training in Community Relations. We are directing our energies in a particular way. cit. Schulman, L. (1999) The Skills of Helping Individuals and Groups. A study in action research. If we do not know who we are then we cannot know those we work with, nor the areas we explore. How to cite this article: Smith, Mark K. (2008) What is group work?, The encyclopedia of pedagogy and informal education. Coyle, G. L. (1947) Group Experience and Democratic Values. New York: Harper & Row, 1948. At the same time there had been an explosion in exploration and publishing in the United States. Influential commentators such as Gertrude Wilson (1941) argued that group work was a core method of social work and not a field, movement, or agency. Gisela Konopkas explorations of therapeutic group work with children (1949), group work in institutions (1954) and of social group work as a helping process (1963) were amongst the most important here. In recent years there has been a significant development in the discussion of therapeutic traditions of group work, and some limited attention to group work within mainstream schooling. 
Coyle, G. L. Turner, J. C. with M. A. Hogg (1987) Rediscovering the social group : a self-categorization theory. Its articles yield new insights into established practices, evaluate new techniques and research, examine current social problems, and bring serious critical analysis to bear on problems in the profession. Widely read by practitioners, faculty, and students, it is the official journal of NASW and is provided to all members as a membership benefit. (2000) Working More Creatively with Groups. For some group work is just another way of talking about teamwork. Planned groups are specifically formed for some purpose either by their members, or by some external individual, group or organization. Button, Leslie (1974) Developmental group work with adolescents. (1966) Social Groupwork models: possession and heritage, Journal for Education for Social Work 2(2): 66-77. 
For the worker working with a group entails thinking group (McDermott 2002: 80-91). It currently publishes more than 6,000 new publications a year, has offices in around fifty countries, and employs more than 5,500 people worldwide. Group theory and group skills. Entering groups or forming them, and then working with them so that members are able be around each other, take responsibility and work together on shared tasks, involves some very sophisticated abilities on the part of practitioners. Trust and its counterpart reciprocity amongst members, may establish the bonds which serve to enable members to achieve their individual and common goals. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Josephine Klein was another pivotal researcher and writer. Follett, M. P. (1918) The New State Group Organization, the Solution for Popular Government. London: Routledge. Lyme Regis: Russell House Publishing. (Parker Palmer 1998: 2). (1957) Essentials of Social Group Work Skill. Second, groups are a fundamental part of human experience. Miles, M. B. To make life easier I have adapted a framework used by Kenneth E. Reid in his helpful study of the use of groups in social work (1981) and added in a more therapeutically strand. Thus, Allan Brown argues: group work provides a context in which individuals help each other; it is a method of helping groups as well as helping individuals; and it can enable individuals and groups to influence and change personal, group, organizational and community problems. : Sage. This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. In Britain, there was some awareness of these developments but there was very little explicit exploration of group work theory and practice until the early 1950s. New York: Macmillan. Social Work is dedicated to improving practice and advancing knowledge in social work and social welfare. Emphasis in the original). Group Work in the Institution A Modern Challenge. Excellent discussion of the development of group work as a method within social work. New York: Scribners. (Smith and Smith 2008: 17). Butler, S. and Wintram, C. (1991) Feminist Groupwork. Teaching, like any truly human activity, emerges from ones inwardness, for better or worse. Some more generic texts around social group work such Phillips (1957) also appeared. London: Tavistock. Here, as a starting point, we are using Donelson R. Forsyths definition of a group as two or more individuals who are connected to one another by social relationships [emphasis in original] (2006: 2-3). Here I just want to highlight five main points. I will see them through a glass darkly, in the shadows of my unexamined life and when I cannot see them clearly, I cannot teach them well. Examples from Britain include Hannah More and Robert Raikes and Sunday schooling; John Pound and Quentin Hogg and ragged schooling; George Williams and the YMCA; Arthur Sweatman and Maude Stanley in boys and girls club work. New York: Free Press. Therapeutic Group Work with Children. However, there is a downside to all this. Boyd, Neva (1935) Group Work Experiments in State Institutions in Illinois, in Proceedings of the National Conference of Social Work, 1935. Contents: introduction what is a group? Here following on from Lewins interest in using small groups as training laboratories for teaching people interpersonal skills, Bradfords work at the National Training Laboratory at Bethel, Maine; and the later development of sensitivity-training or encounter groups (e.g. These are the building blocks for the development of trust. We explore the process of working with groups both so that they may undertake particular tasks and become environments where people can share in a common life, form beneficial relationships and help each other. We have to be open to what is being said, to listen for meaning. The social psychology of discussion and decision. Lewin, Kurt (1951) Field theory in social science; selected theoretical papers. Harmondsworth: Penguin. (2000) Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Smith, Heather and Mark K Smith (2008) The Art of Helping Others. Within schools and colleges, working in groups can also be adopted as a mean of carrying forward curriculum concerns and varying the classroom experience a useful addition to the teacher or instructors repertoire. Mullender, A. and Ward, D. (1991) Self-Directed Groupwork. Lieberman, M. A., Yalom, I. D. and Miles, M. B. New York: Harper and Brothers. 1 0 obj
