Social Group Work: Classification and Types of Groups, Task Group, Treatment Group, Educational Group, Support Group and Therapy Group.

(caps)To understand the breadth of group work practice, it is helpful to become familiar with the variety of groups in practice settings. Because there are so many kinds of groups that workers may be asked to lead, it is helpful to distinguish among them. In the following two sections, distinctions are made among groups based on whether they are formed or occur naturally and whether they are treatment- or task-oriented.

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Formed and Natural Groups

Formed groups are those that come together through some outside influence or intervention. They usually have some sponsorship or affiliation and are convened for a particular purpose. Some examples of formed groups are therapy groups, educational groups, committees, social action groups, and teams. Natural groups come together spontaneously based on naturally occurring events, interpersonal attraction, or the mutually perceived needs of members. They often lack formal sponsorship. Natural groups include family groups, peer groups, friendship networks, street gangs, cliques, and groups created by peers within social media platforms.

Natural groups, such as families, are neither planned nor constructed by a group worker. Often, natural groups have a longer developmental history that has unique implications for the relationships among members and the interventions used by workers. For these reasons, a separate body of knowledge has been developed for work with natural groups, such as families.

Despite the differences between formed and natural groups, many of the skills and techniques presented in this text are readily applicable to work with natural groups, and we encourage group work practitioners to use them.

Purpose and Group Work

Formed groups can be classified according to the purposes for which they are organized. The term purpose can be defined as the general aims of a group. The importance of purpose in group work cannot be overemphasized. According to Wilson (1976), “the nature of the framework for the practice of group work depends on the purpose of the group that is served”. A group’s purpose identifies the reasons for bringing members together. As Klein (1972) notes, “purpose guides group composition”. It also helps guide the group’s selection of goal-directed activities and defines the broad parameters of the services to be provided.

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In this text, the term treatment group is used to signify a group whose major purpose is to meet members’ socio-emotional needs. The purposes for forming treatment groups might include meeting members’ needs for mutual aid, support, education, therapy, growth, and socialization. In contrast, the term task group is used to signify any group in which the overriding purpose is to accomplish a goal that is neither intrinsically nor immediately linked to the needs of the members of the group. Although the work of a task group may ultimately affect the members of the group, the primary purpose of task groups is to accomplish a goal that will affect a broader constituency, not just the members of the group.

Treatment Group

Six primary purposes for treatment groups are (1) support, (2) education, (3) growth, (4) therapy, (5) socialization, and (6) self-help. In practice settings, there are innumerable variations of treatment groups that combine these six primary purposes. For example, a group for parents of children with Down syndrome might be oriented toward both education and growth. A group for alcoholics might have all six primary purposes.

Support Group

The description of the treatment typology begins with support groups because support is a common ingredient of many successful treatment groups. Support groups can be distinguished from other groups using supportive intervention strategies by their primary goals: to foster mutual aid, to help members cope with stressful life events, and to revitalize and enhance members’ coping abilities so they can effectively adapt to and cope with future stressful life events. Examples of support groups include the following:

A group of children meeting at school to discuss the effects of divorce on their lives

A group of people diagnosed with cancer, and their families, discussing the effects of the disease and how to cope with it.

A group of recently discharged psychiatric patients discussing their adjustment to community living

A group of single parents sharing the difficulties of raising children alone. (alert-success)

Educational Group

The primary purpose of educational groups is to help members learn new information and skills. Educational groups are used in a variety of settings, including treatment agencies, schools, nursing homes, correctional institutions, and hospitals. Examples of educational groups include the following:

An adolescent sexuality group sponsored by a family planning agency

A wellness-in-the-workplace group designed by a social worker directing an employee assistance program

A group for prospective foster parents sponsored by a child welfare agency

A group sponsored by a community planning agency to help board members become more effective.(alert-success)

Growth Groups

Growth-oriented groups offer opportunities for members to become aware of, expand, and change their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors regarding themselves and others. The group is used as a vehicle to develop members’ capabilities to the fullest. Growth groups focus on promoting socio-emotional health rather than remediating socio-emotional illness. Examples of growth groups include the following:

An encounter group for married couples

A values-clarification group for adolescents

A consciousness-raising group sponsored by a women’s community center

A gay-pride group sponsored by a community health clinic serving the gay community in a large urban area. (alert-success)

Growth groups generally stress self-improvement and the potential of human beings to live a full and rewarding life, especially through improved relationships with others. They provide a supportive atmosphere in which individuals can gain insights, experiment with new behaviors, get feedback, and grow as human beings. The bond in growth groups stems from members’ commitment to help one another develop and maximize their potential.

