Training Materials
EU Programme: Lifelong Learning 2007-2013 Sub-Programme: Leonardo da Vinci – Transfer of Innovation Project: PaTiE – Psychodrama as a Tool in Education Project No: 2013-1-GR1-LEO05-14123
This book was originally written in English. It was later published in four languages: Greek, Italian, Polish, and Spanish.
English version: Sofia Dimou, Carlos Ramirez and Laura Remaschi Translation from English to Greek: Krystallenia Fragkou and Konstantinos Androulakis Translation from English to Italian: Alberto Bartolomeo, Mario Paiano, Mariagiovanna Ricciarelli and Cristiano Sanna Translation from English to Polish: Aleksander Schejbal Translation from English to Spanish: Craig Gallacher, Ernesto Elorza, Teresa Villaverde, Maddalen Gil and Amaia Goyena
This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
Cover, layout design: Kyriaki Vogiatzi, Ermis Graphics Š2015 Copyright: PaTiE Project Partners Printed by: Graphic Arts Karagiannakis
Publisher: Vocational Training Center Regional Unit of Rethymno Region of Crete Hg. Gavreel 103-105 Rethymno 74100, Crete www.patie.eu www.kekaper.gr
The Experiential Method of Psychodrama Psychodrama as a tool in Education Training materials - Module 1 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
INDEX The Experiential Method of Psychodrama ..................................................................... 1 Psychodrama as a tool in Education ......................................................................... 1 Training materials - Module 1................................................................................. 1 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation ............................................... 1 1.
2.
3.
Module description ...................................................................................... 3 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 3
1.2.
Learning outcomes............................................................................... 3
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and the workshop ................................... 4
Introduction to theory................................................................................... 6 2.1.
J.L. Moreno and the origins of psychodrama ........................................ 7
2.2.
Creativity and spontaneity – the cornerstones of psychodrama .......... 11
2.3.
The primacy of the encounter ............................................................. 13
2.4.
On the psychodrama stage ................................................................ 15
2.5.
Repertoire of roles.............................................................................. 18
2.6.
Sharing experience ............................................................................ 21
Introduction to exercises ........................................................................... 25
WARM UP ........................................................................................................... 26 GREETINGS ............................................................................................. 27 NAMES ..................................................................................................... 28 ACTION ............................................................................................................... 30 TRUST ...................................................................................................... 30 SOCIAL ATOM.......................................................................................... 32 COMPLEMENTARY.................................................................................. 34 MASKS ..................................................................................................... 35 YES – NO ................................................................................................. 37 CLOSURE ........................................................................................................... 39 PATH ........................................................................................................ 39 4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 41
5.
Bibliography .............................................................................................. 42 5.1.
References in English ........................................................................ 42
5.2.
References in Polish .......................................................................... 42
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1. Module description The Experiential Method of Psychodrama is the first, introductory module of the course Psychodrama as a Tool in Education (PaTiE). The module should be studied first before proceeding to the other parts of the course, especially by those who are not familiar with the method of psychodrama and thus need to grasp its basic concepts and principles. The course is aimed at vocational education teachers and trainers who are interested in learning how to apply psychodramatic action methods in the classroom. Practical knowledge of psychodrama can be useful in addressing a range of issues coming up in the educational process. This introductory module surveys the aspects of the method of potential interest to educators seeking ways to improve the efficiency of their approaches.
1.1. Aims to introduce VET adult educators to psychodrama, in particular those aspects of the method which are applicable outside therapeutic contexts to give a taste of a psychodrama session in all its phases of warm-up, action and sharing to show sample techniques and exercises which will be covered in more detail in the following parts of the course to discuss the applicability and usefulness of psychodrama in VET adult education
1.2. Learning outcomes On completion of the module, the teacher will be able to: outline the main concepts and principles of psychodrama give examples of application of the method in education identify possible threats resulting from the use of psychodrama outside of psychotherapeutic context point out opportunities of enriching VET adult education with psychodramatic techniques and exercises
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1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The materials presented in this module can be used in two ways. First of all, they specify the content of the respective part of the PaTiE curriculum and thus help the trainer plan and run the introductory module of the course. Secondly, the content can be studied by the VET educators, the participants of the course, as supplementary learning materials helpful in understanding and consolidating the methodology learnt at the workshop. This is an introductory module and thus needs to offer both an overview of psychodrama and outline the content of the forthcoming parts of the course. To this end sufficient time should be given to the presentation of basic concepts and principles of psychodrama which make it an attractive resource of experiential techniques for educators as well as to understanding dangers of irresponsible use of the method which can deeply hurt the participants. The theoretical aspect of the module should not stand in the way of practical demonstrations of psychodrama as an experiential method. This will be ensured in two ways. The session follows the general scheme of a psychodrama workshop leading the participants through all the key phases of warm-up, action and sharing. Sufficient time is given to the introduction of sample techniques to be presented in detail in the following modules of the course. The purpose of this choice is to announce the content of the whole course in an appealing way, giving the participants a “taste� of the forthcoming experience. The activities planned in the introductory module draw on the approaches validated in the framework of the project Psychodrama on the educational stage (POTENS) which developed innovation to be transferred to the PaTiE project. This interconnection is reflected in all the three main parts of the module: The introduction to theory focuses on those aspects of psychodrama which proved useful and applicable in the context of adult education. Now the methodology is revised in the view of specific needs of VET adult educators who are the main target group of the PaTiE course. The introduction to theory is drafted in such a way as to briefly present the origins and history of psychodrama, define its unique character and announce the main themes which will be specifically dealt within the following modules. The theory is closely interconnected with the practical part of
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the workshop aligned with the psychodramatic philosophy valuing experiential learning. A further reading list is provided for self-study, for those educators willing to gain a deeper insight into the theories behind the method. The key part of the module introduces a set of psychodramatic exercises chosen in a way to give the participants a taste of the methodology in all its aspects covered by the course. It is believed that practical introduction to psychodrama as a tool in education is a more efficient approach than lecturing or mentoring. All the exercises presented here have been validated in the framework of the POTENS project and are thus a suitable set of resources for an initial encounter with psychodrama, which is expected to be a new method for the PaTiE course participants. The module is planned in such a way as to give both the trainer and the participants a clear indication of the level of attainment of the intended learning outcomes. Each activity introducing a specific aspect of psychodrama of interest to VET adult educators is closed by a set of questions which should lead to a discussion involving all the participants and reflecting the level of understanding of the key concepts in focus. Evaluation and reporting tools are provided to help the trainer objectively assess the results of the module.
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2. Introduction to theory Psychodrama is a therapeutic method which supports personal development providing a unique possibility to present experiences, problems, difficulties and internal conflicts in the form of a dramatisation. There are many definitions of psychodrama in the current literature. For the purpose of introduction to the PaTiE course we have adopted a definition proposed by Peter Felix Kellermann in his influential book Focus on Psychodrama as the most comprehensive definition and widely accepted by psychodramatists: “Psychodrama is a method of psychotherapy in which clients are encouraged to continue and complete their actions through dramatization, role playing, and dramatic self-presentation. Both verbal and non-verbal communications are utilized. A number of scenes are enacted, depicting, for example, memories of specific happenings in the past, unfinished situations, inner dramas, fantasies, dreams, preparations for future risk-taking situations, and unrehearsed expressions of mental states in the here and now. These scenes either approximate real-life situations or are externalizations of inner mental processes. If required, other roles may be taken by group members or by inanimate objects. Many techniques are employed, such as role reversal, doubling, mirroring, concretizing, maximizing and soliloquy. Usually the phases of warm up, action, working through, closure and sharing can be identified.” (Kellermann, 1992, p. 50). The method was created by Jacob Levy Moreno (1889-1974), a Romanian psychiatrist, and since then has been substantially developed in various directions by psychotherapists all around the world. Moreno, in his theory, emphasised the fact that man develops and grows up in a group, which has a unique force of interaction coming from its internal dynamics. A group is like a mirror in which everybody can see their own reflections. On the psychodramatic stage these reflections as well as scenarios of situations which may happen in the future are played. The enactments are either very similar to the situations which happened in real life or are a figurative way of presenting mental states and processes. The roles of different characters and feelings which are important to a member of the group are played by the other members chosen by the person whose “drama” is being explored. This focus on group processes makes the method, primarily conceived as a psychotherapeutic approach, of interest and value to educators who engage with group dynamics as an essential part of their work. Guidelines On Psychodrama Use in Adult
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Education created as a part of the POTENS project sensitizes the prospective users of the methodology as an educational tool to the following issues: Psychodrama, as a method of group work, may create suitable conditions for an educational process by building an atmosphere of trust and safety, and also by reinforcing the integrity of a group. Psychodrama can enhance spontaneity and creativity of participants. Psychodrama offers practical tools of application in the field of education, which is understood by gaining skills and shaping attitudes. The application of psychodramatic methods cannot mean a simple implementation of procedures and techniques, but requires a responsible, creative and a unique approach in building personal and group relations. In order to use psychodramatic techniques efficiently, the educator has to have sufficient skills which can be fully acquired only through comprehensive training in psychodrama methodology. To sum up the aforementioned points, it must be emphasised that the application of psychodrama in education may enhance and improve the work of the group, but also carries multiple threats in a situation in which the trainer does not possess sufficient knowledge, skills and experience. Thus the following overview of psychodrama should be taken as an encouragement for a deeper study of the method which can be partly conducted through reading. Nevertheless, the full grasp of the potential of the method is only achievable through practice under the supervision of a skilled trainer, preferably with the support of a peer group of practitioners.
2.1. J.L. Moreno and the origins of psychodrama Psychodrama was invented by Jacob Levy Moreno (1889 – 1974), a versatile thinker and a colourful figure which cannot be easily labelled and positioned in the history of ideas. On the one hand, he initiated an important current in modern psychotherapy, being the originator of the method of group therapy and the founder of the International Association of Group Psychotherapy. On the other, he ventured into various intellectual exploits, publishing omnipotent fantasies, like The Words of the Father, containing “the words of God, our Father, the Creator of Universe”. Thus Moreno is a particularly favoured target for all those who like indulging into speculative psychoanalysis of the sources of such hermetic writings and see them in the traumas of early childhood, the author’s relation with his Jewish mother, or his idealised fantasy relationship with his absent father. This is however not the object of the PaTiE course. We will rather focus 7
on those ideas of Moreno which influenced the method of psychodrama as practiced today. We shall only mention at this stage that it is worth consulting at least some of the original writings of the towering figure of psychodrama to fully appreciate the unique context in which it originated. Moreno began his professional career as a doctor of psychiatry in Vienna in the 1920s at the time when Freud was an influential figure at Viennese intellectual circles. He distanced himself from psychoanalysis right from the beginning and stressed substantial differences between his theories and freudism. Two factors differentiating the two major schools of psychotherapy are particularly important: Moreno pointed out the negativism inherent in Freud’s view on the world and the humans visible in the tendency to associate the origins of life with calamity as well as with the focus on pain and evil dominating the universe. Quite the contrary, Moreno saw man as an omnipotent, creative being and the co-creator of universe. Psychodrama perfectly fitted this perspective as a method of empowerment aiming at bringing out our hidden potential. Secondly, Moreno distanced himself from Freud’s total preoccupation with analysis of the psyche at the expense of action group methods. This reservation results from the cornerstone of Moreno’s philosophy which stresses the social nature of human beings – what matters is primarily the relationship as the self emerges from human interactions. Therapy is thus more about creative (re)building of relationships rather than solitary explorations of one’s own internal world. Interestingly, the initial clash of approaches between the founders of the two schools of psychotherapy is reflected in the current status of the respective theories. There is extensive scientific literature on psychoanalysis while psychodrama is much more known for its “action” than for its theories. This may cause a difficulty in proposing a comprehensive and scientifically sound explanation of the principles behind psychodramatic interventions. In what follows we will thus outline only those aspects of psychodrama which have been widely acknowledged as valid in group work.
Remember Morenian psychodrama is an action-based approach in contrast with Freudian analytic method of therapy. Moreno’s first experiments in Vienna were highly innovative in the context in which they originated but were not fully understood or appreciated at that time. He developed his ideas directly in “action”, undertaking various initiatives during his student years and 8
then in his medical practice and beyond. He conducted first psychodramas playing with children in the parks of Vienna encouraging them into active storytelling about the oppression of family and school. Moreno was also involved in innovative theatre practice in his early Viennese years contesting the lack of spontaneity in institutional theatre performances and experimenting with improvisation of real life experiences on stage. He even set up his own theatre company, Living Newspaper, bringing daily news on to the stage and involving the audience into spontaneous participation in the action. The therapeutic aspect of psychodrama was not present in these artistic stunts yet but the core idea of the psychodramatic method which is a form of the “theatre of spontaneity� is already visible there. It needed to be grounded and formulated through clinical therapeutic practice. Group work as a method of therapy was also initiated by Moreno in Vienna where he joined a project to help prevent the spread of venereal diseases through group psychotherapy offered to prostitutes. The Viennese period shows Moreno as a highly creative thinker and activist, coming up with original ideas spanning spirituality, philosophy, theatre, social work and medicine. The cornerstones of psychodrama as we know it today which highlights the qualities of creativity and spontaneity are already visible in the very life of its originator.
Remember Psychodrama originated in Vienna in the first quarter of the 20th century in the highly innovative work of J.L. Moreno. Moreno left Austria for the USA in 1926, totally discouraged with the hostile reception of his ideas in the Viennese intellectual and medical circles and hoping for a more enthusiastic welcome in the New World. At that time he was preoccupied with working out methods to effectuate social change and combat the illnesses of the society, convinced that internal conflicts and pathology so much in focus in Freudian psychoanalysis are the product of the individual’s interactions with external society which needs to be healed as a whole. It is not the individual human being who needs to be changed by the whole of mankind. Psychodrama as a method of therapeutic group work was closely related to other inventions of Moreno for which he was seeking recognition among his fellow psychiatrists in America. This primarily refers to sociometry which he developed as a science of measuring interpersonal relations and interactions. It is the first method invented by Moreno which was recognised as a valuable tool in psychiatry. His other ideas reaching much further than a set of particular techniques to be used in medical
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practice were much more difficult to communicate. In particular, the idea of “sociatry” which would combine sociometry, group psychotherapy and psychodrama into a new science with a radical objective to change the essential fabric of society was totally dismissed. Nevertheless, Moreno managed to establish his psychodrama practice in clinical settings in which he worked in the USA and further propagate it with an essential input of his wife Zerka Moreno who helped to formulate the abstruse writings of the visionary thinker into a set of “Psychodramatic Rules, Techniques, and Adjunctive Methods”. This is one of the reasons for a wide recognition of psychodrama as a particular form of clinical group psychotherapy. Still it should be remembered that psychodrama originated from a radical social philosophy viewing each human as a cocreator of society, co-responsible for its well-being. These objectives can hardly be confined to therapy of mental disorders, they much better fit the formative aims of education.
Remember Psychodrama is not a mere method or technique, it is deeply rooted in philosophy of far-reaching social objectives. The psychodrama movement was first established in the USA but both Moreno and his wife were travelling extensively to propagate their ideas. They came to Europe on a number of occasions to give lectures and practical demonstrations of their work. They were followed by a number of renowned American psychodramatists who encouraged publishing on psychodrama and setting up training centres. These efforts gained momentum in the 1970s and finally led to the establishment of national psychodrama institutes, now operating in most European countries and associated under international umbrella organisations – PIFE http://www.pife-europe.eu/en/ and FEPTO http://www.fepto.com/ (links to all accredited national institutes in Europe can be found on these portals).Thus psychodrama became an established method of psychotherapy, practised in both clinical and non-clinical settings by certified psychodramatists, and a part of national health services in some countries (e.g. in the UK). Not surprisingly, it is mainly perceived as a form of therapeutic intervention. Nevertheless, the need to go beyond therapeutic settings and further develop nonclinical applications of psychodrama is widely acknowledged among psychodramatists. Again, the main impetus comes from the United States where various fields of such applications, including education, have been explored (cf. on-line repository of articles and research papers at http://www.blatner.com/adam/pdntbk/resources.htm). The factor which limits the popularity of psychodrama in Europe outside the circles of 10
professional therapists is the strict certification system propagated by national psychodrama institutes and a relative lack of training in psychodrama outside the context of psychotherapy. The PaTiE course fills this gap and offers an intensive course introducing basic concepts and methods of psychodrama to adult educators, firmly grounded in the previous pilot initiative of the POTENS projects.
