Theoretical

approaches to
Group
Counseling
 What is Group
Counseling?
Group counseling is a form of
psychotherapy that involves four
to ten clients and two experienced
group therapists. Therapy groups
meet every week at the same time
for ninety minutes. During that
time, the members of the group 2
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Psychoanalytic
approach
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Adlerian groups
Adlerian Groups
Alfred Adler used groups as early as
1922 to counsel parents. Though, as
much as he used groups in therapy, he
never came up with a theory
specifically concerning groups.
However, his theory has always been
group-related. Other theorists, such as
Dreikurs and Dinkmeyer, developed 8
One of the main ideas of Adler's theory is social
interest. Social interest is not only an interest
in others, but an interest in the interest of
others. He believed that people perceive the
world based on their experiences and are not
objective. People do not act randomly, but
have a purposefulness in all their behaviors,
which controls our fate and goals. Movement
toward our goals is more important than what 9
Adler was concerned with the present. He
stressed a healthy style of life, which for him is
the way one prefers to live and relates to
others. He felt that people are creative enough
to choose from a wide variety of behaviors.
Behavioral disorders occur when one chooses
unwisely. Common aspects of all Adlerian
groups are:
1.An emphasis is placed on an interpretation of a
person's early history. 10
The Adlerian group leader should possess certain
characteristics, including serving as a role model for
group members. The leader helps establish structure by
helping members define their goals, offers interpretations,
guides group assessment, builds a feeling of community
within the group, and is aware of basic conditions needed
for growth.
Desired outcomes of the group primarily focus on the
growth and actions of the individual within the group,
rather than the group itself. Members of the group should 11
Person-Centered
Group
Counseling
 Person-Centered Group
Person-centered groupCounseling
counseling is influenced by Carl
Roger's belief in nondirective counseling. He believed that
if he created the environment and feeling of acceptance
and warmth, the client would grow. Person-centered groups
are built on certain premises.

The first of these is trust in the inner resources of people,

then trust in the group to help members develop their
potential. He believed that certain conditions can be
created within the group to maximize its full potential,
such as communication, active listening, and confrontation
as important elements of the group. He also felt that the 14
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The leader of person-centered groups is directed by the members. The
leadership style is more passive than in other types of counseling.
Leaders of person-centered groups serve as role models of openness,
congruence, warmth, genuineness, and acceptance when creating a
nonthreatening climate where clients can grow. Person-centered
therapists participate as members of the group and will share their
struggles with the group. Group leaders are seen as facilitators. Group
leaders carry out the following functions:

1. Conveying warmth and empathy

2. Attending to others
3. Understanding meaning and content
4. Conveying acceptance
5. Linking

The desired outcomes of the person-centered group are for members to 15

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psychodrama
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 What is Psychodrama?
Psychodrama is a type of experiential, action-based therapy in which people
explore issues by acting out events from their past. This type of therapy
incorporates aspects of role-playing, dramatic self-presentation, and group
dynamics to help people gain greater understanding and insight into their lives
and experiences.

While it functions as individual therapy, it utilizes a group format. It is rooted in

psychology, but it also incorporates elements of theater and sociology.

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 TECHNIQUES
Sessions are usually performed once a week in a group made up of around eight
to 12 people. A session typically lasts around two hours. 

Each session is usually focused on one individual within the group. Other
members of the group will then take on supporting roles during the session as
they are needed. 
There are three basic components of a psychodrama session:

• The Warm-Up Phase

• The Action Phase
• The Sharing Phase

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 The Warm-Up Phase

The warm-up phase is a period in which members

of the group introduce themselves, work on
establishing trust, and create a sense of group
cohesiveness.

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 THE ACTION PHASE
The action phase involves creating and acting out a scene from the individual's life. The
therapist acts as a director to guide the individual, known as the protagonist, and others in the
group through the scene using various techniques

• Doubling: This involves a member of the group acting out the protagonist’s emotions and
behaviors. The actor will say what they believe the protagonist thinks or what they seem
to be withholding. The activity creates a link between the protagonist’s internal reality and
the reality of the external world.

• Mirroring: The individual observes others as they act out scenes, events, and
conversations so that the individual can watch. This technique can be useful for helping
people gain perspective or when someone needs to have some emotional distance in order
to better understand their emotions.

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• Role-playing: This technique involves the individual portraying something,
often a particular person or object, that is a source of stress or conflict in their
life.