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: Brooks Cole. working with working with groups a definition three foci exploring the theory and practice of group work conclusion further reading and references how to cite this article. Papell, C and Rothman, B. Boston: Allyn and Bacon. Learning through life. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Nottingham: Educational Heretics Press. Urania Glassman and Len Kates (1990: 105-18), for example, have argued that group workers should attempt to effect two complementary objectives. Zander, Alvin (1985) The Purposes of Groups and Organizations. Available in the informal education archives: http://www.infed.org/archives/e-texts/reid_groupwork_expansion.htm. We always have been and we always will be. London: Sage. When I do not know myself, I cannot know who my students are. It is most clearly connected with social work and casework and case management. (Johnson and Johnson 2003: 579). Jaques, David and Salmon, Gilly (2006) Learning in Groups: A Handbook for Face-to-face and Online Environments 4e. (eds.) Thinking group means focusing on the group as a whole considering everything that happens in terms of the group context (also the wider context in which it is embedded social, political, organizational) because this is where meaning is manifest (op. Jeffs, Tony and Mark K. Smith (2005) Informal Education. First, while there are some very different ways of defining groups often depending upon which aspect of them that commentators and researchers want to focus upon it is worthwhile looking to a definition that takes things back to basics. Young, Kerry (2006) The Art of Youth Work. For terms and use, please refer to our Terms and Conditions A number of the key figures involved in stimulating debate and exploration came from youth work notably Peter Kuenstler at the University of Bristol. <>/Font<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI] >>/MediaBox[ 0 0 595.32 841.92] /Contents 4 0 R/Group<>/Tabs/S/StructParents 0>>
In this article our focus is different. Group therapy, T-groups and encounter groups. The ubiquitousness of groups and the inevitability of being in them makes groups one of the most important factors in our lives. : Wadsworth Publishing. Westergaard, Jane (2009) Effective Group Work with Young People. As Parker Palmer has argued in the context of education any attempt at reform or development will fail if we do not cherish and challenge the human heart that is the source of good practice (Palmer 1998: 3). Classic examples of this literature come from Gisela Konopka (1949, 1954, 1963) and Paul Glasser et al. psychoanalytic, Gestalt, cognitive-behavioural etc. As well as attending to the group as a process of harnessing the collective strengths of group members, workers also need to look to purpose. Unfortunately, much of the work within the social work arena has resulted in rather pedestrian how-to-do-it texts but there have been some good introductory texts examples over the last decade or so (e.g. Sadly, working with emergent groups, and with community groups has not had the attention it merits. (Brown 1992: 8. Newbury Park, CA. : 82). Given all of this it is easy to see why the intervention of skilled leaders and facilitators is sometimes necessary. Educators and animateurs often have to be around for a time in many settings before we are approached or accepted: It may seem obvious, but for others to meet us as helpers, we have to be available. New York: Longman Green and Co (reprinted by Peter Owen in 1951). New York: Basic Books. Of particular help are explorations of group structure (including the group size and the roles people play), group norms and culture, group goals, and the relative cohesiveness of groups (all discussed in What is a group?). (1974) Individual Change Through Small Groups. Glassman, Urania and Len Kates (1990) Group Work. Coyle, G. L. (1930) Social Process in Organized Groups. Although group work methodology was developed within recreation and informal education agencies it was increasingly being used in social work-oriented agencies within other institutions such as childrens institutions, hospitals, and churches (Reid 1981b: 145-6). Crows nest NSW. Conversation, democracy and learning 3e. However, if we bring together the discussion so far we can say that at base working with groups involves engaging with, and seeking to enhance, interactions and relationships within a gathering of two or more other people. Palmer, Parker, J. The history of the use of groups in social work, Westport, Connecticut. Out of this recognition came the widespread use of the term social group work and the development of interest groups focusing on work with groups in a number of cities. There was also a growing appreciation of group process and sophistication in approach within adult education. Their motives were often a complex mix of concern for others, the desire to bring people to Bible truths and values, and worries about the threat to order that the masses posed. Aside from the obvious problem of scale, there are issues around categorizing material, quality (many texts are are repeats of a basic how-to-do-it formula), and purpose. Exploring the inner landscape of a teachers life, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. The worker seeks to help people to help each other. New York: Basic Books. Much of the recent literature of group work is concerned with groups formed by the worker or agency. Rogers, C. R. (1970) Encounter Groups. (1973) Encounter Groups. (eds.) Glasser, P., Sarri, R. and Vinter, R. Oxford: WileyBlackwell. Some will be focusing on issues and problems, and individual functioning. We are spending time in the company of others. New York: Harper. Bertcher, H. J. ?=