Remember Psychodrama known mainly as a form of psychotherapy has nonclinical applications, including education. 2.2. Creativity and psychodrama
spontaneity
–
the
cornerstones
of
In order to immediately grasp the relevance of psychodrama for education we should look closer at the two concepts which play a key role in Moreno’s philosophy. They are closely connected and thus should be considered together. Moreno believed that each man is naturally endowed with a certain degree of spontaneity and creativity, although not everybody is able to fully benefit from their potential. There is some confusion of the meaning of these two concepts which impacts on the understanding of the nature of psychodrama training which, inter alia, aims at developing and fostering these qualities in the participants. Spontaneity should not be seen as impulsivity which is certainly not a virtue. It is rather a state in the here and now of being able to respond adequately in a novel situation or come up with a new response in a familiar situation. Spontaneity manifests itself in a free expression of personality and the ability to behave in an autonomous, individual way in the course of life events. It is not so much a reservoir of energy which propels a man towards action, but rather a process operating in the person in the present, a flow of feelings activated in a particular situation, especially when faced with the spontaneity state of another person. Thus spontaneity is best understood as an opposite state to inhibition which is manifested in a stiff, automated behaviour. Spontaneity is a catalyst for creativity. To be able to come up with a new idea or produce something novel, not just a replica of what already exists, one has to be in this particular condition which Moreno labels as “spontaneity state”. This by no means is confined to the excitement inherent in interpersonal interactions, when the flow of feelings in the group has the potential to open the members up, although this particular situation was favoured by Moreno in his analyses. What is meant is rather this special 11
state of mind when images, concepts or solutions emerge from the hidden and come to light, sometimes in surprisingly clear form and sometimes as hints to be further consciously elaborated. This phenomenon, not easy to be understood or explained in the categories of the personal subject, is the essence of all human creativity. Moreno repeatedly stressed the unique value of these creative acts throughout his life. He pointed out the relative lower value of their products: what matters is the process behind the creation, not the “cultural conserve” which is left over as a result and which leaves us flat unless we approach it in our own spontaneous, creative way (consider a visit to a museum with a group of students not in a mood to marvel at the exhibits). Moreno’s principles of spontaneity and creativity have many important ramifications for educators, if they take them seriously. First of all, they disclose a radical personalism which focuses much more on subjective processes and qualities of the person than the objective outcomes in which these processes result. From this perspective even the greatest marvels of human creativity – poems, symphonies or technical inventions – are seen as “cultural conserves” in which a creative act ended. The pejorative label encourages a total revision of the ways in which culture is taught: instead of passive appreciation of the artefacts, an active engagement is needed which would ignite an authentic interest and dialogue with the object. Ultimately, the goal is to foster creativity, not the consumption of “preserved” products. This should be read in the light of Moreno’s contestation of what he called “normism”, which is an obsession or a compulsive need to follow a commonly accepted way of behaviour, instead of paving one’s own path throughout life. He particularly detested this “compulsive conformism” and saw it as a social plague of our times. In his opus magnum, Who Shall Survive, he argued for upbringing a new society valuing unique individual contributions. Now, how can spontaneity and creativity be trained, if they become desirable goals of therapeutic or educational practice? This seems paradoxical as they both seem natural qualities or abilities of an individual. Moreno strongly believed that this is possible and saw psychodrama group work as a way to foster them. The method sets a safe environment in which group members are placed in situations which require them to respond in a new way to challenges which they previously experienced in their lives and in which they did not react adequately. A range of alternative reactions can be tried out with the help of the director and the group. They can also explore expected future situations and try out different patterns of behaviour, including those which have not been seen previously as feasible due to one’s character, temper or accepted norms. The social dimension of the training is essential here, as Moreno was deeply convinced of the “power of the group” to facilitate change in the behaviour of its members. Thus 12
his personalism, mentioned above, should be seen as placing the person firmly against the background of the group in which she/he develops. Creating a supportive and secure environment for trying different behaviours and reactions without being punished for a failure or wrong course of action is essential here. For this purpose psychodramatists developed a range of warm-up techniques of a much wider applicability than therapeutic settings in which they originated and where they are mainly used. The concept of warm-up is closely related to that of spontaneity: this initial part of the psychodrama session aims at preparing the group members for action, opens and livens them up, thus raising the warmth of interpersonal interactions in the group. The PaTiE course has a specific module on warm-up (Module 2) to sensitise educators to this essential phase of any group work. It introduces a number of techniques applicable in educational contexts, still it should be remembered that they cannot be seen as a predefined set of tools – they are rather examples encouraging a careful staging of the environment in which spontaneity and creativity could sprout up.
Remember In Moreno’s philosophy it is spontaneity that brings creativity to fruition. They are both essential qualities of human being and can be fostered in the safe and supportive environment of a psychodrama session. 2.3. The primacy of the encounter Moreno was one of the first thinkers who placed the phenomenon of meeting the other at the core of philosophical investigations. His Invitation to an Encounter published in 1914 preceded a fundamental work in this field, I and Thou, by another Jewish thinker working in Vienna at that time, Martin Buber, who is credited with initiating the dialogical philosophy so important in our times (cf. the existential movement, Levinas and his followers). At least the basics of Moreno’s philosophy of the encounter need to be understood in order to grasp the unique character of psychodrama which is firmly grounded in this framework. First of all, Moreno’s investigations shifted the focus of psychotherapy from the level of individual person to the level of interpersonal relations. He argued that the meeting of two people in a concrete situational event is an elementary phenomenon underlining the process of both personal and social development. He called this phenomenon the “primary dyad” meaning the experience of an authentic encounter in the here and now. Moreno pointed out an essential aspect of this relation which lies in the ability of the 13
persons to reach into the feelings of one another due to subtle interactions which bond them together. For this unique relationship he coined a term “tele” which refers to the capacity of reaching or influencing the other “from a distance” (Greek root of the term) due to the invisible bonds. Tele operates not only in the dyadic relationship but also in groups. Personal identity emerges against the background of the group as to a large extent influenced by the relationships with the others. Hence psychotherapy needs to deal with these group processes which open the way to understanding the internal conflicts of the group members. A large portion of Moreno’s writings is devoted to these phenomena which explore a broad range of ethical, social and political issues in his quest for a healthier, more spontaneous and creative society. The above insights have been shared by many modern philosophers and social scientists. However, what makes Moreno’s contributions unique is his elaboration of concrete methods which could help to engage with these issues in the contexts where human relations need to be cured or corrected. The concept of tele emerged in the course of building the science of sociometry which aims at measuring relations between members of small groups (a form of micro-sociology as he called his science), in particular the scope of attractions and repulsions among them. The tools which Moreno developed, e.g. sociograms, are still used by psychotherapists for “mapping” interpersonal relationships and thus facilitating group processes essential in any form of group therapy. These techniques have also applicability in education and are thus covered in more detail in Module 4 of the PaTiE course dealing with sociometry. The method of psychodrama uses sociometry as an important diagnostic tool. But it goes much further than measuring and depicting the relations between the people who joined the group. It uses the internal bonds which formed between the members over time to create a supportive environment for shared work on the relationships which are essential for their identities. Thus the psychodramatic encounters happen on many different levels. First, between the participants of the sessions who form new significant relations while opening to each other and disclosing their deepest experiences and emotions (e.g. therapeutic psychodramas may engage the group in shared enactments of scenes of rape, dying of close family members, divorce, etc.). The new encounters are sometimes more important and meaningful to the participants than those they managed to establish outside the therapy group. Secondly, the participants in a way can meet key figures in their life on the psychodramatic stage – the essential life events proposed by them are enacted with the other members of the group being “auxiliary egos”, i.e. the stage embodiments of the real actors in the participants’ lives. Thirdly, and most importantly, the stage becomes a “laboratory” in which to work on the 14
improvements of real life encounters. Different roles and behaviours can be safely practiced with a view to enabling the members a renewal of their interpersonal relationships. This brief overview shows how far Moreno departed from the mainstream of the dialogical philosophy which tends to be entirely preoccupied with the authenticity of the encounter excluding any artificial direction (psychodrama sessions are facilitated by professional trainers called “directors”). Psychodrama does not stay at the level of insights into the phenomenon of encounter but it goes further to “action”, to consciously managing the deepest relations which bond or divide people. The method is thus of interest to educators for whom group work is the primary environment and who need to be able to make it a shared learning space. It seems worth looking into some of the methods and techniques used by psychodramatists and consider how to adapt them to the goals and limitations of group work in the classroom. Certainly, the first consideration requires the teachers to be sensitive to the issues which can be tackled in this environment. Addressing deep personal problems of the students through enacting them by their classmates can result in hurting the participants. Psychodrama is a powerful method of opening people up and bringing the hidden traumas to the fore – there is ample evidence how easily people disclose themselves if involved, or “directed”, into psychodramatic encounters. It is the responsibility of the educator to be aware of the dangers of such personal self-exposures in order not to face situations which cannot be resolved. Module 3 of the PaTiE course has been planned to sensitise the educators to the “power of the group”.
Remember Psychodrama stresses the value of the encounter and creates an environment in which people can disclose their deepest feelings. 2.4. On the psychodrama stage Now we should look closer at the specific environment in which psychodrama sessions are run. The literal meaning of the term is “action of the soul” and immediately brings back the image of a dramatic performance on stage. In a nutshell these associations are accurate but need explication to grasp the unique character of psychodrama as compared with theatre or educational drama. The sessions are usually organised for clients diagnosed with some neurotic and psychotic problems. The groups are usually small, up to 20 participants, although there 15
are cases of much larger groups successfully led into the psychodramatic process. They are run by trainers taking the role of “directors”. This is another term which brings back the roots of psychodrama in theatre. However, the role of the director is more complex than in institutional theatre and combines the tasks of a therapist, facilitator of the group process and group leader. In particular, a skilled director is able to prepare the stage on which the therapeutic drama takes place, create an atmosphere of mutual understanding conducive to shared explorations of internal dramas of the participants, facilitate the selection of the group member whose personal issues will be enacted with the support of auxiliaries, move the action to focus on the core of the problem and ensure appropriate, meaningful closure of the session through role feedback and sharing experiences. Thus psychodrama differs from theatre as it does not pursue artistic goals. Its aims are therapeutic, or broader – formative in the context of interpersonal relationships. The actors on the psychodramatic stage are also assigned unique roles. There is a “protagonist” of the drama, literally meaning the first in action, who comes forward with his personal issue to be explored by the group. This may be a traumatic event in their life or a certain situation in which he/she failed to react adequately. The task of the director is to help recreate on stage the authentic environment in which the event took place and elicit involvement of other members of the group who would play the real characters in these situations. They are called auxiliary egos, or simply auxiliaries. The idea is to reproduce life on stage through a shared effort of the group. The event takes place again in the here and now and lets the protagonist have a closer insight into a particular pattern of his/her behaviour. The stage also offers an opportunity to replay the event in a different way in search for a more adequate response to an unresolved problem. This is a unique opportunity of living again through core life experiences. The direction is ideally more of a facilitation of the process than its management. A trustful, caring and supportive atmosphere in the group is even more important as it fosters a spontaneous and creative response of the protagonist to his/her life traumas. The psychodramatic stage also creates an environment to explore the sphere of fantasy acts and imagination in the “surplus reality” as Moreno called the realm of the imagined transcending the real. Protagonist can travel freely through both the realms in the here and now. This is particularly important due to the influence of inner images on our conduct in real life. The stage helps to concretise them as they enter the play in the form of objects, scenes or acts enacted by auxiliaries. Their symbolic meaning can be explored through visualisation which may lead to realisation of powerful hidden 16
emotions which impact on the protagonist’s life. Work with symbols dealt with in Module 6 of the course introduces this aspect of psychodrama in relation to psychoanalysis which influenced Moreno’s theories on surplus reality, notwithstanding his hostility to this current in psychotherapy. Symbolic objects, acts and gestures are also widely used in psychodrama in a very different sense. The stage is set with simple means: a skilled trainer would come to the workshop room with just a packet of colourful scarves with which to mark symbolically the boundaries of the situation to be enacted and the group would join in creating the scenery with a couple of chairs, tables, toys, pillows or pieces of clothing. Still the engagement in the scene may be as authentic as in reality with powerful emotions discharged and cathartic cleansing of souls. It is not only the protagonist who is affected but also the auxiliary egos as well as the part of the group which sit in the audience. The experience of entering the other person’s life through enacting his life events or even the impact of mere watching his real traumas on stage may have a transformative effect on the group in terms of changing perceptions, attitudes and behaviour. Setting the stage and moving to action has to be facilitated tactfully with proper warming up of the group and gradually proceeding to the core of the problem. The process may be reflected in the spatial organisation of the environment like in the classic Morenian psychodrama, which consists of a circle with three tiers (audience, periphery events and core drama). In current practice, more flexible approach is taken with different stage settings, still the central drama is held in boundaries, which then symbolically helps to come out of the roles and back to reality. This is seen as essential in order to let the participants safely come to themselves from the action on stage. The themes to be explored on the psychodrama stage are agreed with the protagonist and the group, and such an agreement sometimes takes the form of a written contract. Even if a verbal agreement is made, it is essential to set focus to the dramatisation in order not to depart from the issues taken up in the session. This practice has relevance for educational use of psychodrama and is advisable especially in the contexts where there is a danger that the enactments might touch sensitive personal issues or slide into areas which can only be treated in a safe therapeutic setting. It is a way to secure confidentiality and respect for different views, especially those which differ from the majority opinion and culture in the group.
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Remember Psychodrama stage creates an environment for explorations of personal dramas of the participants. The director, the protagonist and auxiliary egos are the key figures involved in psychodramatic enactments 2.5. Repertoire of roles Role theory is at the core of Morenian psychodrama. This is a complex set of principles and concepts which cannot be fully presented here. Still the basics of this theory need to be grasped in order to see the potential of psychodrama for education. Moreno defined role as “the functioning form the individual assumes in the specific moment he reacts to a specific situation in which other persons and objects are involved.“ (Moreno, 1946/1980, p. IV). The key phase of the process falls on the childhood when the main roles arise and are differentiated in the course of child’s interactions with its closest environment. Personality emerges from this intricate network of relationships with people and objects; indeed, as Moreno claims, “roles do not emerge from the self but the self may emerge from roles.” (Moreno, 1993, p 47). For an integrated personality a certain role repertoire is needed in the sense of a set of roles which can be played adequately without a discord. However, some of the roles an individual may play are underdeveloped thus limiting the realisation of his/her potential and some may be overdeveloped or conflicted. Certain patterns of behaviour learned in the childhood tend to be “fixed” and transferred to interactional contexts where they do not fit and thus exclude authentic encounters. These old patterns, which might have been the most adequate response to a particular situation the child was able to come up with, can be unconsciously re-enacted and projected on new relations which substantially differ from the original situation. Moreno’s views at this point come very close to the Freudian concept of “transference” seen as one of the essential factors in mental disorders. In the language of psychodrama, transference is nothing else but replaying an old script in a novel situation. Moreno argues that this mechanism has distractive impact on the individual’s social life as blocking the tele relationships in which people can “feel” each other in the here and now. The aim of psychodrama work is to reduce the transference and foster tele as a precondition of the ability to meet the others in an authentic way.
