Group Therapy involves a therapist (or co-therapists) working with multiple individuals simultaneously in a structured setting. It leverages group dynamics and peer support to foster growth, insight, and change.
Key Points:
- Common Formats:
- Psychoeducational Groups: Providing information and coping skills (e.g., anger management).
- Interpersonal Process Groups: Focusing on relationships within the group to explore personal patterns.
- Support Groups: Encouraging shared experiences, especially beneficial for loss, addiction, or chronic illness.
- Benefits: Sense of community, mutual understanding, multiple perspectives, learning from peers, reduced feelings of isolation.
- Challenges: Confidentiality across group members, risk of social anxiety, and the need to manage group dynamics effectively.