Martin fr

GENERAL INTRODUCTION

ON

GROUP WORK

What is a group?

1. Donelson R. Forsyth’s definition of a group as ‘two or more individuals who are

connected to one another by social relationships’

This definition has the merit of bringing together three elements:

The number of individuals involved

Connection

Relationship.

2. Groups are a fundamental part of human experience.

o They allow people to develop more complex and larger-scale activities;

o They are significant sites of socialization and education; and provide settings

where relationships can form and grow, and where people can find help and

support.

3. The social relationships involved in groups entail interdependence

As Kurt Lewin wrote, ‘it is not similarity or dissimilarity of individuals

that constitutes a group, but interdependence of fate’

In other words, groups come about in a psychological sense because

people realize they are ‘in the same boat.’

4. Planned groups are specifically formed for some purpose – either by their members, or by

some external individual, group or organization.

Emergent groups come into being relatively spontaneously where people

find themselves together in the same place,

or where the same collection of people gradually come to know each

other through conversation and interaction over a period of time

5. Insights can be gained into the process and functioning of groups via the literature of

group dynamics and of small groups.

Working with

The 'work' in 'group work' is a form of 'working with'.

We are directing our energies in a particular way.

This is based in an understanding that people are not machines or objects that can be

worked on like motor cars

We are spending time in the company of others.

They have allowed us into their lives – and there is a social, emotional and moral

relationship between us.

As such, ‘working with’ is a special form of ‘being with’

To engage with another’s thoughts and feelings, and to attend to our own,

We have to be in a certain frame of mind.

We have to be open to what is being said, to listen for meaning.

To work with others is, in essence, to engage in a conversation with them.

We should not seek to act on the other person but join with them in a search for

understanding and possibility.

Allan Brown and others have pointed out, many group workers look beyond helping the

individual with a problem.

Group work can emphasize ‘action and influence as well as reaction and adaption.

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.

Lawrence Shulman described as a ‘mutual aid system’.

The worker seeks to help people to help each other.

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.

It also looks to wider change.

Group work: a form of cooperative learning.

It aims to cater for individual differences, develop students' knowledge, generic

skills (e.g. communication skills, collaborative skills, critical thinking skills) and

attitudes.

Specifically in psychotherapy, "group work" refers to group therapy, offered by a

practitioner trained in psychotherapy, psychoanalysis, counseling or other relevant

discipline.

Group work is just another way of talking about teamwork.

In this context, working in groups is often presented as a good way of dividing

work and increasing productivity.

It can also be argued that it allows for the utilization of the different skills,

knowledge and experiences that people have.

As a result, in schools and colleges it is often approached as a skill to be learnt –

the ability to work in group-based environments.

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 instructor's repertoire.

Three foci

Three foci for group workers. They need to 'think group, attend to purpose, and stay in touch with

themselves.

Thinking groupFor the worker working with a group entails ‘thinking group’ ‘Thinking group’ means

focusing on the group as a whole – ‘considering everything that happens in terms of the group

context.

In advocating for the group worker to keep in mind that, while groups are

comprised of individuals, at the same time their coming together may enable the

expression of powerful forces reinforcing as sense of commonality and solidarity.

These are the building blocks for the development of trust. Trust and its

counterpart – reciprocity amongst members, may establish the bonds which serve to

enable members to achieve their individual and common goals.

Attending to purposeAs well as attending to the group as a process of harnessing the collective strengths of

group members, workers also need to look to purpose. Urania Glassman and Len Kates, for

example, have argued that groupworkers should attempt to effect two complementary objectives.

The first is the development of mutual aid systems; the second is to help the group to

attend to, and achieve, their purpose (what they describe as the actualization of purpose). 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.

They also need to intervene in the group where appropriate to help people to clarify and

achieve these.

When considering purpose it is also important to bear in mind the nature of the group

engaged with - and the context within which we are working with them. An influential model for

thinking about this in social work came from Papell and Rothman (1966). They distinguished

between three models:

remedial - where the aim on the part of the work/agency is individual social adaption.

reciprocal - where the aim is to strengthen mutual aid and to mediate between individuals

and society.

social goals - where the concern is to further social justice often through collective, social

action.

Attending to ourselvesAs 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.

For Palmer, good practice is rather more than technique, it flows from the identity and

integrity of the worker'. This means that they both know themselves, and that they are seeking to

live life as well as they can.

Good group workers are, thus, connected, able to be in touch with themselves, with those

they work with and their 'subjects' - and act in ways that further flourishing and wholeness.

In a passage which provides one of the most succinct and direct rationales for a concern with

attending to, and knowing, our selves Parker Palmer draws out the implications of his argument.

Teaching, like any truly human activity, emerges from one's inwardness, for better or

worse. As I teach, I project the condition of my soul onto my students, my subject, and

our way of being together.... When I do not know myself, I cannot know who my

students are. 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.

When I do not know myself, I cannot know my subject – not at the deepest levels of

embodied, personal meaning. I will know it only abstractly, from a distance, a congeries

of concepts as far removed from the world as I am from personal truth. (Parker Palmer

1998: 2)

If we do not know who we are then we cannot know those we work with, nor the areas we

explore.  

Framework used by Kenneth E. Reid in his helpful study of the use of

groups in social work (1981)

Case-focused group work. This approach can be described as 'preventative and

rehabilitative', 'remedial' or 'organizational' - and is focused on the individual. The group provides

a means by which an individual's problems can be assessed and addressed. It is most clearly

connected with social work and casework and case management. The emphasis is upon

'ameliorating or preventing the adverse conditions that negatively influence individuals and result

in deviant behaviour'.

Interaction-focused group work. Here the group is understood as 'a system of mutual

aid wherein the worker and the members are engaged on the common enterprise of carrying out

the group's goals'.

Group therapy, T-groups and encounter groups. There was a continuing growth

in discussions that looked to the group as a key element in the therapeutic process - and that drew

heavily upon central traditions of practice within psychotherapy e.g. psychoanalytic, Gestalt,

cognitive-behavioral etc. Allied to this was material around family therapy (through which I have

hardly bared to tread). 'Classic' work appeared from Wilfred Bion (1961) and some standard

works from writers such as Irvin D. Yalom (1970). Another tradition of practice that could be

said to fall in this strand is that of Training groups (T-groups). Here following on from Lewin's

interest in using small groups as training laboratories for teaching people interpersonal skills,

Bradford's work at the National Training Laboratory at Bethel, Maine; and the later development

of sensitivity-training or encounter groups (e.g. Lieberman 1973, Rogers 1970) are examples of

the use of groups for interpersonal learning.

Social goals group work. Here the focus is on dealing with 'those problems that are

related to the social order and the social value orientation in small groups' This long established

set of traditions of practice is closely linked to community organization/community work. See,

for example Mullender and Ward (1991) and Twelvetrees (1982, 1991, 2001, 2008).

Social work includes all voluntary attempt to extend benefits in response to need which

are to need which are concerned with social relationships and which avails themselves of

scientific knowledge and methods.

There are six techniques in social work: 1 social case work 2 social

group work 3 community work 4 social welfare administration 5 social

research 6 social action

1 .social group work may defined as an educational process emphasizing the

development and social adjustment of an individual through voluntary association and

use of this association as a mean of furthering socially desirable end.

2 .social group work aims at the development of persons through the interplay of

personalities in group situation and at the creation of such group situation as provide for

integrated, cooperative group action for common ends.

3 .we see social group work or process and a method through which group life is affected

by worker who consciously directs the interacting process towards the accomplishment of

goals which are conceived in a democratic frame of reference

4 .social group work is psycho social process which is concerned no less than with

developing 6 leadership and cooperation than with building on the interests of the group

for a social purpose.

5 .it is distinct characteristics lies in the fact that group work is used with group

experience as a means of individual growth and development, and that the group worker

is concerned in developing social responsibility and active citizenship for the

improvement of democratic society.

6 .social group work is a method through which individuals in groups in social agency

setting are helped by a worker who guides their interaction in programme activities so

that they may relate to others and experience growth opportunities in accordance with

their needs and capacities to the individual, group and community development.

7 .group work is a way to serving individual within and through small face to face group

in order to bring about the desired change among the client participants.

Arockiaraj

CONCEPT OF GROUP WORK

MEANING:

Teamwork is a joint action by two or more people, in which each person

contributes with different skills and express his or her individual interests and opinions to

the unity and efficiency of the group in order to achieve common goals.

This does not mean that the individual is no longer important; however, it does

mean that effective and efficient teamwork goes beyond individual accomplishments.

The most effective teamwork is produced when all the individuals involved harmonize

their contributions and work towards a common goal.

In order for teamwork to succeed one must be a team player. A team player is one

who subordinates personal aspirations and works in a coordinated effort with other

members of a group, or team, in striving for a common goal. Businesses and other

organizations often go to the effort of coordinating team building events in an attempt to

get people to work as a team rather than as individuals.

CONCEPT OF GROUP WORK:

Group work enables various types of group to function in such a way that both

group interaction and programmed activities contribute to the growth of the

individual and the achievement desired social goals.

The objective of the group worker includes provision for personal growth

according to the individual capacity and need, the adjustment of individual of to

the other person, to group and to the society and motivation of the individual

towards the improvement of the society.

Through his participation, the group worker aims to produce relationship with

other group and wider community creating mutual understanding between

cultural, religious economic or special grouping in the community.

Group work is based on the knowledge of individual and group behaviour and

social condition and community relationship, which condions and community

relationship which is based on the moderns social science.

Britto

FUNCTIONS OF GROUP WORK

INTRODUCTION:

Social group work is an orderly, systematic plan, way of working with people in

groups. The members are helped to learn new ideas, develop skills, attitude changes

and responsibilities through participation in a social process.

In group work, group itself has utilized by the individual with the help of the worker

as a primary means of personality growth, change and development of individual.

FUNCTIONS OF GROUP WORK:

Group work mainly sees the situation and the needs of all the individuals and

tries to solve the problems of the individuals. For every individual the group is

the main source of strength and renders everybody helping hand.

A group fulfills the social desires and need of each individual in the group.

Group work is carried on with voluntary group in the setting of social agency.

Group workers take care of social agencies in many fields as education,

religious and recreational field.

It’s a helping process with dual purpose of individual and group growth.

The function of the group work is always for the betterment of the individual

as well as for the growth of the entire group.

Group worker plays role of enabler and helping person, by earning an

effective group. The group worker is a main person who by her/his better

knowledge tries to make the group better.

Goal of Group work:

To teach the individual to live and work together and participate in the group

activities for their intellectual, emotion and physical growth.

To live a good life within the group and family. The individual is also taught to

work together with other people and participate in different activities.

To develop individual personality and behavior by using different group work

process.

To prepare the individual to learn how to be a responsible person in a democratic

style of working.

To give opportunity to them who have potentiality, worth and dignity of

leadership.

To make best use of leisure time.

To learn division of labour and specialization of role just to indicate to play

individual role in the group.

To provide suitable task to the individual according to her/his skill, knowledge

and interest.

To widen ones horizon.

To prepare people for social change.

To apply group therapy in need of physical, mental and emotional adjustment.

It gives aspiration to help each other: Because of living together, sharing problem and emotion of each other they get a

aspiration to help each other. The group helps the individual when she/he is in problem.

It provides more skill and information: After formation of a group by a worker the group member get more information and

skill. Because of belongingness and helping mind the members can share their knowledge

among themselves. They get more information about science, resources and techniques.

It develops human personality:

After making a group their networking with other groups, workers and agency develop

their personality. With the help of group workers, development of the individual changes

and personality growth happens.

TASK AND MAINTENANCE FUNCTION:

The different approaches taken by individual members, or by the group

as a whole, have been defined by theorists as either task functions or maintenance

functions.

The task functions deal with the contents of the work and the maintenance function

deals with the process which is undertaken during the course of completion.

If the group is aware of them it will be able to achieve it’s aims more effectively.

Task functions relate to the work:

Recognizing and practicing them will help to make sure that the project is completed:

Initiating activity – suggesting new ways to approach the work and

encouraging others to do the same

Opinion/Information giving – putting forward one’s views/information

Opinion/Information seeking – asking for others’ views/information

Clarifying – asking for, or offering, clear explanations

Elaborating – developing ideas and making sure that they are fully

explored; giving examples

Co-ordinating – drawing out the relationships between ideas

Summarizing – bringing together the discussion points, briefly

Consensus taking – asking for the member’s consent.

Recording – noting suggestions and decisions

Orienting – making sure the work is directed accurately towards its goals

Maintenance functions relate to the group’s unity:Recognizing and practicing them will help to strengthen the group:

Encouraging – giving confidence to group members to make

contributions; giving opportunities for them to do so

Harmonizing/compromising – dealing with disagreement, possibly by

Suggesting a compromise

Standard setting – expressing standards for the group to work to, and

making sure that it does so

Analyzing the group’s effectiveness – reviewing progress regularly and

acting on the review

Bibliography:

ADAIR, John (1986) Effective Teambuilding, Alder shot, Gower

COTTRELL, Stella (1999) The Study Skills Handbook, Basingstoke,

Macmillan Press Ltd.

www.indiansocialstudy.com

www.wikipedia

www.google

www.yahoo

Dwaraknath

PRINCIPLE OF PLANNED GROUP

FORMATION & PRINICIPLE OF SPECIFIC

OBJECTIVES

1)Principles of planned group formation:

Project design

1. Group projects are designed to support the development of students’ teamwork skills

2. More sophisticated teamwork skills are required for group projects in postgraduate

subjects

3. The relevance of group projects to the overall learning within subjects is made explicit

4. The projects set are suitable for collaborative group work

5. The projects reflect collaborative work in the discipline or professional field

6. Consideration is given to the timing and nature of group projects across a course of

study

Group formation

7. Staff are responsible for determining group membership in order to accommodate

diversity and

ensure fairness

8. Cultural and disciplinary diversity within groups is fostered

9. Group formation solely on the basis of friendship is avoided wherever possible

10. Group size is optimised for effective collaboration, recognising the challenges

associated with

coordination of large groups

11. Contingencies are planned should groups become unviable during the course of

projects

Assessment

12. Peer feedback and reflection on the effectiveness of group processes is encouraged

13. Formal assessment may focus on the completed ‘product’ only, or may include

assessment of the

group process itself, as is appropriate to the subject objectives

14. If grades are to be revised to recognise individuals’ differential contributions to the

group process,

staff give consideration to both peer and self reports

15. Group projects may involve a combination of individual and group assessment tasks

16. The degree of complexity and workload involved in group projects is reflected in

their assessment

weighting

Information and support for students

17. Students are provided with information about expectations at the outset

18. The type of collaboration expected is explained to students

19. Assessment criteria are provided and standards explained

20. Teamwork skills are explicitly taught as preparation for the group project

21. Resources are provided to assist groups to manage group processes and teamwork

22. Processes for involving staff in resolution of group difficulties are described

23. Communication and collaboration are facilitated through the use of tools on the

subject website

2) Principle of specific objectives:

Make use of effective communication to employ a planned change approach which

supports client interventions across systems levels (individuals, families, small groups,

agencies, and community

1. With diverse, misunderstood and/or oppressed populations, use both ethnic-

sensitive (including a specific focus on First Nations people) and socially-

sensitive (including a specific focus on persons with developmental disabilities,

persons with mental health issues, and aging people) generalist practice

approaches;

2. Demonstrate how ecological and empowerment frameworks, as well as other

theoretical frameworks, can be employed to inform practice decisions across

system levels;

3. Appraise the structure of organizations, service delivery systems, and

communities and, under supervision, advocate for organizational and community

change based on the principles of social and economic justice;

4. Integrate knowledge of the history of the social work profession and current social

welfare structures, fiscal imperatives, policies, and issues with the ability to

analyze their impacts upon client systems, human service agencies and systems,

and social work practitioners;

5. Apply critical thinking skills in problem solving with social work values and

ethics, human diversity issues, the dynamics of discrimination and oppression,

social and economic justice, and interactions among systems;

6. Distinguish their personal values in relation to professional social work ethics,

especially the values of self-determination, empowerment, and regard for

diversity;

7. Understand and apply the values base and ethics of the profession to practice

situations across systems levels;

8. Evaluate the impact of professional use of self in practice situations across

systems levels;

9. Identify and make appropriate use of supervision and consultation;

10. Conduct research to evaluate their own social work interventions and those of

others, as well as to evaluate agency and community practice.

Goodwin

PRINICIPLE OF SOCIAL GROUP WORK

MEANING: A social group may be defined as a number of person two or more, who

have some common objects of attention, who stimulating to each other, who have

common loyally and participate in similar activities – BOGARDUS

Principle of social group work can be classified as follow

Principle of planned group formation

Principle of specific objectives

Principle of purposeful worker-group relationship

Principle of continous individualization

Principle of democratic group self-determination

Principle of flexible functional organisation

Principle of progressive programmed experiences

Principle of resource utilization

Principle of evaluation

Among this I’m going to discuss about Principle of purposeful worker-group

relationship and Principle of continous individualization.

PRINCIPLE OF PURPOSEFUL WORKER-GROUP

RELATIONSHIP:

A purposeful relationship should be maintained between the group

member and worker. This relationship should is a conscious-one. It is based on the

worker’s acceptance of the group member as they are and upon the group willingness

to accept help from the worker the principle assumes that it is both possible and

necessary to create an effective working relationship with a group before the worker

can be help to the group. Effective relationships grow out of the mutual acceptance of

the one another by worker and group. The workers relationship with the group is in

itself a major tool.

PRINCIPLE OF CONTINOUS INDIVIDUALIZATION:There are different personalities. Each personality is unique. No two

members are alike. Special attention should be given for each and every individual. It

is recognized that group experience are different and that individuals utilize group

experience in a variety of ways to meet their different needs. Consequently,

continuous individualization must be understood as developing and changing. When

the group worker individualization a group he accept the naturalness of the

differences.

Isaias

PRINCIPLE OF GUIDED GROUP

INTERACTION

& PRINCIPLE OF DEMOCRATIC GROUP

SELF-DETERMINATION

Meaning:A social group may be defined as a number of person two or more, who have

some common objects of attention, who stimulating to each other, who have common

loyally and participate in similar activities – BOGARDUS

PRINCIPLE OF GUIDED GROUP INTERACTION:At the member may not interact equally. There may be conflicts . there may be

few who are dominating. They prevent the other member from sharing. For ultimate

growth and development of group, each member contribute. This is done through

guided interaction. The primary source of energy which propels the group and

influences the individual to change are the interaction or reciprocal responses of the

member . all the member should be encouraged to participate.

The program experience in the which the group engages should begin at the level

of member interest, need experience and competence and should process in relation to

the developing capacity of the group it imples that there is a starting point for group

work program and that definition of the starting point is important. Program which

seem superficial to an outsiders are often times quite real and meaningful to the

group.

The group worker may make suggestion as to possible programs but he is careful

to extend a variety of choice and be endeavor to relate possible choice to the level of

the group the workers give help to the group in planning and carrying out its program

wished.

PRINCIPLE OF DEMOCRATIC GROUP

SELF-DETERMINATION:

The group must be helped to make its own decision and determine its own

activities, taking the maximum amount of the responsibility in the line with its

capacity and abilty. Participation level should be democratically identified and

executed. Worker’s idea should not be Thirsted up on the group . objectives should be

democratically carried out.

Paul

MEANING OF GROUP WORP

INTRODUCTION:

While many practitioners may describe what they do as 'group work', they often

have only a limited appreciation of what group work is and what it entails. In this piece

we introduce groups and group work, define some key aspects, and suggest areas for

exploration. In particular we focus on the process of working with groups.

What is group work?

Group work is just another way of talking about teamwork. Working in groups is

often presented as a good way of dividing work and increasing productivity. It can also

be argued that it allows for the utilization of the different skills, knowledge and

experiences that people have. As a result, in schools and colleges it is often approached

as a skill to be learnt – the ability to work in group-based environments. 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 instructor's repertoire.

What is group? I would like to highlight five points:

First:

Donelson R. Forsyth’s definition of a group as ‘two or more individuals who are

connected to one another by social relationships’. This definition has the merit of

bringing together three elements:

The number of individuals involved,

Connection,

Relationship.

Second:

Groups are a fundamental part of human experience. 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. Humans are small group beings. We always have been and we

always will be. The ubiquitousness of groups and the inevitability of being in them make

groups one of the most important factors in our lives. As the effectiveness of our groups

goes, so goes the quality of our lives.

Third:

The social relationships involved in groups entail interdependence. As Kurt

Lewin wrote, ‘it is not similarity or dissimilarity of individuals that constitutes a group,

but interdependence of fate. In other words, groups come about in a psychological sense

because people realize they are ‘in the same boat’. To get something done it is often

necessary to cooperate with others.

Fourth:

When considering the activities of informal educators and other workers and

animateurs operating in local communities it is helpful to consider whether the groups

they engage with are planned or emergent. Planned groups are specifically formed for

some purpose – either by their members, or by some external individual, group or

organization. Emergent groups come into being relatively spontaneously where people

find themselves together in the same place, or where the same collections of people

gradually come to know each other through conversation and interaction over a period of

time.

Fifth:

Considerable insights can be gained into the process and functioning of groups via

the literature of group dynamics and of small groups. 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?). That said, the skills needed for engaging in and with group life - and the

attitudes, orientations and ideas associated with them - are learnt, predominantly, through

experiencing group life. This provides a powerful rationale for educative interventions.

Working with groups – a definition:

What does it mean, then, to say that we work with groups, or that we are groupworkers?

A problem that immediately faces us is that most commentators and writers come

at this question from the tradition or arena of practice in which they are located.

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. Social group work is a method of social

work, which helps individuals to enhance their social functioning through purposeful

group experiences, and to cope more effectively with their personal, group or community

problems. However, as Allan Brown and others have pointed out, many groupworkers

look beyond helping the individual with a problem. Groupwork can emphasize ‘action

and influence as well as reaction and adaption.’

Three foci:I like to highlight three foci for groupworkers.

1. Thinking group

2. Attending to purpose

3. Staying in touch with ourselves

For the worker working with a group entails ‘thinking group’ ‘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’

Attending to purpose 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. For

example, have argued that group workers should attempt to effect two complementary

objectives. The first is the development of mutual aid systems; the second is to help the

group to attend to, and achieve, their purpose. When considering purpose it is also

important to bear in mind the nature of the group engaged with - and the context within

which we are working with them. An influential model for thinking about this in social

work came from Papell and Rothman (1966). They distinguished between three models:

Remedial - where the aim on the part of the work/agency is individual social adaption.

Reciprocal - where the aim is to strengthen mutual aid and to mediate between

individuals and society.

Social goals - where the concern is to further social justice often through collective,

social action.

Attending to ourselves 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. For Palmer, good practice is rather more than

technique, it flows from the identity and integrity of the worker' this means that they both

know themselves, and that they are seeking to live life as well as they can. Good

groupworkers are, thus, connected, able to be in touch with themselves, with those they

work with and their 'subjects' - and act in ways that further flourishing and wholeness.

Case-focused groupwork:

This approach can be described as 'preventative and rehabilitative', 'remedial' or

'organizational' - and is focused on the individual. The group provides a means by which

an individual's problems can be assessed and addressed. It is most clearly connected with

social work and casework and case management. The emphasis is upon 'ameliorating or

preventing the adverse conditions that negatively influence individuals and result in

deviant behavioral'.

Interaction-focused groupwork:

Here the group is understood as 'a system of mutual aid wherein the worker and

the members are engaged on the common enterprise of carrying out the group's.

Group therapy, T-groups and encounter groups:

There was a continuing growth in discussions that looked to the group as a key

element in the therapeutic process - and that drew heavily upon central traditions of

practice within psychotherapy e.g. psychoanalytic, Gestalt, cognitive-behavioral etc

Another tradition of practice that could be said to fall in this strand is that of Training

groups (T-groups). Here following on from Lewin's interest in using small groups as

training laboratories for teaching people interpersonal skills.

Social goals groupwork:

Here the focus is on dealing with 'those problems that are related to the social

order and the social value orientation in small groups' This long established set of

traditions of practice is closely linked to community organization/community work.).

In recent years there has been a significant development in the discussion of therapeutic

traditions of groupwork, and some limited attention to groupwork within mainstream

schooling. 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. Benson 2000; Brown 1993; Doel 1999).

Similarly, the quality of texts offered teachers and educators has been variable but one of

the better examples is Jaques and Salmon (2006). Sadly, working with emergent groups,

and with community groups has not had the attention it merits.

Conclusion:

In this piece we have seen something of the development of thinking about

groupwork - and explored some significant dimensions of practice. In many respects it

raises as many questions as it answers. For those concerned with informal education,

social pedagogy and social action there is a considerable need to explore ways of working

with groups that:

Is educationally informed.

Has a vision of the people as social beings.

Is committed to democracy and social justice.

Looks to the groups that arise as part of everyday living.

Pemmi

INFLUENCE OF GROUP ON INDIVIDUAL 

 when an individual is associated with the group,the social group usually influence over

the individual as it has more members and more members will have more ideas and

knowledge and will creat better ideas and knowledge will had impact on the individual's

character and behaviour.

 

 

man is born inta a family therefore his character and behavioud were difinitely influence

by the families.rigth after his birth,he is in the family soceity.he first acquired character

and behaviour from his family.through out his life man has being associated with various

form of group e.g, family,freind,school etc.this association  with these various groups

have tremendous impact on his character and behaviour.with every group that he

meets,he is being influence not only in character but mentally by the group and at the

same time he influences the group.people those who are related to him like

parents,sisters,brothers,freinds,relative etc,shape his personality.they are the immediate

people those who influence him in shaping his personality. if an individual is left alone,he

wouldnot know how to talk and communicate to the other member.every individual is

inter dependent to each other.individual alone cannot live,therefore,he depend on other

social group for his existence.it is important for the individual to know how to relate

himself with others in agroup for his survival.if an individual is left alone he wouldnot

know how to share and how to care,it is only through group that he could learnt this

things  towards the others and for himself.everyona wants to be better than his

company,therefore,they develope the sense of competition in their mind.it is through

group that he can learn how to compete.the individual knows that through cooperation

and coordination they will be able to get benefit to each other.it is only possible that

individual can learnt how to to compete,cooperation, coordination through

group.individual spend most of his time with his family,freinds group and colleague

group.therefore,they become one of the most important groups that influence the

individual.individual alone is hard to pave the way for success,but team work always

pave ways for success for individual,as it has more knowledge,ideas and confidence.

