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What are the overall group characteristics in this stage?

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What are the overall group characteristics in this stage?

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Within the eight sessions, the working stage typically happens between sessions 3-7.  Brigman and Goodman (2001) mention that most of the "work" gets done during this stage and the necessary conditions of trust, empathy, and hope have been established and students gain through feedback and confrontation, along with an increase in self-awareness and self-disclosure.

Other characteristics might include:
- High trust and cohesion
- Open communication that involves accurate expressions of what individuals are expressing
- Direct  interaction between members
- Willingness to take risks and talk about personal topics
(Corey, Corey, & Corey, 2018).

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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At this stage students show more obvious signs of deeper exploration, adaptability, collaboration, and assimilation of new perspectives and behaviors (Sink, Edwards, & Eppler, 2012).

An example video of what a working session looks like:

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Share something specific about one of Yalom’s nine therapeutic factors.

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Share something specific about one of Yalom’s nine therapeutic factors.

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Yalom, (2005) can be quoted as saying "the distinctions between the factors are arbitrary; though they are discussed singly, they are interdependent and neither occur nor function separately" (p.2).  On page 7 of Yalom's book, The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy, he states that "universality does not have sharp borders; it merges with the other therapeutic factors and as patients perceive their similarity to other and share their deepest concerns, they benefit further from the accompanying catharsis from the ultimate acceptance by other members" (2005).

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Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) (2005), states that the leader balances content and processes within the group to facilitate feelings expressed and how interaction between members is progressing.  They also state that leaders need to focus on content while also focusing on group process (SAMHSA, 2005).  All groups have some form of tension or interferences by members that should not be ignored.  The tasks of this group include: clients receiving feedback, group leader allocates time to address issues that arise, group leader pays attention to group dynamics and interactions and models a healthy interaction style that encompasses honesty and compassion (SAMHSA, 2005).

Corey, Corey, & Corey (2018) also state that the tasks of the working stage include:
- group norms and behavior
- contrasts between a working group and nonworking group
- deepening trust during the working stage
- choices to be made during the working stage
- homework during the working stage

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Yalom identified several factors that influence the processes of change and recovery among group therapy clients:

Universality - feeling of having problems similar to others, not alone

Altruism - helping and supporting others

Instillation of hope - encouragement that  recovery is possible

Guidance - nurturing support & assistance

Imparting information - teaching about problem and recovery

Developing social skills - learning new ways to talk about feelings, observations and concerns

Interpersonal learning - finding out about themselves & others from the group

Cohesion - feeling of belonging to the group, valuing the group

Catharsis – release of emotional tension

Existential factors – life & death are realities

Imitative behavior – modeling another’s manners & recovery skills

Corrective recapitulation of family of origin issues – identifying & changing the dysfunctional patterns or roles one played in primary family (Higgins, 2005).

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What is your personal leadership style? How does your style change in small group counseling? How do you see your style impacting a group?

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What is your personal leadership style? How does your style change in small group counseling? How do you see your style impacting a group?

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Participative leadership, also known as democratic leadership, is generally the most effective leadership style (Foels, Driskel, Mullen, & Salas, 2000).

Democratic leaders offer guidance to group members, but they also participate in the group and allow input from other group members.

Participative leaders encourage group members to participate, but retain the final say over the decision-making process. Group members feel engaged in the process and are more motivated and creative.

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Brigman, G., & Goodman, B. E. (2001) Group counseling for school counselors: A practical guide (2nd ed.). Portland, ME: J. Weston Walch.

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Corey, M. S., Corey, G., & Corey, C. (2018). Groups: Process and practice (10th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

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Ending the Therapeutic Relationship: Creative Termination Activities. (2014). SWHELPER. Retrieved from: https://www.socialworkhelper.com/2014/04/02/ending-therapeutic-relationship-creative-termination-activities/

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Foels, R., Driskell, J. E., Mullen, B., & Salas, E. (2000). The effects of democratic leadership on group member satisfaction: An integration. Small Group Research, 31(6), 676-701

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Gladding, S. T. (1994). Effective Group Counseling. Retrieved from https://www.counseling.org/resources/library/ERIC%20Digests/94-02.pdf

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Higgins, P. (2005). Yalom's Therapeutic Factors. Retrieved from: www.gssacademicsupport.com/resources/Yalom.ppt

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Kraus, K. L., DeEsch, J. B., & Geroski, A. M. (2001). Stop avoiding challenging situations in group counseling. Journal For Specialists In Group Work, 26(1), 31-47. doi:10.1080/01933920108413776

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Mintle, L. (2018). The Importance of Trust When Working Through Conflict - Doing Life Together. Doing Life Together. Retrieved from: http://www.beliefnet.com/columnists/doinglifetogether/2015/10/the-importance-of-trust-when-working-through-conflict.html

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Priestley, D. (2015). Forming, Storming, Norming and Performing: The Stages of Team Formation. Retrieved from http://www.ventureteambuilding.co.uk/forming-storming-norming-performing/

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Sink, C. A., Edwards, C., & Eppler, C. (2012). School based group counseling. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.

