1 Boring Old Man

Group Psychology is a fascinating topic. It’s more that that for Group Therapists. It’s the key to creating a Group Milieu that can become a powerful force for change instead of a "mob." What follows is my own paraphrasing of the ideas of Winfred Bion, a British Psychoanalyst from the School of Melanie Klein who worked with therapy groups.

• The forces mobilized in groups are suprisingly strong and predictable. Initially, there is no insurance that the group will be safe. As people begin to interact and the inevitable tensions begin to build, one or more people will begin to frustrate others. Sooner or later, the group will begin to scapegoat on or several members. If left alone, this weaker member will be driven from the group. That’s a disaster, because the group has become a "killing" group, organized around shared hatred.
• The purpose of the leader is to keep this from happening. Since the whole task of group formation is to create an atmosphere of safety, the leader must protect the weaker members. It takes skill to allow these vulnerable members to learn how not to frustrate others and keep the group from expelling them.
• If the leader is able to keep the group from scapegoating members and becoming a dangerous group, again, sooner or later, the aggression of the group will be focused of the leader, usually around some mistake he/she has made.
• All the leader has to do is survive the attack, not by power but by admitting the mistake,and not being overly defensive.

Once the group has been prevented from scapegoating members and killing off its own leader, it becomes safe. Groups that make it through the process become working groups and can be an extremely powerful force for change. Such groups last for a long time. When a new member is added or an old member lost, the group usually goes through an abbreviated version of the same process.

How’s he doing?