 

individual need social group for his progression and development where as social group

need individual,for the formation of social group,therefore they both are inter dependent

to each other.

prasanna

GROUPS INFLUENCES ON INDIVIDUAL

PERSONALITY DEVELOPMENT

What is a group?

A group is two or more people who, for longer than a few moments, interact with and

influence one another and perceive one another as "us."

Group Problem Solving

Groups of eyewitness gave accounts that were much more accurate than those provided

by the average isolated individual.

People fele more productive when generating ideas in groups. But time and again

researchers have found that people working alone usually will generate more good ideas

than will the same people in a group.

How do individuals influence the group?

If minority viewpoints never prevailed, history would be static and nothing would ever

change. In experiments, a minority is most influential when it is consistent and persistend

in its views, when its actions convey self-confidence, and after it begins to elicit some

defections from the majority. Even if such factors do not persuade the majority to adopt

the minority's views, they will increase the majority's self-doubts and prompt it to

consider other alternatives, often leading to better, more creative decisions.

Through their task and social leadership, formal and informal group leaders exert

disproportionate influence. Those who consistently press toward their goals and ecude a

self-confident charisma often engender trust and inspire others to follow.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:Retrieved from "http://www.psychwiki.com/wiki/Group_Influence"

Ajith moses

BONDING & ACCEPTANCE

INTRODUCTIONSocial work includes all voluntary attempt to extend benefits in response to need which

are to need which are concerned with social relationships

Bonding is a close personal relationship that forms between people (as between husband

and wife or parent and child)

adoption: the act of accepting with approval; favorable reception; "its adoption by

society"; "the proposal found wide acceptance"

BONDINGHuman beings are intrinsically social animals. Cooperative behavior allows groups of

people to do much more collectively than they can do singly. Yet, not everyone is to be

trusted in all circumstances. How can people balance the need for cooperation with the

need to beware of those who would exploit them? One answer is to develop an “in-

group”; that is, a set of people that is has a higher level of trust; a group that one gives to,

perhaps altruistically. This group can be a mate-pair, a family, a team, a clan, a

community, or a nation. Although bonding helps a group learn from each other, become

more productive and defend against outsiders, it is also an end in itself

ACCEPTANCE

the state of being acceptable and accepted; "torn jeans received no acceptance

at the country club"

(contract law) words signifying consent to the terms of an offer (thereby

creating a contract)

toleration: a disposition to tolerate or accept people or situations; "all people

should practice toleration and live together in peace"

the act of taking something that is offered; "her acceptance of the gift

encouraged him"; "he anticipated their acceptance of his offer"

GROUPWORKHuman beings are intrinsically social animals. Cooperative behavior allows groups of

people to do much more collectively than they can do singly. Yet, not everyone is to be

trusted in all circumstances. How can people balance the need for cooperation with the

need to beware of those who would exploit them? One answer is to develop an “in-

group”; that is, a set of people that is has a higher level of trust; a group that one gives to,

perhaps altruistically. This group can be a mate-pair, a family, a team, a clan, a

community, or a nation. Although bonding helps a group learn from each other, become

more productive and defend against outsiders, it is also an end in itself

“Humans are small group beings. We always have been and we always will be”

What does it mean, then, to say that we work with groups, or that we are

groupworkers?

A problem that immediately faces us is that most commentators and writers come at this

question from the tradition or arena of practice in which they are located. 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.

Three foci

From this exploration I want to highlight three foci for groupworkers. They need to 'think

group,  attend to purpose, and stay in touch with themselves.

Thinking groupFor the worker working with a group entails ‘thinking group’ (McDermott 2002: 80-91).

‘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. cit.:81-

2). She continues:

In advocating for the group worker to keep in mind that, while groups are comprised of

individuals, at the same time their coming together may enable the expression of

powerful forces reinforcing as sense of commonality and solidarity. These are the

building blocks for the development of trust. Trust and its counterpart – reciprocity

amongst members, may establish the bonds which serve to enable members to achieve

their individual and common goals. The task of the worker is to nurture such

developments. (op. cit.: 82)

For Fiona McDermott the capacity to ‘think group’ is the single most important

contribution that groupworkers can bring to their practice. They need to avoid working

with individuals in the setting of the group, but rather see individual growth and

development as something that emerges out of group interaction and group life.

Attending to purposeAs well as attending to the group as a process of harnessing the collective strengths of

group members, workers also need to look to purpose. Urania Glassman and Len Kates

(1990: 105-18), for example, have argued that groupworkers should attempt to effect two

complementary objectives. The first is the development of mutual aid systems; the

second is to help the group to attend to, and achieve, their purpose (what they describe as

the actualization of purpose). 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. They

also need to intervene in the group where appropriate to help people to clarify and

achieve these.

When considering purpose it is also important to bear in mind the nature of the group

engaged with - and the context within which we are working with them. An influential

model for thinking about this in social work came from Papell and Rothman (1966). They

distinguished between three models:

remedial - where the aim on the part of the work/agency is individual social

adaption.

reciprocal - where the aim is to strengthen mutual aid and to mediate between

individuals and society.

social goals - where the concern is to further social justice often through

collective, social action.

Subsequently, there has been various variations and developments of this model e.g.

Shulman (1999) - but this original model still remains helpful as a way of alerting us to

thinking about purpose - especially from the perspective of the agency employing

groupworkers.

Attending to ourselvesAs 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). For Palmer, good practice is rather more than

technique, it flows from the identity and integrity of the worker' (Palmer 2000: 11). This

means that they both know themselves, and that they are seeking to live life as well as

they can. Good groupworkers are, thus, connected, able to be in touch with themselves,

with those they work with and their 'subjects' - and act in ways that further flourishing

and wholeness.

In a passage which provides one of the most succinct and direct rationales for a concern

with attending to, and knowing, our selves Parker Palmer draws out the implications of

his argument.

Teaching, like any truly human activity, emerges from one's inwardness, for better or

worse. As I teach, I project the condition of my soul onto my students, my subject, and

our way of being together.... When I do not know myself, I cannot know who my

students are. 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. When I do not know

myself, I cannot know my subject – not at the deepest levels of embodied, personal

meaning. I will know it only abstractly, from a distance, a congeries of concepts as far

removed from the world as I am from personal truth. (Parker Palmer 1998: 2)

Conclusion

In this piece we have seen something of the development of thinking about bonding and

acceptance in group work - and explored some significant dimensions of practice. In

many respects it raises as many questions as it answers.  For those concerned with

informal education, social pedagogy and social action there is a considerable need to

explore ways of working with groups that:

is educationally informed.

has a vision of the people as social beings.

is committed to democracy and social justice.

looks to the groups that arise as part of everyday living.

Ruben selio

ISOLATION AND RJECTION

 

ISOLATION:           Isolation is the act of being separated. Those members who are not part of the

group but are not totally accepted remains as isolates. There is no emotional attachment

among the members. These members are just physical entities in the group.

 

       Social isolation is the pervasive withdrawal or avoidance of social contact or

communication. It can contribute toward many emotional, behavioural and physical

disorders including anxiety, panic attacks, eating disorders, addictions, substance abuse,

violent behaviour and overall disease.

 

ELDERLY ISOLATED IN THE SOCIETY:       More older people than ever are finding themselves isolated from the rest of society,

with almost two million of the elderly spending Easter alone.

Of the more than 1,100 people questioned for a survey published today by Help the

Aged, one in five of the 65-plus age group who live alone see members of their family

less than once a month; almost one in ten go six months or more between visits

The fast pace of modern life is blamed by the age group as a prime factor in their

dislocation from society with more than two thirds  about three million feeling out of

touch. Some 9 per cent feel completely cut off from society; 21 per cent feel they have

been cast off and are of use to no one.

The sense of isolation is intensified because most pensioners have no friends under the

age of 30, even though they would welcome greater contact with the younger

generations.

The effects of loneliness are to make older people withdraw into themselves, fearful of

rebuffs and increasingly doubtful of their own abilities.

         Civic society membership should, ideally, be representative of the community in

which the society is based. While many societies may find their membership tends to

be made up predominantly of older people, it is perhaps a paradox that the special

needs and interests of this group can easily be overlooked simply because older

members may not be active participants in the life of the society. Equally, the

particular problems faced by older people within the wider community may prevent

their voice being heard when planning and other matters are being discussed. Civic

societies can play a vital part in ensuring that older people are involved but societies

will have to work harder to effect this engagement to overcome these problems

because older people may be living alone, living with disabilities or in locations with

little or no public transport so making it more difficult for them to engage with the

things your society does.

 

 

 

ILLNESS AND ISOLATION:

      Isolation and quarantine are not synonymous. Isolation procedures are used with

patients with a confirmed illness. Quarantine rules and procedures apply to individuals

who are not currently ill—but who are known to have been exposed to the illness (e..g.,

the person has been in the company of a infected person or come in contact with infected

materials).

       Isolation and quarantine both act to restricts movement and slow or stop the spread

of disease within a community. Depending on the illness, patients placed in isolation may

be cared for in hospitals, specialized health care facilities, or in less severe cases, at

home. Isolation is a standard procedure for active tuberculosis patients. In most cases,

isolation is voluntary; however, isolation can be compelled by federal, state, and some

local law.

 

REJECTION:

      The term rejection was first used in 1415. The original meaning is ‘to throw’. It

means to refuse to accept a thing. When there is weakness in the bonding, acceptance

among the members then entire the member rejects the group or the group rejects the

member. The group tolerates such rejected members.

 

      Social rejection occurs when an individual is deliberately excluded from a social

relationship or social interaction.. The topic includes both interpersonal rejection (or peer

rejection) and romantic rejection. A person can be rejected on an individual basis or by

an entire group of people. Furthermore, rejection can be either active, by bullying,

teasing, or ridiculing, or passive, by ignoring a person, or giving the "silent treatment".

The experience of being rejected is subjective for the recipient, and it can be perceived

when it is not actually present.

      Although human are social beings, some level of rejection is an inevitable part of life.

Nevertheless, rejection can become a problem when it is prolonged or consistent, when

the relationship is important, or when the individual is highly sensitive to rejection.

Rejection by an entire group of people can have especially negative effects, particularly

when it results in social isolation.

WIDOW REJECTION:

         Widow in the society are being rejected by their community after their husband

died. They may not be allowed to stay in the community and they do not have any contact

with them. This is evident mostly in the village, and they have been following this system

right from their ancestors and they take it as a ritual practice. This is evident in many of

the Indian society, and it is still practice in many parts of the villages. Widow suffers a lot

in this social system and they cannot claim for their own right.

       The experience of rejection can lead to a number of adverse psychological

consequences such as loneliness, reduced self-esteem, aggression, and depression. It can

also lead to feelings of insecurity and a heightened sensitivity to future rejection.

 

 

 NEED FOR ACCEPTANCE:

      Rejection is emotionally painful because of the social nature of human beings and our

basic need to be accepted in groups. Abraham Maslow and other theorists have suggested

that the need for love and belongingness is a fundamental human motivation. According

to Maslow, all humans, even introverts, need to be able to give and receive affection to be

psychologically healthy.

      Psychologists believe that simple contact or social interaction with others is not

enough to fulfill this need. Instead, people have a strong motivational drive to form and

maintain caring interpersonal relationships. People need both stable relationships and

satisfying interactions with the people in those relationships. If either of these two

ingredients is missing, people will begin to feel lonely and unhappy.Thus, rejection is a

significant threat. In fact, the majority of human anxieties appear to reflect concerns over

social exclusion.

Ruban kumar

NEW COMERS & SUB GROUPS

A method, used by professional social workers, of aiding a group or members of a group

toward individual adjustment and increased participation in community activity by

exploiting the mechanisms of group life.

EFFECTIVE GROUP WORK SKILLS :

Active listening:

Listening to others without interrupting

Being able to summarize others' ideas

Incorporating others' ideas into the ongoing discussion

Sharing

Sharing materials

Taking turns

Giving support:

Accepting differences

Being friendly

Encouraging others

Explaining skills:

Conveying understanding an meaning in academic tasks

Describing a problem, assignment or goal

Identifying steps to be accomplished and reasons for the steps

Summarize the work they have done or plan to do

Give answers and explain how they got them.

Seeking explanation from others

Explaining what they do not understand

Asking for help

Leadership skills

Planning

Demonstrating initiative and enthusiasm

The teacher may teach the use of specific phrases for students to use in summarizing,

questioning, or expressing disagreement.

Ways to encourage

1. Assign the role of summarizer to a student and rotate the role

2. Have students turn to a partner and explain something; then have the partner

“explain back.”

3. Have each student in the group write one question; then the members of the

GROUP answer it.

4. Conduct role-plays of asking for help and explaining; demonstrate and discuss.

5. Lead a discussion about how to give a good explanation and how to ask for help

6. Have students write their group's ideas on a chart and present them to the class.

7. Have one student give instructions to another to complete a blind task (e.g. make

a matching drawing behind a barrier).

ADVANTAGE:

1. The problems can be solved quickly .

2. You get many ideas as the solution of the problem .

3. There are many possible solutions from which the greatest can be selected.

Etc

DISADVANTAGE :

1. Time consumption to create a team

2. Some team members do not participate as much as others

3. Costs of time and human resources towards building a team etc.

How Newcomers Can Influence Established Groups

Groups resist criticism—especially from newcomers.

PICTURE THIS: YOU'VE just started a new job and you're sat nervously in your first

meeting. You look around, still trying to match names to faces. Early on a problem is

discussed you know all about from a previous job. Putting aside nerves, you hop right in

and start to explain just how it was dealt with at that previous company.

When you finish speaking everyone just looks at you. For a few seconds the only sound

is the air-conditioning and people fidgeting with their pens. Then a red-haired woman—

clearly a company veteran—recovers and makes one or two non-committal remarks. The

meeting moves straight on to other business leaving you wondering what you did wrong.

Later on the red-haired woman returns to the problem on which you weighed in earlier.

She repeats your suggestion almost exactly. Everyone begins nodding and smiling at her.

Someone says "Good point. Yes!"

No one looks at you.

Hostility to newcomers

Although this scenario might come straight from a sitcom like The Office, it's not that

fanciful. Recent psychological research has established that just this unreasoning hostility

to newcomers clearly exists in groups, even when their suggestions are sound.

Psychologist Matthew J. Hornsey and colleagues have confirmed the effect as well as

examining how newcomers can worm their way into a group's affections and begin to

generate influence (Hornsey et al., 2007).

Firstly, though, they asked whether groups are really this hostile when newcomers, as

opposed to old-timers, make critical remarks. Hornsey and colleagues asked 187 health

professionals at a hospital to make judgements in circumstances similar to those

described above. One group of participants were lead to believe their hospital was being

criticised by a newcomer who had worked there 3 weeks, while another group thought it

was an established old-timer of 18 years. In each case the criticisms presented to

participants were identical, the only difference was their apparent source.

The results were clear. Compared with old-timers, the health professionals:

thought newcomers provided less constructive criticism,

agreed less with newcomers' suggestions,

were more negative about their criticisms.

This certainly supports our intuitive understanding that it can be difficult for newcomers

to criticise their new group.

Generating influence

Next Hornsey and colleagues wanted to see whether there was any way of reducing these

negative reactions to newcomers' criticisms. To do this they recruited 217 members of an

online gaming community who were all interested in a particular game. They were then

shown an extract purportedly taken from a chat site that criticised their game and asked to

comment on whether they agreed with the critic and whether the criticisms were justified.

To test whether the anti-newcomer bias could be lessened, the participants were split into

four groups and the identity of the critic was presented in four different ways.

A newcomer who distances himself from another group to which he used to

belong.

A newcomer who embraces another group to which he used to belong.

An old-timer who distances himself from another group to which he used to

belong.

An old-timer who embraces another group to which he used to belong.

So sometimes the critic was shunning their membership of an old group and sometimes

they were embracing it.

Once again, confirming the previous findings, online community members were none too

impressed when criticism of 'their' game came from a newcomer. Again, the newcomer

aroused more negativity than old-timers despite making exactly the same criticisms. But

the researchers did find that this negativity could be reduced if the newcomer shunned a

group of which they used to be a member, then their criticisms were more likely to be

viewed as legitimate. Hornsey and colleagues' results also showed that old-timers

benefited from this effect as well.

This finding makes sense when you think about how a newcomer's group identity is

perceived by other members of the group. Whether consciously or not, people want

others to value their group as much as they do. When newcomers distance themselves

from an old group, it increases their perceived allegiance to the current group. If the

criticism comes from a member of the group perceived as committed, this helps to

cushion the critical blow.

Toe the line

What the psychological research tells us, then, is that influencing groups to change as a

newcomer is not easy. Sources of criticism or agents of change commonly face increased

negativity and outright rejection. However beautifully the change is packaged, people

will quickly perceive the implicit criticism of the status quo.

The temptation when joining a new group is to try and make a big splash, to impress

others with our critical perceptions and new ideas. On the contrary, what the present

research suggests is that toeing the line in the first instance is often the best long-term

strategy. Groups are hostile to criticism from newcomers and are likely to resist, dismiss

or ignore it—unless you can prove your loyalty..

One way of emphasising allegiance to a new group is by creating psychological distance

from an old group. But even this might not work all the time since criticising an old

group can signal a disloyal nature. Consequently newcomers to a group who want to gain

influence and promote change should tread very carefully until they are well-established.

Unfortunately sometimes being right just isn't enough.

Sub groups :

It is found in all groups . a group with in a group is called as sub group . sub group are

formed because of common likeness among 2 or 3 members . they associate more clearly

than others .

Groups :

A group represents a collection of users with a common function, feature or interest.

Typically, this grouping has no privileges associated with itgroups can exist at two

levels; within an organization and within other managed that exist within other groups

are called sub-groups. Sub groups are child nodes that “physically” exist within a parent

group.

OpenSSO Enterprise also supports nested groups, which are “representations” of

existing groups contained in a single group. As opposed to sub groups, nested groups

can exist anywhere in the DIT. They allow you to quickly set up access permissions for a

large number of users.

There are two types of groups you can create; static groups and dynamic groups. Users

can only be manually added to static groups, while dynamic groups control the addition

of users through a filter. Nested or sub groups can be added to both types.

Static Group

A static group is created based on the Managed Group Type you specify. Group members

are added to a group entry using the groupOfNames or groupOfUniqueNames object

class.

Dynamic Group

A dynamic group is created through the use of an LDAP filter. All entries are funneled

through the filter and dynamically assigned to the group. The filter would look for any

attribute in an entry and return those that contain the attribute. For example, if you were

to create a group based on a building number, you can use the filter to return a list all

users containing the building number attribute.

Sub groups in ngo’s :

SUB-GROUPS/WORKING GROUPS

For research in areas of immediate importance, INCID also invites research proposals

under the category of "Invited Research".  For this purpose two Sub-Groups and one

Working-Group have been constituted to deal with the following topics:

 

Sub-Group-I - This Sub-Group has been constituted to deal with the subjects of

Deficit Irrigation; Crop and Crop Planning for flooded and flood prone areas; Pilot

demonstration of growing paddy with less/minimum use of irrigation water, and

development of indigenous technology for automated micro irrigation under controlled

environment using modern methods of drip and sprinkler irrigation.  The Chairman of the

Sub-Group is Member (WP&P), Central Water Commission and Convenor is Member-

Secretary, INCID. 

 

Sub-Group-II - This Sub-Group has been set up to deal with the subject of Rainwater

harvesting and conservation of water in command areas for use in supplementing canal

waters.  The Chairman is Member (WP&P), Central Water Commission and Convenor is

Member-Secretary, INCID.

Sanjay

GROUP MEMBERSHIP & GROUP

COHESSIVENESS

GROUP COHESSIVENESS:

It is the force bringing group members closer together. Cohesiveness has two

dimensions: emotional (or personal) and task-related. The emotional aspect of

cohesiveness, which was studied more often, is derived from the connection that

members feel to other group members and to their group as a whole. That is, how much

do members like to spend time with other group members .Task-cohesiveness refers to

the degree to which group members share group goals and work together to meet these

goals.

Factors Influencing Group Cohesiveness :

The forces that push group members together can be positive (group-based rewards) or

negative (things lost upon leaving the group). The main factors that influence group

cohesiveness are: members’ similarity, group size, entry difficulty, group success and

external competition and threats. Often, these factors work through enhancing the

identification of the individual with the group she/he belongs to as well as their beliefs of

how the group can fulfill their personal needs.

Members’ Similarity :

The more group members are similar to each other on various characteristics the easier it

would be to reach cohesiveness. Following Social Identity Theory, we know that people

feel closer to those whom they perceive as similar to themselves in terms of external

characteristics (age, ethnicity) or internal ones (values, attitudes). In addition, similar

background makes it more likely that members share similar views on various issues,

including group objectives, how to communicate and the type of desired leadership. In

general, higher agreement among members on group rules and norms results in greater

trust and less dysfunctional conflict. This, in turn, strengthens both emotional and task

cohesiveness.

Group Size :

Since it is easier for fewer people to agree on goals and to co-ordinate their work smaller

groups are more cohesive than larger groups. Task cohesiveness may suffer, though, if

the group lacks enough members to perform its tasks well enough. Entry Difficulty

Difficult entry criteria or procedures to a group tend to present it in more exclusive light.

The more elite the group is perceived to be, the more prestigious it is to be a member in

that group and consequently, the more motivated members are to belong and stay in it.

This is why alumni of prestigious universities tend to keep in touch for many years after

they graduate. Group Success Group success, like exclusive entry, increases the value of

group membership to its members and influences members to identify more strongly with

the team and to want to be actively associated with it.

External Competition and Threats: 

When members perceive active competition with another group, they become more aware

of members’ similarity within their group as well as seeing their group as a means to

overcome the external threat or competition they are facing. Both these factors increase

group cohesiveness; leaders throughout human history have been aware of this and

focused the attention of their followers on conflicts with external enemies when internal

cohesion was threatened. Similar effects can be brought about by facing an ‘objective’

external threat or challenge (such as natural disaster).

The group develops maturity and becomes cohesive or interconnected with the passage of

time. Cohesiveness in a group is achieved when the group appears to be very attractive to

its group members. In such type of cohesiveness, individuals value their group

membership and have a very strong enthusiasm and motivation to remain members of the

group. Group cohesiveness can be described as the attractiveness of a group to its

members. A highly cohesive group appeals a lot to its members. The cohesiveness of a

group plays important role in the performance and effectiveness of the group. There are a

large number of factors that influence cohesiveness level of a group. Those important

factors can be broadly categorized into five types. They are : size of the group,

homogeneous character of group members, success of the group, competition with other

groups, and the exclusiveness of the group. 

Size of the Group:

As we know the fact that small family is more cohesive or interconnected and so is the

group. The smaller the group, the more will be cohesiveness and more will be their

satisfaction. The larger group will deliver dissatisfaction to its members and will be

having cohesiveness. In large groups, it is normally observed that only few members of

the groups try to dominate everything such as suggestion, opinion, routine functioning. It

does not give other members opportunity to be part of this decision-making process. So,

the large groups are more prone to conflict, members develops incompatibility with each

other than small or medium size group in terms of cohesiveness. 

Homogeneous Character of Group Members:

The greater amount of similarity felt by group members with each others helps in

building bonds of faith, trust and satisfaction among them. It enhances communication in

group members. The group can be considered to be most cohesive when its members are

more homogenous in terms of age, sex, education, martial status etc. The members also

share certain attitudes, values, experiences and other characteristics that are common to

each other. 

Success of Group:

The success of the group makes it cohesive. The sense of realization is developed among

group members to avoid differences for accomplishing group goals. The groups become s

attractive to its members when the groups become successful in achieving its goals. This

further enhances cohesiveness in the group. 

Competition with Other Groups:

Group cohesiveness is increased in the organization when competition between groups

increases. The growing competition among groups in an organization motivates members

of each group to come together for achieving group goals. This is the one basic reason

where organizations promote group cohesiveness by having work groups competition in

the organization between /among groups over sales target, zero defect production,

minimization of wastages; etc. The

Recognition of group names and publicizing gives them encouragement and also

encourages healthy competition. It maintains good quality and maintains extra ordinary

working levels among the groups. 

Exclusiveness:

The group exclusiveness states the status of the group in the organization. It implies to

the superiority and selectiveness of a group that it possesses to appoint its members. It is

also the extent where an outsider looks up to its ground members. It also provides special

rights and privileges to its group members. The cohesive group members become more

active participants in the group activities. It also increases the level of communication

within the group. The cohesive group members share a common goal and develop high

group loyalty and unit together to fight out any threat. The flow of information is very

fast in cohesive work group. 

GROUP MEMBERSHIP:

Tendency for popular support to swing, pendulum fashion, from one position to other

indicates the necessity of recognizing both variables. In addition, the widespread feeling

that one parent is never an adequate substitute for two indicates that the “great parent” is

even more rare than the “great man” leader, and that the more usual way of achieving

status consensus in the family, as elsewhere, is by establishing two differentiated and

mutually supportive roles. the same principles which create a high level of satisfaction in

other types of group appears also to operate in the family.

In efforts to change families in order to increase member satisfaction, such as occur in

marriage guidance or counseling, we suggest the usefulness of examining members

expectations on the three variables and of taking steps either to change the expectations

or to change the external or internal structure of the family until the situation

approximates the expectations.

The therapy or training group represents an interesting example of our thesis, since in

this case particular variables are manipulated by the trainer(or therapist) to produce

certain desired effects. here the members are faced from then first session with a leader

who will not assume the usual authority role. Those who normally establish a dependent

or counter-dependent relationship with a group leader find it impossible to create such a

relationship. Doubts occur as to the leader’s capability as a trainer and the resulting

frustration reactions are used by the trainer to understand member motivations and to

force the members to recognize these motivations. Member satisfaction in the early

stages of such groups is notoriously low and we suggest that the reasons for this are as

follows:- although member participation is high in these groups, status consensus is made

impossible, since any ascendant leader cannot function effectively in competition with

the trainer. Similarly , perceived goal achievement is low in early sessions , since

members perceive an exacerbation of group problems rather than an alleviation of them.

it I sonly after defense mechanisms have been recognized and attitudes have changed that

the trainer plays a more positive role and in so doing re-creates status consensus, raises

perceived goal attainment with positive statements, and so increase member satisfaction.