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In the psychotherapeutic context a psychodrama group includes individuals with personality disorders. In the light of Moreno’s theory what needs to be primarily dealt with are the “functioning forms” of behaviour the clients disclose in particular situations, in other words, the specific roles they play in real life. The psychodrama stage offers a setting in which to recreate these situations and replay the roles with a view to gaining an insight into the patterns of behaviour and elaborating more adequate responses to life challenges as well as more fruitful social interactions. This is done through reexperiencing the original emotions and trying out different behaviours which go beyond the original role repertoire. The essential therapeutic value also lies in the new relationships which arise in the group, especially between the protagonist whose issues are being explored and those chosen to play the characters in his/her story. There are a number of specific approaches and techniques used in psychodrama to work with roles. First of all, the director has an important function of an analyst and should be able to gain an insight into the role repertoire of the clients. Such role assessment has a key diagnostic function and can be gradually concretised throughout the training, along with sociometric tests which aim at measuring the relationships between group members. An identification of roles which may be dysfunctional in the client’s role repertoire sensitises the director to the particular issues which need to be addressed in the psychodramatic process. A skilled trainer can deduct a lot of valuable information in this respect already at the warm-up stage through activities which engage the group members in physical movement around the room. In Moreno’s philosophy the body is an important medium of the self: the first phase of roles development in the infant are so called proto-roles of psychosomatic nature and the realm of bodily expression is essential in all psychodramatic work (cf. the concept of tele closely associated with “sensing” the other). The unique feature of psychodrama is concretisation and dramatisation of real life and imaginary situations with active involvement of the group. The client’s repertoire of roles along with patterns of dysfunctional behaviour can be displayed on stage, “acted out”, as Moreno originally called a psychodramatic enactment. This requires not only the protagonist to take on roles on stage but also “auxiliary egos” chosen by him/her as best fitting the particular roles to be explored through dramatisation. Auxiliaries are expected to behave as if they were the actual people in the drama, playing the roles as closely as possible to the protagonist’s expectations. The so called “rolling-in” of auxiliary egos is usually done by the protagonist giving exact information on the actual scene of the event and the characters involved. The process may be facilitated by the director who can help elicit the missing information essential for enacting the scene. 19
There are various techniques which can be used for getting the auxiliary ego into the role, e.g. making the protagonist role reverse with the figures in his story so that the auxiliaries can see “in person” what needs to be re-enacted on stage. The main challenge is to develop the role into the dramatic flow of the enactment from the basic outline set by the protagonist. This can be done successfully and psychodramatists see the reason for this surprising phenomenon in the actual operation of tele in the group. The acting is controlled to a certain extent by the director, still it is the task of the actors to bring the internal drama of the protagonist on to the stage and let it emerge and concretise. The therapeutic process is rooted in this enactment as allowing the protagonist and the group to creatively revise the scene, modifying, correcting or reorganising the patterns of behaviour. Ideally, rigidity, constriction and stuckness in playing real life roles can thus be reduced or eased. Role reversal is one of the main techniques used in psychodrama sessions. While enacting the theme proposed by the protagonist the actors can role reverse and see themselves through the eyes of the other. This may have a powerful impact on the protagonist allowing him/her to gain a new perspective on the life event being explored, but also on the auxiliaries in the drama because they may experience a new situation which they now need to enter creatively. The roles played by auxiliaries may be distant from their repertoire of roles in everyday life although the protagonist’s choices are supposed to be influenced by tele and thus based on “sensing” the suitable candidates for the drama to be enacted. Another technique frequently used in the context of role development is the mirror technique. The person being the mirror has the task to demonstrate to the actor performing a role that his/her message has been understood. This is done through actual “mirroring back” the action witnessed on stage. If the actor can recognise himself/herself in the “mirror” this may be taken as an assurance of the accuracy of the role playing in terms of communicating the right message or behavioural pattern. The mirror technique also has other applications in psychodrama but is particularly useful in role training. In the case of the protagonist finding a particular role or part of it difficult, he may be supported by a double. The function of the double is to echo the physical movements of the protagonist and to express what he/she experiences in that role. With the support of the double the protagonist may find it easier to express what is the core of the problem being explored through role playing.
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The PaTiE course has a specific module on role playing (Module 7) which presents Moreno’s role theory and the above techniques in more detail.
Remember For an integrated personality a certain role repertoire is needed in the sense of a set of roles which can be played adequately without discord. Psychodrama can be seen as a particular form of role training. 2.6. Sharing experience The final stage of a psychodrama session, called sharing, is of crucial importance for the whole process. The focus is taken off from the protagonist and shifted towards the whole group whose members are now free to express their feelings which the drama evoked in them. There might be a different spatial arrangement of the room to stress the difference of this part from the central dramatic phase of the workshop: the circle of the stage is transformed into a group circle, with the members sitting close to each other, containing in a way the whole emotional content of the enactment. There are a number of characteristic features of the psychodrama sharing which distinguish it from a feedback round as frequently practised in educational contexts. Sharing is not about analysing the session. The members of the group are not expected to rationalise the whole process in which they have participated or judge the performance of the protagonist or the actors. If this happens the director intervenes, reminding the participants of the purpose of the final gathering – we need now to share with each other what emotions the play stirred in us, what images, thoughts or associations emerged in our minds rather than assess the performance. Thus the protagonist is not the pivot of the circle, the focus shifts to the group members who share their feelings. Psychodrama is essentially a group process. Even if its central “action” part revolves around the theme proposed by the protagonist, the impact of a particular session is expected to touch the whole group. Thus the need for the sharing, which returns the protagonist to the group and gives the group an opportunity to express all the subtle interconnections which concretised through their involvement in the drama: the sharing session activates and visualises the tele of the group. In a therapeutic treatment this has a powerful impact on the group members who can identify with other participants and realise that their distress is shared by others. The ability to cross over one’s own
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internal world and see similar experiences in fellows brings about relief and comfort to those who may have lived in total isolation from their environment for a long time. Powerful discharge of emotions which may occur in the sharing session with its participants crying, hugging or even bursting into hostile exchanges should not be seen as excluding a learning process. In fact, the disclosures and confessions in the sharing circle have an important cognitive function as helping the participants articulate their unconscious traumas, attitudes, images, etc. and thus facilitating the process of personal integration. Inner conflicts can be brought to the fore and thus open an opportunity for further work in the following sessions. The value of self-understanding and self-awareness is universally acknowledged not only in therapeutic settings but in all forms of self-development. What makes psychodrama unique in this respect is the power of experiential identification with others as a pathway to one’s own internal world. Psychodramatists stress the value of identification to be facilitated by the sharing process as compared with projection which stands in the way of an authentic encounter. Both the terms, as used in psychology, are of Freudian origin and require a brief explanation. Projection is a process by which internal thoughts, attitudes or emotions are “placed” in the other and thus experienced as the attributes of the other and not of the subject in whom they originated. This in particular refers to negative qualities which are in a way banned, refused to be accepted in one’s own psyche and then anchored in similar psychological features visible in the other. This process affects not only neurotic or psychotic personalities but to a certain extent is considered as a phenomenon visible in “normal” human interactions. Projection is opposite to identification which needs to be fostered in the therapeutic process. Identification is understood here as an ability to grasp a unique personal quality in the other (emotion, behavioural pattern, attitude, etc) and assimilate it in one’s own psyche. The effect is transformational as identification opens new cognitive and behavioural pathways due to insights into other internal worlds and thus an authentic interpersonal learning process. The director’s role in the sharing phase is to monitor the participants’ personal reflections in order to detect projections and design further work on these issues. Without careful monitoring and intervention the sharing session may easily depart far from the learning process, just providing an opportunity for the group members to explore their distorted images of the other. Another function of the sharing session relates to the need to “de-role” the actors who were involved in the central drama. They need to come back to their everyday identities 22
after deep engagement in playing other characters. This is essential to ensure the integrity of the group members, especially in therapeutic contexts where the director might be dealing with unstable personalities. De-rolling is partly done by rearranging the workshop room but also needs to be ensured through allowing all members of the group to speak as themselves, distancing themselves from the experiences as others on stage. The depth of the psychodramatic enactment may sometimes make this objective, seemingly easy, a really difficult task. The sharing phase is interconnected with so called “closure” enabling the members to leave the group in a safe way. This means that nobody leaves the session in a state of too deep emotional agitation which may impact on behaviour outside the protective boundaries of the group. Sometimes the most difficult issues come up at the very end of the session, still the event has sharp time boundaries which need to be respected. It is the director’s role to be able to manage the whole process in such a way that these important issues are not abruptly cut short, leaving the members in a state of confusion or distress or another powerful emotion. The problem can be partly solved by maintaining an individual contact with the most troubled participants after the session, although this is not always possible. The real solution is in the accurate prevention measures which depend on the director’s ability to manage the whole process, from a proper warm-up to an effective closure. In the context of professional training in psychodrama the closure session may include “processing” which lets the participants analyse the process in which they participated. This should not be confused with sharing. A more detailed presentation of the closing part of psychodrama session is done in Module 8.
Remember Psychodrama initiates a deep psychological process. Each session needs to be shared with group members and properly closed in order not to leave the participants in agitation or distress.
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The Experiential Method of Psychodrama Before you consider using some aspects of psychodrama in your educational practice take some time to reflect on the theoretical concepts covered in the introductory module. In particular, take into account the following points: Psychodrama, as a method of group work, may create suitable conditions for an educational process by building an atmosphere of trust and safety, and also by reinforcing the integrity of a group, still it requires of the educator sufficient skills which can be fully acquired only through comprehensive training in psychodrama methodology. The application of psychodramatic methods cannot mean a simple implementation of procedures and techniques, but requires a responsible, creative and a unique approach in building personal and group relations. Psychodrama originated from a radical social philosophy viewing each human as a co-creator of society, co-responsible for its well-being. In its original version developed by Moreno psychodrama has much wider objectives than treating mental disorders, aligned with formative aims of liberal adult education. In Moreno’s eyes spontaneity and creativity are essential qualities of human being and they both can be fostered in the context of group training. However, adopting these principles as valid goals in education needs (re)consideration of related concepts of normism and cultural conserves which are also an inherent part of psychodrama philosophy. Psychodrama is a powerful method of opening people up and bringing the hidden traumas to the fore. Psychodramatic encounters in a therapeutic context are of different nature than those which can be fostered in the classroom. It is the responsibility of the educator who wants to draw on the methodology to be aware of the dangers of deep personal self-exposures which could be damaging for the students. The psychodrama stage can be created with simple props and does not require a special setting. The difficulty lies in “directing� the enactment in which the key figures of the protagonist and auxiliary egos play sensitive themes. The choice of the themes and setting boundaries not to be violated in the play is essential in any educational application of psychodrama. Personality is seen by Moreno as emerging from the roles played in real life. These roles can be reenacted on the psychodrama stage to enable the person to gain an insight into their role repertoire and modify, correct, develop or extend them. In principle this is a formative activity, which becomes therapeutic when dealing with serious dysfunctions of social behaviour. Group work in psychodrama involves a sharing phase which focuses not on analysis of the session but rather on the emotions raised in the participants. Self-expression is an important part of a learning process which leads to self-awareness and self-understanding. Sharing should not be confused with processing which is a part of training in psychodrama for prospective users of the method.
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3. Introduction to exercises The exercises in this module have been chosen in such a way as to give a brief introduction to the whole course, announcing its content. Accordingly, they should be seen as “tasters� of the forthcoming learning experience to be explored in more detail in the following modules of the course. The other consideration taken into account in the choice and flow of the exercises relates to the structure of a typical psychodrama session: it is a three-phase process, beginning with warm-up, gradually involving the group in action and closing with so called sharing session. The exercises in the introductory module follow this scenario so that the participants can grasp the whole psychodramatic process right in the beginning. It is believed that such a practical introduction is more meaningful than an extensive presentation of theory. In doing so we are following the basic principle of psychodrama which is a form of experiential learning. The third factor taken into account in planning this section relates to the preparatory research completed before the work on the PaTiE curriculum and training materials. We have identified a number of essential skills and competences of VET adult educators which could be enhanced through psychodramatic methods and techniques. The choice reflects these direct needs and the particular skills and competences targeted in this module are highlighted throughout the following text. Helping the educator to be a team player, networked with the students Involving the learners, encouraging them to participate, and share opinions and experiences Being a motivator Dealing with diverse groups and creating an atmosphere of trust Developing awareness of the students' real needs Encouraging minds to be open to new knowledge Promoting respect in the classroom Developing the students' confidence and faith in their own learning abilities The presentation draws on examples of concrete exercises and techniques which proved to be successful in educational contexts. Some of them have been designed and tested in the framework of the POTENS project which provided a background against which to develop the PaTiE resources. Thus they can also be used in VET adult education practice if the educational context and the purpose of the class/subject makes it meaningful to apply such exercises. This is a very important consideration which always needs to be taken into account when working with psychodrama methods. They must have a well thought purpose and cannot be just taken as ready 25
tools on hand. They cannot be separated from the group process, which is unique due to the emotional and intellectual make-up of the participants and the specific themes in focus of the group work. The exercises serve as an introduction to the method of psychodrama in its various aspects, still they may be adapted to concrete educational work. If so, it is necessary to pay particular attention to the purpose of their use and concrete challenges to be addressed by applying them. A certain degree of creativity and flexibility is essential for an effective use of the techniques. The following outlines should thus be seen as suggestions of how to proceed rather than prescribed steps to follow.
Remember The cornerstones of psychodrama are spontaneity and creativity. You need to be aware of your own potential in this respect before you consider using the exercises with your students.
WARM UP The two following warm-up exercises have been chosen to give the participants an immediate grasp of the lively nature of psychodrama experience. The beginning of group work is of great importance in psychodrama and various approaches are used to ensure motivation and an active involvement of the members. The most important function of warm-up is to stimulate the group abilities and to prepare them for the “drama” which is the central phase of the process. Warm-up activities also have an important diagnostic purpose as allowing the director to obtain some valuable information on the group dynamics and structure. Usually the exercises have a lively, playful character raising the spontaneity level of the group and thus fostering a conducive atmosphere for creative responses to the themes in focus of the session. Elements of surprise and novelty are important factors in this respect. A well-planned and conducted warm-up helps the participants overcome shyness and fear which are the most common obstacles to engagement and thus the key resistance factors in group work. Warm-up exercises introduced in an artificial way, without clear awareness of the group dynamics, may have the opposite impact and actually “freeze” the group who may perceive this form of introduction as weird, inadequate or inappropriate in the particular context.
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The above considerations derived from the psychodrama practice apply equally to the context of education. The decisive issue is an awareness of the here and now of the group, a clear purpose behind the proposed activities and the ability to use the feedback from the group for adjusting the course of action.