• Role reversal: This technique involves the protagonist acting out the role of
another person in their life while another actor plays the part of the protagonist.
This can help improve empathy and understanding of another person’s
perspective.

• Soliloquy: In this technique, the protagonist describes their inner thoughts and
feelings to an audience. The goal of this is to help the individual gain greater
insight into their inner feelings and thoughts and to help promote catharsis

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 THE SHARING PHASE

The sharing phase then involves the therapist helping the individual process and
understand the emotions and thoughts that have come to the surface. The hope is that
this will lead to insight and transformation.

This phase also involves having others in the group provide their insights that might
help the protagonist gain a better understanding of their own experiences.

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 WHAT PSYCHODRAMA CAN HELP WITH

Psychodrama may be helpful for several different conditions. It may be helpful

for people who have conditions that affect self-image, emotions, and moods.
Some conditions or issues it might help include:
1. Eating disorders
2. Grief
3. Identity issues
4. Mood disorders
5. Negative self-image
6. Personality disorders
7. Relationship problems
8. Trauma
Psychodrama has also been used in the treatment of conditions such as 
schizophrenia and substance use disorder.

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Gestalt
theory
 GESTALT THERAPY

Gestalt therapy is a humanistic, holistic, person-centered form of

psychotherapy that is focused on a person's present life and challenges rather
than delving into past experiences. This approach stresses the importance of
understanding the context of a person’s life and taking responsibility rather
than placing blame.

Gestalt, by definition, refers to the form or shape of something and suggests

that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. There is an emphasis on
perception in this particular theory of counseling. Gestalt therapy gives
attention to how we place meaning and make sense of our world and our
experiences.

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 Key Concepts
1. Experience Influences Perception

In this client-centered approach to therapy, the gestalt therapist

understands that no one can be fully objective and that we are influenced
by our environment and our experiences. A therapist trained in gestalt
therapy holds space for their clients to share their truth, not imposing their
judgment and accepting the truth of their clients' experiences.
Since therapists are human as well, it is important for gestalt therapists
to consider the influence of their own experiences on what is happening in
the session.

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2. Context Matters
When in session, gestalt therapists want to learn about the experience of
their clients. It is understood that context matters, and the therapists use
techniques to help the client become more aware of their experiences, their
perceptions, and their responses to events in the here and now.
Rather than specifically targeting the past and asking clients to
purposefully bring up old experiences, gestalt therapists operate from a place
of understanding that as clients become increasingly aware, they will
overcome existing roadblocks. There is no forced work or technique, just
holding space for client awareness is key in this approach.

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3. The Present
The main hallmark of gestalt therapy is the focus on the present. In the
session, the client and therapist rapport is critical in building trust and safety.
As the client shares, a gestalt therapist will help bring the client back to the
present if there is a sense, they are spending too much time in the past or if
their anxiety may be speeding them into the future.
An example of keeping a client present might include something like
asking the client about their facial expression or body language as they process
a particular event or experience.
In asking about something they are observing in the room, they are
helping the client come back to the present and process what is happening for
them at that moment.

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4. Working Through Pain
We work very hard to survive painful experiences, and part of this
survival may include shutting down our emotional hurt or painful memory of
the event. In gestalt therapy, you are offered a space where you don't have to
do that hard work anymore.

This isn't to suggest that things will come up quickly, but they don't have
to. A gestalt therapist understands that things such as painful memories or
events will come to awareness when the client is ready for healing in that area.

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5. Self-Awareness
During gestalt therapy, there may be some experiential exercises that you
will do with your therapist. Experiential exercise refers to therapeutic activities
done in therapy that can help to increase awareness and help with processing.
At the heart of gestalt therapy is awareness. As Frederick Salomon Perls put it,
"Awareness in itself is healing."

Rather than sitting still and talking, you may be asked to actively
participate in something like role play, guided imagery, or the use of props to
help communication and understanding. Engaging in experiential exercises
can be a wonderful way to open up and share, especially when it is difficult to
find words or when you tend to process in a more visual way. Gestalt
therapists understand that these exercises help to increase awareness.