We suggest, therefore, that the trainer, by manipulating two important variables, reduces

member satisfaction in the early stages of the group process. This satisfaction-reduction

is used to motivate the search for a more meaningful means of construing the member’s

Relationships with each other and with the trainer than those learned in childhood

situations.

The third type of group is one of the most discussed groups in natural setting, the formal

organizational work group such as exists in many business. we have already discussed

such groups, suggesting reasons why difficulties concerning status consensus are likely to

affect member satisfaction adversely. We noted that for a considerable time this recurring

problem has been coped with such measures as: (i) legitimizing occupancy of the high

position by recruitment to it of person with unmistakable marks of success, such as

degree or former occupancy of other high status positions (ii) choosing individuals with

high status in other spheres such as fame, social prestige, etc; (iii) granting symbols of

status such as titles, a superior office, a high salary, etc and (iv) placing the occupant in a

position where crucial information is available to him and not to others

Member participation in formal organization groups is usually concerned with

implementing decisions rather than making them, and is best understood in terms of the

member’s expectations of the amount and type of participation he ought to have. Where

an organization is aiming to increase the satisfaction of its members, particular attention

should be paid to the setting of realistically attainable short-term goals, and to prompt

non-perfunctory communication to members of progress toward and attainment of these

goals.

Fr.Shiju

GROUP NORM & GROUP CULTURE

Introduction: 

            Just as individuals have unique styles; groups also tend to develop their own

unique norms and cultures. This culture is an informal combination of behaviors, values

and attitudes that most people in the group take for granted. Put in the simplest terms,

culture is “the way we do things”. Group culture and norm help us to understand many

important needs, goals, fears, emotions, and behaviors of the group.

 

 

Group norms : 

          That are crucial for effective participation in a group are: Listening.

Facilitation.

Recording effectively.

Participating effectively.

 

Group norm 1: Listening (Look for listening games)  

            The activities on the Listening page promote 'listening' as explained here.

Listening is 'an awareness of words as well as non-verbal messages that accompany the

words'.The body language that accompanies listening: leaning forward, meeting the eyes

of the person who is speaking, interjecting with clarifying phrases.

Listening is not doodling, not looking away, not getting involved in making a phone call,

or becoming destracted by interruptions.

           

            Listening is a process of acknowledging the presence of the other person in your

range of experience. Listening is a tool for 'inclusion', 'involvement' and 'respect'.

Listening is the key to maximize human resources in the areas of Creativity, Productivity

and Problem solving.

 

            According to Patrick O' Neill, listening is the 'ability' to welcome different points

of view and suspend judgement and evaluation of others. Listening is the 'ability' to put

compassion and intimacy to work in a relationship.

 

           

 

 

 

            There are simple steps to learning this group norm. The steps to achieve this

'ability' to listen according to Patrick O' Neill:

 

1. Disarm: As in letting down your guard. People tend to think that the process of

listening means you 'agree' with the personn youare listening to. This attitude puts up a

guard. Listening requires that we bring this guard down.

 

2. Suspend assumptions: As in suspend the mental activity of second -guessing

what the speaker is going to say. Give the speaker an opportunity in your experience to

draw on clean page metaphorically speaking.

 

3. Put feelings first and facts second: As in notice the facial expression, the

gestures that accompanyy the words. What do they indicate? Interpret the words in the

context of the non-verbal messages.

 

4. Reflective Listening: As in checking with the speaker whether you heard her

right. The message that you reflect back to her should have the both the feeling and facts

right.

 

            For instance: Suppose you hear your associate say: "They always get the easy jobs

and you save the hard ones for me".

 

            You could give the following responses: What evidence do you have for that ?

You're forgetting about yesterday when I gave you the easy job. You sound like you feel

that I'm picking on you and that I'm unfair about the way I assign work. If you would

carefully analyse the work schedule you would see that hard and easy jobs are equally

assigned. Can you guess the 'reflective response'? Remember you need to reflect both

feeling and facts. You are right it's the third one. Congratulations! You have passed the

listening test. Think of some more situations and practice the skill of reflective listening.

 

Group norm 2: Facilitating norms Look for (facilitation activities)

             Who is a facilitator? A facilitator helps the smooth execution of any process. In

the context of a working group, the facilitator is facilitating the sharing of ideas, problem

solving and decision making. Refer to the Training Games page for some basic norms on

facilitation. During a training session every participant should take turns to become a

facilitator and take the opportunity to learn the role of a facilitator. Why should every

participant learn to be a facilitator? A facilitative environment creates a democratic

attitude and human psychology indicates that people freely express themselves. As such

they have maximum ownership of their own ideas and this leads to commitment to

anydecisions that the group makes. It is crucial for a group to benefit from the individual

expertise that exists in the group. Facilitation produces the synergy from the diversity that

exists in the group.

 

An effective facilitator is :

Impartial

Open-minded

Unbiased

A good listener

Cordial

Honest

Trusting

Able to see the big picture.

 

 

Group norm 3: Recording norms (Look for recording activities) 

Who is a recorder?

 

            A recorder records views and ideas verbatim as expressed by the members of the

group. She records this on a flipchart for everyone to be able to see. Everyone during a

training should take turns to be recorder. Why should everyone learn this role?

           

            This role provides an excellent opportunity to developing listening skills. So

people who have been accused of not listening should volunteer to take up this role. In

traditional meetinngs the minutes of the meeting are noted by the secretary in a way that

none of the group members can see it. This creates a sense of insecurity among them as

they are never sure whether their contributions have been noted faithfully. Consequently,

they worry about their opinions being manipulated and so cannot listen to their

colleagues. The visible flip chart writing puts these apprehensions to rest and frees the

group members to participate fully and effectively.

 

An effective recorder is:

A good listener

A good transcriber

Impartial

Unbiased

Open-minded

Patient

Group norm 4: Participating norms (Look for participation activities)              More often than not groups consist of members with diverse view points, to get

as rich and as diverse a representation as possible. Once a participant becomes part of a

group the role and responsibility of a group member becomes their primary

responsibility.

 

Participating norms requires here to:

Contribute fully to the project on hand

Share her knowledge or expertise about the issue in question

Participating in all meetings and discussions

Understand the responsibility and goals of the group

 

Why is group culture important? 

            Group culture has a large impact on the behavior, attitudes, and satisfaction of the

each group. People who fit in to the culture often feel right at home in the group. But for

the people, the culture leads them to feel like strangers in a strange land. The

environment makes them uncomfortable. culture also has implications for the group as a

whole. it affects such things as the pace at which work gets done, how outsiders are

treated , the attention paid to details, or the risks that the group takes. These in turn

influence the success of the group in meeting its goals.

 

Where does group culture come from?           

            Group culture is not simply the average of all the people in the group. Many

different factors determine group culture, such as

 

The style of the group leaders

The most pronounced styles with in the group

The type of the work group does

The historical culture of the group

The cohesion or tension within the group

The goals and mission that the group faces

           

            These are just some of the factors that help shape group culture. Understanding

the origins of your culture may be important if you hope to change it or capitalize on its

strengths.

 

            Group culture is a development team's way of working together, including their

shared habits, traditions, and beliefs. A positive group culture should promote code

ownership, group cooperation, peer learning, common working hours, and mutual

respect. When managers and leaders focus on developing and supporting a positive group

culture, the team is typically more self-regulating, creative, effective, and satisfied.

 

            The most important element of such a group culture is code ownership. Code is

the group’s greatest asset because it is the main thing that they have to show for all of

their work. It also serves as means of communication: developers exchange the majority

of their ideas by reading and writing code. Just as mathematicians communicate their

ideas most precisely with equations, developers communicate their ideas most precisely

with code. Thus, by protecting the quality of their code, developers can preserve their

best ideas in the clearest, most concise way possible, as well as ensure that their

communications are as effective as possible.

 

            Because code is such an important expression and product of the group, caring

about the quality and success of this code is fundamental to group culture. It is the glue

that holds a group together. You want to build a culture where the developers' attitude

towards the code reflects the code's importance. Developers should show that they care

about the code because caring about the code is synonymous with caring about the group.

If a developer cares about the code, he will care about the group, and if he cares about the

group, he will care about the code.

 

            It's fundamental that everyone feels that they have a stake in maintaining high-

quality code. This prevents group members from doing anything that harms code quality

– if they care about the code, they won’t hack at it, shortchange it, wire it, and so on; they

will always try to ensure that it is solid and working. This, in turn, fosters the growth of

other fundamental elements of a self-regulating group (such as self-discipline and

cooperation). Moreover, it also helps filter “bad apples” out of your development group.

 

            In an environment where group members feel a strong investment in code quality,

any developer who does not care about the code will alienate himself from the group.

Most group developers will soon become frustrated with someone who constantly

introduces problems into the code and try to help this developer improve. If he does

improve, the group is stronger; if he does not, group conflict will generally lead him to

leave the group.

 

            Code ownership should be balanced by what is called “egoless programming.”

The point of egoless programming is that the group owns the code, and each developer

takes responsibility for the code, but each developer should not take criticism of the code

he wrote as a personal attack. If a developer is overly sensitive to criticism, he probably

will not grow as much and as rapidly as developers that can handle constructive criticism.

 

Conclusion

            Norms and culture are very important in a group. If you have no knowledge about

these we can not know well, how a group is? Therefore it is very important for a social

worker to study about the norms and cultures of a group for its betterment.

Vinoth

GOAL SETTING

Introduction:

Why is goal setting important? Goals help to describe success. Without taking the time to

think about success, one may or may not achieve it. Goals provide challenges. A persons' (or

Organization’s) reach should exceed one's grasp. People tend to maintain expectations,

not surpass them. Thus, expectations or goals should be challenging. Goals create

common tasks and processes. By having goals, a group knows what it has to do. Then

members can work together on them. Tasks and relationships become further defined

goals.

Goals provide direction to student organizations. They enhance their operation, contribute

to group maintenance and development, and give group members a sense of cohesion.

The process of setting goals should be tailored to each organization’s needs. Some benefit

by using a highly structured goal-setting process, while others prefer a more informal

process.

Is your organization spinning its wheels wondering in which direction to go? Are your

members also confused regarding the organization's mission or reason for being? On the

other hand, is your organization clear about its goals, but does not seem to get anywhere

anyway? Do your members never seem to know who is supposed to be doing what in

order to achieve those goals?

There is one way to avoid these pitfalls - use a goal setting and action planning process.

Organizations cannot survive and flourish for a very long time without some basic goals.

Goals give an organization a purpose and direction to move towards the entire year. In

order to establish a successful organization, it’s important to create a clear purpose, goals,

and an action plan to provide direction and to meet the needs of your members.

Presentation:

DefinitionsMission: A statement defining the function and purpose of an organization.

Goal: Broad, abstract statement describing an ideal intent, state, or condition.

Objectives: Specific statements that describe desired behavior in measurable terms

and

acceptable criteria of performance.

Three levels of defining an organization’s priorities:1. Purpose - a broad, general statement that tells why your organization exists. The

purpose usually doesn't change from year to tear, and is often the first statement in your

Constitution.

2. Goals - statements describing what your organization wishes to accomplish, stemming

from your purpose. Goals are the ends toward which your efforts will be directed, and

often change from term to term or year to year, depending on the nature of the group.

3. Objectives - descriptions of exactly what should be accomplished derived from the

goals.

Objectives are clear, specific statements of measurable tasks that need to be

accomplished to reach your goals. They are usually short term with deadlines or specific

timelines.

Why Set Goals?To Channel your Time, Effort, and Ideas

To Build Confidence and Self-Esteem

To Gain the Backbone for a Positive Attitude

Goals help define your organization's mission.

Goals give direction and help avoid chaos.

Goals can help motivate members by clarifying and communicating what the

organization is striving to achieve.

Goals help members and leaders become aware of problems in a timely fashion,

which in turn leads to healthy solutions.

Goals help the organization plan ahead and be prepared.

Goals are a basis of recognizing and measuring your accomplishments and

successes.

Goal setting can allow:Clear and specific delegation of responsibilities

Greater freedom to operate. Better communication: two-way and interpersonal

Greater job satisfaction

More diversity of services/programs, by updating and improving old programs and

developing new programs

Identification of individual and organizational strengths and weaknesses

Fair and easy appraisal and evaluation of the organization

Clarification and/or development of an organizational mission or philosophy

Better morale

Assumptions:People work well if they know what the goals of the organization are.

If people have clear ideas about what they hope to accomplish; their chances of

accomplishment are enhanced.

Intrinsic goals produce more energy then extrinsic goals; therefore, people will

work

better if they set the goals for their own jobs.

Progress is measured in terms of what one is trying to make progress toward.

People are more comfortable in their job situation when they know how they will

be

evaluated.

Advantages:Enhances the accomplishment of a desired end and enables one to know where he is

going.

Reinforces the principles of participative management, establishes the proper

environment for constructive feedback, and enhances communication between the

individual and the officers.

Facilitates a fair and clear evaluation of performance of the organization.

Although goal setting is rewarding, some difficulties do exist:It is sometimes difficult to quantify and qualify what our goals/actions should be

Goal setting takes time - initially the members must be introduced to the process,

develop necessary skills, implement procedures and record evaluations

Goal setting can be a giant verbal game of paper shuffling exercises - the process

can be easily distorted

How are Goals Set?Set your goals as a group. Group members will support and be held accountable for what

they help create. If you set your goals as a group you can expect the following results:

Greater commitment and motivation among officers and members.

Clearer understanding of the goals and the rationale for selecting them.

Better collaborative goals that represent a group consensus rather than one person's

opinion.

Prioritize: Put First things First! Make a list of the things you personally find most

worth doing. This will get you moving in the right direction and help keep you on track

later.

Think about & write your statements: goal statements are broad & encompassing

while

action statements are more specific & measurable

Map out an action plan: under each goal, write out ten actions you can do to

achieve that goal

Write a time line: set specific dates for each goal & action to ensure they are

completed

Evaluation: look at your progress:

o Are you where you want to be?

o Have you met your time line?

o What needs to be changed?

Types of GoalsLong-Range Goals

Keep you focused

When outlook is not good, look another way

Change direction, but not the ultimate goal

Personal Goals

Be tough on yourself

You will endure short-term failures

Remember that you can accomplish anything Group Goals

Goals must be communicated to others if they are going to be part of the decision

making Process.

People help support what they helped to create: if many are involved and included,

many will support the decision.

What are Goals?Written

Clear

Logical

Consistent

Challenging

Achievable

Evaluating Tool

Planning Tool

Statement of Purpose

Provide a Systematic Way to Achieve Results

ComponentsA goal is a precise statement of a desired state of affairs that includes the following:

It is realistic, attainable, feasible, yet provides challenge and growth.

It has a target date for completion.

It has measurable results.

It is clear, specific, and understandable.

It is meaningful and relevant.

It is beneficial.

It is flexible and has more than one method of attainment.

An organizational goal is identical to an individual goal except that it has these additional

Components:

It should be created by all members.

It should be understandable and acceptable to all members.

It should be beneficial to all members.

Developing goals:Describe what you want the future to be like. If developing organizational goals, try to

think of at

Least two ways to describe the future:

Through organizational tasks or purposes

What happens to the members

Use your organization's purpose. An organization's purpose can define what the goals

need to be and then these goals can be adjusted each year. Use what members,

constituents, and other interested parties suggest. By being open to feedback, one can get

new ideas for improving or building goals.

Process for brainstorming goals:The process of setting goals is similar to a problem-solving process. To simplify matters,

yet ensure a goal that includes all necessary components, you can set a goal by answering

the 5 W’sand an H.

Who? Delegate responsibilities equally to all members.

What? Generate the possibilities and narrow down the alternatives to the ones you

intend to pursue.

Why? Clarify the needs and purposes that are the basis of your goals.

When? Identify when planning work sessions and the actual event will take place.

Where? Determine locations of events.

How? Decide how you will implement the selected alternatives.

Allow ideas to start goals

Members should begin to talk about what they would like the group to accomplish

Let every member take part in the brainstorming. This is important for morale and

cohesion. Also, members are more likely to support what they help to create

Unrealistic goals should not be weeded out until later

When finalizing goals, make sure they are measurable

Brainstorm potential goals as a group. (People support what they create, and will

accept responsibility more easily.)

Choose the goals from the brainstormed list that you want to work on.

Prioritize those goals as a group.

Determine objectives for each goal and plans of action for each objective. Be

specific and include deadlines. (Remember, there may be several objectives for each

goal).

Move into action, follow through. Implement your goals by following through with

your action plan. (Many groups fail to do this step and their goals are never achieved).

Evaluate your progress on a regular basis.

Circumstances will continually change so be flexible and allow your objectives to

change with them.

After brainstorming, prioritize the goals:Place goals in order of importance. This can be difficult to do because each member

has one's own idea of what is important for the group

All members need to take part in this to feel ownership in final goals

Set a few important goals to which the group can commit rather than a laundry list

of

tasks or goals, which may or may not be achieved. Some different methods for

prioritizing:

Have a discussion in which each member voices an opinion

Have members rank the goals on their own and then share their ideas with the

group to

reach consensus

Break into small groups to prioritize goals concerning different segments of the

Organization After goal setting, develop plans to achieve the goals so they are more than

nice words

Planning:Planning is the process of laying out a course of action to achieve a goal. Planning is

commonly thought of as little more than tasks, responsibilities, and costs set out on a time

schedule, as a list of who is going to do what, when and at what cost. This is a very

important step in goal setting.

Thorough planning takes several steps:1. Goal - What is the overall end result you wish to achieve by executing this plan? Your

goal should include target dates for beginning and completion.

2. Objectives within plan - Each objective should state a result desired. Distinguish

between long-range and short-range objectives.

3. Assumptions - What are the factors that may affect your plan as it unfolds? What is the

degree of probability that they will?

4. Resources - What do you need to carry out your plan? Resources include money,

people, machines, materials, time, capabilities, experience, energy, etc. Include anyone or

anything that is available to you and usable. Make an inventory of all resources.

5. Constraints - What are the limitations within which you have to achieve your goal?

Constraints may be limitations on your resources or outside considerations.

6. Action steps/tasks - What activities need to be undertaken to achieve the goal of your

plan? How long will they take? Who will do them? What resources do you need for each

task?

7. Schedule - Which tasks need to be done in sequence? Which can be done parallel?

Have you allowed enough time? Are your deadlines realistic?

8. Implementation - Do it!

9. Evaluations - What are your milestones? What cross checks do you need to ensure that

tasks will be done properly?

10. Recycling the planning process - Is there further planning needed to reach your next

goal? Is there more planning needed for a particular difficult or complicated step of your

plan?

Goal-Setting Tips:Here's a tip that might help: Make your goals VISIBLE!!

Post them

Give a copy to every member

Discuss them at meetings -- put them on the agenda

Put them in newsletters and materials you send out

Goals and objectives are a roadmap to your future.

You need a map to know where you’re going and whether you have arrived at your

destination.

Planning is essential and must be done every day.

“To Do” lists helps you reach your goals.

Goals change with time and age.

Follow your “To Do” list and don’t procrastinate!

Conclusion :Goals and goal-setting are two aspects that occur everyday in business life however little

is known about the effect of strategic goal-setting. To a certain extent, this affects all of

us either directly or indirectly, everyday through strategic decisions that are made by

business managers all around the world. A company’s performance of a company can be

measured in many ways. A firm’s performance can be financially successful if the com-

pansy’s strategy is well planned. Strategic planning consists of developing goal-

strategies, which aim at contributing to the firm’s performance.

Crystal

Pre-Group Formation Phase

Introduction:

Social group work is a method through which individuals in groups in social agency

setting are helped by a worker who guides their interaction in program activities so that

they may relate to others and experience growth opportunities in accordance with their

needs and capacities to the individual, group and community development.

The Pre-Group planning model:

Social work practitioners and students frequently work with groups that fail. Often, the

groups with which they work never get off the ground, terminate prematurely, have

sporadic attendance, or are seen as not meeting the needs of their members. When such

group failures occur, variations of the blame-the-victim phenomenon often results.

Practitioners wrongly blame themselves for not being skillful enough. Or, they

unfairly blame group members and label them as not ready or resistant to sharing with

others in a group. Or they too readily blame the group modality and see it erroneously as

a method that is ineffective for many persons and situations.

But it is lack of planning, more than any other factor that contributes to the

failure of many groups. Too often, the planning that is undertaken by social work

practitioners consists only of cursory attention to such questions as meeting place and

time and whether to serve refreshments. Pre-group planning – the thinking and

preparation done by the worker prior to the first group meeting in developing a group

program- is an often neglected area of practice.

Planning is also a neglected area in the social work practice literature. While the

importance of planning in social work is recognized by many writers (Bartlett, 1958:

Boehm, 1958), little attention is paid to the planning process itself and no model of

planning for practice had been developed (Northen, 1969: Hartford, 1971). Instead,

consideration is given in a piecemeal fashion to what might form some of the components

of a planning model (eg. Group goals, group composition) (Glasser et al., 1974).

Of the writers on social work with groups, Northen, hortford, and shulman

include the most comprehensive material on planning.

In a chapter on “planning and Intake processes”, northen includes the

components of purpose, group composition, initial organizational structure,

application and intake, and social diagnosis (Northen, 1969). Hartford explicates a

“pre- group phase” during which factors as group purpose, program, composition,

size and meeting place, time, and duration (Hartford 1971). Shulman emphasizes the

importance of preparatory work with agency staff and clients, group composition,

timing and structure in a chapter on “group formation” (shulman, 1979).

But an actual model of planning, one that can really direct and guide the thinking

of a social work practitioner as she/he goes about the process of forming a group and

initiating service, is absent from the social work practice literature.

It is interesting to speculate on some of the reasons that might contribute to social

group work’s lack of serious attention to planning.

There are three reasons:

First, Planning may seem to some to negate the value that social work places on

self-determination. Not wanting to tell people what to do and not wishing to manipulate

the clients, they avoid planning because they view it as synonymous with manipulation

and a negation of client self- determination (Dewey, 1938).

But one can certainly argue just the opposite-that pre-group planning does not

diminish, but instead enhances, the opportunities for client self-determination. Pre- group

planning results in increased clarity of purpose. Such clarity, in turn, increases the

client’s ability to make a clear and informed decision about whether she/he wishes to

participate in the group being proposed. Thus, planning can result in minimizing client

manipulation and domination by the worker and in maximizing client self-

determination.

A second, reason that little attention is given to planning may lie in social work’s

traditional emphasis on action, on direct work with clients. Perhaps social workers too

often equate helping with “busyness” and see the amount of help as being in direct

proportion to the amount of activity of the worker. Planning may be viewed as a rather

“passive” activity, one that takes time away from what is often considered the real

and “active” work that is done directly with clients. Perhaps in their haste to “get

busy”, social workers cut short the planning process or abort it together.

Finally, the Third, perhaps the tendency to rush into action without having

done the necessary planning is exacerbated by increased emphasis on accountability

and by reimbursement system that are based on numbers served. The quantity of

persons served. The quantity of persons served rather than the quality of service has

become paramount. Here too, one can certainly argue that effective pre-group

planning results in an increase in the numbers served while simultaneously

enhancing the quality of service.

A group’s first meeting may have to be deferred while the planning process

takes place. But the regular attendance of members that is characteristic of well-

planned groups will soon overtake the numbers of persons served in groups that

start quickly and then fall apart. As in the fabled contest between the tortoise and

the hare, quickest is not necessarily best. The race for quantity that funding pressures

have placed upon us will be won by an approach that stresses thoughtful preparation.

Such an approach can increase quantity and quality.

To fill the gap in social work practice and literature, an exploratory research

project that aimed to develop a model of planning for social work with groups was

begun in 1977.

Research was carried out in three stages (Kurland, 1980).

First, a preliminary model of planning for social work with groups was

developed by surveying literature on social work practice and making inferences

from it regarding pre-group planning. To do this, the method of content analysis was

used, with 50 books and 198 articles in social work journals surveyed to identify the

components of planning, their definitions, the rationale for decision-making about

the, and the interrelationships among them.

Second, the accuracy and helpfulness of the preliminary model was appraised

by gathering reactions to it from a purposive sample of social work educators and

practitioners with special expertise in work with groups. A national sample of 15

educators, representing a range of theoretical orientations of group work practice

were interviewed in the New York area, who collectively worked in a range of fields

of practice and agency settings, and with a variety of client populations, were

interviewed in person. Generally, a very positive reaction to the model and some very

helpful suggestions were expressed by both the educators and the practitioners, who said

they found the model useful regardless of their particular theoretical orientation.

The Third, based on the input from those interviewed, a revised model of

planning for social work with groups was proposed. That model is an attempt to

provide a conceptualization of the planning process that can direct and guide the

thinking of the social work practitioner before she/he initiates direct service with

clients in and through groups.

The model contains the following components:

Agency context:Conditions existing in the agency or host setting that may have an impact on workers

action and on the group that is being formed.

Need: Individual and social wants, drives, problems, issues, and /or areas of concern that can

expect to exist universally for people in the target population as they function socially

and, more specifically, that exist among persons in the particular target populations the

worker has in mind as potential members of the group she/he is planning.

Purpose:The ends towards which the group is formed, encompassing both the ends and objectives

that the group will pursue collectively (i.e., the group purpose) and the hopes,

expectations, and objectives that each group member holds for what she/he will gain from

participating in the group (i.e., individual goals).

Composition:The number and characteristics of both members and workers who will participate in the

group.

Structure:The concrete arrangements the worker makes to facilitate the actual conduct of the group.

Composition

Need

Purpose

- structure

- content

- Pre-group contact.

Agency Context, the conditions existing within the agency that will host the projected

group, influences every decision made by the worker.

In using model, it is also important that the worker keep in mind four key

points.

First, A worker needs to think concurrently about the seven components as

planning for a group proceeds, the seven components of the model are interdependent

and overlapping. Decisions made in regard to one component will affect decisions

about the others.