GREETINGS The exercise can be run with a group who meet for the first time as well as with participants who have already met but now are encouraged to greet each other in a different way to how they usually do. This is an activity which has the potential to generate a lot of fun and lively interactions so make sure that there is enough space in the room and all the participants are fit enough to engage in such an exercise. It is not recommended to use the activity with a group including people with disabilities, unless they are already comfortable in the group and would not feel frustrated by the physical interactions around them. This is a brief exercise, a “starter” which can be run for up to ten minutes. A longer activity may easily result in the people just fooling around without a sense of purpose. Such a development may have a distractive effect on the motivation for further work. The aim of the exercise is just the opposite – to energise the group and challenge them with a task requiring a spontaneous, lively response. The trainer needs to explain the task first: “let us greet each other today in a new way. We can use our feet, knees, hips, shoulders and heads but not words. Walk around the room and choose the person you want to greet. You can approach more than one person if you like and you can even greet all the other participants one by one”. The exercise should generate a lot of movement and fun as more and more sophisticated forms of greetings appear. The participants usually behave freely and spontaneously looking for various ways of establishing relations. The interactions in the room are simultaneous which makes it easier for everybody to engage although the level of involvement varies, depending on the individual participants’ temper, mood, and willingness to participate. The trainer wanders around the room responding to greetings if approached by the participants. The game requires its players to break through their resistance to physical closeness which for many people is a big problem. Movement with touch is considered a very important factor in psychodrama as the body is a medium of tele and thus enables the group to sense relationships which cannot be fully communicated through words. Such 27
interactions are also an essential visual representation of the group’s dynamics and composition which should give the trainer valuable clues on how to proceed both with the group as a whole and its individual members. It is important to establish safety boundaries in order not to violate the sensitivity of the others. The boundaries relate both to individual factors and cultural issues and may differ from one group to another. Obviously, a multicultural group would be a particular challenge for the trainer and all movement with touch exercises should be run with great caution. The basic principle is that everyone should feel free to control how they relate with their partners and what “greetings” is willing to accept. This should be said openly and closely monitored. Nobody should feel bad about distancing himself/herself from a particular form of interactions. Such standing aside should also be seen as a valid way of taking part in the activity. Movement with touch activities raise the level of energy needed to engage in forthcoming tasks They activate tele of the group They challenge members to come up with spontaneous and creative response
NAMES The Names exercise is more of a “static” character as compared with the previous one in which movement is an essential feature. The idea of the activity is to generate spontaneous and creative response to a surprising task, far from a standard introduction of group members. Depending on the level of the participants and the group dynamics the exercise can be run for up to 15 minutes. A longer activity may lead to the participants brooding over the meaning of their names instead of coming up with quick associations activating the unconscious. A skilled trainer will know the exact time to pause the exercise and move to other assignments. The task needs to be explained clearly to the group: “let us look closely at our own names and how they may connect with our character, background, interests, profession, skills, etc. To make it easier to analyse the names write them down and look for how the respective letters associate with your personality. For instance, the name Adam can bring forth the following associations: altruist, distinct, active,
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melancholic. You can also invent words and neologisms which specifically characterise your personality which will form a brief presentation for the group”. Following the introduction each of the participants is allowed to think silently for a while and draft the associations. The writing should be done on paper sheets of sufficient size for the characters to be visible for the whole group during the presentation. Ideally, the participants should have at their disposal crayons to make their names and the respective network of associations colourful and distinct. They will be shown to the whole group one by one, the drawings serving as a springboard for the members’ selfpresentations referring to the aspects of their personalities which “emerged” from the names. The content and direction of the presentations can be prompted by the trainer depending on the type of the group. For example, in the context of VET the participants can be encouraged to seek associations with their professional interests, preferences, background, etc. In a different version of this exercise, participants first wander around the whole room and introduce themselves to other participants using the words they have written down, and only later do they analyse the words they have chosen, in a big circle. The “analysis” can also be modified and, for example, consist in constructing a logical sentence from the respective letters of the names. For instance: "Adam - adores deep, abstract meditation". The combination of mental and physical activities is better suited in situations where the group needs to be moved around, energized to some extent. The activity may bring many benefits for the group. It encourages reflection on the strong and weak sides of one's own character through wordplay, by playing with meaning and allusions. It also helps participants to get to know each other and motivate them to seek out new, creative solutions and ideas needed for their active participation in the following activities. The trainer will be able to elicit some important information helpful in setting new tasks. The exercise is relatively “safe” in terms of letting the participants choosing the way of their self-presentation and disclosing sensitive information about themselves so it can be introduced even in groups afraid of open and challenging interpersonal exchanges. It can be taken as a starter for activities which require the participants to respond to novelty and surprise coming from the others. Not all warm-up activities need to be about physical movement The minds can be energised by working on associations, puzzles, etc. Interactive character of these activities facilitate interpersonal relations in the group
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In the framework of the PaTiE course both the exercises should enable the trainer to discuss with the participants the meaning and importance of warm-up activities in psychodrama and their possible application in VET adult education. The following points can be raised as opening the key themes of interest to educators: What are the most important functions of warm-up and the essential qualities it aims to elicit from the participants? How to relate the activities to the subject of the class and the dynamics of the group? How to deal with resistance which is likely to occur when the participants see such forms of action as puerile, inadequate to their needs, and even inappropriate in the context of educational classes?
ACTION The main part of a psychodrama session is usually devoted to dramatic explorations of themes proposed by the protagonist. These issues have a sensitive personal character and as such cannot be addressed in classroom group work, unless the educator has strong background in psychodrama and the framework of the programme allows for such explorations. However, there is a wealth of approaches and techniques used in therapeutic psychodrama which can be applied in education as well. The following choice of exercises should be seen as a set of example activities which also fit educational contexts, if used with reason and caution. They have been ordered in such a way as to illustrate the content of the forthcoming modules which give a broader selection of exercises and activities.
TRUST Psychodrama is based on the recognition of the power of the group which forms human life. Its distinct character lays not so much in a theoretical elaboration of the social nature of human being but rather in creating opportunities for people to come together and shape their identities through group work on essential issues which affect them here and now. In educational contexts the themes to be explored have to be chosen carefully in order not to venture into deep personal traumas which might result in a chain of serious consequences for the participants of the encounter, including both the learners and the teacher.
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The exercise is a test of mutual trust between the members of the group. It can be introduced in the beginning of group work but also at any stage of the process when there is a need to visualise and strengthen the relations between members. This can be a shorter (around 15 minutes) or longer activity (over 30 minutes) depending on the time available, the size of the group and the depth of the explorations. The trainer needs to explain the purpose of the exercise first and then monitor its progress. In the first step half of the team is requested to leave the room where the workshop is taking place, and in the meantime the rest of the group prepares the space for the activity - they set up various objects around the room which will serve as obstacles to free movement. When this is done the rest of the group is invited back to the room but they come in blindfolded with scarves covering their faces. When the participants enter the room individually each of them is received by a guide from the part of the group who stayed inside. The blindfolded person places his/her hand on the guide's shoulder and then is led around the whole room, passing safely the obstacles. Now and then, the guides exchange the blindfolded people, and then guide different people. At the end, all the participants describe their experiences in the group. The sharing may be facilitated by forming living statues which illustrate the emotions evoked by the exercise. The statutes can be formed by groups consisting of a few people. The choice of members of a particular group is based on similarities of the presented feelings. In that way, symbolic ideas appear in the form of living statutes, which show the balance of emotions within the group.
Trust between group members is an essential feature of team work Possibility to experience being trusted or trustful strengthens relations in the group Visualisation of shared emotions boosts the power of the group
The exercise may give the PaTiE trainer an opportunity to underline the value of group processes and the participants a chance to express their views. In particular, the following issues can be discussed: What is the possible impact of the “movement with touch� activities on the participants?
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Can such exercises raise group cohesion in the case of substantial tensions and disagreements? How to adapt the exercise to the flow of teaching activities in VET?
SOCIAL ATOM Sociometry is a method developed by Moreno and frequently used in psychodrama sessions. In essence it is a study of the formation and construction of groups with a view to depicting interpersonal relations inherent in them. The focus of the method is practical as sociometric exercises deal with the individual's impact on the group's cohesion, and vice versa, the group’s influence on the individual. As such, sociometry has direct relevance for education facilitating the process of group building, dealing with learners’ isolation and resistance. If applied properly the method can bring results which greatly enhance motivation of the group members to engage in educational tasks. Sociometric exercises can be run in the warm-up phase of the session but can also be included throughout the psychodrama workshops in various forms. The method is briefly introduced at the introductory stage of the PaTiE course through the following exercise. The activity can be run with basic equipment and resources available in the classroom: a whiteboard, a flipchart or a projector and medium size sheets of paper for the participants’ drawings. The activity may last up to one hour depending on the size of the group and the time available. It can be introduced at the stage when the trainer feels that the group needs reorganisation of its sub-teams who are assigned with specific tasks. An active and open involvement of all the members is needed as well as some acquaintance with each other hence the exercise best fits an advanced phase of group work. First, the basic code of sociometric symbols needs to be explained by drawing them on the board or visualised in another way: Circle – female Triangle – male Solid line – firm and stable relation Dotted line – problematic and variable relation Arrow – attitude, one-sided relation or mutual
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Other symbols may also be used (e.g. question marks, bold solid lines). The distance between particular components of the atom is also important as it depicts the depth and intimacy of a relation. Once the symbols are presented and their basic meaning understood each participant is requested to draw a “social atom� on a separate sheet of paper placing the symbol of himself/herself in the middle and marking the other people on the drawing by connecting them with lines and writing down their names or initials. After the individual work is done, the presentation of particular diagrams and group discussion take place. This part of the task may start with an exposition of the drawings - placed on chairs or on the floor, so that all of the participants may see all of the pictures. Next, particular participants talk about their own projects in turn, and then other participants join the discussion. They may ask questions, point at the meaning of the elements of the drawing, discover many things which the author himself/herself could not see, even though they were present in his/her work. The feedback from the group helps in better understanding one's own relations with other people featured in the social atoms.
Sociometric exercises make the participants aware of the complex nature of relations among the group They can provide a basis for improving these relations and motivation to work in the team
In the introduction to the PaTiE course the exercise can be taken as an opportunity to outline the basic sociometric concepts and techniques and give the participating educators a chance to raise issues which will be dealt with in more detail in the specific module of the course. In particular, the following questions can be discussed with a view to both showing advantages of sociometry in education and the dangers resulting from its irresponsible use: If you decided to do this exercise with your students which aspects of the relationships inside the class would you expect them to disclose? Is the exercise a good tool to deal with personal issues in the class? What does the technique add to other methods aimed at better understanding of relationships in the group?
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COMPLEMENTARY The central phase of a psychodrama session is so called “protagonist’s play” in which a chosen participant enacts memories of past events, intimate dramas, fantasies, dreams and also scenarios of situations which may happen in the future. The roles of different characters in these situations are assigned to different members of the group, chosen by the protagonist. Various role playing techniques are used with a view to working through life experiences which may cause/have caused psychological disturbances in the main character on stage. The protagonist’s play has a psychotherapeutic purpose in psychodrama and thus limited applicability in non-therapeutic contexts. There are however certain aspects of psychodramatic enactments which can be used in education. This module presents a “light” exercise in order to show the funny, lively side of playing applicable in the classroom to be followed by a more advanced presentation of role playing activities in Module 7. The exercise can be introduced in the middle of group work, especially at a stage when the level of energy in the group drops off and the participants need to be mobilized for further tasks. This is a brief activity which should not take longer than 15 to 30 minutes. There is no need for any special equipment or resources as the exercise is entirely based on the participants’ spontaneity and creativity to be activated through the play.
The trainer divides the group into pairs or preferably the participants choose their counterparts for the activity. One of them, acting as the leader, begins a sequence of movements. His/her partner's task is to complete the sequence in his own way. After a while, they switch roles and engage in a new movement, now initiated by the other partner. The game is not about repetition or miming the moves of the other, but about completing it. Just like in a puzzle, each person has to find a way to fit in and have an idea to "insert", like a missing piece of a puzzle. The trainer may begin the activity himself/herself by choosing a person from among the group and playing a sample scene. All the participants should see that the “complementary” movement can be quite different from the original one, still both creatively complementing each other. They continue the play in the workshop room, all pairs at the same time while the trainer wanders around and monitors the activity.
The game, which appears quite easy, is in fact a great challenge. It can be hugely difficult to guess what the true intentions of the leader are, to understand his 34
expressions, gestures, actions, and subsequently propose one's own logical and coherent conclusion. An interesting summary for this exercise is to discuss it in pairs comparing the points of view of the leader and his partner, pointing out the similarities and differences in human body language and gesture interpretation. This is an excellent game for training interpersonal communication as it makes the participants aware of the complexity and richness of forms available for the transmission of messages. It also serves as an energizer, activating the bodily expression and tele in the group.
Playing is an essential part of psychodrama Such activities do not always explore sensitive personal issues in focus of therapeutic sessions Psychodrama is also about the joyful, lively side of human interactions
The questions to be discussed at the end of the activity should raise the PaTiE course participants’ interest in psychodrama as a resource of playing techniques and their possible applications/adaptations to educational contexts:
How to integrate playing in subject oriented VET education? What is the added value of playing experience in relation to passive accumulation of knowledge? In which situations to intervene with role-playing activities?
MASKS Psychodrama is a creative action group method that can help participants to explore the complexity of thoughts and emotions present within any life situation. Central to the approach is creativity and spontaneity of action, which can reveal aspects of ourselves we have been unaware of, help us to express ourselves more clearly and re-assess the focus and direction of our life. The symbolic language of dreams, a significant story or metaphor can be rich material to explore through these methods, as are objects and images. The role of the group, and its facilitator, is to create a safe environment in which feelings can be acknowledged, expressed and contained. The process of any psychodrama enactment is to get in touch with themes or issues they might want to 35
explore further through action. The following exercise can serve as an introduction to working with symbols to be covered in detail in Module 6.
The exercise can be introduced in the middle of group work, at a stage when the participants are already used to creative tasks as a part of the learning experience. The activity is relatively time consuming and cannot be completed in a brief session; it requires at least 1 hour to bring meaningful results. The group will need some materials and tools to engage in the activity: cardboard, paper, coloured paper and magazines, markers, scissors, glue, string or any other similar resources for creative plastic work. They should be given at the disposal of the whole group with individual participants choosing what they need for their mask creation.
The trainer should introduce the purpose of the activity first: “the participants’ task is to make masks for themselves, depicting the role of an adult educator. The difficulty of the task lies in using or creating appropriate symbols which would grasp the essence of the profession as seen by the educators themselves. The activity is not about verbal expression which would be common for such a task but rather creative, visual representation of the core experiences as a member of the group of adult educators”.
The participants are allowed to work without haste, preferably together at a large table with all the resources available to everyone. They should be provided in sufficient amount as not to limit the work by the scarcity of materials. The participants can talk, help each other and discuss their ideas with the trainer. Many different forms of expression are possible, each of which speaks with its shape, colour, texture, and choice of decoration.
When the work is completed, everybody is invited for a stroll around the classroom with the masks on. It's time for meeting each other's new "incarnations", exchanging views and other interactions. After a while the participants may present their masks to the whole group. There are many different ways in which this can be done. For example, in the middle of the room, on the stage, a chair is placed with a colourful cover. Its occupant takes the role of an adult educator. The participants sit on the chair in turn, a mask over the face, and explain the meaning of the forms they've created, analysing their various elements. They may also reply to questions and comments made by the rest of the group.
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After the completion of the exercise all masks are removed and placed on the floor and the participants sit in a circle around them. The discussion of the exercise should help the trainer clarify some essential aspects of using symbolic language to convey meaning. Mask work is an excellent introduction to the experience of playing very different roles from everyday life and professional situations revealing new possibilities, and surprising with their functionality.
Psychodrama creates a safe environment in which feelings can be expressed through symbolic language Symbols and metaphors can reveal aspects of ourselves we have been unaware of and
The following questions are suggested for the exercise summary round: What is the relevance of working with symbols for adult education? What educational goals could be addressed through working with symbols? Why does psychodrama revolve around the pivots of creativity and spontaneity?
