. For example, the death of a group member often is responded to by other group members with feelings of intense rage and/or fear. These responses need to be addressed.
In his work with AIDS patients, Borden (1989) has found it effective to use a technique he calls "life review." Borden illustrates the technique by describing its use with a 39 year old man with AIDS. As a result of his having contracted the AIDS virus, the man was experiencing depression.
Using the life review technique, therapy required the man to elaborate on the narrative of his life, using reminiscence. Borden claimed that the use of the technique can lead to a more cohesive sense of self, shifting the focus from debility and dysfunction to concern for health and personal group.
One of the variables addressed in the proposed study is that of the level of currently experienced illness. Scappaticcio (1989) has noted that this variable is important in therapeutic efforts with AIDS patients because different issues are associated with differing levels of illness. Scappaticcio (1989) states:
These issues can be ordered along a continuum ranging from concern about risk of exposure, to concern about actual exposure and risk of infection, and then to actual infection...(p.77)
The author notes that from the point of actual infection, issues continue to vary along a continuum that is related to whether patients are asymptomatic or at one of several stages in the progression of the disease. Scappaticcio's findings are of direct relevance to the proposed study. The proposed study is examining the effectiveness of group therapy at a local AIDS PROJECT. It can be assumed that effectiveness, at least in part, involves how well the group addresses itself to issues related to having ARC or AIDS.
However, what Scappaticcio notes is that different issues are associated with different levels of experienced illness. Therefore, it is possible that group th...