Second, the model is meant to serve as a guide to the thinking of the worker in

planning for a group. It presents areas for workers consideration, decision – making

and action as plans for a group are made.

Third, the model presents areas for worker consideration. It does not attempt

to present material to justify the making of one decision or another in regard to the

factor included. It is hoped that use of the model will help the workers see which

areas are ones around which there is uncertainty in planning for a particular group.

Fourth, the model needs to be used with flexibility by the worker. In different

groups, different factors in the model will assume different degrees of priority and

importance. Not every factor will be of equal importance.

Conclusion:

The use of the model has two other benefits that are more indirect and were

unexpected. First planning that it promotes increases the confidence of

workers/students. A worker who knows what she/he is doing and why will do a better

job because she/he will be freed to concentrate less on him/herself and more on the group

and its members. Increased confidence enhances the worker’s ability to be flexible, to

listen and to respond to group members.

Second, planning leads the worker, in fact almost forces him or her, to gain

real understanding of individual group members, their environment, their social

context, their background, their concerns, and of the communities of which they are

a part . Such knowledge is essential to good groups and to effective and meaningful

group work practice.

JANE

BEGINNING PHASE OF GROUP WORK

GROUP WORK: Social group work means enhancement of a person’s social functioning through

group experience and to cope more effectively with their personal ,group or community

problems. It is amethod of working with people in groups for the enhancement of social

functioning and for the achievement of socially desirable goals.

The group worker should start with the group at its current level of development

and must work in harmony with the interest and determination of the members.

Beginning Phase—Preparing the Group To Begin

During the beginning phase of group therapy, issues arise around topics such as

orientation, beginners' anxiety, and the role of the leader. The purpose of the group is

articulated, working conditions of the group are established, members are introduced, a

positive tone is set for the group, and group work begins. This phase may last from 10

minutes to a number of months. In a revolving group, this orientation will happen each

time a new member joins the group.

Introductions

Even in short-term revolving membership groups, it is important for the leader to connect

with each member. This joining can be as simple as a friendly smile and a one-word

welcome. At this time, all members, at the very least, should have an opportunity to give

their names and say something about themselves. Some leaders ask members to introduce

themselves. Others let the group figure out how to get acquainted. One cautionary note,

however, is that many clients treated for substance abuse also have histories of emotional

and physical abuse. Merely directing attention toward them can trigger feelings of shame.

Thus, while it is extremely important to make connections between and among group

members and to involve them in the process, the sensitive leader will not insist on

recitations. Emotional safety always should be foremost in the group leader's mind.

At the first meeting of a fixed membership group, group members also may be asked if

they know anyone else in the group. If there are connections that might cause difficulties,

they will be discovered at the start.

Each new member who joins the group is entering the beginning phase of the group—for

that individual. It is not easy to find one's place in an already established group. The

leader can help build bridges between old and new members by pointing out that it is

difficult to be the new member and by encouraging old members to help the new one join

the group. In long-term fixed membership groups, the group will require careful

preparation to receive a new member graciously. Even in revolving membership groups,

which provide less opportunity for preparation, the leader should let members know

when to expect membership changes, introduce new members, and help build bridges—

for example, by inviting existing members to say something about the group and how it

works.

Ideally, membership changes should be held to a minimum, especially in fixed

membership groups, though as members graduate, new members will need to enter to

ensure survival of the group. In contrast, revolving membership groups may have

frequent changes because of the demands of treatment payment guidelines or admission

and discharge procedures. Careful thought should be given to the pace and timing of

membership changes for particular group types.

Group agreement review

The group agreement should be reviewed in an interactive way, involving the group

members in discussion of the terms. The group leader should ask members if they are

aware of concerns that might require additional group agreement provisions to make the

group a safe place to share and grow. Group members should have an opportunity to

suggest and discuss further stipulations. In addition, the group agreement should be

reviewed periodically.

Providing a safe, cohesive environment

During the beginning phase of the group, all members should feel that they have a part to

play in the group and have something in common with other members. This cohesion,

both among clients and between the clients and the group leader, will affect the

productivity of work throughout the therapeutic process. Among the many components of

group cohesion are “connectedness of the group demonstrated by working toward a

common therapeutic goal; acceptance, support, and identification with the group;

affiliation, acceptance, and attractiveness of the group; and engagement”.

In the beginning phase, the leader ordinarily needs to be more supportive and active than

will be necessary once the group gets underway. If particular members have spoken very

little, it helps to let them know that their contributions are welcome. The leader might say

something like, “We haven't heard much from you tonight, Jane, but perhaps next week

the group will have a chance to get to know you a little bit more”

To help group members bond with each other, the leader should encourage the

connections members begin to make on their own and should point out similarities. The

leader might say, for instance, The leader also is responsible for ensuring that early in the

group, emotional expression stays at a manageable level. Otherwise, members quickly

may feel emotionally overloaded and begin to withdraw. Care always should be taken not

to shame group members or to allow others in the group to engage in shaming behaviors.

The leader also should bear in mind that in the beginning phase, the group is unable to

withstand much conflict. Before the group develops trust and cohesion, conflict is likely

to disrupt proceedings or even to threaten a group's existence, so it is unwise to permit

confrontation. Instead the group leader should encourage interaction that minimizes

aggression and hostility. Later, when the group is more stable, group members may be

urged to risk more provocative positions

Establishing norms

It is up to the leader to make sure that healthy group norms are established and that

counterproductive norms are precluded, ignored, or extinguished. The leader shapes

norms not only through responses to events in the group, but also by modeling the

behavior expected of others. For example, norms to be encouraged in a process group

include honesty, spontaneity, a high level of attentive involvement, appropriate self-

disclosure, the desire for insight into one's own behavior, nonjudgmental acceptance of

others, and the determination to change unhealthy practices .Unhealthy norms that could

hamper a process group include a tendency to become leader-centered, one-dimensional

(that is, all-loving or all-attacking), or so tightly knit that the group is hostile to new

members .The leader should respond quickly and clearly to habits that impede group

work and that threaten to become normative.

Initiating the work of the group

The leader facilitates the work of the group, whether by providing information in a

psychoeducational group or by encouraging honest exchanges among members in other

types of groups. Most leaders strive to keep the focus on the here and now as much as

possible.

In the first phase, the needs of group members are to be oriented to the task, that is, to

define the task, specify issues, identify expectations, and explore the nature of the work.

From this members develop a common understanding of the group's purpose that begins

to answer the questions: Why are we here? What are we supposed to do? How are we

going to get it done? And, what are our goals?

In the first phase, participants generally act as if they depend on the leader to provide all

the structure. They look to the leader to set the ground rules, establish the agenda, to do

all the "leading," while the group members acclimate themselves to the setting. Feelings

involved are excitement, apprehension, and confusion. Group members exhibit behavior

to test what behavior is acceptable and what is taboo, and begin to establish boundaries,

to consider themselves as individuals vis-a-vis the group, and to define the function of the

group and the leader.

OBJECTIVES:

Introduce the members and make them comfortable .

State the purpose and functions of group and the agency

Balance tasks and social emotional aspects of the group process

Provide opportunity and climate for feedback about the fit between their needs

and the workers view of their need and the services provided

Setting goals contracting

Motivation expectations of the group

CONCLUSION:

This phase generally concludes when there is general agreement that the goals are

achievable and that change is possible--whether it be changing behavior, making a

decision, or solving a problem Establishing work rules .

Jasmine

GROUP WORK PROCESS MIDDLE PHASE

Introduction:In the middle stage groups are focused on accomplishing the objectives, goals,

and tasks developed earlier in the life of the group. It is assumed that by the middle stage,

workers have already discussed the group’s process; developed a group contract

concerning confidentiality, attendance, and number of sessions; and developed individual

contracts with particular treatment goals for each member. It is also assumed that the

group as a whole has developed an initial set of dynamic processes, including a pattern of

communication and interaction; a beginning level of interpersonal attraction and group

cohesion, norms, roles, and other social control mechanisms; and a group culture. The

primary task of the worker during the middle stage is to help members accomplish the

goals they have contracted to achieve, which is accomplished by

1. Helping members over come obstacles to goal achievement in their own lives

2. Facilitating group dynamics that support members efforts

3. Helping the organization and large community respond to members’ efforts.

Middle- stage skills:Te middle stage of treatment groups is characterized by an initial period of

testing, conflict, and adjustment as members work out their relationship with one another

and the large group. Contracts are negotiated and renegotiated, members establish their

positions in relation to one another, and the group develops a niche within the sponsoring

organization.

The testing, conflict, and adjustment that occur in the group and signs that

members are becoming comfortable enough to assert their own needs and their own

vision of the group. During this period, members demonstrate their independence and

ability to engage in leadership activities. They may question the purposes and goals of the

group or the methods that have been proposed to accomplish them. They may also

express contrary opinions and concerns about group processes or their interactions with

the leader or certain members. In the beginning stage, members are often glad to have the

worker structure the group, but testing and conflict often signify that members are vying

for group

Although every group has unique developmental pattern that calls for different

leadership skills, workers are often expected to perform six broad activities during the

middle stage of all treatment groups. These activities include the following:

1. Preparing for group meeting

2. Structuring the group’s work

3. Involving and empowering group members

4. Helping members to achieve goals

5. Working with reluctant and resistant group members

6. Monitoring and evaluating the group’s progress

Preparing for group meetings:During the middle stage, the worker should continuously assess the needs of the

group and its members and plan to meet identified needs in subsequent meetings. The

cycle of assessment, modification, and reassessment is the method by which the leader

ensures continued progress towards contract goals.

In structured, time-limited groups, the worker spends a considerable amount of

time between meetings preparing the agenda for the next group meeting.

Less structured, process-oriented groups also require preparation. A worker

leading a group for residents of an adolescent treatment center prepares for the next

meeting according to her assessment of the efficacy of previous group meetings and the

current functioning of each group members discussed in weekly treatment review

meetings. For example, after discussion with members, the worker may decide to focus

the next meeting on helping members improve how they express anger.

Program materials are activities, games, and exercise designed to provide fun,

interesting experiences for members while achieving particular goals.

Program activities provided a medium through which the functioning of members

can be assessed in areas such as interpersonal skills, ability to perform daily living

activities, motor coordination, attention span, and ability to work cooperatively.

Choosing appropriate program activities requires a careful assessment of the

needs of group members. Characteristics of members should be matched with the

characteristics of potential program activities.

Because of the great number of possible program activities for children,

adolescents, adult, and the elderly, workers should keep a resource file of catalogued

activities to draw on as they are called on to work with different types of groups.

Diagram presents a procedure for evaluating program activities for specific group

needs. Selection should be made on the basis of

1. The objectives of the program activity

2. The purpose and goals of the group

3. The facilities, resources, and time available for the activity

4. The characteristics of the group members

5. The characteristics of particular program activities.

For example, an inpatient group meets in an occupational therapy room equipped

with kitchen facilities, tables, blackboard, arts and crafts, and toys. All members are more

than 70 years old and have poor physical and mental health. Their interests include

gardening, nature, travel, and cooking. The worker selects a program activity that

stimulates members both physically and socially to prepare them for living in a

community residence.

.

1. Specify program activities that are consistent with group purposes and goals

1.

2. Specify the objectives of the program activity

3. Specify program activities that can be done given available facilities, resources, and the time available

Structuring the Group’s Work:

Structuring the work of treatment groups has been recognized as a necessary in-

gredient of social work treatment for many years.

Structure refers to the use of planned, systematic, time-limited interventions and

program activities. Highly structured interventions rely on the guidance and direction of

the worker, but less structured approaches encourage members to take full responsibility

for the purpose, goals, and interventions used in the group.

4. List potentially relevant program activities based on membersInterests and motivationAgeSkill levelPhysical and mental stateAttention span

5. Classify program activities according to a. Characteristics of the activity, e.g., length,

structure, etc.b. Physical requirement of the activity, e.g. fine

motor coordination, strengthc. Social requirements of the activity, e.g.

interactional, verbal, and social skillsd. Psychological requirements of the activity,

e.g. expression of feelings, thoughts, motivese. Cognitive requirements of the activity e.g.

orientation to time, place, and person

6. Select the program activity that is best suited to achieve the objectives specified

In general, structure encourages the rapid learning of new responses. Therefore,

one advantage of structured groups is that they provide and efficient means for members

to learn new skills.

Structure is essential in multicomponent treatment programs, sometimes referred

to as psycho educational groups. For example, assertion-training group may include a

brief lecture and group discussion about what it means to be assertive, followed by role

playing, modeling, rehearsal, reinforcement, and cognitive interventions-all activities are

designed to help members practice becoming more assertive.

The worker can perform a variety of activities to structure the group’s work. One

of the most basic activities is to let members know that each meeting will begin and end

on time. Except for the first meeting, openings should not be delayed in anticipation of

late members. Starting meetings late only reinforces member’s future’ tardiness.

The worker should also structure the end of a meeting to summarize and conclude

interactions rather than to being new agenda items. New items should not be introduced

near the end of a session. Sometimes a group member will wait until the end of the

meeting to disclose an important piece of information or to voice an important concern.

Because these “doorknob” communications (ShulMan,1999) cannot be dealt with

adequately in the short time remaining, the worker should ask the member to hold the

new material until the next meeting.

Whether verbal or written, a clear agenda helps focus attention on what will bhe covered

during the meeting and makes members aware of how much time is available for

exercises, role plays, presentations, and discussions.

The worker also can structure a group by establishing and maintaining orderly

communication and interaction patterns. The structure of the interaction however, may

receive more attention in one meeting and less in others.

In these efforts, the worker balances the socio emotional needs of individual

members and the needs of the groups as a whole to accomplish specific goals. The

worker also should strive to foster members initiative and leadership but should prevent

the group from being dominated by a single individual or a subgroup.

Sometimes workers are reluctant to assert themselves for example, by guiding the

group from a discussion of one issue to another or directing role plays or program

activities. Workers should be aware, however, that group members expect them to

provide guidance and leadership, particularly when the group is having trouble staying

focused on its stated objectives. Workers are expected to use their professional

knowledge and skills to guide members’ progress toward the goals that have been set

without dominating or suppressing members’ initiatives.

Time is an important factor in structuring the work of a group. Time-limited,

structured group work methods have been shown to be effective for children, adolescents,

and adults experiencing a variety of problems. Despite the evidence for the effectiveness

of time-limited approaches to group work, some needs are clearly better served in long-

term groups.

Focusing is another way to structure the work of a group. In any treatment group,

the focus of an intervention, sometimes referred to as the level of an intervention, can be

either the individual member, the group itself, or the group’s external environment. The

focus of the groups should change with the changing needs of the groups.

INVOLVING AND EMPOWERING GROUP MEMBERS:Another important activity in the work stage of treatment groups is to help

members become fully involved in the work of the group. The ultimate goal of the

process is to empower members so they can take charge of their lives both inside and

outside the group. Workers who are insecure about their position often make the mistake

of being overly directive or even manipulative. Instead of dong their utmost to help

members take as much responsibility as they are able to for the direction of the group,

insecure workers often think they have to be in control at all times. This view is often

counterproductive and leads members to become rebellious or passive-aggressive.

An important firs step in the process of involving and empowering group

members is for workers to show their belief in members’ strengths. Statements that

express confidence in members’ motivation and tenacity, point out their abilities, and

describe their previous accomplishments help to foster member’s resolve to accomplish

particular goals.

Expressing belief in members’ strengths does not mean that the worker should be

unrealistic and ignore impediments to goal achievement. Thus, a second step in the

process of empowering groups members is to acknowledge the difficulties and obstacles

members encounters as they attempt to reach particular goals and objectives.

A third way to empower group members is to help them know that they have a

stake in the content and direction of the groups. Statements such as “This is your group-

what do you want to see happen in it”” help members overcome a tendency to expect the

worker to take full responsibility for group content and process.

A fourth step to encourage involvement and empowerment is to praise members

for reaching out to help each other. Statements such as “I really liked the way you shared

how you felt about Ann’s situation” or “This group is really making progress-it’s

wonderful to see how supportive you are of each other” demonstrate support of member’s

self-help efforts and foster the continued development of cohesion in the group as a

whole. Vannicelli (1992) found that similar statements help foster cohesion in groups for

substance abusers and their families.

A fifth way to empower group members is to encourage them to try out new

behaviors and actions both within and outside the group. Members should be encouraged

to begin by taking small action steps and carefully observing the results. Members can

then report the results of their efforts to the groups. The should be encouraged to

acknowledge each other’s accomplishments and to support each other when obstacles are

encountered.

Helping Members Achieve Their Goals:During the middle stage of the groups, workers should concentrate on helping

members achieve the goals they have agreed to accomplish. Contracting for treatment

goals is an evolving process. A tentative agreement or contract is usually discussed while

interviewing potential members during the planning stage of a group. The contract is

reaffirmed and made more concrete and specific during the beginning stage of the group

as members interact with one another for the first time. Although much of a treatment

group’s work during the middle stage is devoted to carry9ng out contracts developed

during the beginning stage of the groups, contracts continue to evolve as the group

progresses during the middle stage.

Croxton (1985) notes that secondary contracts may be developed to refine initial

contracts. For example, a member of a group for recently separated people might

contract to reduce her angry feelings. And violent outbursts toward her former spouse

when he picks up their children. A secondary contract might involve the member in

discussing her feelings or anger with another member outside the group and reporting

back to the group what she has learned about how to handle angry feelings. A variety of

different secondary contracts could be used to help the member achieve the goals

specified in her primary contract. Thus, secondary contracts evolve as groups members

progress toward their treatment goals.

Although a portion of a treatment group’s work should be devoted to maintaining

a groups’ optimal functioning, most of an effective group’s time during the middle stage

should be focused on helping members achieve their goals. This can be accomplished by

helping members (1) maintain their awareness of their goals, (2) develop specific

treatment plans, (3) overcome obstacles to members’ work on treatment plans, and (4)

carry out treatment plans.

Working with Reluctant and Resistant Group Members:

In some situation, workers will be called on to work with members who do not

want to be in the group. Rooney (1992) notes that involuntary groups are often formed

either through external legal pressure or by nonlegal external pressure from family or

other referral sources.

When working with involuntary group members, it should be kept in mind that

members always have the right to refuse to participate. It is important, however, for the

workers to point out the consequences of refusal, and to clarify nonnegotiable aspects of

participation if involuntary members choose to participate in the groups.

Behroozi (1992) points out that not all involuntary group members are alike.

Individuals in involuntary groups resist goal setting for many reasons. Some perceive

their problems to be too embarrassing to work on them in a groups. Some are angry that

they have been considered incapable of handling their own problems. Some view

themselves as failures or as incompetent and consequently find their personal proble,s too

daunting to tackle. Some deny problems because to admit them would throuw their view

of themselves into chaos.

As members express their views, it is helpful to adopt a position that maximizes

members’ sense of control and expertise. Acknowledging that members can help the

leader understand what it is like to be in their shoes and that members are in the best

position to help themselves demonstrate respect and can do much to help the worker joint

with members in their fledgling attempts to express and work on their concerns.

It can also be helpful to reframe resistance as the members’ way of

communicating their feelings about being forced to attend. The workers should not try to

prevent members from venting their anger. Instead, the anger should be acknowledged.

After everyone has had an opportunity to ventilate, the worker should point put that,

because members have chosen to attend or else face other consequences, they might as

well use the group to their advantage rather than waste their own time. The workers

should ask members to put side the goals imposed on them from outside the group and to

think about what goals they would like to achieve.

The worker should avoid moralizing or blaming. Problem behaviors should be

presented in a direct, factual way and, whenever possible, members should be asked to

describe in their own words the negative consequences that have resulted from problem

behaviors. For example, the workers might divulge what members blood alcohol levels

were at the time of their arrests for driving while intoxicated and ask them to describe

what consequences they have had as a result of the arrest.

Even though constructive confrontations can help overcome members’ resistance

to working in the group, it is important to remember that reluctant and resistant members

will continue to experience obstacles to goal achievement as they attempt to develop and

implement treatment plans. These obstacles can reduce their motivation, which makes

them reluctant to continue to work to accomplish specific goals. Reid (1992), for

example, points out that beliefs about change and obstacles encountered in the external

environment reduce members motivation engage in tasks to resolve particulars problems.

Methods designed to help members change their beliefs and to make the external

environment more responsive are described in Chapter 10.

Although all the tactics mentioned can be helpful when working with resistant

clients, the most important thing the workers can do is maintain a therapeutic stance. In a

wonderful book on working with difficult clients, Kottler (1992) points out that it is

essential for workers to avoid personalizing oppositional behavior. Also, one must avoid

retaliating, threatening, and levying punitive sanction. Instead, the worker should be

patient and compassionate, keep a sense of humor, and avoid feeling omnipotent, that is,

believing that one can help any one, all the time.

Monitoring and Evaluating the Group’s Progress:

Monitoring and evaluating progress provides feedback for workers and members,

which is useful in developing, modifying, and changing treatment plans. It also is helpful

in maintain the functioning of the group as a whole.

One of the most common methods of obtaining feedback from members during

the middle stage of a group’s development is to give members a session evaluation from

(Such as that shown in Chapter 13, figure 13.3) at the end of each group session.)

How frequently should session evaluation forms be administered? In some

groups, they can be used at the end of each session. Workers who are not familiar with

using session evaluation forms sometimes wonder how they will be received by

members, but brief forms that take only a few minutes to fill out are not a burden for

members to complete. In fact, members often enjoy the change to let the worker know

what they like and dislike about the group.

In other groups, workers may prefer to evaluate the group’s progress after every

second or third session. Other frequently used methods of monitoring and evaluating

include having members self-monitor their behaviors and having others who are familiar

with members’ concerns (such as other workers or family members) report progress to

the worker. These and other monitoring and evaluation methods are described in

Chapters 8 and 13. The actual methods use4d for obtaining feedback are, however, not as

important as whether the feedback is systematically solicited, collected, and acted on.

Obtaining feedback allows workers to fine-tune a group as it progresses through the

middle stage. It also a signal to members that their opinions are valued and that their

ideas and concerns will be analyzed and acted on. For these reasons, monitoring and

evaluating a group’s progress is and essential workers activity during the middle stage of

groups development.

Jomol

ADVANCED PHASES OF GROUP WORK

GROUP WORK: It is method through which individuals in groups in social agency setting are helped

by a worker who guides their interactions in programme activities so that they may relate

themselves to others and experiences growth opportunities in accordance with their needs

and capacities to the end of the individual, group and community development.

ADVANCED PHASE: During this stage the group is stable and well-matured . The attendance of group

members reaches an optimum level .The members and the group is more focused to

accomplish its purpose and objectives.The group executes activities . Goals are set for

execution.

Stage four, which is not achieved by many groups, is characterized by interdependence in

personal relations. Interdependence means that members have the ability to work singly,

in any subgroup, or as a total unit.

The group's activities are both collaborative and functionally competitive. The feelings

are focused on enjoyment of the here and the now. A reflective, meditative silence

coexists with playful and pleasurable interaction with others. The task seems completed

and there is a need for closure, repose, and quiet.

This movement is marked by integration and celebration. Much work is accomplished;

previously difficult issues are simply and easily resolved. There may be attempts by some

members of the group to "freeze" change and the group may decide to stop its work here.

The ending phase presents the group members the opportunity to consolidate gains,

explore feelings and thoughts about endings, review and evaluate their work and make

plans for the future The fourth phase shows high levels of loyalty, participation,

motivation, and group decision-making within the team. Knowledge sharing, cross-

training, and interdependence increases among the membership. The team becomes self-

directing in development of plans and strategy to meet their goals and carry out work.

Personal growth and sharing is highly encouraged both inside and outside the team.

At this phase, the leader moves to a facilitator role by advising the team in

communication processes and helping them overcome obstacles if they revert to a prior

phase.

Termination is a particularly important opportunity for members to honor the work they

have done, to grieve the loss of associations and friendships, and to look forward to a

positive future. Group members should learn and practice saying “good-bye,”

understanding that it is necessary to make room in their lives for the next “hello.

“Termination,” Yalom (1995, pp. 361–362) observes, “is more than the end of therapy; it

is … an important force in the process of change … a stage in the individual's career of

growth.” The group begins this work of termination when the group as a whole reaches

its agreed-upon termination point or a member determines that it is time to leave the

group. In either case, termination is a time for

Putting closure on the experience

Examining the impact of the group on each person

Acknowledging the feelings triggered by departure

Giving and receiving feedback about the group experience and each member's

role in it

Completing any unfinished business

Exploring ways to carry on the learning the group has offered

Departing clients have been classified into three groups. Completers have finished the

work they came into group to do. Plateauers are not really finished, but their progress has

slowed or stopped for the time being. Fleers feel an irresistible need to escape as rapidly

as possible, often because they have encountered an upsetting reality in the group or in

their lives outside the group

The group may be invited to explore the proposal that a member leave the group. In

addition, the leader might ask clients about to terminate to classify themselves as

completers, plateauers, or fleers. If the client is a fleer, that person might be asked a

hypothetical question: If you remained in group, what do you think you might work on?

Such a query might bring to light the issue the fleer wants very much to avoid. To

dissuade a person departing prematurely, it may also help to comment, “One of the

characteristics of a good decision is that it remains a good decision even after

consideration a few weeks later” . Then ask the client if, by that standard, his decision to

leave will be a good one.

Whatever attempts are made to dissuade premature termination, some people with

substance abuse problems inevitably will leave groups abruptly, for a variety of reasons.

Groups should be forewarned that sudden changes may take place, and leaders should be

prepared to help group members cope with these changes.

Completing a group successfully can be an important event for group members, when

they see the conclusion of a difficult but successful endeavor . The termination of a group

also is an opportunity for clients to practice parting, with the understanding that a

departure leads to the next opportunity for connection.

Even positive, celebrated departures, however, can raise strong feelings, so soon-to-

depart members of an ongoing group should give ample advance notice (perhaps 4

weeks) to give the group time to process the feelings associated with the leave-taking

Group members should be given permission to examine existential issues like loss,

growth, death, the shortness of time, the unfairness of life, and other thoughts that can

prey on the mind .So often, clients who used drugs or alcohol to anesthetize their grief

over losses come to confront their grief in early sobriety. Every group facilitator working

with substance abuse therefore should understand the grief process and should be

prepared to deal with grieving clients.