YES – NO Conflict management is a vast and growing field, still psychodrama remains a resource of methods and techniques which could be used for this purpose. The most important of them facilitate authentic encounters of people bringing in opposite views, to deal with aggressiveness, develop empathy and trust as well as help maintain communication in difficult situations. The introduction to this repertoire of tools is best done through involving the participants in a sample exercise and a follow-up discussion of the function and purpose of such “action” methods to be presented in more detail in Module 5. The exercise concretises a case of direct confrontation providing insights for further work on verbal and non-verbal modes of communication in interpersonal encounters. It can be introduced as a form of sample conflict visualisation, preferably at the stage when the group needs to deal with internal tensions and open confrontation of views. This can be a shorter (around 30 minutes) or longer activity (over 1 hour) depending on
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the time available, the size of the group and the depth of the explorations. The trainer needs to explain the purpose of the exercise first and then monitor its progress. The point of this exercise is to involve the participants in a direct clash of opposing opinions and arguments in a model situation when both the parties stick to their standpoints and are unwilling to moderate them. This situation is replayed in a nutshell through a conversation restricted to only two words - one of the interlocutors is only allowed to say 'yes' and the other one can only say 'no'. The exercise can be done in pairs or in groups divided into the YES and NO parties. The group playing strengthens the impact of the activity. The exercise helps to test the relations, the balance of power and the ability to communicate and persuade. The expected outcome is the grasp of the damaging power of sheer negation which does not lead to negotiating conflicting standpoints. While engaging in the YES – NO confrontation the participants should be able to realise the limitations of a discourse rooted in non-negotiable claims or arguments and see the necessity for a more flexible communicative approach. A follow-up discussion is an essential part of the activity. The questions proposed should relate the exercise to a particular case of conflict in the group in which the involved parties were unable to moderate their standpoints and search for a solution acceptable to all.
Psychodrama is a resource of methods and approaches to conflict management training The unique value of psychodrama here lies in the possibility of concretisation and visualisation of tensions and confrontations through role-playing
The following questions have the purpose to help the adult educators in the PaTiE course address the issue of the use of psychodrama for conflict management in educational contexts: Is it advisable to bring to the fore the hidden emotions which are behind the conflicts in the group? What are the limits to “dramatic” explorations of conflicts in the classroom? What is added value of psychodrama to the methods already used?
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CLOSURE The closure phase of the module includes elements of both sharing and processing as the module is a part of training course for prospective users of the methodology. It gives each participant an opportunity to give his/her feedback to the group on the learning experience. This closing part of the workshop is conducted here through an activity involving the participants in interactions which distinguish the lively, dynamic environment of a psychodrama session from traditional type classroom teaching. The closure phase of psychodrama and its importance in the whole flow of activities is covered in Module 8. At this stage the participants “taste” its value in reviewing the progress and results of the introductory workshop.
PATH The Path activity is a way of sharing the experience and knowledge gained during the workshop and giving feedback on the individual steps in the process of working together. In the context of the PaTiE introductory module sufficient time should be allowed for the coverage of all the main steps of the workshop “path”. Accordingly, the trainer should reserve at least one hour for this closing activity in order to let the participants survey their learning experience. The trainer invites the group to a symbolic journey through the workshop program with a view to revealing the whole process of group work and its key parts. The participants first need to think back to subsequent activities and share their reflections while talking about what they found most important. It is important to focus on the most memorable moments and try to imagine the whole process as path with a specific shape, e.g. stairs, a curved line, a labyrinth, etc.
Then the group work together and lay out a path putting multi-coloured scarves on the workshop room floor. The participants must work together and agree on one version of the image that everyone accepts, even though each has their own subjective feelings and impressions. As a result, a road with many turns comes together on the floor. The trainer should ask the participants whether they are satisfied with the result, or would like something changed or added. This can be done at this stage to make the path represent the perceptions of all the participants.
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The next step is to mark the boundaries on the path between the different parts of the workshop and identify them using any objects in the room. The participants, together with the trainer, discuss and remind each other of what has happened at various stages of the workshop, and which exercises and games were important and meaningful for them. The trainer encourages the group to seek creative signs and images to best express the meaning and atmosphere of the “journey� on the path. They may be contributed by individual participants coming up with associations and symbols with the rest of the group observing and listening.
When the image is finally formed, the trainer asks the participants to individually and silently walk the path, turning their thoughts at each stage to those situations and experiences which held meaning for them. Once the symbolic journey is completed the participants return to their seats and the trainer closes the session. The closing part of the workshop should give the trainer an opportunity to announce the content of the following modules in more detail and conduct the session evaluation according to the scenario outlined in the next chapter.
At the end of each workshop session the group should share their learning experience This can be facilitated through symbolic explorations of the themes covered in the group work
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. Bibliography 5.1. References in English Blatner, A. & Blatner, A. (1988). Foundations of Psychodrama – History, Theory and Practice. New York: Springer Publishing Company. Dayton, T. (2004). The Living Stage: A Step-By-Step Guide to Psychodrama, Sociometry and Experiential Group Therapy. Deerfield Beach. FL: Health Communications. Fox, J (ed.) (1987). The essential Moreno: writings on psychodrama, group method, and spontaneity by Jacob Levy Moreno. New York: Springer Publishing Company. Goldman, E. & Morrison, D. (1984). Psychodrama: Experience and Process. Dubuque, IA: Kendall Hunt. Greenberg, I. (1994). Psychodrama Theory and Therapy. New York: Behavioural Publications. Hare, P.A. & Hare, J.R., (1996). J.L. Moreno. London: Sage. Holmes, P. & Karp, M. (eds.) (1991). Psychodrama: Inspirations and Techniques. London: Routlege. Holmes, P., Karp, M. & Watson, M. (eds.) (1994). Psychodrama since Moreno. London: Routlege. Holmes, P., Karp, M. & Tauron, K. B. (eds.) (1998). The Handbook of Psychodrama. London: Routlege. Horvatin, T. & Schreiber, E. (eds.) (2006). The Quintessential Zerka: Writings by Zerka Toeman Moreno on Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy. London: Routledge. Kellermann, P.F. (1992). Focus on Psychodrama. London: Jessica Kingsley Publishers Ltd. Marineau, R.F. (1989). Jacob Levy Moreno 1889-1974: father of psychodrama, sociometry, and group psychotherapy. London: Routledge. Moreno, J.L. (1946/1980). Psychodrama, Vol1. (6th ed.). New York: Beacon House. Moreno, J.L. (1993). Who Shall Survive, Student Edition. Roanoke: American Society of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama, Royal Publishing Co.
5.2. References in Polish Bielańska, A. (ed.) (2009). Psychodrama. Warszawa: ENETEIA. 42
Czapów, G., Cz. (1979). Psychodrama. Warszawa: PWN. Michałowska D.A. (2008). Drama w edukacji. Poznań: Wyd. IF UAM. Pawlik, J. (ed.) (2012). Psychodrama i techniki niewerbalne. Warszawa: ENETEIA Reichel G., Rabensteina R., Thanhoffer M. (1997). Grupa i ruch. Warszawa: CAK. Roine E. (1999). Psychodrama. O tym, jak grać główną rolę w swoim życiu. Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Kontakt.
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The Warm Up Psychodrama as a Tool in Education Training Materials - Module 2 Leonardo Da Vinci Project – Transfer of Innovation
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INDEX
1.
Module description................................................................................... 5 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 5
1.2.
Learning outcomes............................................................................... 5
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and the workshop ................................... 5
2.
Introduction to the theory ......................................................................... 6 2.1.
Warm up .............................................................................................. 6
2.2.
Tele ...................................................................................................... 9
2.3.
Tele and meeting ............................................................................... 10
2.4.
Spontaneity ........................................................................................ 11
2.5.
Training and spontaneity .................................................................... 14
2.6.
How to control spontaneity and make it the basis of creativity ............ 15
2.7.
Is spontaneity measurable? ............................................................... 19
2.8.
Creativity ............................................................................................ 20
2.9.
Creativity and cognitive sciences ....................................................... 21
2.10.
Can we measure creativity?............................................................ 24
2.11. Creativity and psychoanalysis ............................................................ 25 2.12.
Freud’s ideas on creativity as an outburst of neurosis..................... 25
2.13. Jung’s ideas on the creativity coming from archetypes and symbolic function 26 2.14.
Arieti’s ideas on creativity: between ordinary and extraordinary ...... 27
2.15.
Hillman’s ideas on creativity: soul, vocation, possession ................ 28
3.
Introduction to the exercises .................................................................. 29 3.1.
Classification of game ........................................................................ 35
WARM UP ........................................................................................................... 38 SOCIOMETRY ................................................................................................ 40 BLOCKED ....................................................................................................... 40 A LIE AND TWO TRUTHS .............................................................................. 40 IF I WERE AN ANIMAL I WOULD BE… .......................................................... 40 I LOOK LIKE YOU ........................................................................................... 41 THE INTERVIEW ............................................................................................ 41 PRESENTATION AND ALLITERATION .......................................................... 42 BALL ............................................................................................................... 42 GARBLE THE NAMES WITH THE TANGLE ................................................... 42 NAME AND NUMBER ..................................................................................... 43 2
PAT ON THE BACK ........................................................................................ 43 I NEVER .......................................................................................................... 43 ME TOO .......................................................................................................... 43 COMMON FIELD ............................................................................................ 44 CRISTAL BALL ............................................................................................... 44 MY SELFPORTRAIT WITH A SYMBOL .......................................................... 44 MY SELFPORTRAIT WITH A COLLAGE ........................................................ 45 TEAM BUILDING ................................................................................................. 45 BLIND NUMERICAL ORDER .......................................................................... 45 COUNTING IN A CIRCLE ............................................................................... 45 ALL TIED UP ................................................................................................... 45 THE BICYCLE ................................................................................................. 46 HUMAN MACHINES ....................................................................................... 46 WHISPER THE PHRASE ................................................................................ 46 DRAW OF THE BACK..................................................................................... 46 RAIN ............................................................................................................... 47 CONSENSUS.................................................................................................. 47 PHRASE AND BALL ....................................................................................... 47 THE POSTMAN .............................................................................................. 48 THE WEATHER MOOD .................................................................................. 48 MASAGGES .................................................................................................... 48 RELAXATION AND GUIDED FANTASIES ...................................................... 49 THE KNOT OF HANDS ................................................................................... 49 IMAGINARY BALL........................................................................................... 49 BOSS MAKES US CHANGE ........................................................................... 49 THE PET ......................................................................................................... 50 ACTIVITIES TO DO ON THE MOVE ................................................................... 50 WALKING IN THE ROOM ............................................................................... 50 KITTY KAT ...................................................................................................... 51 THE BRIDGE OF CHAIRS .............................................................................. 51 FULL SACK EMPTY SACK ............................................................................. 51 THE GAME OF CHAIRS ................................................................................. 52 NAPOLEON .................................................................................................... 52 MIXER AND TOASTER ................................................................................... 52 4.
Evaluation .............................................................................................. 54
5.
BibliograPHY ......................................................................................... 55 3
5.1.
Bibliography in English ....................................................................... 55
5.2.
Bibliography in Italian ......................................................................... 58
5.3.
Further information – Web links:......................................................... 58
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1. Module description The Warm-up is a module of the program Psychodrama as a tool in Education (PaTiE). It could be seen both as a single module and a part of the whole course. It is important to keep in mind that each instrument or activity present is part of the psychodramatic approach. The warm-up activities are useful to create a good climate with student, to enhance the motivation and to facilitate the expression of emotion. In this chapter are described the theoretical concepts and the method of the warm-up.
1.1. Aims To introduce VET adult educators to the basics of warm-up in its relevance for education To present a set of warm-up techniques most useful in active mind-body globality to practically illustrate how these techniques can be implemented in workshop environment To discuss the applicability of the techniques in the participants’ educational practice
1.2. Learning outcomes On successful completion of the course module the learners are expected to be able to: explain the principles of warm-up and its possible benefits for educational practice in VET list some warm-up techniques and argue why and how they can (cannot) be applied in the participants’ own practice propose and run an appropriate warm-up exercise to respond to a particular problem/challenge in a group of learners
1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The module has both theoretical and practical components that have an impact on the choice of relevant teaching methods. These components should be closely linked in the course of the training in order to avoid lengthy PPT presentations or lectures that are contrary to the spirit of psychodrama. The workshop should follow the structure of a typical psychodrama session in line with the overall course objective to introduce educators to the experiential method of psychodrama.
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2. Introduction to the theory 2.1. Warm up To understand what is meant by “warm up” it is necessary to reiterate some key concepts of psychodrama and its application in the training field. The interest for training arose in Moreno from the first experience of the Theatre of Spontaneity. It was, in this context, to train the actor to spontaneity and creativity, to the ability of inventing the role and to be able to face and realize spontaneously the unpredictable situations proposed by the audience. The main concern was to overcome the “cultural crystallization” (stereotypes and stiffness of role) to reach the condition of spontaneity, that is the premise of the possibility of creativity in the realization of the role. This preparatory work of the actor recalls some of the techniques still used in training and education (simulations and activities of warming-up). The central feature of psychodramatic modes is definitely to translate into action what might remain rationalization or intellectualism on a narrative level. Action in psychodrama does not mean, however, neither to act without control nor to act without thinking. We speak rather of “context of action” which means posting emotional and rational contents in a situational context that makes such content perceptible and able to be communicated to others through a direct language. For example: it is substantially different that a teacher “recounts” his professional relationship with a student, or that in a psychodramatic context takes the role of the student himself and from this point of view describes how he feels and assesses that teacher... In the first case the story and the rational filter prevail, in the second case action – meant as the confluence of spatial, situational, bodily, rational and emotional data – is prevailing. The context of action is always active and usually precedes the context of verbalization, intellectualization and theoretical systematization that is still taken into account. There is therefore a continuous spiral that starts from the story to the action and from the action to the intellectualization, to go back to the action again, if it is still necessary. Directly connected to the concept of action is that of warming-up. On the one hand, the action is “warming-up” or preparation to the emersion of spontaneity and creativity; on the other hand it is necessary in a group to gradually create the
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conditions (relational and emotional) for the action to be carried out in all its educational and therapeutic potentialities.
Remember The action is “warming-up” or preparation to the emersion of spontaneity and creativity
That’s why a warming-up activity comes before and creates the conditions for the working out of the training: in fact, there is an equation that includes spontaneity and warming-up, but also anxiety and absence of warming-up. Quoting Moreno it can be said that: “Anxiety depends on spontaneity. According to our definition, spontaneity is the proper response to the present situation. If the response to the circumstances is appropriate, if there is ‘fullness’ of spontaneity, anxiety decreases and disappears. [...] To start from the negative aspect, from anxiety, would be a dialectical mistake. The real problem lies in identifying the dynamic factor that gives rise to anxiety. Anxiety occurs when spontaneity is lacking: it is not anxiety that appears first and that entails the attenuation of spontaneity because of its appearance”. (J.L. Moreno, 1980: 185-186). The warming-up is the first part of a session of psychodrama, to encourage communication between group members, to circulate emotions and to promote the spontaneity. Warming-up activity is the conditio sine qua non (precondition) for starting a psychodramatic work with the protagonist and the group. The warming-up is also a process concerning every moment of the session in which it is necessary to activate the spontaneity. It is the phase in which the group gets organized around a subject. In this phase a member of the group becomes the protagonist while the psychotherapist plays the role of the “supervisor manager”. When it has been decided what to represent, the protagonist assigns roles to other members of the group. In the first stage of warmingup, the goal to aim is to reach a state of a greater spontaneity, allowing energies and personal emotions to emerge; a work is made for the construction and consolidation of the bond of tele settled within the group. These are techniques developed by Moreno and his staff for the purpose of facilitating the spontaneous action of psychodramatic actors, and to encourage both the diagnosis and the solution of the problematic situation.
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The warming-up process can be stimulated by body activators (physical movement and body contact), mental activators (images and feelings) and physicochemical activators (artificial stimulations).
Remember The goal of the warm-up is to reach a state of a greater spontaneity, allowing energies and personal emotions to emerge
Through the process of warming-up the individual may experience many roles, including those who he lives in daily life rarely, or never lived. In fact, if the man in the daily routine is limited to a small number of roles, actually his potentials go far beyond. “We live only a small part of the range of action of our personality; the majority remain unused and without development” (Moreno, 1946, p. 295). Warming-up techniques, however, are designed to generate the opposite: turning on body and mind, the individual reaches the state of spontaneity necessary to be able to freely express all their potential, even the most hidden, unused, or feared. In particular, within a psychodramatic session the warming-up process covers several functions: generate and strengthen the bonds of tele within the group; bring out the protagonist, and prepare him to the representation of his inner world; bring out the auxiliary egos. The introductory phase of the psychodrama session, therefore, can contemplate physical and expressive exercises that involve all members of the group, or a discussion, or, more simply, the silent wait for someone to propose as a player of the game. The warming-up makes the group more permeable to the “hic et nunc” (here and now) condition; favours the amalgam between the participants and sharpens their senses; mobilizes the preconscious and unconscious ability to pick up signals emitted by all against all.
