Leading Mutual Aid Support Groups: The Science and Art of Group Work Practice

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Leading Mutual Aid Support Groups: The Science and Art of Group Work Practice

Friday, March 18, 2022

9:00 am to 4:00 pm EST

LIVE WEBINAR

Presenter: Lawrence Shulman, MSW, Ed.D, Emeritus Professor and Dean, University at Buffalo School of Social Work

NASW-NYS Members: $60

NASW Other Chapter Member: $120

Non-Members: $150

NASW-NYS Student and Transitional Members: FREE

This workshop is approved for 6.0 continuing education credit hours for licensed social workers, licensed mental health counselors, licensed marriage and family therapists and licensed psychologists

 
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Workshop Description

The focus of this workshop will be on understanding the core dynamics and skills required to lead mutual aid support groups. Examples presented by the instructor and those shared by participants will be used to illustrate how to apply this understanding to a range of settings (e.g., hospitals, drug treatment agencies, schools, residential settings welfare) and with a range of populations and problems. Discussion will include how to integrate elements from Evidenced-Based Practice (e.g., Motivational Interviewing, Solution Focused Practice, and Cognitive Behavioral) in a non-prescriptive manner so that the personal artistry of the group leader is enhanced and not restricted by the science.

Discussion will also include the way in which group members' ambivalence can lead to the “illusion of work” (e.g., passive resistance, intellectualizing, and avoidance) and how the group leader can confront this process in a supportive manner. Inter-cultural issues (e.g., group leader being a different race/ethnicity from group members) and intra-cultural dynamics (e.g., both the group leader and member(s) from the same culture) will be discussed.

In this workshop, participants will learn how to:

  • Deal with the individual in the group (e.g., the "deviant member", monopolizers, and scapegoats)
  • Discuss taboo subjects (e.g., family violence; death and dying; sexuality, racism and sexism) • Work with the group as a whole as a dynamic system
  • Integrate the "two clients" (the individual and the group) concept
  • Address conflict in the group marked by "fight or flight"
  • Help the group to negotiate its environment (e.g., agency, school, hospital)
  • Address inter-cultural issues (e.g., group leader being a different race/ethnicity from group members) and intra-cultural dynamics (e.g., both the group leader and member(s) from the same culture).
  • Understand the advantages and problems associated with co-leadership.
  • Adapt mutual aid support group principles and processes to on-line virtual groups.  

 

Learning Objectives

After the completion of this webinar, participants will be able to:

  • Develop a mutual aid support group and effectively recruit members.
  • Structure and lead an effective first session.
  • Understand group processes and dynamics and develop strategic interventions to assist group members in overcoming obstacles to effective work.
  • Effectively address issues with difficult group members
  • Understand issues of resistance, denial and the illusion of work and be able to directly address them.
  • Work more effectively with co-leaders
  • Address “taboo” issues in the group dealing with race, gender, sexual orientation, etc.

This workshop is approved for 6.0 continuing education credit hours.


NASW-NYS is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed social workers (Provider ID #0014), licensed mental health counselors (Provider ID #MHC-0053), licensed marriage and family therapists (Provider ID #MFT-0037) and licensed psychologists (Provider ID #PSY-0088).

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Presenter:

 

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Lawrence Shulman, MSW, Ed.D, Dean Emeritus at the University at Buffalo School of Social Work, received The Council on Social Work Education’s Significant Lifetime Contribution to Social Work Education award. He is the author of numerous articles and eight books including The Skills of Helping Individuals, Families, Groups and Communities, 8th Edition, 2018, Cengage; Interactional Supervision, 4th Edition, 2020, NASW Press. He serves on the editorial boards of The Social Work Dictionary, Social Work with Groups, Journal of Teaching in Social Work, the Social Work Encyclopedia, and others.  

 

 

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When
March 18th, 2022 from  9:00 AM to  4:00 PM
Event Fee(s)
NASW-NYS Member $60.00
NASW Other Chapter Member $120.00
Non-Member $150.00
NASW-NYS Student and Transitional Member $0.00