It is natural for individuals and groups to try to hold onto each other. “Some isolated

patients may postpone termination because they have been using the therapy group for

social reasons rather than as a means for developing the skills to create a social life for

themselves in their home environment. The therapist should help these members focus on

transfer of learning and encourage risk taking outside the group” Alternatively, groups

(and therapists) may subtly pressure a particular group member to remain because they

value the departing member's contributions and will miss him or her. When a senior

member leaves, however, another ordinarily will assume the role just vacated

Some client feelings may concern parting from the therapist. Some clients who are

exquisitely sensitive to abandonment, for example, may deny the gains they have made.

They need reassurance that, once they improve, they no longer will need the therapist. In

other reluctant clients, symptoms may recur. These people need help seeing the apparent

setback for what it really is: fear of termination

Under no circumstances should the therapist “collude in the denial of termination” . The

client has to come to grips with the reality of leaving and not routinely returning. The

departing client and the balance of the group should face the fact that “the group will be

irreversibly altered; replacements will enter the group; the present cannot be frozen; time

flows on cruelly and inexorably”

In general, the longer members have been with the group, the longer they may need to

spend on termination. The group leader plays an important role in termination, either

facilitating an individual's good-bye to the group or the group's good-bye to itself (if the

group is ending). Although group leaders cannot say good-bye for the group, they can

encourage the group to fashion its own farewell.

CONCLUSION:

During this phase goals are set for execution .There is a strong we feeling in the group.

Conflicts and control are clearly observed in the group.There are chances that by this

stage some members may loose their interest in the activates and in the group such

members should be identified and their interest in the group should be generated and once

again make them active members of the group.

Vanitha

GROUP WORK PROCESS EVALUATION

PHASE

INTRODUCTION

The early development of group work

We examine the emergence of group work in British work with young people and

adults during the nineteenth century. In particular we review the contribution of

ragged schooling, boys' and girls' clubs, settlements and adult education to the

development of theory and practice.

The emergence of the group as a focus for intervention and work within social work and

informal education in Britain was a slow process and initially largely wrapped up with

the response of Christians, particularly evangelical Christians, to the social conditions

they encountered in the late eighteenth and throughout the nineteenth century. Examples

here 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. 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. Out of this innovatory forms of

working emerged and were fertilized by developments in other fields. As we will see

university settlements played an important role in developing youth work and adult

education, and ragged schools were a model for many boys clubs (and transformed

themselves into adult education provision - see Quentin Hogg and the Youth's Christian

Institute).

While many of the key figures were middle and upper class we ignore at our peril the

level of mutual aid activity that developed during the nineteenth century especially

around chapels, meeting houses, working mens' clubs and in the field of adult education

(see, for example, Smith on the making of popular youth work; Rose 2002). As the

century progressed more catholic and secular traditions of thinking and practice

developed. Within club work, for example, we look to the work of Mary Neal and

Emmeline Pethick; similarly many of the settlement pioneers influenced by the idealism

of Green and the Christian socialism of Thomas Kingsley, Frederick Dennison Maurice

and others could not be conventionally described as evangelical. 

In this article I focus on work in four, early, connected British traditions - ragged

schooling, boys and girls clubs, settlements and adult education. Sunday schooling was

also an important tradition - but I have tended to deal with it here as a 'feeder' tradition

into the other four. At the end of the century we also begin to see the development of

uniformed work for example, through William Smith and the Boys' Brigade), and

subsequent significant innovation in method by Robert Baden Powell around scouting. In

north America we could also mention the development organized camping and the

interest in woodcraft by Ernest Seton and others. I have chosen these four particular

traditions of practice as exemplars.

Definitions of Group work on the Web:

Social work includes all voluntary attempt to extend benefits in response to need which

are to need which are concerned with social relationships ...

Evaluation of Group Process

Occasionally groups do not flow the way we would like for them to

Sometimes group member sit

back and let others carry their load. Those doing all the work get resentful and

most often a less than satisfactory product results. Other times, group members

work incredibly well together and have an enjoyable education experience.

Because I don’t know what is going on in your group I have devised an

anonymous peer critique system so members can evaluate themselves and other

members according to levels of involvement in the planning, research-gathering,

writing, rehearsal and presentational stages of the group process. You will

complete the following form for self and all group members twice during the

group process.

Justify your scores with commentsEconomic & Social Evaluation

Featured Projects:

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I learned a lot! What a treasure of information and something the county will be returning

to for years and years.- Education Team Reviewer

Measuring the success of a program requires an ongoing process of planning,

implementation, and evaluation. Government agencies, nonprofit organizations, and

businesses are being challenged by investors and funders to quantify success and measure

the effectiveness of their work. At the 106 Group, we develop plans using a logic model

that describes the relationship between investments, activities, and results and provides

an approach to integrate planning, implementation, evaluation, and reporting. We have

experience in quantifying economic benefits and social returns through cost benefit

analyses, economic impact studies, and standardized measures of performance.

What is groupwork?

While many practitioners may describe what they do as 'groupwork', they often have

only a limited appreciation of what groupwork is and what it entails. In this piece we

introduce groups and groupwork, define some key aspects, and suggest areas for

exploration. In particular we focus on the process of working with groups.

for some groupwork is just another way of talking about teamwork. In this context,

working in groups is often presented as a good way of dividing work and increasing

productivity. It can also be argued that it allows for the utilization of the different skills,

knowledge and experiences that people have. As a result, in schools and colleges it is

often approached as a skill to be learnt – the ability to work in group-based environments.

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 instructor's repertoire.

In this article our focus is different. 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. 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. These abilities are often not recognized

for what they are – for when groupwork is done well it can seem natural. Skilled

groupworkers, like skilled counsellors, have to be able to draw upon an extensive

repertoire of understandings, experiences and skills and be able to think on their feet.

They have to respond both quickly and sensitively to what is emerging in the exchanges

and relationships in the groups they are working with.

Our starting point for this is a brief exploration of the nature of groups. We then turn to

the process of working with. We also try to define groupwork – and discuss some of foci

that workers need to attend to. We finish with an overview of the development of

groupwork as a focus for theory-making and exploration

EXAMPLES:-

CLIENT GROUPS

2.1 Supporting young parents

This theme examines how projects address the specific needs of young parents who often

have specific and complex issues that limit their employability. Young parents often

cannot complete education or training due to pregnancy and childbirth and will become

disengaged from these activities thereby affecting their future opportunities. They may

also have a range of complex issues that require specialist in-depth, long-term support.

Four areas had specific projects aimed at addressing the issues faced by young parents

moving towards employment, education or training. These projects came into operation

after the start of WFF as young parents were identified as a specific client group with

particular needs.

These projects tend to operate through Key Workers supporting young parents. The Key

Worker will be a specialist in dealing with the complex range of issues associated with

this client group and aim to keep the young parents engaged with mainstream services

over the longer term. In Glasgow, the city-wide Young Parents Guidance project (see

case study) also aims to set up a joint working forum with other agencies in the city to

improve the support provided.

The projects tend to deal with different age categories of young people. For instance,

Glasgow's Young Parents Guidance project works with clients aged between 16 and 19

years old (and up to 24 years old for clients who have been in care), whereas

Renfrewshire's Assisting Teenage Parents and North Ayrshire's Young Parent's Health

project works with clients aged under 16 years who are still in mainstream school.

Other areas either assist young parents through the Key Worker programmes or refer

them onto specialist services available in their area.

Young Parents Guidance (Glasgow)

Background

The Young Parents Guidance project started at the end of December 2004.

Delivery and Management

This project is operated by Careers Scotland (part of Scottish Enterprise) and employs

two full-time Project Workers to deliver the project. The project covers clients across the

whole of Glasgow.

What the project offers

The project aims to re-engage young parents in education, training or work and give

support with childcare. Through this process the Young Parents Guidance Workers offer

holistic support. They assess a client's needs and determine a path of development in

which appropriate services will be contacted ( e.g. careers). Project Workers work with

the WFF Guidance and Mentoring project for area knowledge and with the Childcare

Mentors to arrange childcare support.

Project workers described how they will "take clients on their journey" ( e.g. accompany

to appointments, check regularly on clients, etc.).

In addition, the project aims to inform policy on young parents' issues. A strategic

steering group has been set up in order to feed back on issues relating to services for

young people.

Achievements - Clients

This project engages mainly with clients between 16 to 19 years old. In some instances it

also deals with 15 year olds and up to 24 years if the young person has been in care.

Clients can be parents already or about to become parents. Project Workers explain that

the low level of clients is due to the newness of the project.

Up to the 31 March 2006, 22 clients have registered directly with the project. In addition

to this, up to the 31 March 2006, 2 clients were referred from North East Guidance and

Mentoring project. 11 clients were referred from this project to others (6 to Guidance and

Mentoring, 1 to the HNC project, 3 to the Money Advice project and 1 to Rosemount

project - the project is not stated).

Success Factors

Project Workers stressed that it was too early to see what was working well with the

project, because the project has only recently been established and, as such, has not yet

progressed any clients. It was nevertheless noted that there has not been much other

support for young parents and therefore this service is unique and needed.

Issues - Service Development

Project Workers point out that there has been a low level of referrals from some areas

which have a high percentage of their client target group and that the reason for this

needs to be identified.

Following the issue of referrals it was mentioned by the Project Workers that although

large national organisations seemed keen on the project, this has not yet been reflected in

the number of referrals. A reason may be that those organisations take a while to react at

the local level.

Issues - Service Delivery

Project Workers also note that most services are postcode-bound and this creates a lack of

consistency/continuity of services between areas.

They also cite the lack of knowledge of young peoples' issues ( e.g. benefits) in this

project and in other large organisations. There is a need for training on young peoples'

issues.

There is a need to make home visits in some cases. The ethos of the project is to engage

those clients who are difficult to engage, therefore home visits will help, but that would

require two workers.

Client Quotes

No Client quotes available.

Application Information

The Evaluation Cycle

May: Invitations to apply are sent to members.

August: The institutions that have been selected for the coming round receive the

guidelines for the self-evaluation.

September: Introductory workshop for participating institutions.

June-February: Organisation and production of the self-evaluation report.

December-March: Preliminary visit by the evaluation team to get acquainted

with the institution and to request additional information if needed.

March-June: Evaluation visit and report.

Conclusion:

In all this we can see the increased use of groups and associations in work with young

people and adults. There was a growing appreciation of group process and sophistication

in approach within adult education. In the settlements there had been an emphasis on

social investigation, a concern to deepen methodology and a wish to connect this with

wider developments in the social sciences. Club work with boys and girls had established

a great store of practice wisdom about the organization and functioning of groups which

had begun to be reflected in the literature.

However, much of the running in the development of thinking and practice about

working with groups now shifted across the Atlantic. The growing impact of psychology

and developments in thinking about human relations, the emergence of psychoanalysis

(from around 1910), and a developing literature about the group and the crowd. Within

sociology researchers such as Charles Horton Cooley were developing what might be

called ‘small group theory’ and, in particular, the idea of the primary group - small

informal groups such as families and play groups that gave members a sense of solidarity

and mutual identification. Robert McIver was especially concerned with inter-group

relations and the nature of community; and George Herbert Mead had highlighted the

notion of the social self. Within education we can see the growing influence of more

‘progressive’ methods - and in particular the development of thinking by pragmatist such

as Dewey and Kirkpatrick. The social education movement, from the turn of the century

on, began to mark out their territory. The ground was set for a development in the theory

of practice.

Mariyana

GROUP WORK PROCESS TERMINATION

PHASE

INTRODUCTION: Group work is a method of working with people in a groups for the enhancement of

socially desirable goals group work is based on the knowledge of peoples needs for each

other and their interdependence .Group work helps to achieve the overall objectives of

social work through its own specific objectives which are to assist individuals in their

maturation ,provide,supplemental,promote democratic participation and citizenship for

individual and social organization or maladjustment through group intervention

strategies.

Definitions: The interaction and interpersonal relationship among the group members

Lead to the development of each and every individual. This group dynamism

is known as group process.

TERMINATION PHASE-

Introduction: One of the group leadership skills that is especially important as a group evolves and is

moving towards the final stage is the capacity to assist members in transferring what they

have learnt in the group to their outside environment. The skills that workers use in the

ending phase determine the success of the entire group experience. In the ending

phase,workers and members alike from lasting impression of the group. This is the time

for summarizing, pulling together loose ends, and also integrating and interpreting the

group experience. The initial and final stage are the most decisive times in the groups life

history. If the initial phase is effective, the participants get to know one another and

establish their own identities in the group

ENDING THE GROUPS WORK: During the ending phase, the groups work consolidated. In task groups, the decision,

report ,recommendations and other product of the as a whole are completed, and

consideration is given to the ways in which the results of a group work can be best

implemented. In treatment groups, the changes made by individual group work can be

best implemented.Intreatment groups, the changes made by individual group members

are stabilized and plans are made for maintaining these gains after the group ends.

PLANNED AND UNPLANNED TERMINATION: At the beginning of closed, time-limited groups, workers and members plan the number

of times the group will meet. As Northern points out,idelly,termination occurs when a

person or group no longer needs the professional service. Sometimes members stop

attending before the plan ending date. In treatment groups in which participation is

voluntary, a reduction in membership sometimes occurs after the first and second

meeting of a group. After the initial drop in membership. Groups generally develop a

stable core of members who continue to participate until the group ends.

VARIATIONS IN ENDINGS: The process of ending varies considerably from group to group. Endings vary

depending on whether a group has an open or close membership policy. In closed group,

unless there is an unplanned termination, all members end at the same time. Open groups

present a more difficult challenge for the worker. Some member may be experiencing

reactions to termination at the same time that others are experiencing reaction common to

the beginning or middle phase of group work. In open groups, the worker should

individualize his or her work with each member.

EFFECTIVE WAYS OF TERMINATING A GROUP: Some ways in terminating a group can be done in an effective ways are as follows:

Dealing with feelings: During the final stage of the group, it is a good practice for the

leader to remind that there are only a few session remaining. This allows members to

prepare themselves for to achieve successful closure of the group experience, it is the

leaders job to facilitate an open discussion of the feelings of loss and sadness that

accompany the eventual termination of an intense and highly meaningful experience. The

members can be helped to face separation by the leaders disclosure of his or her own

feelings about terminating the group.

Examining the effects of the group on oneself: Towards the end of the group it is useful

to give all members an opportunity to put into words what they have learnt from the

entire group experience and how they intend to apply their increased self-understanding.

This is the time for making specific plans for ways members can continue to build on

what they have learned in their group.

Giving and receiving feedback: Giving and receiving feedback are crucial during the

final phase. Although members of an effective group have been sharing their perception

and feelings at each session, the opportunity to give and receive summary feedback has a

value of its own.

Completing unfinished business: Time should be allotted for working through any

unfinished business relating to transaction between members or to the group process and

goals, yet addressing unfinished business should not be done at the very last session.

Even if some issues cannot be resolved, members should be encourage to talk about

them.

Conclusion: In conclusion we can said that group work process is the interaction and interpersonal

relationship among the group members let to the development of each and every

individual .Termination is that stage when the group has been self-sufficient, it is study

about the important of ending the group work ,planned and unplanned termination,

variation in endings, on the other termination has an effective ways of terminating a

group like dealing with feeling, examining the effect of the group on oneself, giving and

receiving feedback, completing unfinished business etc.

Revathy

TYPES OF RECORDING

INTRODUCTION:The term ‘recording’ means noting down the account of facts or sequence

of activities or events; recording is one of the necessary skills of a group worker. It is

difficult to remember everything that happens in a group and recollect them. Hence

recording becomes essential.

RECORDING IN GROUP WORKRecording in group work or in other words record taking in group work is

less universally practiced and less perfected than in case work; nevertheless, it is

important, and is becoming increasingly so. The, group worker, whether professional or

non professional, needs accurate information. This need is primarily personal, in as much

as it relates to the understanding he has of his relations with his groups and the inner

dynamics of the group processes. It is possible for some group leaders or group workers

to maintain objectively regarding the process in which they are involved without recourse

to writing, but the number is small. Most group workers find that record taking or

recording increases the objectivity with which they view their work. The group worker

makes record or takes record of the group members and different activities of the group.

He/she meets the group in different times as the case worker does. In every meeting the

group work observes carefully to the members of the group and makes record. There are

different types of recording.

TYPES OF RECORDING:

1. INDIVIDUAL RECORDING:It is highly selective in its approach and focuses on the individual’s

particular identification such as age, sex, family background, personality pattern,

strengths, weakness and the role of worker in his interactions with the client.

2. NARRRATIVE RECORDING:It was expected to facilitate research and practice by allowing the

client to reveal the self by using his or her own dialogue.

(a) To gather information for the development of social work practice theory

and

(b) To monitor service evaluation.

Narrative recording is also known as process recording; it consists

of details of date, time, place, members present, absent, statements, observation,

and comments of the workers. A detailed accounts of the events, goes to narrative

record. It narrates how the members came together, their reactions and

interactions; the activities conducted and its influences on the members. The

worker should interpret the individual behaviour and record it. Process recording

is used in hospital training programs, in cases involving the courts and legal

issues, and in other educational settings. For the most part, process recording

remain a type of case based documentation primarily used to assist beginning

level social workers and other health care providers to learn counseling and

practice strategy.

3. SUMMARY RECORDING:

It tries to summaries the interactions with focus on main events.

This is used in regular practice when the therapist is hard pressed for time. It is

useful for self evaluation and appraisal. Here group worker records the following:

Type of group

Purpose of group

Meeting place

Frequency of meeting

Average attendance

Nature of work

Evaluation

PRINCIPLES OF RECORDING: Principle of flexibility

Principle of selection

Principle of readability

Principle of confidentiality

Principle of acceptance

CONCLUSION:Recording is an extremely important method to learn in social work practice.

Records are important to the agency which sponsors worker. The agency, through the

supervisor, has a means of knowing what is going on if there is a record. By aiding the

worker through guidance, it can improve its own programme. The value of records to the

group work clients is indirect but nevertheless real.

Kanga

USE OF PROGRAME

INTRODUCTION: Programme are use to help improve people’s lives to a profession that requires a great

deal of care and commitment. Awareness programme helps the children and the adult

about the consequences and dangers of life by reaching out to the target audience.

Programmes are designed to establish a broad sense of responsibility in an effort to

developed smart ethical and social consciousness among the people.

CONCEPT:A Programme is a performance or series of performances at a public presentation: it is

categorized as an act, human action, human activity, diversion, recreation entertainment,

amusement, show, demonstration, performance, etc.

A Programme is a series of steps to be carried out or goals to be accomplished.

SALIENT FEATURES:A Programme is a method to investigate the implementation and impact of public

programs. Government agencies, school systems, nonprofit agencies operating grant-

funded programs, public health organizations, and others conduct programmes to educate

and give awareness to the masses. Programme can reveal important findings that help

agencies gauge programme impact and improve services as well.

It provides opportunities to recognize the needs of the people

It includes activities and curriculum development

It includes teaching aids, holding of seminars, workshops and panel discussions

Creation of method for training and technical education of the handicapped,

preparation of resource materials and undertaking of any other activities, which

will serve the purpose.

CONCLUSION:Programme is a useful means of communicating with the target audience. It is well

planned and designed according to the needs, purpose and the people at which it is meant

for. There are various kinds of programmes undertaken by various groups and individuals

when certain need arises due to the existing problems or issue. Therefore progrmmes are

carried into the field to resolve the conflicting issue that has been affecting the society.

There are various awareness programme carrying out by various organizations.

Especially in the rural areas awareness programmes relating to health and sanitation, the

non-profit-organization has been educating and disseminating message on how to take

care of themselves and the children. Besides health programme, social workers have been

taking active parts in moulding the youths and children to live a better life.

REFERENCES:htt//www.wordreference.com

htt//www.wikipedia.org/wiki/program

Suga priyanka

CONCEPTS AND DEFINITION OF

LEADERSHIP

1. Communication- Effectively expresses ideas and facts, in a succinct, organized manner

- Makes clear and convincing oral presentation

- Considers and responds appropriately to ideas and thoughts expressed by others

- Written Communication

2. Leadership (providing vision and direction, fostering commitment)- Inspires and challenges others

- Takes a long-term view and initiates organizational change for the future

- Builds commitment to the vision with others

- Identifies opportunities to move the organization toward the vision

- Works with others to build vision

3. Conflict Management- Resolves conflicts, confrontations, and disagreements in a positive and constructive

manner

- Strives for win-win solutions

- Works to minimize negative personal impact

4. Managing and Developing Others- Ensures that staff are appropriately selected, utilized, appraised, and developed

- Motivates and guides others' toward goal accomplishment

- Rewards people for efforts and achievements and ensures they are treated in a fair and

equitable manner

- Empowers people by sharing information, knowledge, skills, power and authority

- Develops lower levels of leadership by pushing authority downward and outward

throughout the organizations

- Coaches and mentors others

5. Team Building- Manages group processes

- Encourages and facilitates cooperation, pride, trust and group identity

- Fosters commitment and team spirit

- Works with others to achieve goals

6. Customer Focus- Anticipates and meets the needs of clients

- Achieves quality end products

- Advocates and takes action for improving services

7. Diversity- Recognizes the positive influences of diverse cultures, viewpoints, behavioral and

learning styles

- Adapts leadership styles to a variety of situations

- Builds a workforce that includes and values diversity in race, gender, culture, and other

aspects of individual differences

8. Relational Influence- Considers and responds appropriately to the needs, feelings, and capabilities of others

- Develops networks and coalitions with others who have mutual interests or goals

- Develops networks and coalitions with others who have complementary skills and

knowledge

- Gains cooperation from others to obtain and share information and accomplish goals

- Builds consensus and finds mutually acceptable solutions

- Persuades others and influences outcomes

- Develops and maintains awareness of external factors that affect the organization

9. Initiative (decisiveness, self-direction)- Demonstrates belief in own abilities and ideas

- Is self-motivating and results-oriented

- Recognizes own strengths and weaknesses

- Makes sound, well informed decisions

- Perceives the impact of decisions

- Commits to action to accomplish organizational goals

10. Flexibility- Remains open to change and new ideas

- Adapts behavior and work methods in response to new information, changing

conditions, or unexpected obstacles

11. Process and Product Improvement- Assures that effective internal controls are developed and maintained to ensure the

integrity of the

organization, products and services

- Continually improves the quality of products and services

- Identifies simpler, faster, less costly processes for achieving high quality results

12. Creativity and Innovation- Develops new insights into situations and applies innovative solutions to make

organizational improvements

- Designs and implements new or cutting edge programs and processes

13. Goal Attainment- Determines objectives and strategies

- Develops plans and organizes resources for implementation of projects

- Coordinates with other parts of the organization to accomplish goals

- Monitors and evaluates the progress and outcomes of operational plans

- Anticipates potential threats or opportunities

- Synthesizes large amounts of information into important points

14. Policies & Regulations- Interprets and applies personnel procedures:

Harassment

Drug & Alcohol

FMLA

ADA

Workplace violence

Grievance procedures

AA/EEO

Employment

Pay, Benefits

Environmental Health and Safety

15. Financial Management- Prepares, justifies, and administers budgets for program areas

- Plans, administers, and monitors expenditures to ensure cost-effective support of

programs and policies

- Monitors, oversees, and controls revenue-generating activities

16. QSP/ Basic Principles

- Focus on the situation or behavior, not the person

- Maintain the self-confidence and self esteem of others

- Maintain constructive relationships with everyone

- Take the initiative to make things better

- Lead by example

Swapna

Theories of Leadership

Introduction:

Interest in leadership increased during the early part of the twentieth century. Early

leadership theories focused on what qualities distinguished between leaders and

followers, while subsequent theories looked at other variables such as situational factors

and skill level.Leadership has been described as the “process of social influence in

which one person can enlist the aid and support of others in the accomplishment of a

common task”.[1] A definition more inclusive of followers comes from Alan Keith of

Genentech who said "Leadership is ultimately about creating a way for people to

contribute to making something extraordinary happen."[2]

Leadership is one of the most salient aspects of the organizational context. However,

defining leadership has been challenging. The following sections discuss several

important aspects of leadership including a description of what leadership is and a

description of several popular theories and styles of leadership. This article also discusses

topics such as the role of emotions and vision, as well as leadership effectiveness and

performance, leadership in different contexts, how it may differ from related concepts

(i.e., management), and some critiques of leadership as generally conceived.

According to the late Jules Masserman, American psychoanalyst and former member of

the faculty of Northwestern University medical school, leaders must fulfill three

functions: the leader must provide for the well-being of the led, provide a social

organization in which people feel relatively secure, and provide a set of beliefs

. While many different leadership theories have emerged, most can be classified as one of

eight major types:

1.“Great Man” Theories:

Great Man theories assume that the capacity for leadership is inherent – that great leaders

are born not made. These theories often portray great leaders as heroic, mythic, and

destined to rise to leadership when needed. The term “Great Man” was used because, at

the time, leadership was thought of primarily as a male quality, especially in terms of

military leadership.

2. Trait Theories:

Similar in some ways to “Great Man” theories, trait theory assumes that people inherit

certain qualities and traits that make them better suited to leadership. Trait theories often

identify particular personality or behavioral characteristics shared by leaders. But if

particular traits are key features of leadership, how do we explain people who possess

those qualities but are not leaders? This question is one of the difficulties in using trait

theories to explain leadership. Trait theory tries to describe the types of behavior and

personality tendencies associated with effective leadership. This is probably the first

academic theory of leadership. Thomas Carlyle (1841) can be considered one of the

pioneers of the trait theory, using such approach to identify the talents, skills and physical

characteristics of men who arose to power.

Proponents of the trait approach usually list leadership qualities, assuming certain traits

or characteristics will tend to lead to effective leadership. Shelley Kirkpatrick and Edwin

A. Locke (1991) exemplify the trait theory. They argue that "key leader traits include:

drive (a broad term which includes achievement, motivation, ambition, energy, tenacity,

and initiative, leadership motivation (the desire to lead but not to seek power as an end in

itself), honesty, integrity, self-confidence (which is associated with emotional stability),

cognitive ability, and knowledge of the business. According to their research, "there is

less clear evidence for traits such as charisma, creativity and flexibility".