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Moreover, in this prologue, every individual has the opportunity to get in a deepest assonance with his own emotional state, probing his mood and the availability to the relationship with the director and with the group. Before introducing the specific techniques for the implementation of the exercises of warming up, it is important to deepen the concepts that underlie the introduction of
these techniques.
2.2. Tele The term tele comes from the Greek τελέ (telé) and means ‘remote’. It indicates the ability of people to relate to each other to reach an emotional meeting. It is reciprocal and bidirectional, unlike empathy which is unidirectional. Tele also differs from transfert, as it relates only to the projective aspects of patient-therapist relationship. Moreno in his observations was inspired by what Aristotle discovered about the catharsis in Greek tragedy. The representation used to cause in the public the activation of a sequence of emotions, which aroused a sense of relief, a sort of “purification” of the soul. This aspect has been taken by the author and others in the early twentieth century, meaning the cathartic event as an emotional component awakened through the action and the meeting. The meeting for Moreno (1947) is defined as: “an I and a You (who) establish a true relation of reciprocity only when each one of them is able to imagine and to feel in the shoes of the other. Thereby they bring about an encounter, that is being together, the gathering, the being in physical contact, to see and to observe each other, the share, the love, the understanding, the intuitive knowledge through silence or movement, the word or the gesture.” The meeting is the central point of the psychodrama of Moreno, who did not identify as neither theatre nor as psychology but as a new combination of the two: is often called “the psychology of the people, made by the people for the people.” It implies an intense experience where people meet, know each other and binds to the others with a sense of deep gratitude so to create a sort of frame of intimacy that accompanies all the dramatic evolution of the dramatic experience. The atmosphere of familiarity that is created in a psychodrama group in an ongoing term leads to the creation of what Moreno (1953) calls a relation of tele, “the simplest unit of feeling transmitted from one individual to another.” Tele is mutual empathy, it is an emotional two-way communication, a mutual understanding, “an invisible correspondence, a kind of heightened sensitivity to each other's inner feelings” (Moreno 1947); tele is a key element of psychodrama.
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The quality of the emotion that goes through this invisible bridge, called tele, gives the bond the characteristic of attraction or rejection: a relation of attraction makes us talk about positive tele, a relation of refusal makes us talk about negative tele; the primary condition for realizing a state of spontaneity that for Moreno is an energy that arises from within and work in the here and now: “Spontaneity works in the present, in the here and now: it stimulates the individual towards an appropriate response to a new situation or a new response to a situation already known.” (Moreno, 1953).
Remember The relation of tele is “the simplest unit of feeling transmitted from one individual to another”. Tele is mutual empathy, is a key element of psychodrama. Considered by Moreno the highest expression of human intelligence, spontaneity would transform reality, it would break the mould and avoid crystallization, stimulating the creativity of the individual. Spontaneity is considered the psychotherapeutic goal of psychodrama, creativity its active result: the one and the other are solicited on the psychodramatic scene. The author will define factor S-C, the key element that measures the expression of the individual and the relationship with the other. According to the theories of Moreno, spontaneity and psychopathology are inversely related: if the first diminishes or disappears, the second occurs and increases.
2.3. Tele and meeting Developing operationally Max Buber’s philosophical contributions (1923), Moreno locates in the possibility of meeting (defined as the ability of human beings to enter into emotional relationship with his fellows, in an authentic and undistorted way) the key of mental health and balance of personality. The ability of meeting assumes that tele processes are actives. As already stated, tele means ‘remote’, and indicates the ability that everyone has from birth to relate emotionally with other human beings. Tele differs from empathy, which is a one-way process (a person is empathetic to another, but not necessarily this attitude is reciprocal). Tele can be defined as a double-way empathy, where central becomes reciprocity. Tele differs from transfert, key process of psychoanalytic treatment. Tele precedes transfert which is the pathological manifestation of it. As tele relationships grow, 10
transfert relationships decrease, and vice versa a wide space to the transfert relationships reduces the possibility of a genuine and deep meeting. Moreno then defines the concept of tele distinguishing it from empathy and transfert. Empathy is unidirectional, a one-way feeling that a person turns to another. Transference is an individual psychodynamic phenomenon that also takes on psychopathological meanings. Tele is instead characterized by reciprocity and appears as a basic element of the relationship; it is therefore a social event, rather than an individual psychological phenomenon. G. Boria so defines the concept of tele: “it is the affective current that binds in an invisible and mutual way one person with another. Tele is the simplest unit of feeling that is transmitted from one individual to another [...] The quality of the emotion that goes through this invisible bridge gives this bond the characteristic of attraction, repulsion or indifference� (Boria, 1983, p. 263). This concept is useful not only in therapeutic area, but also educational and in professional training, as it allows the teacher to have a tool to understand if he is in contact with the student and how to enter or maintain such contact. It is much more useful than the simple concept of empathy or transfert psychoanalytically derived, because it implies that there is reciprocity in the relationship. Empathy, however, focuses on what the teacher gives and transmits to the student, intended as the subject of the intervention. In this way there is a risk of remaining anchored to a directive, formal and one-way setting of the training approach. The risk is to make passive the learner and drying up the teacher, who feels he has nothing in return by the pupil. Transfert highlights the distortions that the student puts into action in the relationship. The teacher might interpret too much or not be able to use this particular tool of the therapeutic relationship, with the risk of psychologising, more than it should, the educational context. Shifting the emphasis on the relationship of tele, focuses on the emotional flow that passes through the dynamic of mutual actions-interactions, balancing the training matrix and returning power to the role of student.
2.4. Spontaneity In psychodrama the concept of spontaneity is fundamental. Moreno chose the theatre of research as a means to achieve the recapture of spontaneity. A setting with strict and defined rules it would have been an obstacle to his goal. This concept has been said and repeated in the course of his work. On psychodramatic stage “[...] it is possible the discovery of the spontaneous man, that is of the spontaneous and creative 11
nature of existence” (Moreno, 1940). It can be said that between spontaneity and psychopathology there is an inverse relationship: if the first diminishes or disappears, the second occurs and increases. Everyone has the opportunity to act spontaneous behaviour, in relation with itself and with the outside world. But in the process of socialization there is a constant learning of relationships that are destined to repeat in a stereotyped way during subsequent experiences. In this regard, Moreno speaks about “natural conserves”, identifying them in all those activities that continue to reproduce mechanically (‘for inertia’) although are distant in time the circumstances that caused them the first time. So, spontaneity is the ability to act behaviours functional to the real needs of the individual, to the needs related to the present time in an immediate way, free from conditionings. A factor that may hinder the spontaneous self expression is anxiety. If there is a genuine manifestation of spontaneity, the individual is free from anxiety; when the individual is in a state of threat and not authentic, is manifested anxiety that can get to the state of panic. Another factor that undermines the spontaneity is too much importance to the opinions of others, especially those of the significant counter-roles, but of society as a whole. Such as the expectations of parents on their child’s success or the imperatives of fashion on the physical forms of women.
Remember Spontaneity is the ability to act behaviours functional to the real needs of the individual, to the needs related to the present time in an immediate way, free from conditionings. This implies that people tend to assume forced behaviours, whose sole purpose is to get away from external criticism. But this way of life, carried out daily, ends up exhausting the person: in fact, there is no moment of peace for those who always fear to say or to do something that the others doesn’t like, whoever they are. “It is not pleasant or relaxing the life of those who perpetually wear a mask. There are several situations that disarm us revealing our true self, and, although it may be useful the act of self-control, it is not pleasant or relaxing the lives of those who perpetually wear a mask. How much quiet is the sincere and spontaneous simplicity, not without grace, of the behaviour without veils! [...]. Even spontaneity, however, face a balanced use: there is a difference between living in a truly spontaneous way and in a sloppy and vulgar way” Seneca says in the passage of De tranquillitate animi (On the serenity of the soul) that develops this very topic: the anxiety generated by the lack of spontaneity. 12
Even Erich Fromm (1941), German psychoanalyst, deals with the concept of spontaneity. In his book Escape from Freedom shows how it can be a way of expression to help people finding their authenticity: “Can freedom exist in a world of masks and automata where ‘the having’ crushes ‘the being’ and lie is the rule of human relationships?” “It is the answer to the problem of freedom”. Spontaneity is a condition that can be created in each individual, an internal state that can be produced and which forms the basis for the development of creativity. Spontaneity is therefore a catalyst for creativity and one without the other bring negative and not productive consequences. For Moreno in the concrete act spontaneity and creativity are intimately fused. If the state of spontaneity is missing, creativity remains inert and hidden, whatever its potential size is. The act devoid of spontaneity is the mechanical, stereotyped, repetitive act. Spontaneity stimulates to transform reality, to break the mould and to prevent crystallizations. It brings to face the risks of change: “The spontaneous activity is not compulsory activity, to which the individual is driven by isolation and helplessness; it is not the activity of the automaton, which is uncritical assimilation of models suggested from the outside. Spontaneous activity is free activity of the ego and implies, psychologically, what the Latin root of the word, sponte, literally means: one’s free will. For activity we don’t mean the ‘do something’ but that creative activity that can operate in one’s emotional experiences, intellectual and sensual, and even in one’s will. A prerequisite of this spontaneity is the acceptance of the total personality, and the elimination of the split between ‘reason’ and ‘nature’. In fact, only if the man does not repress essential parts of his own being, only if it has become clear to himself, and only if the different spheres of life have reached a fundamental integration, spontaneous activity is possible” (Fromm, 1941). Fromm’s words call directly to what Moreno had well identified in the factor spontaneity-creativity. Moreno distinguishes four different forms of spontaneity: first of all, it is a “surge”, that is a primal impulse of the individual; secondly, it is a “cultural acquisition”, resulting in innovations that can be recorded in the field of art, or at the level of environments, organizations or institutions that strive to stop the automatic succession of events through which perpetuates the tradition; then it exists a spontaneity that is the creation
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of “a free expression of personality”; finally, spontaneity can be considered as “an appropriate and original response to new situations”. In this way, spontaneity is also defined as a characteristic ability of the individual to have feelings and behaviours in harmony with their own natural tendencies. Creativity allows that the natural tendency becomes concrete action, so that Moreno calls S-C factor (spontaneity-creativity) the key element that measures the satisfying expansion of the individual and the relationship with the other. According to Moreno a good balance of the S-C factor is manifested as the ability to “respond appropriately to new situations or in new situations already known” (Moreno, 1940).
Remember Moreno identifies four forms of spontaneity: - It is a immediate and instinctive surge of the individual - It is a cultural acquisition - It is a free expression of personality - It is an original response to new situations 2.5. Training and spontaneity As was stated earlier, when there is no spontaneity, the individual is manifested by anxiety and / or rigid and stereotyped behaviours. Training and being spontaneous in relationships means learning to respond to the needs of the environment in harmony without distorting the requests and reality and to one’s inner instances without defensiveness and bringing out authentic needs and emotions. Moreno uses the concept of spontaneity not only in reference to the psychopathological phenomena, but he is interested in spontaneity especially when he observes the actor on the scene. The concept was further elaborated in multiple situations aimed at training the actor, the individual and the group to act on new roles. It is clear the usefulness of this concept in training for professions that require a relationship with the group, as the teacher. With this ability the teacher, as well as the necessary theoretical and technical skills, also gained the ability to adapt flexibly to the variety of people and work situations with which it comes into contact. Moreno verifies that, in the development of spontaneity, has a central role in the action, the improvised stage interpretation. In assuming two diversified channels of memory operation (the centre of the action and the centre of the content), Moreno emphasizes the learning of spontaneity requires a context of action to be effective (Moreno, 1980b, p. 524). Only in
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this way, content and actions can find synthesis in the ability to achieve roles and spontaneous behaviour.
2.6.
How to control spontaneity and make it the basis of creativity
It is necessary that between spontaneity/control there is a dynamic equilibrium in the work of psychodrama. This dynamic crosses both therapeutic groups that those training, but there are constraints in training much more evident that in psychotherapy. Only a naive view of the psychodramatic intervention may consider the dimension spontaneity as authentically true and the dimension control as a simple limitation. In that regard, Moreno says: “Psychodrama is a method of training to self-control and a method of free expression. The repressive nature of our culture has come to give the ‘expression itself’ a value often exaggerated. Methods such as role reversal or the representation of roles, as they require a limitation, a retraining and/or a reconditioning of excitability, represent a very underestimated and neglected application of psychodrama. Especially the interpolation of barriers (interpolation of resistances) allows the ego to gain more control against an emotion that is often staged in psychodrama” (Moreno, 1987, p. 266).
WARM UP
Cultural conserve Spontaneity
Creativity
WARM UP
Figure 1. Canon of spontaneity-creativity: the Moreno view (J.L. Moreno, 1993).
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Moreno refers to spontaneity in close relation to the concept of creativity, factor S-C (spontaneity-creativity) is the key element in the expansion of the individual and the relationship with the other. The interest for spontaneity in Moreno is relating to the theme of the development of creativity, of the creative act. Therefore, focusing the attention only on the development of spontaneity without the connection to creativity would cause the risk of diminishing the function of the spontaneous act, depriving it of its creative finalization.
High Spontaneity The product:
State Low Creativity
Cultural
Non creative product
High Spontaneity Deficency Low Anxiety
Uncontrolled behavior Controlled behavior
Figure 2. Expanded canon of spontaneity-creativity.
In training field, one of the main goals is not the development of spontaneity, but the ability to achieve creative acts, to take on creatively new roles and to transform in a creative way, social and working roles. Spontaneity to result in creative act needs a medium, which is both a constraint and an expressive opportunity. This medium is the role, the behaviour unit perceptible, observable and modifiable in the interaction with the human environment. Creativity can not develop if spontaneity is not activated, and at the same time it requires a channel of expression to take shape through the role which, being 16
unfastened from spontaneity and creativity, runs out of its function, crystallizing in a stereotyped way. Spontaneity without the connection with creativity and role, runs out in a “state of spontaneity� without contact with matter of fact. In this path of development of creativity becomes central in training, the context of rules, opportunities and perceptual-relational data in relation to which the spontaneity is stimulated, amplified, or channelled or confronted with barriers (interpolation of resistances), which represent an opportunity for a creative leap forward (new role or insight). In this process it is important to have a clear focus of the intervention, which will justify the emphasis on spontaneity, or on the development of a new role. In training it has to consider that in certain phases, the focus of the intervention is the same group of pupils. This involves having attention to the relationships between the members of the group, the reciprocity of roles and counter-roles that exist between them and the image of group emerging as a unified whole, the group has in these terms a counter-role also with regard to the teacher. For example, a conflict between two or three class members can influence the climate of the whole group and bring out an anxiety and restlessness that does not allow the smooth running of the lesson. In this case, to stop the teaching program and to create a psychodramatic training setting, means first of all establish a secure environment of acceptance in which factor S-C can emerge. The warming-up is functional just to bring participants in a relational dimension in which they feel they can express themselves without fear of being judged by others. To avoid misunderstandings it is necessary to clarify what Moreno means for spontaneity. It is not what the common language defines: an unregulated behaviour dumping uncontrolled emotions, thoughts or actions regardless of the needs of the person. Spontaneity is rather a condition that can be created in each individual, an internal state that can be produced and which forms the basis for the performance of creativity. 17
The warming-up is functional just to let the participants in a relational dimension in which they feel they can express themselves without fear of being judged by others. Spontaneity is therefore a catalyst for creativity and one without the other bring negative and not productive consequences . Moreno defines two extremes in this regard: the spontaneous moron, the one who in a perpetual state of “spontaneity�, but devoid of creative resources, continuously provides inadequate responses to the environment and dictated only by the needs and internal states; the unarmed creator, who, full of creative potentiality, fails to create himself a state of spontaneity, remaining paralyzed and unable to externalize the creative potentiality. It’s important to note that spontaneity can be trained, developed and recreated by a warming-up process. The psychodramatic methodology assumes that spontaneity can occur in certain situations (e.g. use of the body, humour, situations of intimacy and contact with the other, etc.) and in all the people, even the most limited or sick. That's why, methodologically, the phase of warming-up is particularly emphasized in the groups of psychodrama. From this point of view, what the trainer is called to do, as well as in psychotherapy and in learning situations, is nothing more than a creative response triggered after a period of incubation, in a moment of appropriate spontaneity. A good balance of factor S-C leads to the ability of providing appropriate responses to a new and unexpected situation and giving a new and creative answer to an old and crystallized situation. It is to accompany the group towards a state of greater involvement with the other hand to one side and to a greater contact with the inner flow, or with the parties unaware of himself. The matter is to accompany the group towards a state of greater involvement with the others and of a greater contact with the inner flow, or with the parties unaware of itself. Those that are usually kept hidden using the processes of logical-deductive.