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 TECHNIQUES
1. Words and Language

Attention to language and tone is important in gestalt therapy. As

clients learn to accept responsibility, they learn to use language that
reflects a sense of personal ownership rather than focusing on others.
For example, rather than saying, "If he didn't do that I wouldn't get so
mad!" a client might be encouraged to say, "I feel mad when he does
that because it makes me feel insignificant and I don't like that.“

The use of "I" statements is important in gestalt therapy.

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2. Empty Chair

This is a role-playing exercise that allows a client to imagine and

participate in a conversation with another person or another part of
themselves. Sitting across from the empty chair, the client enters into a
dialogue as if they were speaking with that other person or that other
part of themselves.

The empty chair exercise can be very helpful in drawing out

important perceptions, meanings, and other information that can help
clients become more aware of their emotional experience and how to
start healing.

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3. Role Play

Another example of role-playing might be what is referred to as "top

dog and underdog." In this, it is recognized that a client has different
parts of self. Similar to the empty chair, the client speaks as both the top
dog, which is the more demanding side of their personality and the
underdog, which is the more submissive and obedient side of their
personality.

The key is to become aware of inner conflicts so that the person can
better learn how to integrate these parts of self into a more complete
whole.

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4. Body Language

During a session, a gestalt therapist will observe the client's body

language and movement such as tapping their foot, wringing their hands,
or making a certain facial expression. The therapist is likely to mention
their observation of this and ask what is happening for the person at that
moment.

Incorporating language, the gestalt therapist may even ask the client to
give their foot, hands, or facial expression a voice and speak from that
place.

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5. Exaggeration
In addition to giving body language a voice, a gestalt therapist may
inquire about the client's body language. If it is difficult for the client to
find words to put to what is happening, they may be asked to exaggerate
that motion or repeat it several times in a row for a period of time during
the session to draw out some of their experience at that moment.

The client and the therapist get a chance to process emotions and how
the person might have learned to disconnect their emotional experiences
with their physical experiences.

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6. Locating Emotion
During a session, it is common for people to talk about emotion. Talking
about emotion is different than experiencing an emotion. As a client talks
about emotion, the therapist may ask them where they feel that emotion in
their body.

Examples of how a person might describe how they're experiencing emotion

in their body include "a pit in my stomach" or "my chest feels tight." Being
able to bring the emotional experience to awareness in the body helps the
client stay present and process their emotions more effectively.

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7. Creative Arts
Additional activities such as painting, sculpting, and
drawing can also be used to help people gain awareness,
stay present, and learn how to process the moment. It is
generally noted in this style that any technique that can be
offered to the client, other than traditional sitting still and
talking, can be helpful in allowing them to become more
aware of themselves, their experiences, and their process
of healing.

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 WHAT GESTALT THERAPY
CAN HELP WITH
There are a variety of conditions that gestalt
therapy may be used to treat, including:
• Anxiety
• Depression
• Low self-efficacy
• Low self-esteem
• Relationship problems

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 Benefits of Gestalt Therapy

1. Staying Present
Gestalt therapy aims for the client to gain greater
awareness of their experience of being in the world.
Gestalt therapists do not have a goal of changing their
clients. In fact, clients are encouraged to focus on
becoming more aware of themselves, staying present, and
processing things in the here and now.

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2. Self-Awareness and Growth
It is suggested that the way we learn how to survive
experiences, particularly painful experiences, is to create
blocks or push things out of awareness so that we can
move forward. As effective as it may seem, it can create
trouble for us as we become more compartmentalized and
fragmented in our sense of self and our experiences.

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3. Personal Responsibility
A key goal in gestalt therapy is to give clients the opportunity to
own and accept their experiences. In blaming others, we lose our
sense of control and become victims of the event or the others
involved in the event. Gestalt therapy encourages clients to challenge
those old ways of how we may have created meaning about an
experience.

Learning how to accept and embrace personal responsibility is a goal

of gestalt therapy, allowing clients to gain a greater sense of control
in their experiences and to learn how to better regulate their emotions
and interactions with the world.

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4. Self-Regulation and Growth
Gestalt therapy suggests that people strive for self-regulation and
growth but that they sometimes develop maladaptive techniques to
survive painful experiences. Some of these techniques feel helpful in
the short term because they can help minimize our pain or distress.

However, over the long term, they leave us in more emotionally

shaky places, unable to express ourselves. We may find it hard to
interact with others, and difficult to learn how to effectively regulate
ourselves and be whole, responsible beings.

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EXISTENI
AL
APPROA
CH
Thanks!

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