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Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). (2005). Substance Abuse Treatment: Group Therapy, 4 Group Development and Phase‐Specific Tasks. Retrieved from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK64221/#_A78727_

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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The following blog has an amazing insight on cultural differences within group counseling.  It reviews Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies as well as the RESPECTFUL model.

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People who seek counseling often come from different walks of life and from different backgrounds. The need for multicultural counseling increases as populations grow more diverse. Multicultural counseling is the ability of any professional counselor to approach counseling through the context of the client's world. In short, the a counselor's own cultural values or bias must not take precedence that of the client. This is an integral part of professional counseling ethics.

Counseling from a multicultural lens is necessary in our diverse world and allows counselors to help people in underserved communities. According to the American Counseling Association, multicultural counseling is an advantage for counselors; counseling from a multicultural lens allows them to gain knowledge, sensitivity, disposition, and personal awareness.

Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies

The Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development (AMCD) notes several competencies to achieve in multicultural counseling.

Counselor Awareness of Own Cultural Values and Biases: A counselor must be cognizant of any cultural values or bias that they possess and recognize their limits of practice. In order to expand their skills, counselors must acknowledge their own racial and cultural heritage and the effects of oppression, racism, discrimination, and stereotyping. Counselors must also seek out additional learning opportunities to improve their understanding of different cultural populations.

Counselor Awareness of Client Worldview: A counselor must recognize that their client's world view is different than their own. To achieve this understanding, counselors must be aware of their emotional reactions to other racial and ethnic groups, possess knowledge of the population with whom they work, and familiarize themselves with culturally appropriate research. Mental health and school counselors competent in multicultural counseling recognize that a client's race and culture influence their personality, decision-making skills, vocational choice, and reasons for or willingness to seek any mental health help.

Culturally Appropriate Intervention Strategies: A counselor with cultural competence respects their client's religious views, values, beliefs, indigenous practices, and languages. Counselors must understand the characteristics of therapy and its impact on cultural groups. Counselors should also maintain knowledge of family dynamics, hierarchy, bias in assessments, and discriminatory practices that may impact their client. Counseling professionals who are culturally skilled are able to engage in communication - both verbal and nonverbal - that transcends race or nationality and eliminates prejudice.

The Importance of Multicultural Counseling

As the population becomes more diverse , the need for multicultural counseling grows more apparent. As reported in the Journal for Social Action in Counseling and Psychology:

Changing demographics of the United States population demand that counselor education programs provide training experience that facilitate the development of multiculturally competent counselors. The growing population of diverse individuals in the United States will put more pressure on counselors to be culturally competent in their service of delivery.

Younger generations illustrate this diversity. Pew Research indicates that 43 percent of adult millennials are non-white. They also project that by 2055 the US will not have a single ethnic minority; instead, it'll represent a true melting pot of cultures.

The RESPECTUL Model

The RESPECTFUL model was developed with one goal in mind: to recognize the multidimensionality of all clients in a comprehensive and integrative way. San Jose State University's Counselor Education Department shares the RESPECTFUL model that was developed by Michael D'Andrea, Ed.D. and Judy Daniels around 1997 and involves ten different factors that influence an individual's psychological development as well as their sense of personal well-being.

The ten factors of the RESPECTFUL model are as follows:

1. Religious-Spiritual Identity: Some clients are affected by their religion through transcendental experiences that extend beyond the ordinary. Others may identify with no religion at all.

2. Economic Class Background: Class standing and roles influences a client's development and as such affects their own identification of their strengths and expression of problems throughout therapy or counseling.

3. Sexual Identity: Sexual identity influences personal development, especially for people who've been oppressed because of their sexuality which reduces an individual's sense of worth.

4. Psychological Maturity: This type of maturity involves the ability of an individual to respond to a situation or their environment in an appropriate manner based upon their psychological strengths and needs.