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2.7. Is spontaneity measurable? The idea of measuring the spontaneity, through a test based on the action was introduced by Moreno in 1944. The test consists of a series of stage situations that are not necessarily standardized, in which the protagonist answers with improvised actions. The observer categorizes the answers based on appropriateness, originality and speed, in this way the quotient of spontaneity is measured. A few years ago, some studies on the evaluation of spontaneity through standardized scales have been published. The first study is Personal Attitude Scale (PAS; Collins, Kumar, Treadwell, & Leach, 1997) composed by 58 items, revised by Kellar and others, PASS-II (Kellar, Treadwell, Kumar, & Leach, 2002) which includes 66 items. From this scale 6 characteristics of spontaneous behaviour emerge: 1) It is new and creative, 2) it is immediate, 3) it is adequate and appropriate, 4) emerges easily and effortlessly, 5) involves the totality of the person, 6) the person has control over his own actions that are not impulsive. (Kellar et al., 2002). Another tool that measures the spontaneity is the Spontaneity Assessment Inventory (SAI) built by Kipper and Hundal (2005). The ask “How strongly do you have these feelings and thoughts during a typical day?�, the question is followed by 20 items describing feelings and thoughts that characterize the state of spontaneity (such as: energetic, uninhibited, controlling, etc.) to which is given a score through a Likert scale of 6 points. In addition, the SAI correlates positively with the measure of well being (Friedman, 1994) and negatively with states and traits of anxiety (Spielberger, Gorsuch, Lushene, Vagg, & Jacobs, 1983), with obsessive-compulsive behaviour (Foa et al., 2002) and orientation towards the past measured through the Temporal Orientation Scale (TOS; Jones, Banicky, Pomar, & Lasane, 2004). Kipper and Shemer (2007) have produced a revised version of the SAI, the SAI-R, in which the items have been reduced to 18 and the Likert scale has been reduced to 5 points. The most important aspect that Moreno stressed is that spontaneity is the basis of psychological well-being (Moreno, 1923, 1953).
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Although subsequent studies have correlated the spontaneity with mental health, Steitzel and Hughey (1994) have shown how the spontaneity is necessary in order to experience joy and satisfaction. Maslow (1970) considers that spontaneity is a necessary condition to reach the stage of personal self. In the most recent study of the SAI-R has been seen how effectively the size of spontaneity is positively correlated with the size of the welfare and negatively with those of stress (Kipper, & Shemer, 2007)
2.8. Creativity Moreno defines creativity in relation with spontaneity, creating s-c factor. Spontaneity and creativity are interdependent. Creativity is a concrete action, the peculiarity is to fit new situations or new answers to well known or crystallized situations. Psychodrama has the aim to favour the development of more spontaneous and creative roles in individuals and groups. Art and creativity have been used in group experience as a tool to express feelings, to create empathy, not only to produce something with an aesthetic value (Liebmann, 2004). Creativity is a bridge, an expressive channel to stand out conflicts, emotions and other faces of the personality that would be otherwise hidden. (Liebmann, 2004; Rubin 1999). Studies show that who have interest in arts have higher empathic capacities of others (Bayam, Simsek & Dilbaz, 1999; Dokmen, 1994). Expressive methods accelerate the arising of associations with emotive experience, as action based, they are exploitable in therapeutic and training field. Global mobilization of the person through action permits to focus now and here and leaves the abstract intellectualization to live the immediate creative experience. Psychodrama aims to encourage the development of more spontaneous and creative roles in the individual and in groups. Also, use of the creative medium allows to bring down resistances within the group, because they don’t perceive the mutual judgment. For example, draw to show the own personal trait or a passion, basically helps to be focused on ourselves and on the cognitive mobilities, emotive and imaginative skills, then sharing experiences with others it can helps to show and to emphasise specific aspects of the personality of
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each one, that cannot be showed through traditional logical expressions (Ozcan et al, 2011 ). With regards to the concept of creativity Umberto Eco (2004) made a collection of definitions that can be found on internet and saw that there are over than 1,560,000 sites dedicated to this concept and that many of them make referring "to an industrial and commercial capacity to solve problems, identified with the innovation concept, the ability to conceive new ideas, and to this ability are dedicated many websites that teach how to become creative and to earn a lot of money (…). But before the era of multinational companies, two were in general sense of creativity. One is Biblical, for which God created the universe from nothing. The second is derived by analogy from the first and recognized artist, who actually brings into being something that did not exist before, almost godlike power. Here then is a proposal that equates the scientific creativity and the artistic one. Like all scientific discoveries to come they should somehow be contained in the algorithms that govern natural events so all the artistic creations should already be contained in the fundamental elements – sounds, letters, rangers, colours, lines and geometric shapes – which our species has. Creative will not be the one who then drew something new out of nothing but one who has identified, by intuition, by trial and error, by chance – or for that infinite patience that for Flaubert was a sign of genius – from the gang that contained and hid it in our eyes. Rather, the problem is how this combination allow new ways to describe or reconstruct the world, and how these methods can be acceptable" (Eco, 2004).
2.9. Creativity and cognitive sciences In psychology, creativity has been studied in particular in the field of cognitivism, starting from Giulford's researches of 1950; systematic studies have been conducted to better understand the creativity and how it influences and is influenced by the personality, by social relationships, by cognitive and emotional aspects. Among all studies on these factors one of the most investigated was definitely the relationship between emotional state, mood and creativity. Among all studies on these factors one of the most investigated was definitely the relationship between emotional state, mood and creativity. Given the enormous amount of works on this subject, a meta-analysis has recently combined the results of 102 scientific articles that investigated the relationship between creativity and emotions (Baas, De Dreu, Nijstad, 2008).
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Talking about emotions the first relevant aspect is their hedonic value or affective tone. In fact, some emotions, such as joy, enthusiasm and tranquillity, have a positive tone, while others, such as anger, anxiety, sadness, have a negative tone. Through neuropsychological evidence was also discovered that the emotional state can be activating (high arousal) or de-activating (low arousal) (Posner, Russell, & Peterson, 2005). Combining the two classifications we will have positive emotional states with low arousal, as calm and quiet, and high arousal, such as happiness and euphoria, as well as negative emotional states with low arousal, such as sadness and depression, and high arousal such as anger and fear. The matter, however, is further complicated. The results of the meta-analysis have allowed to understand that the link between creativity and emotional state is much more complex than it seemed at the beginning because it seems to be regulated by the interaction between hedonic valence, emotional activation and motivation. The analysis of these complex interactions shows that, in general, positive emotional states are the best source for creativity than the negative ones. However it is not to be forgotten the role that the level of activation or arousal has in this equation: if this variable is introduced, in fact, it turns out that only positive activating states are really able to foster creativity. So only emotions such as happiness can encourage flexibility and speed of cognitive processing, which in turn promote high levels of creativity and originality. As we said, additional mediators are the emotional states that can promote motivation. The research found that negative emotions with low arousal are not correlated with an increase of creativity and even the negative ones with high arousal are negatively correlated with it mainly because they drastically reduce cognitive flexibility, thus preventing to find new solutions. While there are many models for the process of creative thinking, it is not difficult to see the consistent themes that span them all. The creative process involves purposeful analysis, imaginative idea generation, and critical evaluation – the total creative process is a balance of imagination and analysis. Older models tend to imply that creative ideas result from subconscious processes, largely outside the control of the thinker. Modern models tend to imply purposeful generation of new ideas, under the direct control of the thinker. The total creative process requires a drive to action and the
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implementation of ideas. We must do more than simply imagine new things, we must work to make them concrete realities. The Directed Creativity Cycle is a synthesis model of creative thinking that combines the concepts behind the various models proposed over the last 80 years (figure no. 3)
Figure 3: The Directed Creativity Cycle
Let's walk through it, beginning at the 9:00 position on the circle. We live everyday in the same world as everyone else, but creative thinking begins with careful observation of that world coupled with thoughtful analysis of how things work and fail. These mental processes create a store of concepts in our memories. Using this store, we generate novel ideas to meet specific needs by actively searching for associations among concepts. There are many specific techniques that we can use to make these associations; for example, analogies, branching out from a given concept, using a random word, classic brainstorming, and so on. The choice of technique is not so important; making the effort to actively search for associations is what is key. Seeking the balance between satisfying and premature judgment, we harvest and further enhance our ideas before we subject them to a final, practical evaluation. But, it is not enough just to have creative thoughts; ideas have no value until we put in the work to implement them. Every new idea that is put into practice changes the world we live in, which re-starts the cycle of observation and analysis. Also creative process in psychodrama could be seen as a creative act and it is possible to analyze it with this draft. Actually, in the first phase, the warm-up, we pose the conditions for emerging ideas, emotions, statement, that are translate in action during
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playing phase and at the end, in the sharing phase, we rework emotions to find new strategies for everyday life.
2.10. Can we measure creativity? Today it is possible find on Internet many open-source test to assess the creative personality traits, with a scientific validation. One of this is Fast Company with 10 contradictory characteristic of personality coming from the Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, research on “flow”. Trait are: 1) big physical energy but quiet and rest bent; 2) smartness and naivety; 3) playfulness and self-regulation – responsibility and irresponsibility; 4) imagination and realism; 5) introversion and extroversion; 6) presence of pride and humility; 7) unconventional gender statement; 8) conservatism and revolt; 9) presence of passion and objectivity on work; 10) openness and sensitivity. Another scale is made by Paul Torrence, it is published on Creating website, and list 52 traits, among which: abstractedness, adaptability, capacity to chance context, combination of ideas and situation, flexibility and future orientation, idealism and independence, originality, passion and prospective, richness in details, sensibility and ability to synthesize, tolerance to ambiguity, capacity of visualization. Another website on creativity assessment is Inc.com that summarize 7 traits described by Øyvind L. Martinsen are: 1) capacity to easily pass from reality to imagination; 2) need of originality and resistance to rules and conventions; 3) motivation and goal oriented; 4) ambition and needs of reputation; 5) flexibility and ability to observe reality from different point of view; 6) low emotional stability, trend to experience negative emotion; 7) low sociability and obstinacy. Copyblogger invites his readers to find out if they have “11 traits of persons with high creativity”. It reports that creativity and intelligence are not so high related. Creative persons, as shows Robert Sternberg, have a high level of intelligence, around 120 QI, but not necessarily with elevate peaks. Indiana University do not produce many traits, but organize them in groups: Product (fluidity, flexibility, originality, elaboration from Torrence); Attitudes (curiosity, imagination,
complexity,
risk
inclination),
behaviours
(flexible,
inventive,
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unconventional, innovative) and adds a list of cognitive characteristic very important, like metaphoric thinking, independence of judgment and eidetic thinking.
2.11. Creativity and psychoanalysis Fist modern studies on creativity and is relation with cognitive development dating on second part of the Nineteenth Century, when Broca and Wernicke localized the language areas on brain. Now neuroscience studies brain areas and the way that interact one with each other to trigger creativity process, and in which way creativity is related with language and vision. Results a very complex puzzle. Before neuroscience, psychoanalysis studies first the roots of creativity, with the discovery of unconscious. It is important to say that around the idea of creativity there is a prejudice: the belief that creativity and mental disease are related and that creativity born from mental illness. But, we already see that at the bases of creativity there is spontaneity dimension, and if spontaneity is positive related with well-being and negative with stress, it is clear that also creativity emerge also when there is psychic balance.
2.12. Freud’s ideas on creativity as an outburst of neurosis Sigmund Freud examines motivation of creativity lighting the unconscious and part psychopathological ones. Freud says that creativity is a positive answer to a childhood unconscious desire; most of them are about sexuality, it is the reason because they are frustrate and then remove from consciousness. However, to remove events and trauma could provoke neurosis. Uneasiness grow up when we put on unconscious distressing that tend to coming out in another manner, as compulsion, tic, obsession, mania, that seem without reason, because it is on unconscious. An alternative at this process is to transform neurosis by creativity. It means that when libido, the emotional tension linked to unfulfilled desire is directed to another object. The shift gives direction to energy, which are translated in creativity actions. This kind of expression of drive unconsciousness is socially acceptable and it is font of alternative gratification. In summary, for Freud creativity is the result of sublimation of energy, which are caused by a frustrating situation. This kind of energy is directed to a more positive direction. This happens because the reality principle substitutes the pleasure principle. The consciousness we need to accept reality and we can’t satisfy each desire we have.
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2.13. Jung’s ideas on the creativity coming from archetypes and symbolic function The thought of Gustav Jung (1909-61) is less causal, linear and systematic than Freud. The complexity of his vision and the breadth of its research field can hardly be reduced to a few lines that are comprehensive and faithful. For Jung, the libido is psychic energy, not just sexual. The psyche is a set of complex: that is, systems of representations loaded of energy and characterized by an own affective tone, for example, the mother complex. Even the Ego is a complex, the more solid and stable: it is connected with personality, self-representation and self-perception of the individual. There is a collective unconscious, that is a basic psychological structure, made of archetypes shared by the entire human race. They are innate patterns, they can be told in the form of myth and individual experience can reflect in it. It is the dialectical relationship between internalized archetypes and opposites (Animus / Soul, Person / Shadow, etc ...) to generate the psychic dynamics of each individual and to develop the energy of the libido. In particular, the Shadow is the dark side, but not necessarily negative and sometimes bearer of creative energies, that the individual would tend to ignore. The Person is instead its public mask and respectful of social conventions. Soul (spontaneous, intuitive, maternal...) is the feminine aspect present in the collective masculine unconscious, Animus (logical and rational, wise), the masculine aspect that is in the collective feminine unconscious. Creativity emerges from the synthesis that makes the symbolic function by relating the archetypes, innate and immutable, with individual and contingent experiences. It is a transformation that Jung called individuation. It is a dynamic synthesis that occurs when the Ego is able to negotiate with anxiety, ambiguity and ambivalence that are intimately connected with the living because it transcends the archetypal opposites 26
integrating them, and because it is capable of interacting with the world through perception and through thought, intuition and feeling. It is a process of instinctual character: according to Jung, hunger, sexuality, activity, reflection and creativity are all instincts, and it is creative instinct to differentiate humans from other species by moving towards spirituality and production of symbols. Even psychotherapy is aimed at developing the creative potentials latent in the patient. This means that there is a deep connection between the manifestation of creativity and psyche that is transformed. The individual who is able to relate in a mature way with the world also knows how to have relationships and to produce creative visions staying in touch with one's self: the place where the wisdom of the organism can be found, its vocation, its tension to develop its full potential.