Therapy Groups

Therapy groups help members change their behavior, cope with and ameliorate personal problems, or rehabilitate themselves after physical, psychological, or social trauma. Although 
there is often an emphasis on support, therapy groups are distinguished from support groups by their focus on remediation and rehabilitation. In group work practice, particular importance is often accorded to leading therapy groups, even to the exclusion of other types of group work, possibly because of the traditional importance attributed to the medical model that stresses therapy and treatment to bring sick or dysfunctional people back to health. Konopka (1983) noted that the high status of psychiatry on the North American continent helped to make the term therapy more precious and more important than the terms casework and group work (terms used by the social work profession). Thus, therapy groups are often associated with the professionalism of group work as a method of practice. Examples of therapy groups include the following:

A psychotherapy group for outpatients at a community mental health center.

A group, sponsored by a voluntary health association, for people who want to stop smoking.

A first-offenders group in a juvenile diversion program sponsored by a probation department.

A hospital-sponsored group for people addicted to drugs. (alert-success)

In therapy groups, members come together to solve their problems. The group leader is often viewed as an expert, an authority figure, and a change agent. Members’ problems are assessed and treatment goals are developed with the help of the worker. Although the group has a common purpose, each member may have a different problem with different symptoms. In addition, the etiology and development of each member’s problem is unique. Therefore, to achieve individual goals, the worker often focuses on one member at a time. Depending on the approach or stance of the worker, the members of a therapy group may be expected to help each other work on problems. The level of member self-disclosure is usually quite high but can depend somewhat on the types of problems experienced by group members.

Socialization Groups

Socialization groups help members learn social skills and socially accepted behavior patterns so they can function effectively in the community. Socialization groups frequently use program activities, such as games, role plays, or outings, to help members accomplish individual goals.

The personal needs of members and the goals of the group are often met through program activities rather than exclusively through group discussion. Thus, socialization groups feature a learning-through-doing approach in which members improve their interpersonal skills by participating in program activities. Examples of socialization groups include the following: 

• A Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) activity group
• A social club for outpatients of a psychiatric center
• A monthly Vietnam veterans evening social at a rural Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) post
• A Parents Without Partners group that includes picnics, dances, and other social activities. (alert-success)

Leadership of socialization groups can be directive or nondirective, depending on the complexity of program activities and the competencies of group members. Member participation is the key to successful individual and group outcomes. The group is a medium for activity, participation, and involvement, and members are bonded to each other through these activities. The composition of socialization groups can be based on the similar interests and needs of members or on the common experiences offered by a particular program activity.

Self-Help Groups

Although they share many characteristics with support, educational, and socialization groups, the distinguishing characteristic of self-help groups is that they are led by members who share the problem experienced by the other members of the group. Self-help groups have been developed for a wide variety of problems, and they are readily available online (Norcross et al, 2013). Because professionals often play vital roles in self-help groups, this type of group is included in the treatment group typology. Although it is often thought that self-help groups are led by lay people, in practice, many self-help groups are actually led by professionals who have experienced the problem shared by the other members of the group. There is also mutual aid group work that is closely related to empowerment and self-help. Examples of self-help groups include the following:

• Alcoholics Anonymous, groups for people trying to get sober and those trying to remain sober

• Mended Hearts, a group for patients who have undergone bypass or other heart surgery procedures

• Make Today Count, a group for cancer survivors

• Gamblers Anonymous, groups for people who are trying to stop gambling or who are trying to remain free of a gambling addiction. (alert-success)

Although there is no accurate estimate of the number of self-help groups in the United States or throughout the world, they are very numerous. For example, the Self-Help Group Sourcebook alone lists over 1,000 national and international headquarters of self-help groups in the United States and Canada and includes 33 separate clearinghouses for self-help information in 22 different countries. These organizations, in turn, sponsor many self-help groups in local communities. Online support groups are also an important resource, serving individuals with many different kinds of concerns.

Task Group:

Task groups are common in most agencies and organizations. They are used to find solutions to organizational problems, to generate new ideas, and to make decisions. Task groups can have three primary purposes:

(1) meeting client needs,

(2) meeting organizational needs, and

(3) meeting community needs.

Task groups with the primary purpose of serving client needs include teams, treatment conferences, and staff-development groups. Task groups with the primary purpose of serving organizational needs include committees, cabinets, and boards of directors. Task groups with a primary purpose of serving community needs include social action groups, coalitions, and delegate councils.