Criticism to trait theory

Although trait theory has an intuitive appeal, difficulties may arise in proving its tenets,

and opponents frequently challenge this approach. The "strongest" versions of trait theory

see these “leadership characteristics” as innate, and accordingly label some people as

"born leaders" due to their psychological makeup. On this reading of the theory,

[[leadership development]] involves identifying and measuring leadership qualities,

screening potential leaders from non-leaders, and then training those with potential.

3. Contingency Theories:

Contingency theories of leadership focus on particular variables related to the

environment that might determine which particular style of leadership is best suited for

the situation. According to this theory, no leadership style is best in all situations. Success

depends upon a number of variables, including the leadership style, qualities of the

followers, and aspects of the situation

4. Situational Theories:

Situational theories propose that leaders choose the best course of action based upon

situational variable. Different styles of leadership may be more appropriate for certain

types of decision-making.

5. Behavioral Theories:

Behavioral theories of leadership are based upon the belief that great leaders are made,

not born. Rooted in behaviorism, this leadership theory focuses on the actions of leaders,

not on mental qualities or internal states. According to this theory, people can learn to

become leaders through teaching and observation.

6. Participative Theories:

Participative leadership theories suggest that the ideal leadership style is one that takes

the input of others into account. These leaders encourage participation and contributions

from group members and help group members feel more relevant and committed to the

decision-making process. In participative theories, however, the leader retains the right to

allow the input of others.

7. Management Theories:

Management theories (also known as “Transactional theories”) focus on the role of

supervision, organization, and group performance. These theories base leadership on a

system of reward and punishment. Managerial theories are often used in business; when

employees are successful, they are rewarded; when they fail, they are reprimanded or

punished.

8. Relationship Theories:

Relationship theories (also known as “Transformational theories”) focus upon the

connections formed between leaders and followers. These leaders motivate and inspire

people by helping group members see the importance and higher good of the task.

Transformational leaders are focused on the performance of group members, but also

want each person to fulfill his or her potential. These leaders often have high ethical and

moral standards.

9. Functional theory

Functional leadership theory (Hackman & Walton, 1986; McGrath, 1962) is a

particularly useful theory for addressing specific leader behaviors expected to contribute

to organizational or unit effectiveness. This theory argues that the leader’s main job is to

see that whatever is necessary to group needs is taken care of; thus, a leader can be said

to have done their job well when they have contributed to group effectiveness and

cohesion (Fleishman et al., 1991; While functional leadership theory has most often been

applied to team leadership it has also been effectively applied to broader organizational

leadership as well. In summarizing literature on functional leadership Zaccaro et al.

(2001), Hackman and Walton (1986), Hackman & Wageman (2005), Morgeson (2005)),

Klein, Zeigert, Knight, and Xiao (2006) observed five broad functions a leader perform

when promoting organization’s effectiveness.

These functions include:

(1) Environmental monitoring,

(2) Organizing subordinate activities,

(3) Teaching and coaching subordinates,

(4) Motivating others, and

(5) Intervening actively in the group’s work.

A variety of leadership behaviors are expected to facilitate these functions. In initial work

identifying leader behavior, Fleishman (Fleishman, 1953) observed that subordinates

perceived their supervisors’ behavior in terms of two broad categories referred to as

consideration and initiating structure. Consideration includes behavior involved in

fostering effective relationships. Examples of such behavior would include showing

concern for a subordinate or acting in a supportive manner towards others. Initiating

structure involves the actions of the leader focused specifically on task accomplishment.

This could include role clarification, setting performance standards, and holding

subordinates accountable to those standards.

Conclusion:

Each of these theories takes a rather individualistic perspective of the leader, although a

school of thought gaining increasing recognition is that of “dispersed” leadership. This

approach, with its foundations in sociology, psychology and politics rather than

management science, views leadership as a process that is diffuse throughout an

organization rather than lying solely with the formally designated ‘leader’. The emphasis

thus shifts from developing ‘leaders’ to developing ‘leaderful’ organizations with a

collective responsibility for leadership

Manju

TYPES OF LEADERSHIPMEANING:It is a social phenomenon that exists everywhere throughout the world. Every person who

leads a group of people or a society is called a leader. There are different types of leader

according to functions

DEFINITION: "Leadership is the wise use of power. Power is the capacity to translate

intention into reality and sustain it."

– Warren Bennis

TYPES OF LEADERSHIP: Different social thinkers have given different classification of the

leadership. These classifications are based on different traits and purpose. Given below

are a few classifications of the leadership.

MARTIN CONVAY’S CLASSIFICATION OF LEADERSHIP: Martin convays has the following 4 classification of leadership:

CROWD COMPELLOR-

A leader who forces the group or to create to accept his or

her views is called crowd compeller leader. Generally, these views are the views of

the leader.

CROWD EXPONENT LEADER-

A leader who satisfied the curiosity of his followers and

leads them properly is called crowd exponent leader.

CROWD REPRESENTATIVE LEADER-

A leader who understands and realizes the aspirations and

desires of people is called a crowd representative leader. Today Mrs. Sonia Gandhi is

the best example of a crowd representative leader.

GROUP ORIGINATOR-

Those person who put forward original,political,social or

religious views and create a group of followers are called group originators.Gautam

Buddha, Mahatma Gandhi,Daya Nanda are the leaders of this category.

CLASSIFICATION OF LEADERSHIP AS GIVEN BY BARLETT: The well known social thinker Bartlett has given the following as

kinds of leadership.

INSTITUTIONAL-

A leader who represents a particular group or keeps al particular

views is called an institutional leader.

DOMINANT LEADER-

Different leader of the society have difference in the degree of

their dominance. A person who dominates the group most is called a dominant leader.

PERSUASIVE-

A leader who persuades his followers to accept his decision is called

persuasive leader. Persuasive leader is just the reverse of a dominant leader.

NAFE’S CLASSIFICATION OF LEADERSHIP: Nafe has given the following as the two kinds of leadership:

STATIC LEADERSHIP-

Leaders who have a static or stable ideas and interest are

called static leaders. They do not move fast.

DYNAMIC LEADERSHIP-

Those leaders whose views, ideas and qualities change according to

time are called dynamic leaders. Such leaders take advantage of the requirements of

the time.

CLASSIFICATION OF LEADERSHIP AS GIVEN BY

BOGARDUS: The well-known social thinker Bogardus has given the following as the

kinds of leadership.

DIRECT AND INDIRECT LEDERSHIP-

In the case of direct leadership the leader directly, by one way or the

other convinces his followers who accept his views and in case of indirect leadership

he influences them not directly but in an indirect manner.

SOCIAL EXECUTIVE AND MENTAL LEADERSHIP-

In fact this is not one kind of leadership but it combines their action

into one:

1) Social leader is one who keeps himself in constant touch without her members

of the group.

2) An executive leader is that who carries out the plan that suit the members of he

group. Such a leader is usually a practical person.

3) A mental leader is usually an introvert person who keeps himself aloof from the

crowd who lead them and gives them ideas.

AUTOCRATIC , PATERNALISTIC AND DEMOCRATIC

LEADERSHIP-

This is again a group of the actions of the leadership:

1) AUTOCRATIC LEADER OR LEADERSHIP- Such a leader represses the desires, ideas and policies of others and

imposes on them. Such a leadership is possible only a dictatorship.

2) PATERNALISTIC LEADERSHIP-

Such a leader behaves like a father. He has the trust of his group. He

keeps them in protection and control.

3) DEMOCRATIC LEADERSHIP- Such a leader keeps in mind the aspirations, desires and the interests

of his followers and acts accordingly. He wins the confidence of his followers.

PARTISAN AND SCIENTIFIC LEADERSHIP :

These are two types of leadership put under one class. They are

explained below:

1) PARTISAN LEADERSHIP- Such a leader is partisan towards a particular group in the society.

Usually group leaders in political parties, advocates and such other people are leaders

of this category.

2) SCIENTIFIC IN LEADERSHIP-

Such a leader is free from prejudices and partisan attitude. He acts in

an independent and non-partisan manner, scientists, philosophers, teachers, etc., are

leaders of this category.

SPECIALISTS IN LEADERSHIP:

Bogardus has enumerated another class of the leader who are

termed as specialists in leadership.Prophets, saints bosses, and specialists fall in this

category.

CLASSIFICATION OR KINDS OF LEADERSHIP ON VARIOUS

BASIS: Apart from the classification of leadership given by various scholars and

thinkers, leadership has also been classified on various bases. Following are

considered to be important bases for classification of leadership:

Relationship between the leader and led

Origin

Purpose

Nature

CLASSIFICATION OF THE LEADERSHIP BETWEEN THE

LEADER4 AND LED-

The classification of the leaders as given by Bartlett falls in this

category. On the basis of relationship between the leader and the led, the leadership

may be classified under the following heads:

Institutional leader

Persuasive leader

Dominant leader

Expert leader or leadership of the expert

CLASSIFICATION OF LEADERSHIP ON THE BASIS OF THE

ORIGIN: Leadership may also be classified on the basis of its origin. In other words

it means that the leader, who has been elected by others, is different from a leader, who

has appointed his own self as the leader. From this point of view, leadership may be

classified under the following heads:

SELF APPOINTED LEADER-

Those person , who on the basis of their dominance, self

assertion, intelligence and capacity are able to lead others, are called self-appointed

leaders.Napolean Bonaparte, Shivaji and Stalin were such leaders.

GROUP APPOINTED LEADERS ARE DEMOCRATIC ELECTED

LEADERS-

Leaders who are given the representative capacity by their

followers are elected as leaders and are called Group Appointed Leaders. Members of

Parliament, Assemblies and such other bodies are such leaders.

EXECUTIVE APPOINTED LEADER-

Such persons who are appointed as leaders by executive agency to

control a group of people are called Executive Appointed Leaders. District

Magistrates and other government officers are the leaders in this category.

CLASSIFICATION OF THE LEADERSHIP ON THE BASIS OF PURPOSE:

Leaders are appointed with certain purposes. They fall under the

following three categories:

EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP –

Usually those persons who are appointed by higher authorities ,

with the purpose of carrying out the orders of f the higher authority are discharging

the functions given to them by higher authorities , are called Executive Leaders.

ARTISTIC LEADERSHIP-

Those people who by their dint of merit, perseverance or capacity

become leaders in a particular group are called artistic leaders. They usually belong to

the field of art and culture.

INTELLECTUAL LEADERSHIP-

Those people who achieve extraordinary success in the field of

science, philosophy and other aspects of life are called intellectual leaders.

CLASSIFICATION OF LEADERSHIP ON THE BASIS OF NATURE: Every leader has its own way of exercising his influence over his

followers. Some of the leaders persuade them while others make them agree to accept

their views. From this point of view leadership is usually under the following two

heads:

Authoritarian leadership

Democratic leadership

1) AUTHORITARIAN LEADERSHIP- Such a leader forces his/her followers to accept his/her authority.

Such a leader does not bother about the wishes, desires and the feelings of his/her

followers.

2) DEMOCRATRIC LEADERSHIP: This leader is just opposite of an authoritarian leader. He not only

keeps in mind the wishes and desires of his followers but also acts accordingly. He

shows regards for the feelings the views of his followers. Such a leader does not call

himself a leader unless he has been given the representative capacity by his followers.

Sandhya

Leadership Roles

Roles of Leadership

Navigator

A Navigator is the one who clearly and quickly works through the

complexity of key issues, problems and opportunities to affect

actions (e.g., leverage opportunities and resolve issues).

Navigators analyze large amounts of sometimes conflicting

information. They understand why things happen and identify

possible courses of action to affect events. They know which

factors really matter in the overall scheme of things.

StrategistA strategist is one who develops a long-range course of action or

set of goals to align with the organization’s vision.

Strategists focus on creating a plan for the future. Part of this plan

might involve capitalizing on current opportunities and future

trends (Entrepreneur) and understanding complex information

related to future events (Navigator). Strategists make decisions

that drive the organization toward its vision.

EntrepreneurAn Entrepreneur identifies and exploits opportunities for new

products, services, and markets.

Entrepreneurs are always alert for creative, novel ideas. They

might generate the ideas themselves or take existing opportunities

or proposals down a new path. Entrepreneurs are able to look at

events from a unique perspective and develop ideas that have

never been thought of.

MobilizerA Mobilizer proactively builds and aligns stakeholders,

capabilities, and resources for getting things done quickly and

achieving complex objectives.

Mobilizers gain the support and resources they need to

accomplish goals.

Talent AdvocateA Talent advocate attracts, develops, and retains talent to ensure

that people with the right skills and motivations to meet business

needs are in the right place at the right time.

Talent Advocates ensure that the organization has people with

potential to meet present and future organizational needs. Talent

Advocates are less concerned with filling specific positions than

with attracting and retaining talented individuals.

CaptivatorA Captivator is one who builds passion and commitment toward a

common goal.

Captivators build upon an established foundation of trust to instill

people with feelings of excitement and belonging. Captivators

transfer the energy of their message in such a compelling way

that people take ownership of the strategy or vision and are

empowered to carry it out.

Global ThinkerA Global Thinker integrates information from all sources to

develop a well-informed, diverse perspective that can be used to

optimize organizational performance.

Global Thinkers understand and accept international and cultural

differences and behave in a way that accommodates people’s

varying perspectives. They also discern differences in individual

styles and adapt their approaches accordingly.

Change DriverA Change Driver creates an environment that embraces change;

makes change happen—even if the change is radical— and helps

others to accept new ideas.

Change Drivers focus on continuous improvement. Always

challenging the status quo and breaking paradigms, they identify

ideas for change and become the force driving the change home.

Enterprise GuardianAn Enterprise Guardian ensures shareholder value through

courageous decision-making that supports enterprise or unitwide

interests.

Enterprise Guardians rise above the parochial nature of the job

and make decisions that are good for the shareholder, even if the

decisions cause pain to individuals or to the organization.

Action oriented team roles

ShaperShaping the way in which the team effort is applied, directing

attention generally to the setting of objectives and priorities and

seeking to impose some shape or pattern on group discussion and

on the outcome of group activities. Lots of energy and action,

challenging others to move forwards. Can be insensitive.

ImplementerTurning concepts and ideas into practical working procedures;

carrying out agreed plans systematically and efficiently. Wellorganized

and predictable. Takes basic ideas and makes them

work in practice can be slow.

Completer FinisherEnsuring the team is protected as far as possible from mistakes of

both commission and omission; actively searching for aspects of

work that need a more than usual degree of attention; and

maintaining a sense of urgency within the team. Reliably sees

things through to the end, ironing out the wrinkles and ensuring

everything works well. Can worry too much and not trust others.

People oriented team roles

CoordinatorControlling the way in which the team moves forward towards

the group objectives by making the best use of team resources;

recognizing where the team's strengths and weaknesses lie and

ensuring the best use is made of each members potential can be

seen as excessively controlling.

Team WorkerSupporting members in their strengths; eg. Building on

suggestions, underpinning members in their shortcomings,

improving communications between members and fostering team

spirit generally. Cares for individuals and the team. Good listener

and works to resolve social problems. Can have problems making

difficult decisions

Resource InvestigatorExploring and reporting on ideas, developments and resources

outside the group, creating external contacts that may be useful to

the team and conducting negotiations. Good networker. Can be

too optimistic and lose energy after the initial flush.

Cerebral oriented team roles

PlantAdvancing new ideas and strategies with special attention to

major issues and looking for possible breaks in approach to the

problem that the group is confronting. Can be poor communicator

and may ignore the details.

Monitor EvaluatorAnalyzing problems, evaluating ideas and suggestions so that the

team is better placed to take balanced decisions. Sees the big

picture. Thinks carefully and accurately about things. May lack

energy or ability to inspire others.

Specialist

Feeding technical information into the group. Translating from

general into technical terms. Contributing a professional

viewpoint on the subject under discussion. Has expert

knowledge/skills in key areas and will solve many problems here.

Can be disinterested in all other areas.

As monitorThe leader seeks/receives information from many sources to

evaluate the organization’s performance, well-being and

situation. Monitoring of internal operations, external events,

ideas, trends, analysis and pressures is vital. Information to detect

changes, problems & opportunities and to construct decisionmaking

scenarios can be current/historic, tangible (hard) or soft,

documented or non-documented. This role is about building and

using an intelligence system. The leader must install and maintain

this information system; by building contacts & training staff to

deliver "information".

As initiator/changerHe/she designs and initiates much of the controlled change in the

organization. Gaps are identified, improvement programmes

defined. The leader initiates a series of related decisions/activities

to achieve actual improvement. Improvement projects may be

involved at various levels. The leader can

delegate all design responsibility selecting and even replace

subordinates.

empower subordinates with responsibility for the design of

the improvement programme but e.g. define the

parameters/limits and veto or give the go-ahead on options.

supervise design directly.

Senior leaders may have many projects at various development

stages (emergent/dormant/nearly-ready) working on each

periodically interspersed by waiting periods for information

feedback or progress etc. Projects roll-on and roll-off,

The disturbance handlerIt is a generalist role i.e. taking charge when the organization hits

an iceberg unexpectedly and where there is no clear programmed

response. Disturbances may arise from staff, resources, threats or

because others make mistakes or innovation has unexpected

consequences. The role involves stepping in to calm matters,

evaluate, re-allocate, support - removing the thorn - buying time.

The metaphors here are

If you are up to your backside in alligators it is no use talking

about draining the swamp and

Stop the bleeding as only then can you take care of the long term

health of the patient. (not Mintzberg's anecdote)

As resource allocatorThe leader oversees allocation of all resources (£, staff,

reputation). This involves:

scheduling own time

programming work

authorizing actions

With an eye to the diary (scheduling) the leader implicitly sets

organizational priorities. Time and access involve opportunity

costs. What fails to reach him/her, fails to get support.

The leadership task is to ensure the basic work system is in place

and to programme staff overloads - what to do, by whom, what

processing structures will be used.

Authorizing major decisions before implementation is a control

over resource allocation. This enables coordinative interventions

e.g. authorization within a policy or budgeting process in

comparison to ad-hoc interventions. With limited time, complex

issues and staff proposals that cannot be dismissed lightly, the

leader may decide on the proposer rather than proposal.

To help evaluation processes, leader develop models and plans in

their heads (they construe the relationships and signifiers in the

situation). These models/constructions encompass rules,

imperatives, criteria and preferences to evaluate proposals

against. Loose, flexible and implicit plans are up-dated with new

information.

The negotiatorHe takes charge over important negotiating activities with other

organizations. The spokesman, figurehead and resource allocator

roles demand this.

Authoritarian: These people usually pride themselves on their

decisiveness and ability to grapple with problems directly. They

usually wish to maintain control and power and they are often

“nay-sayers” to suggestions made to them. They tend to be more

blame oriented than solution-seekers for problems. They also tend

to be Dominant and Vigilant.

Participative: These people usually administer duties in an

impersonal but effective manner. They are comfortable to work

with because they remove personality and power struggles from

the work situation. They strive to focus attention on conditions

which hinder the performance of their subordinates and seldom

under- or over-estimate their strengths or the strengths of their

employees. Rather they work with people as one would work

with any other tool to achieve success. They are solution-seeking

when problems arise. Organizational success is normally seen as

being derived from the fact that they seldom wish to be shielded

from the truth, so subordinates are able to communicate easily

and directly with them. They also tend to be Concrete Thinkers,

Trusting, and Self- Reliant.

Permissive: These people generally feel concern about pleasing

others and hope that subordinates will take the responsibility to

perform effectively and use it wisely. They tend to avoid being

demanding, want to avoid conflicts, and seek the friendship and

cooperation of others. They desire to provide help when problems

arise and value the support of others over their own power and

influence. As a result, their mistakes are likely to be errors of

omission rather than commission. They tend to be “yes-sayers”

and frequently comply with what their subordinates suggest,

sometimes taking less than an active part in the administrative

process. They also tend to be Deferential, Lively, Vigilant,

Apprehensive, and Self-Reliant.

Ingratiator: These people strive to promote harmony and desire

to reduce conflicts with others in their organization. They try to

adapt their behavior to the expectations of their superiors, and try

their best to please others. As a result, there are times when they

may work to satisfy their superior’s ego rather than to interact in

a fully honest way. They usually perceive their motives as being

supportive and helpful, since they feel responsible to do a job

well regardless of what the conditions may be which confront

them. They also tend to be Warm, Deferential, Lively, Rule-

Conscious, Utilitarian, Apprehensive, Traditional, and Self-

Reliant.

Cooperator: These people value opportunities to share

responsibility, accountability, and power with their superiors.

They are usually a source of honest and objective criticism and

feedback to their superiors if such communication is desired.

They are solution focused and seldom take time to polish

interpersonal relationships. As a consequence, they sometimes

give the impression of being cold and disinterested in others.

They are seldom threatening to superiors, but usually interact

well with participative superiors in efforts to provide a maximally

motivational organizational climate. They also tend to be

Emotionally Stable, Dominant, Lively, Rule-Conscious, Trusting,

and Self-Reliant.

Free Thinker: These people usually display eagerness to see

change, usually assume the power to bring about changes they

believe to be important and like dealing directly with problems.

They are apt to chafe under close, restrictive, or authoritarian

supervision, since they tend to be independent-minded and often

quite critical of their superiors. They value free expression of

negative points-of-view and are likely to show concern about

setting things straight by confronting persons in positions of

power. Nevertheless, they are often innovators and sometimes

manage to sufficiently stress the system so as to bring about

change from the norm. They also tend to be Reserved, Reactive,

Dominant, Expedient, and Vigilant.

Controlling: These people usually like roles to be clearly defined

and accepted between leaders and subordinates. They perceive

that if the system is maintained, the subordinate will ultimately be

given a superior position, whereby the same direct force and

power upon others can be exercised. So, authoritarian leaders

tend to seek out subordinates who will affirm and support their

policies and practices, as well as those who will be intensely loyal

to them. They also tend to be Utilitarian, Vigilant, and

Traditional.

Objective: These people value objective and impersonal

relationships between superiors and subordinates. They are

typically unconcerned about power, and so, power is readily

shared in terms of whatever power is necessary to accomplish an

assignment. Power, however, is not relinquished in any

permanent sense, and they normally do not value power struggles.

Rather, a feeling of mutual respect and interdependence is sought

between the parties involved in working together, and these

attitudes and feelings usually evolve between each other. Strong

morale and competency on all levels are also fostered. They also

tend to be Emotionally Stable, Rule-Conscious, Socially Bold,

Trusting, Grounded, Self-Assured, Open to Change, and Self-

Reliant.

Supportive: These people are usually dedicated to harmony and

usually prefer to avoid conflict at all costs. The leader wants to be

liked and happy, and hence, may hesitate to make decisions that

are perceived to possibly alienate others. Such persons, therefore,

give up decision-making prerogative both as leaders and as

subordinates. They seem to have a feeling that if unpopular

decisions are not made, they are able to maintain the position as

being a “nice person”. Consequently, they have a willingness to

take abuse and blame in order to make others feel better. They

also tend to be Deferential, Rule-Conscious, Apprehensive, and

Traditional.

Valarina

QUALITIES OF LEADER

INTRODUCTION: Leadership can be define as the process of guiding the development of

the group and its members to achieve goals that are consistent with the member with the

value base of social work. Leadership is nothing but the quality which makes a person

stands out different from other ordinary employees. It is associated with such a person

who has aggressiveness in speech and action, love for the employees, and who can handle

pressure under different circumstances and person who is always ready to fight for the

rights of employees. The leader must have the ability to recognize employees talents and

they should know how to make team work and an open mind.

The qualities of leadership are given below:

1)GOOD COMMUNICATION SKILL-

Communication is the key to be a great leader. The reason for this is simple. If he

possesses the other nine leadership but if he fails to communicate well he will never be

great leader. It is a key for developing good business relationship. If he can’t established

a business relationship, he is not going to be that leader. The modern leader must

therefore equipped with good communication skill and use new ways to do effective

communication.

2)HONESTY-The most valuable asset of a leader is honesty. He must be honest with both his

employees and the management committee. Another part of his feature is integrity. Once

a leader compromises his or her integrity, it is lost. That is perhaps the reason integrity is

considered the most admirable trait. The leaders therefore must keep it ‘above all else.’

3)Visionary outlook-Leadership qualities are different for different position. He has to able to look beyond

where we are today, know where he is going, and be able to use that vision to move the

company forward. Being able to do this is a rare skill indeed.

4)Ability to motivate people around-A good leader must always keep motivating his team mates for good work and should

maintain healthy environment.He must give first priority to safety of workers and see that

they are not exploited by superiors.

5)Consistency-Leadership effectiveness is impossible without consistency. Every leader has an approach

that is unique to them. Don’t change your personal style radically after all, it got you in a

leadership position. Modify the rough spots but take care not to confound your staff by

displaying inconsistency. Your expectations, though subject to modification based on

ever changing business needs should remain as constant as possible. Keep things simple

and consistent.

6)Ability to stand against critics-As the success rate increases your critics multiply and become louder. They are generally

the ones who are excellent problem-identifiers rather than problem-solvers. They

developed their skills of repelling such critics so that their confidence or enthusiasms will

not diminish.

It takes focus and confidence not to be adversely affected by criticism. Strong leaders

learn the art of listening to critics, but ultimately making decisions for the good of the

department, not to simply please the critics.

The following quote sum it up nicely:

“Some of the most talented people are terrible leaders because they have a crippling need

to be loved by everyone.” As rightly stated by James Schorr.

Conclusion:Leadership is affected by a variety of situational factors that act in combination. It is

essential that the workers should be familiar with a range of leadership skills that can be

applied in different ways.

Sudarsanan

PARTICIPATORY LEADERSHIP TRAINING

WHAT IS PARTICIPATION? To take or have a part.

Share with others.

Partake.

DEFINITION FOR LEADERSHIP

Leadership is that leadership is the art of motivating a group of people to act towards

achieving a common goal.

EXAMPLES: Imparting knowledge, giving advice, expressing an opinion, making

decision on behalf of groups, providing assistance, lending support.