5. Ethnic-Cultural-Racial Identity: Some clients experience "within-group" differences which could influence their psychological development.

6. Chronological Developmental Challenges: Physical, cognition, and psychological skill development affects how an individual experiences challenges at different points in life.

7. Trauma and Other Threats to One's Well-Being: Stressful situations can put individuals at risk for psychological dangers when the ability to cope with them become ineffective.

8. Family History and Dynamics: Family can play a role in a person's sense of self, ambition, and prejudices. The modern family is now one with much more diversification, less rigidity, and broadened horizons.

9. Unique Physical Characteristics: People who possess unique physical characteristics may experience stress of dissatisfaction. It is on part of the counselor to reflect on the internalized negative views of stereotypes.

10. Location of Residence and Language Differences: Depending upon the climate patterns, geological terrain, and types of occupations available, individuals will possess various strengths and interests. Being aware of stereotypes and biases associated with individuals who speak a different dialect can defer from inaccurate assumptions.

Consideration of the above during the course of a counseling relationship helps the counselor-client relationship stay, as the acronym insinuates, respectful. This model provides counselors with the ability to progress appropriately, ethically, and holistically through each counseling session.

Multicultural counseling involves two main parts: an understanding of the client's worldview and the recognition of a counselor's own cultural values and bias. In order to work progressively with diverse clients, a counselor must recognize any previously held ideas that they have established about a population based on their ethnicity, nationality, race, etc. The competencies above help to ensure that individuals of all backgrounds receive the quality of help they deserve.

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10 Multicultural Factors to Consider in Counseling

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People who seek counseling often come from different walks of life and from different backgrounds. The need for multicultural counseling increases as populations grow more diverse. Multicultural counseling is the ability of any professional counselor to approach counseling through the context of the client's world.

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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According to Priestley, (2015) the storming stage often starts when there is conflict between group members.  It is further stated that during this conflict other group members will become increasingly frustrated and lose motivation, and while conflict resolution is often the overall goal, the storming stage is generally focusing on conflict management (Priestley, 2015).

Typical behaviors can include:

Challenging authority

Resisting opinions and improvements suggested by others

Negative mind set and attitude about the team and the project’s success

Arguments amongst team members even when they agree

External factors and company culture

Competition, support and forming of smaller teams

Questioning the team's goal and resistance to taking on tasks (Priestley, 2015).

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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In the early stages of group counseling, members are cautious and quiet. It is rare for an individual to experience a new setting and be boisterous and outgoing. Corey, Corey, and Corey (2018) state that caution is expected and members of the group may feel intimidated and have suspicions about the leader, while others are doubting that the group experience is going to be of any real value to them. Specific behaviors include awkwardness because there is very little camaraderie in the group, and sounds include silence, because everyone is new.

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What are overall group characteristics in this stage?

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What are overall group characteristics in this stage?

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Corey, Corey, and Corey (2018) list the following characteristics during initial stage setup:
- members are getting acquainted
- members are learning how the group functions
- there is development of spoken and unspoken norms that will aid group behavior
- individuals will be exploring their fears/hopes pertaining to the group
- members will clarify expectations
- identifying personal goals
- determining the safety of the group

Gladding (1994) mentions that in the beginning stage of group formation, group members are unsure of themselves and look to their leaders or others for direction.

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What is the depth of group process in this stage?

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What is the depth of group process in this stage?

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What are some ways to create trust in a group? What is “trust”?

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What are some ways to create trust in a group? What is “trust”?

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One way to create trust is by modeling willingness to be open.  Sink, Edwards, and Eppler, (2012) describe that in order to promote healthy group interaction the school counselor needs to model openness, show a caring concern for group members, and take appropriate risks. This would include ensuring that everyone has an opportunity to speak, and letting the students guide the discussion and make decisions related to the group (Sink, Edwards, & Eppler, 2012).

Trust can be described as the ability to have faith that someone has your back; reliability and belief in others that want what is best for you.

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor in this stage?

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor in this stage?

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It is common to avoid uncomfortable situations, especially in the early development of a group session.  However, challenge and conflict also can be viewed as a source of positive therapeutic energy in a group and critical situations, when handled appropriately, are opportunities for group growth (Kraus, DeEsch, & Geroski, 2001).  So not avoiding uncomfortable topics is recommended to establish good rapport with your group members.

Counselors can also avoid letting students refuse to participate.  Sink, Edwards, and Eppler, (2012) states empowering members to feel like an integral part of the group will allow students to feel a sense of cohesion.