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~Cx)tJO#oyV)Jz]k4~h7AIh]EYkL%V6@A~@^PCao?3A Relatively little has been written over the last decade or so about working with emergent groups or groups formed by their members. In other words, groups come about in a psychological sense because people realize they are in the same boat (Brown 1988: 28). I am not very comfortable with the categories but they do provide a way of mapping material: Case-focused group work. Humans are small group beings. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. In the USA, courses on group work started to appear in the early 1920s and the first sustained treatments of group work began to appear. This definition has the merit of bringing together three elements: the number of individuals involved, connection, and relationship. London: Jessica Kingsley. A study of the larger mind. has a vision of the people as social beings. Read your article online and download the PDF from your email or your account. An influential model for thinking about this in social work came from Papell and Rothman (1966). As I teach, I project the condition of my soul onto my students, my subject, and our way of being together. As Kerry Young (2006) has argued, Working with can also be seen as an exercise in moral philosophy. Check out using a credit card or bank account with. As the effectiveness of our groups goes, so goes the quality of our lives. London: Heinemann. They also must feel able to approach us (or be open to our initiating contact). 2 0 obj
Belmont CA. Itasca, Ill.:Peacock. In many respects it raises as many questions as it answers. Available in the informal education archives: http://www.infed.org/archives/e-texts/reid_groupwork_formulation_method.htm. This particular way of conceptualizing group work is helpful in that it looks to strengthen the group as what Lawrence Shulman (1979: 109; 1999) described as a mutual aid system. (ed.) Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Cooley, C. H. (1909) Social Organization. London: Tavistock. London: Tavistock Publications. New York: Womans Press. New York: Womens Press. There was also important work happening within community development with studies of community groups (Spencer 1964) and small social groups (Phillips 1965). people have the fundamental right to to experience mental health brought about by social and political conditions that support their fulfilment. 1958 Oxford University Press 
Allied to this was material around family therapy (through which I have hardly bared to tread). <>>>
London: Whiting and Birch. Group work can emphasize action and influence as well as reaction and adaption (op. This approach can be described as preventative and rehabilitative, remedial or organizational and is focused on the individual. Wilson, Gertrude (1941) Group work and case work, their relationship and practice. Brown, Alan (1992) Groupwork. Konopka, G. (1949). Ministry of Health (1959) Report of the Working Party on Social Workers (The Younghusband Report). It also looks to wider change. First facts. We finish with an overview of the development of group work as a focus for theory-making and exploration. New York: Columbia University Press. Schwartz, W. and Zalba, S. R. This is based in an understanding that people are not machines or objects that can be worked on like motor cars (Jeffs and Smith 2005: 70). London: RoutledgeFalmer. However, as Allan Brown (1992: 8) and others have pointed out, many group workers look beyond helping the individual with a problem. We also try to define group work and discuss some of foci that workers need to attend to. Kuenstler encouraged Grace Coyle to come to Britain to spend time with workers and edited the first major text on social group work in Britain (Kuenstler 1955). Oxford: Basil Blackwell. This was helped by the attention given by the Younghusband Report (Ministry of Health 1959) to social group work. Our starting point for this is a brief exploration of the nature of groups. Last Updated on October 19, 2019 by infed.org, Group work principles, theory and practice, new: Ruth Kotinsky on education and lifelong learning, exploring the theory and practice of group work, John Pound and Quentin Hogg and ragged schooling, http://www.infed.org/archives/e-texts/reid_groupwork_formulation_method.htm, http://www.infed.org/archives/e-texts/reid_groupwork_expansion.htm, http://www.flickr.com/photos/jakecaptive/47065774/, people are mutually responsible for each other; and. Doel, Mark (1999) The Essential Groupworker. There needs to be, as Gisela Konopka (1963) has argued, certain values running through the way we engage with others. https://infed.org/mobi/group-work/. Brown, Rupert (1999) Group processes: Dynamics within and between groups 2e. D. Cartwright (ed.). Whether we are working with groups that we have formed, or are seeking to enter groups, to function as workers we need to be recognized as workers. Davies, Bernard (1975) The Use of Groups in Social Work Practice. Last, considerable insights can be gained into the process and functioning of groups via the literature of group dynamics and of small groups. Crucially, it is concerned with the ways in which both individuals and groups can build more fulfilling lives for themselves and for communities of which they are a part. Another tradition of practice that could be said to fall in this strand is that of Training groups (T-groups). Her books The Study of Groups (1956) and Working with Groups (1961) were major additions to the literature and brought groups and group work firmly into the discourse of social work. New York: Harper & Row. London: Macmillan/Palgrave. %PDF-1.5
(2001) Principles and Practice of Informal Education. <>
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. George Goetschius (1969) long term exploration of work with community and estate groups was also important. This means that they both know themselves, and that they are seeking to live life as well as they can. In a separate article we discuss the nature of groups and their significance for human societies (see What is a group?). See, for example Mullender and Ward (1991) and Twelvetrees (1982, 1991, 2001, 2008). (Smith and Smith 2008: 20). Classic work appeared from Wilfred Bion (1961) and some standard works from writers such as Irvin D. Yalom (1970). It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. They allow people to develop more complex and larger-scale activities; are significant sites of socialization and education; and provide settings where relationships can form and grow, and where people can find help and support. It can involve putting aside a special time and agreeing a place to talk things through.
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