PARTICIPATORY LEADERSHIP IS

Allowing every member to have equal opportunity to grow and become leaders.

Encouraging all members to be fully involved in group’s affairs by keeping them

informed.

Delegating tasks and having open discussions.

Not believing in dictatorship.

TYPES OF LEADERSHIP Organizational leadership: The official positions in organization.

Subject leadership: This leadership is a person’s particular skills and knowledge.

Action leadership: The implementation of a given activity, project or group

action, for getting some specific goal accomplished.

Opinion leadership: The judgment that one exercises about given subjects.

Initiating leadership: The beginning of ideas, some people may come up with a

proposal for new programs, policies or solution to particular problems.

Decision leadership: Decision making is self-explanatory. Decision leadership

seeks to get support from members for initiating activities.

Advisory/Counselor leadership: Advisory leadership is the assistance provided for

the group to suggest and advice. This is an indirect leadership.

WHAT IS LEADERSHIP TRAINING?Leadership training is a type of business training that aims to help people develop the

skills they need to be able to supervise those who are working beneath them.

The content of a leadership training class can vary widely. Some of the common topics

covered in leadership training include team building, presentation skills, and motivating a

group that includes people with varying personality types. Most leadership training

classes are open to both men and women, although a small number of programs are

devoted exclusively to helping female social workers become more effective at their

works.

While the best type of leadership training is a seminar or class that allows for interaction

with others, people interested in leadership development may also benefit from reading

books on the subject. Books with case studies covering various leadership dilemmas can

provide a starting point for thinking about how to apply theories of successful leadership

to your own life. Forming a book club to discuss the topic of leadership with other

professionals is another great way to enhance your leadership skills without investing

large amounts of money in formal classes.

LEADERSHIP TRAINING OBJECTIVE

This Leadership training course takes into account every aspect of your physical,

emotional, and biochemical balance to benefit your home life, working environment, and

social workers.

 

The objective is to give leaders information on stress training for performance. 

The leadership course shows how to increase your body’s ability to handle higher levels

of stress, increase your productivity and reduce power leaks.

 

The leadership training will help you change your perspective so you can begin to view

stress as a performance aid, and not a threat. 

The leadership training will help reduces stress-related symptoms and increases personal

performance, employee retention, and ultimately social performance .

 

It will also help you to assess what changes you need to make to increase your

energy level, and promote well-being from the inside out.

LEADERSHIP METHODS AND TIPSWhile leadership is easy to explain, leadership is not so easy to practice. Leadership is

about behavior first, skills second. Good leaders are followed chiefly because people trust

and respect them, rather than the skills they possess. Leadership is different to social

worker. Social worker relies more on planning, organisational and communications skills.

Leadership relies on social skills too, but more so on qualities such as integrity, honesty,

humility, courage, commitment, sincerity, passion, confidence, positivity, wisdom,

determination, compassion, sensitivity, and a degree of personal charisma.

PARTICIPATORY LEADERSHIP

The world is flat; to be more effective Leaders must find a way to promote

Participation so they have access to the wisdom and energy of their team. As

Individuals each leader needs to understand their own voice and then learn to

Align with others so they can cope with change effectively but in the direction

That they intend to develop.

The program are designed to emphasize three critical aspects of a

Participatory leader:

1) Help the leader to find their voice and to listen to the voices of others.

2) To recognize the effectiveness of the team reflects their effectiveness as

a leader.

3) Embrace conflict and change as an opportunity for transformation.

MODULE 1- FOUNDATIONAL LEADERSHIP SKILLS

Practical Result

Tools:

o Personal development plan for each participant.

o Communication skills applicable in every situation.

Practical Conceptual Framework:

The foundational development of leaders begins when they understand the significance of

participation and how participation can transform their spirit of leadership.

o Systems thinking: Operating from the perspective of interdependency.

o Mental models: Understanding the personal framework that affects my decisions and

practices.

o Personal Mastery: Providing a structure for each person to examine their intentions and

development process.

Experiential Intention

o Trust building – This is a safe learning environment for sharing and experimentation.

o Power of participation and participatory leadership are experienced through the

practices in the program and the style of facilitation.

MODULE 2-GROUP LEADERSHIPPractical Result

Tools:

o Consensus workshop process.

o Effective meeting processes.

Practical Conceptual Framework:

o Action Learning.

o Team Dynamics.

o Scenario building.

o Visionary thinking.

Experiential Intention

o Alignment of needs – that the individuals and the team both have a voice in what is

needed and can be served.

o Learning from Experience - Building on the image of double loop learning. Double

loop learning involves planning or learning then action then reflection on the action and

then action again. We are practicing this cycle through the training process and this

session brings this to their awareness.

o Vulnerability as a way to strength – In order to learn most effectively each person will

be sharing strengths and weaknesses with themselves and the group. The deeper the

sharing the greater the opportunity.

PARTICIPATORY LEADERSHIP BEHAVIOUR

Consulting with groups

Asking for opinions about alternatives

Obtain information from followers

Joint decision making with followers

Delegation

HOW TO BE PARTICIPATIVE: SKILLS AND POWER BASES

Self-monitoring skills

Listening skills

Legitimate power

Resource/Connection power

Expert power

CONCLUSION

The participatory leadership trainer relies on social skills too, but more so on

qualities such as integrity, honesty, humility, courage, commitment, sincerity, passion,

confidence, positivity, wisdom, determination, compassion, and sensitivity.

Patrick

DEVELOPMENTAL APPROACH

INTRODUCTION: 

The development of a group has typically been described as a ‘life cycle’, characterised

by a sequence of developmental stages. The most commonly used model is the work of

Tuckman (1965) who described the four stages of forming, storming, norming and

performing.  

Forming refers to the early stages of a group’s life as people come together and

begin to find ways to interact and share common purpose;

 

Storming is the stage where group roles, relationships and values are contested

and negotiated, including issues of leadership and control;

 

Norming refers to the stage at which group roles, norms and expectations begin to

be established; and

 

Performing describes the point at which group processes are established and the

group is able to work within these constraints in relatively effective ways.

An awareness of these possible stages seems to help, not least by normalising the

inevitable difficulties of group process, and the model can usefully highlight the way

in which task and process run concurrently through the life of the group, both part of

its essential work. Descriptions of group development tend to present these ‘stages’ as

phenomena of group experience, sets of behaviours which occur specifically when

people come together and form a group with a common task or purpose.

 

FACILITATING LIFE CYCLE:

Stage One - Individual Anticipation: Accepting group dependencies; tightening initial

expectations; introducing opportunities for sociality; appropriately constricting the

range of early tasks; acknowledging and normalising threat;

Stage Two - Individual Experimentation: Encouraging sociality; accepting diversity;

highlighting commonalities; acknowledging threat and anxiety; lightly tightening

ground rules; working constructively with invalidation;

Stage Three - Collective Construction: Validating the shared project; encouraging

dispersal of dependencies; highlighting super ordinate constructs; encouraging

rhythmic loosening and tightening; maintaining propositionally; 

Stage Four - Collaborative Action: Letting go of group dependency and managing

associated threat; overseeing learning and cycles of experience; balancing

individuality and commonality; encouraging Kellyan aggression.

Researchers have studied groups to understand how they develop. Several different

models have been suggested, but they all tend to follow a similar progression. Listed

below are the most common models.

Linear Models of Group DevelopmentTubbs's Theory

1. Orientation

2. Conflict

3. Consensus

4. Closure

Fisher's Model

1. Orientation

2. Conflict

3. Emergence

4. Reinforcement

Tuckman's Model

1. Forming

2. Storming

3. Norming

4. Performing

5. Adjourning

Tubbs's Small Group Development Theory

Orientation: In this stage, group members get to know each other, they start to talk about

the problem, and they examine the limitations and opportunities of the project.

Conflict: Conflict is a necessary part of a group's development. Conflict allows the group

to evaluate ideas and it helps the group avoid conformity and groupthink.

Consensus: Conflict ends in the consensus stage, when group members compromise,

select ideas, and agree on alternatives.

Closure: In this stage, the final result is announced and group members reaffirm their

support of the decision.

Fisher's Small Group Development Theory:Orientation: During the orientation phase, Fisher says group members get to know each

other and they experience primary tension, the awkward feeling people have before

communication rules and expectations are established. Groups should take time to learn

about each other and feel comfortable communicating around new people.

Conflict: The conflict phase is marked by secondary tension, or tension surrounding the

task at hand. Group members will disagree with each other and debate ideas. Remember

that conflict is good, because it helps the group achieve positive results.

Emergence: In the emergence phase, says Fisher, the outcome of the group's task and its

social structure become apparent.

Reinforcement: In this stage, group members bolster their final decision by using

supportive verbal and nonverbal communication.

Tuckman's Small Group Development Theory:Forming: In the forming stage, group members learn about each other and the task at

hand.

Storming: As group members become more comfortable with each other, they will

engage each other in arguments and vie for status in the group. These activities mark the

storming phase.

Norming: During the norming stage, group members establish implicit or explicit rules

about how they will achieve their goal. They address the types of communication that

will or will not help with the task.

Performing: In the performing stage, groups reach a conclusion and implement the

conclusion..

Adjourning: As the group project ends, the group disbands in the adjournment phase.

Poole's Small Group Development Theory:Task track: Marshall Scott Poole and his colleagues have found that group development

is often more complicated than the three previous models indicate. He has argued that

groups jump back and forth between three tracks: task, topic, and relation. The three

tracks can be compared to the intertwined strands of a rope. The task track concerns the

process by which the group accomplishes its goals.

Topic track: The topic track concerns the specific item the group is discussing at the

time.

Relation track: The relation track deals with the interpersonal relationships between the

group members. At times, the group may stop its work on the task and work instead on its

relationships. When the group reaches consensus on all three tracks at once, it can

proceed in a more unified manner as the three previous models illustrate.

Breakpoints: Breakpoints occur when a group switches from one track to another. Shifts

in the conversation, adjournment, or postponement are examples of breakpoints.

REFERENCES:

Clarkson, P. (1995) Stages of group development and the group imago. In P. Clarkson.

Change in Organisations, London: Whurr. (pp. 85-106)

 

Dunnett, G & Llewellyn, S. (1988) Elaborating personal construct theory in a group

setting. in Dunnett. G. (ed.) Working with People, clinical uses of personal construct

psychology, London: Routledge (pp. 186 - 201)

 

www.wikipedia.com

www.google

www.yahoo

Prabakaran

RECREATIONAL

IntroductionIn social group work there is Approaches to group work was explain following group

works they are Remedial group work, Recreational group work, Preventive group work,

Development group work. In that Recreational group work is given for the assignment.

Recreational dictionary meaning is “Refreshment of one's mind or body after work

through activity that amuses or stimulates; play”. Social Group Work Definition: It is the

“enhancement of person’s social functioning through purposeful group experience and to

scope more effectively with their personal group and community problems”.

PresentationRecreation is one of the easily accessible forms of help. Through entertainment the

worker tries to help the group. Members trend to loose their anxiety, fear and stress when

they are entertained and hence the helping process becomes much easier. Example: any

games organized in a group.

Recreation or fun is the expenditure of time in a manner designed for therapeutic

refreshment of one's body or mind. While leisure is more likely a form of entertainment

or rest, recreation is active for the participant but in a refreshing and diverting manner. As

people in the world's wealthier regions lead increasingly sedentary life styles, the need for

recreation has increased..

Recreation is any activity people choose to do during their leisure or free time for the fun,

pleasure or satisfaction it provides. It is better known as an act of diversion: an activity

that diverts, amuses, refreshes or stimulates the mind, body and soul. It is an activity that

renews your health and spirits by enjoyment and relaxation. Recreation refreshes a

person’s strength and spirits after work. The use of leisure time to satisfy such desires as

recreation, amusement, play, adventure, or education.

Recreation will mean different things to different people. What is recreation to one

person may indeed be work to another. People actually have more leisure time than they

have had in the past, yet they have difficulty using that time in ways that are meaningful

and satisfying. Stress-related disease, a breakdown of community, and a decrease in the

physical and emotional health status have become serious concerns in the country.

Recreation programs are a natural venue for the inclusion of individuals with disabilities.

Participation in these programs helps to keep people of all ages and abilities active and

involved. Additionally, recreation in the natural environment allows for the development

of positive behaviors. Recreation and leisure pursuits should not be seen as a means of

"killing time", rather they are an important and necessary part of a healthy lifestyle

leading to healthy individuals and a healthy society.

Importance of Recreation

Recreation is like a rain shower during the days of scorching heat. It is like a ray of

moonlight in the dreadful darkness. Recreation is moreover the time to get together to

have fun. Devoting some time for recreation on a daily basis helps in the long run in

maintaining health and achieving a peace of mind. Participate in some regular physical

activity, play a sport or exercise. These recreational activities serve as a means of

relaxation. Research has shown that recreation on a daily basis reduces risks of diabetes

and hypertension, enhances physical and mental health and improves the quality of life.

Adventure activities are recommended to be made a part of recreation. Studies have made

evident the fact that participation in adventure activities has a positive effect on life.

Recreation often involves physical activities such as hiking, cycling, fishing and outdoor

games. These activities make you feel fresh .The excitement and thrill that accompanies

adventure sports adds to the freshness. Sports make you feel challenged, encourage you

to exhibit your skills, thus building self-confidence.

These activities of recreation result in the enhancement of your interpersonal and

interpersonal skills. Apart from being a way of spending free time, recreation is a way to

socialize; it is a way of being with the loved ones and enjoy.

Recreation gives you an opportunity to meet new people, develop new friendships.

Socializing implies being a team player making you feel as being a part of the

community. It is largely believed that participating in recreational activities helps

strengthen family relationships. A certain kind of freedom that you experience during

recreation helps you feel distressed. Your enthusiastic participation in recreational

activities boost positive energies, encourage a positive temperament, thus unlaxing you.

Recreation brings you close to the nature.

Recreation types

Active recreation is about engaging in adventure sports or outdoor games while passive

recreation involves activities such as taking a walk on the riverside, walking on the

beach, strolling in parks or taking nature walks. Both kinds of recreation have their own

set of advantages. They create a positive mood, lighten your spirits and help you gain

mental peace.

Recreational activities are widely popular across the globe. Some enjoy touring to

beautiful places around the world while others take interest in pursuing their hobbies as a

means of recreation. Be it of any sort, recreation needs to be made a vital component of

the fast life of the present times!

Recreational therapy

Recreational therapy is one of the fastest-growing professions today, yet many people

have never heard of the term. Recreational therapy, also referred to as therapeutic

recreation, is defined as a form of treatment for persons who are physically, mentally or

emotionally disabled. Differing from recreation services, recreational therapy utilizes

various activities as a form of active treatment to promote the independent physical,

cognitive, emotional and social functioning of disabled people, as a result of trauma or

disease. Enhancing current skills and facilitating the establishment of new skills for daily

living and community functioning is the part of the recreation therapy.

The many benefits of recreation and leisure have been scientifically documented. These

include improved physical fitness skills, reduced stress, an improved sense of self-

confidence and self-reliance, and enhanced self-esteem.

Recreational therapy services are delivered by qualified professionals with training and

education in therapeutic recreation/recreational therapy service delivery and

professionally certified by the National Council for Therapeutic Recreation Certification

(NCTRC). This service is delivered in a variety of settings depending on the needs of the

consumer. Settings in which services are traditionally delivered include freestanding

rehabilitation hospitals, rehabilitation units in general hospitals, long-term care, or skilled

nursing facilities, substance abuse rehabilitation facilities, home healthcare services, and

residential facilities for persons with disabilities.

Recreation therapy is based upon a holistic framework that allows the focus to be on all

aspects of improving an individual’s health and functioning. By providing structured and

unstructured therapy driven services, recreation therapy may be used for:

Improving physical abilities

Building confidence

Promoting greater self reliance

Enhancement of leisure skills

Strengthened interpersonal skills

Enhancement of leisure awareness

Empowering veterans to advocate for positive self growth and change

Enrichment and creation of a meaningful, quality of life.

Conclusion

Finally, let me tell you that, no matter which recreational activity you pick, make sure

you enjoy it with people that you love. Recreation is all about having beautiful moments

in your life, creating memories that you can reminisce and smile.

Preetha

GROUP FORMATION PHASE

Introduction:

It takes time for any new team to get its act together. In this stage,

there's lots of exploration as group members get to know one another. There's a focus on

similarities and differences and first impressions are key as people try to figure out the

similarities and differences. Because everything is new there is a fair amount of

confusion and anxiety as people try to put their best foot forward. As a result,

productivity will be lower. Issues that arise are questions of whether each person feels

like they belong to the group, whether members can be trusted and who is in charge.

The individual tends to wonder whether he or she will be accepted and is careful and

polite in order to make that happen. The leader's task is directing, so that the group can

get coordinated in their efforts. Orientation is an important task in the forming stage.

This is also a good time to look at how the group is organized. Because the group has not

yet molded into a strong, effective unit, it's still relatively easy to reorganize, get people

trained in new skills and look at how the processes in the group work. It's also helpful to

set group ground rules, which are expectations about how work will be done, decisions

will be made, and how people will treat each other. In short, the supervisor has a

wonderful opportunity to be sure that the right people are in the right place using the right

process.

Characteristics of the Forming Stage

Exploration

Focus on similarities and differences

First impressions are key

Confusion/anxiety

Lower productivity

Issues of inclusion, leadership, developing trust

Open communication is a must

Setting Team Ground Rules

As a manager, you are concerned with not only on getting the work done, but on how the

work gets done. Ground rules are an important tool for helping individuals function

together as a team. They reflect what is important to the members about how they work

together. Ideally, the rules are set at the first meeting, allowing them to become second

nature to the team. Discussing ground rules after problems arise is much more difficult.

Ground rules should focus on three elements:

Tasks – Expected activities and deliverables for the team.

Process – How the activities will be carried out.

Norms – Ways in which team members will interact with each other.

Tips for the Forming Stage:

Steps in Setting Ground Rules

1. Set aside time at a team meeting to discuss ground rules. All team members

should have a chance to provide input.

2. Ask team members to discuss prior group experiences. What worked well? What

created problems?

3. As a group, describe what you’d like to happen when you work together.

4. Write down the ground rules to which the team has agreed. Each member should

have a copy.

5. Ground rules should be reviewed periodically.

Questions to Ask

Ground rules for tasks

What are the expectations and deliverables for the team? (Review the team

charter.)

What does each member bring to the table?

How will tasks be assigned?

Ground rules for processes

What are the standards for meeting attendance, promptness, and participation?

What roles need to be filled (time keeper, note taker, facilitator) and how will they

be assigned?

How will the group gather data and feedback from team members and other

stakeholders?

What is the flow of communication?

How will team members be held accountable?

Ground rules for norms

How will we make decisions?

How will we problem-solve?

How will we handle conflicts?

How does the team define respectful behavior?

How will people be held accountable?

How do we communicate with each other (voice mail, e-mail, etc.)?

Defining Norms

Define the norms for my group?

1. The norms I would like to establish are:

2. How will I communicated these norms to my

staff?

3. What might be some difficulties, questions or

roadblocks I need to prepare for?

4. First steps I need to take to begin this process?

5. Plans for building in accountability?

Collaboratively define norms

for my group?

1. Will I facilitate this

discussion or should someone

else? Who?

2. How will decisions be made

in the discussion?

3. Norms I would like to see

included?

4. What might be some

difficulties, questions or

roadblocks I need to prepare

for?

5. First steps I need to take to

begin this process?

6. Plans for building in

accountability?

Resources for the Forming Stage:

Organizational Development Process

The first step in engaging the services of our group is to meet with an OD consultant to

discuss the goals you wish to meet. This consultant will discuss your issues and help you

identify a set of potential solutions that might be helpful. An assessment of those issues,

which can be done using a variety of tools, might be the starting point for addressing

them. This will drive a recommendation of next steps for action and the initiating

connections with the appropriate internal or external resources.

Areas of Expertise

Change management strategies

Team formation/development

Dealing with conflict

Communication issues

Leadership coaching

Organization design

Consultants are available to assist in identifying issues that need to be addressed before

and during change efforts.

Employee Development-meaning:

Employee development is a joint, on-going effort on the part of an

employee and the organization for which he or she works to upgrade the employee's

knowledge, skills, and abilities. Successful employee development requires a balance

between an individual's career needs and goals and the organization's need to get work

done.

Employee development programs make positive contributions to organizational

performance. A more highly-skilled workforce can accomplish more and a supervisor's

group can accomplish more as employees gain in experience and knowledge.

CONCLUSION:

These are the steps involved in formation phase. Without these

steps group cannot proceed further.

 

Fr.jose

Principles of Group Work

Introduction:

Group work is not the action carried out by the group worker. Rather the role of

the group worker is just like the facilitator. It is not a spoon feeding process. But the

group worker helps the group to solve their problems by themselves. For this process the

group worker uses some principles. They are 10 in number. Here are the principles of 9 &

10.

The principle of resource utilization:

The total needs of the individuals and group can be both materialistic as well as

non materialistic resources can be tapped with in a group with in an agency, community.

Members should be helped to identify these resources.

The principle of evaluation:

Evaluation can be two types: Constructive & Destructive. The evaluation should

ultimately be pointing out the various aspects of the group work, but it should produce a

positive out put and it should be constructive.

A lot is written about evaluation in education - a great deal of which is misleading and

confused. Many informal educators such as youth workers and social pedagogues are suspicious

of evaluation because they see it as something that is imposed from outside. It is a thing that we

are asked to do; or that people impose on us. As Gitlin and Smyth (1989) comment, from its Latin

origin meaning 'to strengthen' or to empower, the term evaluation has taken a numerical turn - it

is now largely about the measurement of things - and in the process can easily slip into becoming

an end rather than a means. Evaluation is part and parcel of educating. 

There are several things that need to be said about this.

First, evaluation entails gathering, ordering and making judgments about information in a

methodical way. It is a research process.

Second, evaluation is something more than monitoring. Monitoring is largely about 'watching' or

keeping track and may well involve things like performance indicators. Evaluation involves

making careful judgements about the worth, significance and meaning of phenomenon.

Third, evaluation is very sophisticated. There is no simple way of making good judgements. It

involves, for example, developing criteria or standards that are both meaningful and honour the

work and those involved.

Fourth, evaluation operates at a number of levels. It is used to explore and judge practice and

programmes and projects.

Last, evaluation if it is to have any meaning must look at the people involved, the processes and

any outcomes we can identify. Appreciating and getting of flavour of these involves dialogue.

This makes the focus enquiry rather than measurement - although some measurement might be

involved (Rowlands 1991). The result has to be an emphasis upon negotiation and consensus

concerning the process of evaluation, and the conclusions reached.

Evaluation is part and parcel of educating – yet it can be experienced as a

burden and an unnecessary intrusion. It comes toward the end of the process. It can

be conducted among the members of the group. All the members who participated

in the group work should be given chance to express their evaluation. But it should

be in time and should cover all the areas that they discussed in the group work. It

can be conducted area wise, session wise, class wise etc…

ConclusionThe influence of the group on the person is not necessarily social or positive. It

may be just opposite. The group worker who accepts these principles and its implications

will study groups already formed and give help to groups on the threshold of the group

formation.

Previna

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

Definition of conflict resolution:In a group where there are different personalities and different ideologies, difference of

opinion is inevitable. Conflicts are such differences in the opinions. A group that shows

no conflict is dead one. A group that has constant conflict is called as a sick group.

Conflict resolution is a range of processes aimed at alleviating or eliminating sources of

conflict. The term "conflict resolution" is sometimes used interchangeably with the term

dispute resolution or alternative dispute resolution. Processes of conflict resolution

generally include negotiation, mediation and diplomacy. The processes of arbitration,

litigation, and formal complaint processes such as ombudsman processes, are usually

described with the term dispute resolution, although some refer to them as "conflict

resolution." Processes of mediation and arbitration are often referred to as alternative

dispute resolution.

Resolving conflict rationally and effectively:In many cases, conflict in the workplace just seems to be a fact of life. We've all seen

situations where different people with different goals and needs have come into conflict.

And we've all seen the often-intense personal animosity that can result.

The fact that conflict exists, however, is not necessarily a bad thing: As long as it is

resolved effectively, it can lead to personal and professional growth.

In many cases, effective conflict resolution skills can make the difference between

positive and negative outcomes.

By resolving conflict successfully, we can solve many of the problems that it has brought

to the surface, as well as getting benefits that we might not at first expect:

Increased understanding: The discussion needed to resolve conflict expands people's

awareness of the situation, giving them an insight into how they can achieve their own

goals without undermining those of other people;

Increased group cohesion: When conflict is resolved effectively, team members can

develop stronger mutual respect, and a renewed faith in their ability to work together; and

Improved self-knowledge: Conflict pushes individuals to examine their goals in close

detail, helping them understand the things that are most important to them, sharpening

their focus, and enhancing their effectiveness.

However, if conflict is not handled effectively, the results can be damaging. Conflicting

goals can quickly turn into personal dislike. Teamwork breaks down. Talent is wasted as

people disengage from their work. And it's easy to end up in a vicious downward spiral of

negativity and recrimination.

If we're to keep your team or organization working effectively, we need to stop this

downward spiral as soon as you can. To do this, it helps to understand two of the theories

that lie behind effective conflict resolution techniques.

Work Team:The Conflict is an everyday part of life and arises from individual differences. When

individuals work in teams, differences in power, values, attitudes, and social factors all

contribute to conflict. Conflict can arise from numerous sources within a team setting and

generally falls into three categories: communication factors, structural factors and

personal factors (Varney, 1989). Communication factors include poor listening skills,

insufficient sharing of information, differences in interpretation and perception, and

nonverbal cues being ignored or missed. Structural disagreements include the size of the

organization, turnover rate, levels of participation, reward systems, and levels of

interdependence among employees. Personal factors include bigotry, racism, and

shyness. These three barriers to communication are among the most important factors and

can be a major source of misunderstanding.

Conflict in work teams is not necessarily destructive. Depending on the situation, the

conflict may be seen as negative or positive. Conflict can lead to new ideas and

approaches to organizational processes and increased interest in dealing with problems.