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Name Impulse - fun way to get students comfortable with one another.

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Share something about the concept of confidentiality in small groups.

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Share something about the concept of confidentiality in small groups.

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An interesting perspective about confidentiality in small groups - especially when working with middle school girls.

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he or she said in group but not what other students have shared. Students who break the confidentiality of group and discuss things outside of group with others may be asked to leave the group. Small groups are for sharing and problem-solving and all students should feel safe in their group.

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What are the overall group characteristics in this stage?

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What are the overall group characteristics in this stage?

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This stage is mainly characterized by one's fear of the unknown. Corey, Corey, and Corey (2018) state that groups are experiencing anxiety, defensiveness, resistance, control issues, conflicts with members, and other various problematic behaviors. This stage is learning how to identify and confront fears to work through conflicts, as well as learning how to create a safe and trusting environment that encourages members to take risks (Corey, Corey, & Corey, 2018).

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What does your personal reaction to conflict look like? 

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What does your personal reaction to conflict look like? 

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Our natural reactions to conflict are based in biology: when confronted with confrontation, our innate biological response is to either attack or run away- the famous Fight or Flight syndrome.

Reactions to conflicts can look something like this for most individuals:

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What does your personal reaction to confrontation look like? 

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What does your personal reaction to confrontation look like? 

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Conflict has its own processes to go through. While I personally react neutrally during a conflict, as a counselor it is my responsibility to show the group members what conflict is and is not. Corey, Corey, and Corey (2018) state that confrontation is not tearing others down, hitting other with negative feedback, being hostile towards others, telling others what is wrong with them, and assaulting someone's integrity.  Personally, I like to agree with the conflict by revealing my own perceptions and thoughts.

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How does working through conflict lead to trust in small group counseling? 

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How does working through conflict lead to trust in small group counseling? 

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When you are willing to work through conflict, it shows an openness and the ability to empathize with the person who initiated the conflict.  Conflict usually stems from when someone is trying to connect with another person.  Mintle (2018) states that when you stay in the conflict you are building trust.  She further describes how people have issues but to stay in the relationship and work through those issues is showing safety and secure attachment (Mintle, 2018).  Showing a willingness to work through differences shows helps to develop trust.

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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Diversity could greatly impact the development of this stage.  A very beneficial article I found titled, Group Process from a Diversity Lens, does a great job of exploring diversity.  "Through guided questions, we will examine some of the fears and stereotypes that prevent us from having truly open, authentic conversations. We will explore what people of color can’t say and whites are afraid to ask, effectively and compassionately hearing the answers to these questions and developing ways to expand the conversation through curiosity, reflection and action. We will discover new ways to communicate, exploring what opens us up and what closes us down and, finally, looking at … ways to become culturally competent. You will learn effective cross-cultural communication and listening techniques and facilitation skills to adapt to a variety of diverse environments" (Wah, 2014, para. 1).

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Share how you interpret six problem behaviors at this stage. How can leaders work with these behaviors?

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Share how you interpret six problem behaviors at this stage. How can leaders work with these behaviors?

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There are several distinct types of difficult behaviors which can occur in group situations. Some of the most common include: Conflict, Non-Participation or Withdrawal, Monopolizing. Scapegoating, Irregular attendance, and Aggression.
Problems can often be resolved by:

Clear guidelines as to the 'rules' or ‘norms’ of the group.  Many formal groups will negotiate and agree on these rules at an early stage.

Positive feedback being given to individual contributions, both from the group leader and other group members.

Where problems do arise, their cause needs to be clearly understood.

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Perception and Bias

In today's complex and diverse organizations, it is rare that you will find two people who see the world in quite the same way. Each morning, you and I wake up and put on our own set of goggles that we use to understand the world around us. While we might have similar shades of goggles (yours red and mine pink), no two set of goggles are exactly the same. Every day, you will see your world in red, and I will see mine in pink. So, it would be appropriate to say that every individual lives in his or her own perceived world, which is, in some ways, quite different from the real world.

Perception, or the process by which individuals mentally organize sensory information in their environment to give it meaning, can help us understand why things might not always be as they appear. Perception is a process of observation and interpretation.

Another important concept for helping us understand our interpretations is bias. Bias is the unequal assessment between two alternatives, which typically puts one option in a favorable position and the other in an unfavorable one.

