Innovative Uses for the Group Modality THREE INNOVATIVE USES FOR THE GROUP MODALITY I.

I. Study 1 - Psychodrama technique in detox

Estes, D. (1988). Practical help for the practitioner. Journal of Psychotherapy, Psychodrama, and Sociometry, 41(1), 36-38.

This article discusses practical, yet innovative strategies for group psychotherapy with patients in a medical detox unit. The author points out that such groups tend to be quite heterogeneous with respect to drug use and age. Some patients are young, and fairly new to substance abuse, while others are in their late middle age and virtual "veterans" of drug abuse. Thus, the need is for strategies that all group members can relate to and thus deal with their abuse problem in a therapeutic manner.

Estes has noted that when patients are allowed to set their own level of involvement, one strategy appears to stand out as effective. He describes the strategy as one in which the patient picks out the person each feels has been most affected by the patient's abuse problem. Patients then participate in a therapist-led guided fantasy in which they confront the person. The aim of the strategy is to use patients' sense memories of the person so that they have in their minds a clear impression of how the person moves, smells, looks, etc. Estes states that the strategy assists the patients to experience the other person's love, support, hurt, and anger, and this in turn gives the patients a clearer understanding of the consequences of their actions on others. Furthe

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Family members shared and discussed the various experiences they had as they learned and applied the communication skills. To determine treatment effectiveness, family members in the psychoeducational therapy group were asked to complete two questionnaires. These questionnaires, completed both before and after the group therapy program, were (1) the Family environment Scale which measured several dimensions of family functioning such as degree of conflict in the family, and (2) the Family of Origin Scale which measured levels of family autonomy and intimacy. In addition, structured family interviews were conducted. The authors concluded that, The results suggest that a time-limited, psychoeducational treatment program can be useful in helping mentally ill young adults and their families to lower the amount of conflict in their familial environments. In addition, after the program most of the patients viewed their families as better at promoting autonomy and developing intimacy. (p.66) What makes Mills et al's approach innovative is the inclusion of the Model Family in the treatment approach. The use of modelling strategies is an established aspect of behavioral therapy; however, it is not often used in family therapy ap
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Family Process, Psychodrama Sociometry, Model Family, Johnson Ridener, Origin Scale, Lange Van, Family Therapy, MODALITY Study, Steinglass Reiss, model family, JC Sbarbati, chronic medical, treatment program, family therapy, families chronic medical, medical illnesses, communication skills, type program, psychoeducational treatment, families chronic, mutual sharing, chronic medical illnesses, developed families family, johnson ridener 1974, lange van der,
Approximate Word count = 1486
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)

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