Marital group therapy

This article offers a model for community mental health centers of how to respond to additional service requests for marital counseling.     

Sibling group treatment

This paper examines a model of treatment for working with sibling groups. It is suggested that the sibling group is rarely considered as a viable treatment entity, yet siblings potentially exert a powerful influence within the family system. Assumptions underlying this model of treatment are examined. As a unit of treatment, sibling groups can be worked with in three ways: (1) as an adjunct to family or adult treatment, (2) as an adjunct to individual child therapy, and (3) by itself. Treatment objectives are described and a case illustration is provided. Finally, limitations and benefits of sibling group treatment are discussed.     

Family-centered group care

Alternate frameworks for a model of residential group care focused on the family have the primary objective of early discharge from group care. The proposals are based on an agency's experience.     

Bayesian group belief

If a group is modelled as a single Bayesian agent, what should its beliefs be? I propose an axiomatic model that connects group beliefs to beliefs of the group members. The group members may have different information, different prior beliefs and even different domains (algebras) within which they hold beliefs, accounting for differences in awareness and conceptualisation. As is shown, group beliefs can incorporate all information spread across individuals without individuals having to explicitly communicate their information (that may be too complex or personal to describe, or not describable in principle in the language). The group beliefs derived here take a simple multiplicative form if people’s information is independent (and a more complex form if information overlaps arbitrarily). This form contrasts with familiar linear or geometric opinion pooling and the (Pareto) requirement of respecting unanimous beliefs.     

The traveling group problem

This paper combines social choice theory with mathematical optimization by applying various group decision concepts to a classical problem of combinatorial optimization, namely the famous traveling salesperson (salesman) problem. The aim of the latter is to find a tour through all vertices of a given graph along edges of minimal total cost. In this contribution we replace the measure of additive edge costs by the social acceptance of different edges and the resulting tours. In particular, for four different voting rules, the Borda rule, Approval voting, Plurality rule and Simple Majority rule, we will investigate the social acceptance of tours derived from global and local decisions. It will be shown that these two decision approaches can lead to widely varying results.     

Interpersonal communications task group

Primary nurses can use their theoretical, pragmatic and creative efforts by being involved in groups such as the one mentioned in this article. For those unfamiliar with group work, course and seminars are available through colleges, universities and inservice departments of major hospitals. Even with this knowledge base, adequate supervision by a clinical expert is essential in providing this type of care to patients. Taking on a leadership role, the nurse becomes accountable for presenting effective interpersonal techniques with the hope that the patient would adapt and integrate such skills when he returns to the outside community.     

Latent classes and group membership

A technique for analyzing group membership data, such as interlocking directorates, based on the assumption of latent classes of individuals, is described and illustrated with two data sets. The technique partitions individuals and/or groups into homogeneous sets and can be used to create measures of structural centrality for groups and for individuals.     

Adolescent group therapy membership selection

Conclusions Social agency practitiooners can employ adolescent group therapy as an effective treatment mode, as long as a great deal of attention and planning is put into the details of group membership selection. The authors have presented suggestions and guidelines that can be used in overcoming the logistic problems inherent in forming an adolescent therapy group. We feel that proper pregroup planning is just as important in determining group results as is the ongoing group process. Group treatment does not necessarily incease a therapist's productivity or reduce the amount of time spent in therapy, but it does offer a unique experience which has certain qualitative advantages for teenagers experiencing behavioral and relationship problems within and, particularly, outside of the family system.     

What's a medication group?

For therapists interested in a didactic model, a Medication Group can be an ideal vehicle for patient education. Our patients are remarkably well informed on dopamine, tardive dyskinesia, side effects, types and levels of drugs, early symptoms, individual stressors and coping mechanisms. They request and titrate drug levels according to their own identification of symptom distress. There is no question that the ability to control their symptoms and medications is a positive and important experience for them. The focus for this paper, however, has been an exploration of a group therapeutic strategy which deals with the phenomenological needs of chronic schizophrenics to address the residual or negative symptoms of schizophrenia, and not their educational needs.     

Worker authenticity in group work

The article focuses on the issue of worker authenticity in working with groups. It is suggested that authenticity is an important ingredient in the helping relationship and that the social worker needs to encounter the members as a human being who is willing to reveal himself rather than as a professional, playing a role. While the importance of the worker being genuine is highlighted, attention is also given to those situations when it may be inappropriate for the worker to disclose personal thoughts and feelings. The author suggests specific guidelines based on timing, appropriateness, and motivation.     

Acyclic choice and group veto

The Arrow Impossibility Theorem assumes transitivity. Acyclicity is a more appropriate rationality condition for collective decision procedures. Many impossibility theorems for acyclic choice need to assume that there are more alternatives than individuals. In this paper we show that by considering circumstances under which groups (or coalitions) have veto it is possible to prove impossiblity theorems without making such an assumption. Our results extend recent theorems by Blau and Deb, and Blair and Pollak.I would like to thank my research supervisor Amartya Sen, the referee and the editor of this journal for their comments on earlier drafts of this paper.     

Sexual abuse and group therapy

This article described the formation of a structured, open-ended, time-limited, repeatable group for sexually abused girls. The sexually abused pre-adolescent and young adolescent must address developmental tasks while attempting to cope with tremendous guilt, shame, and loss of self-esteem. The value of group therapy as a support to sexually abused children was explored and a format was devised to help them deal with their issues. Discussion questions and topics designated for each session helped meet their specific needs. The group members evaluated the group as being helpful overall. In conclusion, the expansion of psychotherapeutic services to sexually abused children through a structured group format has been proposed. If others are encouraged to engage in such work, then the purpose of this article has been achieved.     

从集体行动（群体事件）看信息环境的环境化

集体行动（群体事件）是我国转型期较新的社会问题，信息传播在其中扮演着重要的角色。本文从议程设置、大众传播的理论出发分析在这些集体行动（群体事件）中信息传播的环境，对信息环境环境化形成的媒介、意见领袖、受众三方面的原因进行了讨论。     

Asian students’ perceptions of group work and group assignments in a New Zealand tertiary institution

This study, conducted in 2005 in a New Zealand tertiary institution, examines Asian students’ perceptions of the much‐promulgated cooperative learning concepts in the form of group work and group assignments. Twenty‐two Asian students participated in one‐hour individual face‐to‐face semi‐structured interviews. The study found that Asian students valued highly the significance of classroom group discussions where they could interact with students from other cultures and backgrounds, improve their English‐language skills, enhance their cultural understanding and provide them with opportunities to make friends. However, they held intensely negative views about group assignments that required students to complete a project as a group with shared marks determined by the performance of the group. Contributing factors affecting group dynamics included members’ attitudes and willingness to cooperate and contribute as a team, the composition of the group, students’ competing demands on students’ time and attention, heterogeneity from the natural abilities of students, and the varying cultural values and beliefs held by group members. Most Asian students felt disheartened and helpless at having to complete mandatory group assignments. The study suggests that cooperative learning has its strengths and weaknesses. Students’ needs, interests, cultural values, and teaching effectiveness should be considered as a priority in teaching in tertiary institutions.     

Discussion group papers on professional ethics

The setting of the study described in this article is an Admission Centre—the Wallace Wurth Clinic—one of the several Units comprising the Psychiatric Centre, North Ryde.