Perception and bias in the workplace are influenced by several factors that can shape and sometimes distort our view. Every employee has their own set of personal characteristics (goggles, if you will), such as their personality, life experiences, age, gender, culture, attitudes, values, motives, goals and expectations, that influence how he or she interprets the world around them. We also see those same personal characteristics in others and use them to form perceptions. Finally, the context in which the observation occurs is also important. When all three are taken into consideration, it is easy to see how quickly perceptions of the same thing can differ from person to person.

In the workplace, the perceptions people have about each other can significantly affect the manner in which an organization operates. In this lesson, we will continue to discuss perception and bias as it relates to how we interpret the behavior of others.

Attribution and Individual Behaviors

As we discussed, there are many factors that affect the way we interpret the world. As a manager, when you lack information, you might have to rely on your perceptions to make judgments about your ' behavior. Social scientists use the term attribution to describe the process of assigning meaning to a behavior. In the workplace, we attribute both our own behaviors and the behaviors of others - sometimes using very different measurement tools, which lead to attribution errors. Before getting into those errors, let's first discuss factors that influence our attributions.

Attribution theory suggests that when we assess a person's behavior, we first try to determine whether it was caused by something internal or external to the individual.

Internal causes are in the control of the individual, and external causes occur beyond the control of the individual. For example, let's say that one of your employees arrives 20 minutes late to work. You have the option of attributing the tardiness to the employee's staying out late partying and oversleeping, which is an internal cause, or you can attribute it to bad traffic on the employee's commute to work, which is an external cause.

Have you ever noticed that we have a tendency to naturally assume people's behaviors are more often caused by their own decisions and not circumstances beyond their control? This is known as fundamental attribution bias, which asserts that we tend to underestimate the influence of external factors and overestimate the influence of internal ones. Ironically, we do the opposite when judging our own behaviors. is the propensity for people to attribute their own success to internal factors, but blame external factors when they fail.

For example, Sally and Margie are on the same sales team. Both women have failed to meet their sales quota for the past quarter. Before speaking with Sally and Margie, their boss demonstrates a fundamental attribution bias by attributing the lack of sales to laziness on Sally and Margie's part, when in reality, it might have been due to the sluggish economy. When confronted with the lack in sales, Sally immediately makes a case for how she brought in 95% of the sales that she and Margie made. She demonstrated self-serving bias when she blamed the failure to meet the sales quota on Margie's lack of enthusiasm for the product.

Alternative Means of Assigning Meaning to Behavior

Any discussion of perception would not be complete without mentioning first impressions. There is a reason why people stress the importance of forming a good first impression on a date, interview or at a new job - labels we place on people the first time we meet them often remain. When our first impression perceptions of others are accurate, they can be beneficial in helping us understand how to best respond to those individuals in the future. However, when our perceptions are false, problems can quickly arise.

One of the most common problems that occurs with inaccurate impressions is stereotyping. Stereotyping is the process of making a generalization about a category of people and then applying that generalization to an individual member of that group.

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bias & interpreting behavior - video & lesson transcript | study.com

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Perception, Bias & Interpreting Behavior - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

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In today's complex and diverse organizations, it is rare that you will find two people who see the world in quite the same way. Each morning, you and I wake up and put on our own set of goggles that we use to understand the world around us.

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor in this stage?

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor in this stage?

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Corey, Corey, and Corey (2018) mention to avoid sarcasm and labeling as well as avoiding retreating from conflict and taking members reactions personally.

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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Group leaders also must be able to deal openly with conflicts that arise among multicultural contexts and to deal with these conflicts openly as a part of the developing group.

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor in this stage?

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor in this stage?

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A good counselor will know how to guide by using minimal words themselves. Counselors should be able to read each group members' verbal and non-verbal language. Group members in this stage need to be honest about their feelings and not be afraid to speak their mind. They should not feel as though they are being judged or criticized and if they are, it is the counselor’s job to address these issues (Corey, Corey, & Corey (2018).

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How are member interactions in a small group counseling session a microcosm of the world?

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How are member interactions in a small group counseling session a microcosm of the world?

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Group therapy replicates real-life better than individual counseling. A group can be seen as a microcosm or reflection of society (Vinogradov, Cox, & Yalom, 2003). At times, groups can become a temporary substitute for community, family, work place, or other important group/organization. In this microcosm, emotions, behavior and attitudes can be expressed openly. Members learn how members honestly respond to them over the duration of the group in a way that is unique and doesn't happen in regular social interaction.

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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What do typical or expected group member behaviors look or sound like in this stage?