Conflict can be considered positive as it facilitates the surfacing of important issues and

provides opportunities for people to develop their communication and interpersonal

skills. However, conflict becomes negative when it is escalates to the point where people

begin to feel defeated, and a combative climate of distrust and suspicion develops

(Bowditch & Buono, 1997). Nelson (1995) cautions that negative conflict can destroy a

team quickly, and often arises from poor planning. He suggests the following list of high

potential areas from which negative conflict issues commonly arise:

1. Administrative Procedures: If the team lacks good groundwork for what they are

doing, its members will not be able to coordinate their work.

2. People Resources: If the team does not have enough resources to do the job, it is

inevitable that some members will carry too heavy of a load. Resentment, often

unexpressed, may build; therefore, it is crucial that team leaders ensure adequate

resources.

3. Cost overruns: Often inevitable, cost overruns become a problem when proper

measures are not taken. The entire team should be aware, early on, when cost becomes a

problem so additional funding can be sought by the team. Therefore, the problem can be

resolved before it grows into a problem for management.

4. Schedules: The schedule is highly consequential to the team's project and should be

highly visible. All members should be willing to work together to help each other meet

their deadlines.

5. Responsibilities: Each team member must know their assigned areas and be

accountable for them.

6. Wish Lists: Team members must stick to the project at hand and avoid being

sidetracked into trying to fit other things into their schedules. Wait and do the other

things you would like to do after successful completion of the original project (Nelson,

1995).

Team members can and should attempt to keep negative conflict from occurring. Being

aware of the potential for negative conflict and taking the necessary steps to ensure good

planning will help the situation. When negative conflict does occur, there are five

accepted methods for handling it: Direct Approach, Bargaining, Enforcement, Retreat,

and De-emphasis (Nelson, 1995). Each can be used effectively in different circumstances.

1. Direct Approach: This may be the best approach of all. It concentrates on the leader

confronting the issue head-on. Though conflict is uncomfortable to deal with, it is best to

look at issues objectively and to face them as they are. If criticism is used, it must be

constructive to the recipients. Because issues are brought to the surface and dealt with,

this approach counts on the techniques of problem-solving and normally leaves everyone

with a sense of resolution.

2. Bargaining: This is an excellent technique when both parties have ideas on a solution

but yet cannot find common ground. Often a third party, such as a team leader, is needed

to help find the compromise. Compromise involves give and take on both sides, and

usually ends up with both walking away equally dissatisfied.

3. Enforcement of Team Rules: Avoid using this method if possible because hard feelings

often develop toward the leader and the team. This technique is only used when it is

obvious that a team member does not want to be a team player and refuses to work with

the rest of the group. If enforcement has to be used on an individual, it may be best for

that person to find another team.

4. Retreat: Only use this method when the problem isn’t real to begin with. By simply

avoiding it or working around it, a leader can often delay long enough for the individual

to cool off. When used in the right environment by an experienced leader, this technique

can help to prevent minor incidents that are the result of someone having a bad day from

becoming real problems that should never have occurred.

5. De-emphasis: This is a form of bargaining where the emphasis is on the areas of

agreement. When parties realize that there are areas in which they agree, they can often

begin to move in a new direction (Nelson, 1995).

Team Resolution Process When conflict occurs in teams, Rayeski and Bryant (1994) recommend using the Team

Resolution Process. The process states that a conflict should first be handled on an

informal basis between the involved team members; this allows time for resolution or

self-correction to occur within the team. If the conflict remains unsettled, a mediator can

be brought in to help resolve the situation. The next step would be to openly discuss the

dispute in a team meeting. Finally, if a resolution is still not achieved, a formal discipline

process needs to occur with team.

John Christhu Raj.T.S

Sociometry and other tools in assessing the group

interaction

INTRODUCTION:

WHAT IS SOCIOMETRY?

The word sociometry comes from the Latin “socius,” meaning social and the

Latin “metrum,” meaning measure. As these roots imply, sociometry is a way of measuring

the degree of relatedness among people. Measurement of relatedness can be useful not

only in the assessment of behavior within groups, but also for interventions to bring about

positive change and for determining the extent of change. For a work group, sociometry

can be a powerful tool for reducing conflict and improving communication because it

allows the group to see itself objectively and to analyze its own dynamics. It is also a

powerful tool for assessing dynamics and development in groups devoted to therapy or

training.

Jacob Levy Moreno coined the term sociometry and conducted the first long-

range sociometric study from 1932-38 at the New York State Training School for Girls in

Hudson, New York. As part of this study, Moreno used sociometric techniques to assign

residents to various residential cottages. He found that assignments on the basis of

sociometry substantially reduced the number of runaways from the facility. (Moreno,

1953, p. 527). Many more sociometric studies have been conducted since, by Moreno

and others, in settings including other schools, the military, therapy groups, and business

corporations.

A useful working definition of sociometry is that it is a methodology for tracking

the energy vectors of interpersonal relationships in a group. It shows the patterns of how

individuals associate with each other when acting as a group toward a specified end or

goal (Criswell in Moreno, 1960, p. 140). Moreno himself defined sociometry as “the

mathematical study of psychological properties of populations, the experimental

technique of and the results obtained by application of quantitative methods” (Moreno,

1953, pp. 15-16).

Sociometry is based on the fact that people make choices in interpersonal

relationships. Whenever people gather, they make choices--where to sit or stand; choices

about who is perceived as friendly and who not, who is central to the group, who is

rejected, who is isolated. As Moreno says, “Choices are fundamental facts in all ongoing

human relations, choices of people and choices of things. It is immaterial whether the

motivations are known to the chooser or not; it is immaterial whether [the choices] are

inarticulate or highly expressive, whether rational or irrational. They do not require any

special justification as long as they are spontaneous and true to the self of the chooser.

They are facts of the first existential order.” (Moreno, 1953, p. 720).  

SOCIOMETRIC CRITERIA:

Choices are always made on some basis or criterion. The criterion may

be subjective, such as an intuitive feeling of liking or disliking a person on first

impression. The criterion may be more objective and conscious, such as

knowing that a person does or does not have certain skills needed for the group

task.

When members of a group are asked to choose others in the group based

on specific criteria, everyone in the group can make choices and describe why

the choices were made. From these choices a description emerges of the

networks inside the group. A drawing, like a map, of those networks is called a

sociogram. The data for the sociogram may also be displayed as a table or

matrix of each person’s choices. Such a table is called a sociomatrix.

A SIMPLE EXAMPLE:

A simple example of applied sociometry is to have group members make a

selection on the basis of a simple, non-threatening criterion. Ask everyone in the group

to stand up and then say: “Who in this group would you choose to take sandwich orders

from everyone in this room, go to the store, and come back with the right sandwiches and

the right change? Show your choice by placing your right hand on the shoulder of the

person you choose. Move about the room as you need to in order to make your choice.

There are only two requirements: (1) you may choose only one person and (2) you must

choose someone.” Typically the group members will make their choices after only a

little hesitation.

This exercise may be repeated several times in the period of just a few minutes

using different criteria each time. The exercise graphically illustrates not only the social

reality of choice-making, but also the fact that different criteria evoke different patterns

of choices. The sandwich money criterion would probably identify someone who is good

with details. An intuitive, big picture, future-oriented person would be likely to be

identified by this criterion: “If you had to project a new cultural phenomenon, unheard of

at this point in time, whom in this room would you ask for information?”

Regardless of the criterion, the person who receives the most hands on his or her

shoulder is what is known as the sociometric star for that specific criterion. Other

sociometric relationships which may be observed are mutuals, where two people choose

each other; chains, where person A chooses person B who chooses person C who chooses

person D and so on; and gaps or cleavages when clusters of people have chosen each

other but no one in any cluster has chosen anyone in any other cluster.

Here are some other sample criteria that could be used for this exercise: Whom in

this room would you choose…

1. for advice on repairing the transmission of your car?

2. to generate creative ideas?

3. for support in taking risks?

4. to relay messages accurately?

5. for help in dealing with a difficult client?

6. to run a business for profit?

7. to get reliable information on top management decisions?

8. to keep a confidence?

9. who gives recognition for a job well done?

10. who has shown the most growth in the past year?

This “hands-on" exercise can be very helpful for teaching a group about

sociometry and about the reality of the informal organization. While the group is in each

pattern, the consultant can ask the group to describe the pattern, how the pattern reflects

“real life”, and what the group would need to do to close up any cleavages. Participants

learn very quickly and concretely about the informal organization underlying their formal

organization. As one participant said, “It shows how we really feel, but we don’t say it

very often.”

A MORE COMPLEX EXAMPLE:

:Suppose we want to know how much interpersonal trust exists within a small

group of six members. Let's call the group members Ann, Bob, Claire, Don, Edna, and

Fred. For the purposes of this example, we will use the following criterion: “I trust this

person to keep oral agreements and commitments, and not to undercut me or go behind

my back.” We will use the symbols “+” to indicate “High Trust”, “O” to indicate

“Moderate Trust”, and “-” to indicate “Distrust/Conflict”.

Next we interview each group member individually. When we have established

rapport, and have explained that all responses will be kept confidential, we ask the person

we are interviewing to rate every other person in the group, based on the criterion.

Say we are interviewing Ann. Ann rates the others as follows:

Bob +

Claire -

Don O

Edna +

Fred O

This means that Ann has high trust of Bob, distrusts or is in conflict with Claire,

has moderate trust of Don, and so on.

In the course of the interviews we can elicit details about all of these

relationships. We can ask Ann, for example, why she distrusts Claire, and Ann’s ideas

about what Claire could do to improve the situation.

After conducting all the interviews and obtaining ratings from everyone, the next

step is to chart all the responses in the sociomatrix.

Here is the sociomatrix for our sample group:

You can see that Ann’s choices have been charted in Ann’s row: Ann’s High

Trust (+) rating of Bob is in the cell where Ann’s row intersects Bob’s column, her

Distrust/Conflict (-) rating of Claire is in the cell where Ann’s row intersects Claire’s

column, etc.

This matrix already tells us a great deal about the group dynamics. With a little

analysis the matrix becomes something like an x-ray or CAT scan of the group’s

interpersonal relationships. Columns showing a large percentage of +’s can identify the

informal leader(s) of the group. Columns showing -’s can identify those people the group

may be close to rejecting. Rows showing all O’s or all +’s may highlight people who fear

self-disclosure or people who are undifferentiated in social relationships.

Another important pattern to look for is what is called mutuals. A mutual occurs

when I rate you at the same level you rate me. A positive mutual is when we both rate

each other +; a negative mutual is when we both rate each other -. Positive mutuals

show bonding in a group. Negative mutuals show areas of conflict. The identification of

negative mutuals gives the consultant or therapist insight as to where to start to repair a

dysfunctional group.

Here are the column totals, and mutuals for our sample group:

We can see that the informal leaders are Bob and Edna, because they both

received the most +'s and received no -'s. A closer look at the sociomatrix shows that

Ann and Claire have mutual Distrust/Conflict.

If this were a work group and we were asked to improve the functioning of this

group, we could start by improving the relationship between Ann and Claire before

bringing the group together for teambuilding.

Constructing a sociomatrix for a small group like this one is a simple task, but

when the number of people in the group is more than about five or six, the clerical work

and calculations become quite tedious and open to error. With a large matrix, the

identification of mutual begins to resemble a migraine headache. Fortunately there are

computers. Software exists to automate all the tedious calculations involved in creating a

sociomatrix of up to 60 people. The software produces not only the sociomatrix itself but

also several useful group and individual reports.

CRITERION SELECTION:

The selection of the appropriate criterion makes or breaks the sociometric

intervention. As in all data-collection in the social sciences, the answers you get

depend on the questions you ask. Any question will elicit information but unless

the right question is asked, the information may be confusing or distracting or

irrelevant to the intervention’s objective.

A good criterion should present a meaningful choice to the person in as

simple a format as possible. For example: “Whom would you most like to have

as part of this [specified type of] work team [e.g.: auditing] to [work in this

specified way] [e.g.: to audit remote sites]?”.

The criterion must be like a surgeon’s knife: most effective when it cleanly

isolates the material of interest. In responding to the question, each person will

choose based on an individual interpretation of the criterion. These

interpretations, or sub-criteria, for this particular question could include: do I want

a person who works hard, who is a power-broker, who is amiable, a minority, etc.

A clear statement of the criterion will tend to reduce the number of interpretations

and will therefore increase the reliability of the data.

SOME PRINCIPLES OF CRITERION SELECTION:

The criterion should be as simply stated and as straightforward as possible.

The respondents should have some actual experience in reference to the

criterion, whether ex post facto or present (in Moreno's language, they are

still “warmed up” to them) otherwise the questions will not arouse any

significant response.

The criterion should be specific rather than general or vague. Vaguely

defined criteria evoke vague responses. (Note for example that

“friendship” is actually a cluster of criteria.)

When possible, the criterion should be actual rather than hypothetical.

A criterion is more powerful if it is one that has a potential for being acted

upon. For example, for incoming college freshmen the question “Whom

would you choose as a roommate for the year?” has more potential of

being acted upon than the question “Whom do you trust?”

Moreno points out that the ideal criterion is one that helps further the life-goal

of the subject. “If the test procedure is identical with a life-goal of the

subject he can never feel himself to have been victimized or abused. Yet

the same series of acts performed of the subject’s own volition may be a

‘test’ in the mind of the tester” (Moreno, p. 105). Helping a college

freshman select an appropriate roommate is an example of a sociometric

test that is in accord with the life-goal of the subject.

“It is easy to gain the cooperation of the people tested as soon as they

come to think of the test as an instrument to bring their wills to a wider

realization, that it is not only an instrument for exploring the status of a

population, but primarily an instrument to bring the population to a

collective self-expression in respect to the fundamental activities in which

it is or is about to be involved.” (Moreno, 1953, pp. 680-681).

As a general rule questions should be future oriented, imply how the

results are to be used, and specify the boundaries of the group (Hale, 1985).

And last, but not least, the criteria should be designed to keep the level of risk for

the group appropriate to the group’s cohesion and stage of development.

EXAMPLES OF CRITERIA FOR USE IN A WORK SETTING:

(A) I trust this person to: Keep oral agreements and commitments, Work for win-win

solutions, and Not to undercut me or go behind my back.

+ = High Trust

O = Moderate Trust

- = Distrust/Conflict  

(B) Based on ability to work effectively as a team member, whom would you choose to

work with you on an important team project?

+ = I definitely WOULD WANT to have this person on my team.

O = I wouldn’t mind having this person on my team.

- = I definitely would NOT WANT to have this person on my team.

 

(C) Consider each of your coworkers listed below and rate them as to how much or little

you trust each of them.

+ = High Trust

O = Moderate Trust

- = Distrust/Conflict

[Note: Example C is an example of what Moreno called “near-sociometric” because the

criterion is somewhat vague. You “trust” your coworkers to do or not do what? Keep

secrets? Perform surgery on me? Example A is more specific.]

 

(D) Consider each of your coworkers listed below. What is your level of trust to share

your feelings with each of them about issues at the workplace?

+ = High Trust

O = Moderate Trust

- = Distrust/Conflict

 

EXAMPLES OF CRITERIA USED IN OTHER SETTINGS:

Military:

(A) If you were going on pass what person (or persons) would you want to go on pass

with and what person (or persons) would you not want to go with?

(B) If you had leave to go home what person (or persons) would you want to invite to

your home and what person (or persons) would you not want to invite to your home?

(C) If you were told to pick the persons whom you wanted to live in a tent or barracks

with what person (or persons) would you choose and what person (or persons) would you

not choose?

(D) During an attack what person (or persons) would you choose to share a foxhole with

and what person (or persons) would you not choose to share a foxhole with?

(E) If you were to lead an advance through an enemy town what person (or persons)

would you choose to cover you and what person (or persons) would you not choose to

cover you?

(F) If you were wounded what person (or persons) would you choose to help you back to

an aid station and what person (or persons) would you not choose to help you back to an

aid station?

Summer Camp:

At camp, you like to do lots of things with other campers. In order to help the staff work

out your groups we would like you to tell us which campers you would like best to do

things with. Whom would you like to

(A) Cabin with?

(B) Go on a canoe trip with?

(C) To be in your favorite activity with?

VALIDITY:

Does sociometry really measure something useful? Jane Mouton, Robert Blake

and Benjamin Fruchter reviewed the early applications of sociometry and concluded that

the number of sociometric choices do tend to predict such performance criteria as

productivity, combat effectiveness, training ability, and leadership. An inverse

relationship also holds: the numbers of sociometric choices received are negatively

correlated with undesirable aspects of behavior such as accident-proneness, sick bay

attendance and frequency of disciplinary charges” (Mouton, Blake, and Fruchter in

Moreno, 1960, pp. 362 - 387). The more frequently you are chosen, the less likely you

are to exhibit the undesirable behavior.

Here are some representative early sociometric studies:

One study found a significant positive correlation between group sociometric

cohesion and field performance of small military combat units (Goodacre, Daniel

M., in Moreno, 1960 pp. 548 - 552).

Voluntary re-grouping of construction workers based on sociometric choices

resulted in a superior level of output, a drop in monthly turnover, and 5% savings

in total production (Van Zelst, R. H. “Sociometrically Selected Work Teams

Increase Production.” Personnel Psychology, 1952, 5, 175-186.) Another study

of voluntary regrouping of construction workers in which workers in the

experimental groups chose their work partner resulted in superior performance

by the experimental group on factors of job satisfaction, turnover rate, index of

labor cost, index of material cost. Financial savings were such that every 29th

house was “free,” relative to the cost of construction by the control group (Van

Zelst, R. H. “Validation of a Sociometric Regrouping Procedure.” Journal of

Abnormal Social Psychology, 1952, 47, 299-301).

Sociometric ratings by coworkers for desirability as work partners and other job

related activities correlate with positive attitudes toward work and with quality and

quantity of performance on the job (Springer, Doris. “Ratings of Candidates for

Promotion by Co-workers and Supervisors.” Journal of Applied Psychology,

1953, 37, 347-351; Van Zelst, R. H. “Worker Popularity and Job Satisfaction.”

Personnel Psychology, 1951, 4, 405 - 412).

Accident proneness is inversely correlated with sociometric choices received.

(Speroff, B., and W. Kerr. “Steel Mill ‘Hot Strip’ Accidents and Interpersonal

Desirability Values.” Journal of Clinical Psychology, 1952, 8, 89-91.; Fuller, E.

M., and H. A. Baune. “Injury-Proneness and Adjustment in a Second Grade.”

Sociometry, 1951, 14, 210 - 225; Zeleny, L. D. “Selection of Compatible Flying

Partners.” American Journal of Sociology, 1947, 52, 424 - 431.)

Consistent with these findings about safety are studies in military settings

which show that flight accidents, frequency of sick bay attendance, and number

of disciplinary offenses are negatively related with the number of sociometric

choices received when the criterion measures a positive aspect of behavior

(Zeleny, L. D. “Selection of Compatible Flying Partners.” American Journal of

Sociology, 1947, 52, 424 - 431; French, R. L. ”Sociometric Status and Individual

Adjustment among Naval Recruits.” Journal of Abnormal Social Psychology,

1951, 46, 64 - 72.)

A study of leadership showed that when leaders were chosen by sociometric

procedures, their groups were more efficient than when members not seen as

leaders were assigned that role (Rock, M. L., and E. N. Hay. “Investigation of the

Use of Tests as a Predictor of Leadership and Group Effectiveness in a Job

Evaluation Situation.” Journal of Social Psychology, 1953, 38, 109 - 119.)

A study of navy pilots suggested that low morale and cliques may result when

the official leader is not a sociometric star (Jenkins, John G. in Moreno, 1960 pp.

560 - 567).

A study of choices of playmates in fourth-grade children showed a high

correlation between the choices children made on the sociometric test and the

choices children made in actual play (Byrd, Eugene. “A Study of Validity and

Constancy of Choices in a Sociometric Test. Sociometry. Vol. IX (1946), Nos. 2-

3, 21, cited in Northway (1967)).  

 

 APPLICATIONS OF SOCIOMETRY IN THE WORK SETTING:

The typical process for a sociometric intervention in an organization follows these

basic steps: (1) Identify the group to be studied, (2) Develop the criterion, (3) Establish

rapport / warm-up, (4) Gather sociometric data, (5) Analyze and interpret data, (6) Feed

back data, either: (a) to individuals, prior to group meeting, or (b) in a group setting, (7)

Develop and implement action plans, (8) Post-test (optional).

My colleagues and I have used sociometry in a corporate setting to diagnose

problems, to influence group development, and to measure results of organizational

development interventions. In one instance (Hoffman et al, 1992) we used the

sociometric data to help work groups diagnose their own problems and to document the

effectiveness of the intervention. Pre/post sociometric measurements showed that

Distrust/Antagonism had been cut in half and High Trust had increased by 19% over the

course of the intervention.

More recently I was asked to help a group with "teambuilding." I began by

interviewing all nine members of the group and collecting sociometric ratings from each.

An analysis of the sociometric data showed that the "team problem" was primarily a

conflict between two individuals on the team. I gave sociometric feedback individually

to every member of the team, telling each person where he or she stood in relation to the

rest of the group. The sociometric data allowed me to do this without breaking

confidentiality. (Each person received an individualized report. A pie chart on the report

showed the percentage of positive, negative and neutral choices received by that person.)

From the interview data I was also able to give each person positive reinforcement for

effective behaviors and specific corrective coaching for ineffective behaviors, again

without breaking confidentiality.

The sociometric data so affected the individuals in conflict that they were able to

use the coaching and resolve the conflict on their own. We never had to hold a

"teambuilding" session. This saved hours of productive time. A post-test with the

sociometric instrument showed that the negative choices made by the group had dropped

from 11 to zero. Neutral choices went from 16 to 21 and positive choices increased from

45 to 50. Informal feedback from the group's secretary confirmed that things were

"really better."

References & sources for further information:

Hale, Ann E. (1985) Conducting Clinical Sociometric Explorations: A Manual.

Roanoke, Virginia: Royal Publishing Company.

Hoffman, Chris, Wilcox, L., Gomez, E. & Hollander, C. (1992). Sociometric

Applications in a Corporate Environment, Journal of Group

Psychotherapy, Psychodrama & Sociometry, 45, 3-16.

Hollander, Carl E. (1978) An Introduction to Sociogram Construction. Denver,

Colorado: Snow Lion Press, Inc. Available at the Colorado Psychodrama

Center, 350 South Garfield, Denver CO, 303-322-8000.

Moreno, Jacob Levy (1934, Revised edition 1953). Who Shall Survive? Beacon,

NY: Beacon House.

Moreno, Jacob Levy (1960). The Sociometry Reader. Glencoe, Illinois: The Free

Press.

Northway, Mary L. (1967). A Primer of Sociometry. Toronto: University of Toronto

Press.

 

BORSALI

Objective of Group Work

1. Enhancing the social adjustment of the individual with the group.

2. Help the individuals develop their capacities to participate in the groups.

3. To provide experiences to be creative, to share and express themselves.

4. To enrich the community life and make individuals take responsibility.

5. To serve as a treatment programme for various types of maladjustment.

6. Principles of specific objectives: must have specific objectives, individual group

as well as group objectives should be formed, individuals want and get different

things from groups. Agencies and their workers must be aware of what people

want from group experience and help them to get it. The group workers who

recognize the needs for consciously formulated objectives for individuals and

group become purposeful workers. Group work becomes planned rather than

haphazard, but remains in format when he works with a group to help the

members see their strength objectives accordingly.

7. Principle of Purposeful worker-group relationship: A purposeful relationship

should be maintained between the group worker members and worker. This

relationship is a conscious one. It is based on the worker’s acceptance of the

group members as they are and upon the groups willingness to accept help from

the worker the principle assumes that it is both possible and necessary to create an

effective working relationship with a group before the worker can help to the

group. Effective relationship grows out of the mutual acceptance of one another

by workers and group. The workers relationship with the group is in itself a major

tool.

8. Principle of continuous individualization: There are different personalities. Each

personality is unique. No two members are alike. Special attention should be

given for each and every individual. It is recognized that group experience are

different and that individuals utilize group experience in a variety of ways to meet

their different needs. Consequently, continuous individualization must be

understood as developing and changing. When the group worker individualizes a

group he accepts the naturalness of the differences.

9. Principle of guided group interaction: At times all the members may not interact

equally. There may be conflicts. There may be few who are dominating. They

prevent the other members from sharing.for ultimate growth and development of

group, each member should contribute. This is done through guided group

interaction. The primary sources of energy which propels the group and

influences the individual to change are the interaction or reciprocal response of

the members. All members should encourage to participate. The programme

experience in which the group engages should begin at the level of member

interest, need experience and competence and should process in relation to the

developing capacity of the group it implies that there is a starting point for group

work program and that definition of that starting point is important. Program

which seems superficial to an outsiders are often times quite real and meaningful

to the group. The group worker may make suggestions as to possible programs

but he is careful to extend a variety of choice and be endeavour to relate those

possible choice to level of the group the workers give help to the group in

planning and carrying out its program wishes

10. Principle of democratic group self- determination: The group must help to make

its own decision and determine its own activities, taking the maximum amount of

responsibility in line with its capacity and ability. Participation level should be

democratically identified and executed. Worker’s idea should not be trusted up on

the group. Objective should be democratically carried out.

11. Principle of flexible functional organization: The group should be flexible enough

to encourage the participation when they succeed and support when they fall.

Must accept the failures of the members too. A group is a dynamic organization in

which members participate and interact according to the organization to the

convenience of the group. In spite of the rules and regulation, the functioning of

the group has to be flexible.

12. Principle of progressive programmed experiences: The ultimate aim and objective

of every group is its development, there by leading to the development, there by

leading to the development of the individual. Leader should identify the needs of

the group and initiate programme to reach goal. Plan along with the group. They

should not remain stagnant. Maximum experience and competence should

progress in relation to the developing capacity of the group.

13. Principle of resource utilization: the total needs of the individuals and the group

can be both materialistic as well as non-materialistic resources can be trapped

with in a group with the in an agency, community. Members should be helped to

identify these resources.

14. Principle of evaluation: It is essential to analyze the individual as well as the

group. Evaluation is not judging them but assessing them and giving valuable

suggestions for the growth and development.