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The final, closing, or ending stage of group is devoted to bring definitive closure to the group. During this stage, members are encouraged to share what they have learned, note how they have changed, and consider how
they plan to use what they have learned. Additionally, members prepare to say good-bye and deal with the group’s end (Alle-Corless & Alle-Corless, 2009).

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What are the overall group characteristics in this stage?

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What are the overall group characteristics in this stage?

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The final stage is when the group understands that they are no longer going to be together. This stage allows the group members to reflect on their experience and decide how they will use the knowledge that they acquired in their future occurrences. This stage often comes with feelings of sadness and separation. During this stage, feedback is very important (Corey, Corey, & Corey, 2018).

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Toseland and Rivas (2009) identify a variety of tasks that are associated with ending a group
as a whole:
-Learning from members
-Maintaining and generalizing change efforts
-Reducing group attraction and promoting independent functioning
of individual members
-Helping members deal with their feelings about ending
-Planning for the future
-Making referrals
-Evaluating the work of the group

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I was once in a very prestigious early childhood group. This was an archetype project. We were an elite group of directors, professors, and home childcare providers. We were interviewed and uniquely selected to be part of the first Technical Assistant training program in Philadelphia. We were being groomed to become the new class of professionals that would assist others in the field continue to build quality programs. We would meet monthly and discuss challenges in the field and train to correct and guide better outcomes.

This group was very hard to leave for two different reasons. One: we did not complete the curriculum. I did not want to leave without feeling accomplished. Two: The women I worked with were so smart and so accomplished. The amount of learning I gleaned from them was invaluable. After 18 months together, we adjourned the group. "In the "adjourning" stage, the project is coming to an end and the team members are moving off into different directions" (Abudi, 2010). Our project was not a success. We had to "evaluate what happened and capture lessons learned for future projects" (Abudi, 2010). We did not get to complete the normal rituals; leaving me without closure. Adjourning is necessary because it lets the team discuss losses and successes then move from team to closers.

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I was once in a very prestigious early childhood group. This was an archetype project. We were an elite group of directors, professors, and home childcare providers. We were interviewed and uniquely selected to be part of the first Technical Assistant training program in Philadelphia.

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How does member group work transfer to the world outside of the group?

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How does member group work transfer to the world outside of the group?

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It is the role of the counselor to educate on what each member should expect from the experience which includes reminders of confidentiality and change that may not be noticeable immediately. Group members will be encouraged to give feedback to other group members as well and in the end it is up to each member to decide what to do with the experience that they received (Corey, Corey, & Corey, 2018).

During this ending phase, it is important for group members to
examine the effects of the group on themselves. When group members
have an opportunity to put into words what they learned from the entire group experience, they are able to begin the process of letting go (Alle-Corless & Alle-Corless, 2009).

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor at this stage?

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What things would you avoid as a group counselor at this stage?

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Far too often, group leaders who themselves are ambivalent regarding ending the group may avoid the topic until the final few sessions; not only is this professionally inappropriate, but it can create animosity toward the group leader and impede proper closure (Alle-Corless & Alle-Corless, 2009).

Leaders should encourage members to be as specific and open as possible in describing what they have learned; this will increase their ability to retain and use what has been gleaned (Alle-Corless & Alle-Corless, 2009).

Leaders need to be in agreement on termination and in-tune as to how and when to approach the issue of ending (Alle-Corless & Alle-Corless, 2009).

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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How does diversity impact the development of this stage of group counseling?

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In this stage, diversity is affirmed and welcomed. Group diversity results in improved decision-making. Members relate with honesty, respect, and authenticity. Differences are bridged with integrity and commitment to work toward common goals (Sink, Edwards, & Eppler, 2012).

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Include an example of a closing activity.

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Include an example of a closing activity.

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You’ve Got Mail: Group Termination Activity

Directions: First, have your clients create their own paper mailbox.  Then, each person, including the therapist, writes a short note to every other member of the group.  You can instruct them to write something that they have gained by knowing that person, a strength they can identify in that person, a motivating message, etc.  The notes are then placed in the mailboxes for the group members to take home (Ending the Therapeutic Relationship, 2014).

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Toseland, R. (2009). Instructors manual and test bank for Toseland and Rivas

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Vinogradov, S., Cox, P. D., & Yalom, I. D. (2003). Group therapy

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Wah, L. M. (2014). Group process from a diversity lens - Counseling Today. Retrieved from https://ct.counseling.org/2014/04/group-process-from-a-diversity-lens/

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Yalom, I. D. (2005). The theory and practice of group psychotherapy. (4th ed.). New York: Basic Book.