2.14. Arieti’s ideas on creativity: between ordinary and extraordinary The psychoanalyst Silvano Arieti distinguishes between ordinary creativity, able to improve the life of the author making it more full and satisfying, and extraordinary creativity, the one that invents new paradigms and improves the lives of all contributing to progress. According to Arieti (1976), the individual capable of producing extraordinary creativity keeps a larger than average chance of access to images, to metaphor, to accentuated verbalization and other forms related to the primary process, which is unconscious or preconscious. Both the dreamer, both the schizophrenic and the creative individual share a facilitated access to the primary sphere, but while the schizophrenic is trapped in it and the dreamer loses his night suggestions when confronted with the logic of the day, the creative individual selects, adopts and adapts primary materials triggering logical thinking and integrated part belonging to the secondary process. The magic of creative synthesis, the tertiary process, asks a higher dose than the normal of receptive passivity: the one that allows to primary material to emerge suddenly; during meditation, contemplation, daydreaming, relaxation, taking drugs, 27
dreams, but also calls for a higher dose of intentional and aware activity to handle those materials properly. It is a magic that the creative person is the custodian, a secret that cannot reveal either to himself or to others. What is no longer a secret is the way his creative process takes place, how it reaches its conclusion, and what conditions facilitate its appearance (Rams, 1976).
2.15. Hillman’s ideas on creativity: soul, vocation, possession The theme of Jungian archetypes also belongs to the psychoanalyst James Hillman (1996), who mightily projects it in a wider therapeutic dimension: it is the archetypal psychology, the therapy of ideas and not of people. Hillman says that the images that have value of archetype, which are universal and necessary, they are based on myths. Coming into contact with the symbolic structures of myth, the soul can express its energy and recognize its vocation, beyond the social pressures and contingent circumstances. Only by honouring the myth that each one carries within itself, it is possible to reconstruct a balanced relationship with reality, to avoid pathological drifts, to grow in the world, to fulfil its own destiny. Creativity is not a special gift, but it is an immense energy whose origin is beyond the human psyche and that drives to take care of oneself through a specific link with the other. Creativity forces to devotion towards oneself in the becoming trough that connection, and brings with it a sense of helplessness and growing awareness of one's own power and at the same time it is more human and more powerful than its owner. Operating as coercion, force is always excessive. It's a possession that can take various forms. The recklessness of the rebel or of the insane: shadow, destruction, death. It is the success that rewards ambition and leaves the individual trapped in the myth he has created for himself. It is the great mother who welcomes and regenerates. It is the sensual feminine, imaginative and queer, sensitive to the aesthetic experience.
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3. Introduction to the exercises Games Theory and Psychodrama Now it's important to introduce and to frame how the function of the game can become a tool for developing the S-C factor during the introduction phase of a psychodrama, namely the warm-up. In fact, during this phase are often realised activities coming from the social animation, like theatre teaching techniques, autogenic training exercises. These techniques have the same capacity to mobilize totally a person, through the use of the own body, to reduce defences and cognitive control on the expression of emotions and deepest experiences. In this way is possible to reactivate the vertical flow, from deep toward external, and the horizontal one from itself and the others. Game has the specific characteristic to conduct the person in the self-dimension, also typical of psychodrama processes. within how being oneself can expressed authentically and free from the typical patterns of daily life, while keeping the awareness that it is not the real daily life, but a fiction, in which it is possible to use landmarks and rules, otherwise not allowed.
Definition of the game A peculiar element of Freudian psychodrama is the game, and more specifically the representation game. Given that in psychodrama there are different types of game, of which we can mention paidia and ludus, in the psychodrama of Lemoine is especially the mimicry (imitation and metamorphosis) that seems to be more and more operative. With the first term, Roger Caillois, in his book "Man, Play and Games", means the spontaneous play. It is free improvisation, like the child who creates roles in symbolic play through the imaginative capacity. While, for ludus is meant the game with rules, established actions and instructions to be applied to a defined context. Game is intended as a instrument of growth and development of the human being. It consists of antinomies “because the game is both joy and pain, enchantment and seduction, knowledge and ignorance, seriousness and cheerfulness, meet and clash, childish dolls and tragedy; and can also become responsibility and lightness as well as diligence and negligence. Game is a gift that feeds the curiosity and creativity, as well as a mania which discloses to the disease and madness. Game is both victory and defeat. For all above that the playful experience can be considered as a metaphor for existence.� (Di Chiara, 2012) 29
Structure of the game Caillois (1958) says that the game is something that produces nothing but himself and leaving no trace of itself, because it is consumed by its making. So, It's complex to find a specific document in the civilization history. Under the word Games are enclosed many activities, ranging from those for children like manipulating objects, run, jump, doing pirouettes, sport competitions, and other activities that sometimes are performed by adults, such as gambling or heavy jokes. To come to a definition we must try to identify the common features of the various activities. Game is: Free: a player cannot be forced; Separate: has limitations of space and time unsure: the performance and the result cannot be known in advance; unproductive: it does not create richness or assets, except a displacement of ownership within the circle of players; Governed: it responds to its own rules which suspending temporarily the ordinary laws; Artificial: the player is aware on the differences with normal life. According to these premises Caillois proposes a division of games into four categories, which are to be linked with paidia and ludus categories: Agon – Game is characterized by competition Alea – Game is characterized by case, luck, chance. We indulges ourselves in a kind of liabilities such as nursery rhymes to make the count, heads or tails, lotteries, dice game, etc. Mimicry – Game is characterized by seeking of simulation, fiction, like in the theater, in games with dolls, in masquerade, etc. Ilinx – Game is characterized by risk seeking, as in the thrill of swinging on a swing, turn on the carousel, ride roller coasters etc. In the Caillois opinion within each game category it's easy to individuate a passing from paidia to ludus. So in Agon it's possible to go from a sudden and fast ride among children to sport competitions. In Alea from nursery rhymes to make the count to
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lotteries. In Mimicry from children imitations to theater and in Ilinx from childhood whirling to acrobatics. So, it's useful to define what is meant for game in the common sense on one hand and in psychology, on the other.
Theories of game in the development of the person Enhancement of game activities exists within psycho-pedagogical studies and research for its socializing, cognitive, communicative and affective qualities, which highlight how the game meets the basic needs of human being. Through games children learn, know, communicates, establishes relationships, and explores processes actively emotions, feelings, conflicts. It is considered a game an action, or a set of actions, driven by an intrinsic motivation, that sometimes aim to satisfy a pleasure itself, without any productive result and without the intent to achieve any objective other than to fulfil this action. Freedom, creativity, unproductiveness, gratuity, comfortable and well-being make game a primary resource for learning, knowledge and relationships, through active relationships where child modify reality according to its inner needs, realizes its full potential and reveals himself to himself and to others. Game, a complex and multifaceted phenomenon, which substantially eludes definitions, has been a challenge of great interest to all human sciences and is still a subject of deep reflection within the pedagogical knowledge. Vygotsky (1972) says that game is the main incentive for the growth because allows to children to break the childhood barriers and to act taking more into account ideas instead of things. In symbolic games a child acts on the basis of meanings and, even though he still needs an object as intermediary for his imagination, what matters is not the property of the object, but the given meaning. While Piaget (1950; 1952; 1974) says that decentralization appears very late in the game, only with the game selection, Vygotsky assert the symbolic game is from the beginning a mixing of rules and imagination: doesn't distinguish between symbolic game and game rules, because the first contains always rules, and the second imaginary situations. Vygotsky believes that imagination is the transformation of accumulated impressions linked to the language, enriched from the beginning through social interaction. Imagination acting in the games is not a element which creates confusion between reality and fantasy, inner and external world, but the start of growth because it creates the areas of proximal development. While Piaget asserts that in the symbolic game there is no space for education, Vygotsky gives it a core educational value: in the game in fact, like in the area of proximal growth, it plays a fundamental role an expert partner, both adult or child. Interaction 31
with an adult or a more expert partner gives to the child what Bruner (1968) defines scaffolding, i.e. a supporting scaffold, which helps him in building a new cognitive structure. This structure has a regulatory function which consists of information on what the child has to do, for starting and completing an action and what should be the encouragements; scaffolding is offered to the child at early stage, and as a result it is gradually dismantled, then the child becomes able to perform the activity independently. Into practice, at a certain point, learning supported by social interaction with adults is internalized, it becomes part of the growth of each child. An example of activities where a child operates in his proximal growth area is precisely the symbolic game, in which he goes beyond his intellectual capacity, since the activity of the game itself, the material that is available and the presence of others is useful as support. Piaget has drew attention to the value of game in cognitive development but later empirical studies disproved its arguments. In fact, has emerged that in the game the child, stimulated by reality, tends to develop new mental creative structures, rather than repeating the old ones. The game is the time for learning more than to assimilate. Bruner says that the game is functional to the learning especially because allows the free testing of behaviours and problem solving, making easy in this way creativity and unusual correlations. Also, the game is considered useful for developing the sociality. Empirical researches assert that especially the game fictions facilitate social relations, because are prepared for the roles to be played, making participants more flexible and more tolerant towards others. Cultural anthropology sees childish game as a moment in which new generations are socialized to the values of rules and ways of life of the referring culture. In a well-known work on the cockfight in Bali, C. Geertz (1973) shows when the content of a game is against the cultural structures. The Balinese people have horror of the animalistic aspects of life. In cockfighting, the bloodthirsty and cruel show reinforces the values of the culture by contrast, showing the abyss from which is better to stay away. In ethology they think that the game is an opportunity to exercise in preparation for real life. The animals who play are those that are more flexible in adapting to the environment. For example, the Galapagos woodpecker when full plays to pull out from the cracks of the bark tree the preys without eating them. Kept in a cage, he hiding worms inside cracks and then he take them back with a pointed stick. Anyway, this woodpecker, when he is hungry acquires food in the same way. So, the game is a preparatory exercise for hunting. 32
Theories of game in psychoanalysis From the psychodynamic point of view, instead, is very important the psychoanalytic perspective that explored the emotional dimension of the game. In this perspective, the game is considered as both analyzer of affections, emotions, conflicts through which the child builds his own identity, and as an engine for development as it encourages the development of skills for the management of emotions. Central is the symbolism interwoven into impulses and representations: the game is the theatre of desires, but also re-release of experiences not fully developed and mastered. This aspect is covered by Freud (1920) in the famous episode of his nephew Ernst and the game of the spool with which the child processes and controls the separation anxiety from his mother. In the play frustrating actions, or perceived as threatening, the real situation suffered becomes playful representation acted in person. Through the game the child is active, processes the experience. The symbolic quality of the game was highlighted in particular by Melanie Klein (1929), who used it as a tool of expression for young patients with functions similar to the free association of the adult. The game in this perspective is the vehicle of unconscious feelings, but it is also an instrument of mediation with reality, of freedom from conflicting tensions for its ability to develop creative experience. Not always the game has this positive value: in certain conditions is obsessive repetition, is stereo, but where mental health and stimulating environment/reassuring meet, the game allows the interest and curiosity for the outside world with regard to the wishes, fears and fantasies of children. The drive towards the game is given by an oscillation between fear and reassurance that has been deepened by the psychoanalyst also infantile D. Winnicott (1971), according to which the playful attitude is the prototype of the creative experience and is the basis of the sense of identity. The shared experience of the game is the basis for the development of creative ability in which the child finds the self through the discovery of the other, the mother. The good enough mother meets the wishes of the small right in the moment when he is "hallucinating" the breast, helping to establish a sense of omnipotence which strengthens the infantile ego and then allows the child to discover his mother as a separate object. The space where happen this process of gradual "acquisition" of reality is an area of experience that Winnicott calls “area of illusion” or “transitional area”, which is essentially “the area of the game”. When the child reaches this space, accept the separation from the mother, and often in an attempt to draw the anguish of
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separation, uses "objects-bridge", objects that serve to tie the experience of the self to the previous experience of total dependence on the mother, the “transitional objects”. The transitional object is an internal object, represents the womb. The formation of the transitional object is only possible if the internal object has been introjected as an object, not too present, but not too weak. Through it the child shows his first interest in the outside world: it has something that is different from itself, that is out, but that does not belong exclusively to external reality, which allows him to be an individual separate from the mother, and not to suffer the terror of separation. Winnicott introduces a significant similarity between the transitional object and the area of the game. The sense of identity is built so within a framework playful metaphor of the original one between mother and child, which then is used to treat a Self-upset or sick. With Winnicott, indeed, the therapy becomes play setting and healing is re-appropriation of the playful dimension of experience. The game is a medium of conjunction, it works as a link between two worlds and opens the way to the process of symbolization. Each game has links with the past, is something special, in which there is a sharing of elements old and familiar with other new and unknown. In this sense, the game is like a transitional object, which connects two opposing worlds, that of the “inside” and that form the “outside”.
Criticism to the theories of game as an exercise for learning The conceptions of the year were criticized at the root, because they start form the assumption that they are the primary “serious” activities of life and then justify the game ahead of them. Dutch historian Johan Huizinga (1939) sets out clearly the limits of the theories of the exercise “They try to define the meaning of the game with explanations that have in common the assumption that the game takes place in function of something else, that serve to a certain biological scope”. Starting from a different point of view, EH Erikson (1977), captures the explanations of the game as an exercise, have the flavour of rationalizations before something that escapes the usual schemes “For the adult who works the game is recreation.” As says Erikson's theories exercise would argue that children's play is a job unaware disguised as play. A defect of the theories of the exercise is that place too much emphasis on the positive character of the game. The existence of the bad game is forgot, bad game that has no educational value but has downsides, of profligacy, vice, moral corruption, cruelty, aggression, destructiveness. 34
Theories of game as it is The first to develop a conception in which the game is not explained subordinating it to something else, but for what it is, was Johan Huizinga (1939), for who the playful spirit is a fundamental trait of man; We play because play is important as to survive and be productive. Huizinga, however, goes further and puts the game in the centre of civilization. When men give birth to civilization they actually play, because you can only in the game the creativity required is possible, so behind art, science, religion, philosophy, the law we find the playful spirit. Huizinga was thinking about an historical dialectic between creative moments of the game and moments of crystallization and institutional stabilization. Without this constant dialectic, civilizations decay and degenerate. His dialectical view of history is opposed to the evolutionary one, because it excludes the idea that our civilization represents an advanced consolidated stage and introduces the disturbing viewpoint according to whom we would always be in balance between civilization and barbarism. It’s just losing the balance between tradition and innovation, spirit serious and playful spirit that once we slip into barbarism. Huizinga's thesis were taken from the French essayist Roger Caillois (1958), exhibited at the beginning of the paragraph.
3.1. Classification of game Evolutionary taxonomy The best known classifications of the game are inspired by the theories of the exercise. Some fun activities would belong to the early stages of evolution and others to the more advanced stages because the first help to learn the basic skills, while others can be implemented only when a certain level of maturity is reached. We are speaking about taxonomies because they claim to find correspondence in reality and be systematization of the transformations that the gaming experience suffers with the development. The most famous evolutionary taxonomy is the Piaget’s (1974) who distinguished between motor-sense games or exercise, symbolic games and games with rules. In the first ones, characteristic of the motor-sense period (0-2 years old) the child manipulates the world around him, without working with mental representations of reality. The symbolic game comes with the pre-operative period (2-6 yeas old) and is a witness that the child now has internal representations of the outside world. Now he uses symbols instead of real things. 35
For Piaget, the evolution of the games follows the development of intelligence from birth onwards and the gradual overcoming of the childish individualism, which gives way to socialize. Many of the things supported by Piaget, in the light of subsequent empirical research, reveals themselves erroneous. For example, it is not true that in the first two years of life the is a lack of mental representations and the baby establishes with reality a motor-sense contact. It's also wrong the conviction related to the childish individualism, because it seems that children are socially early-oriented and that their first group games are socio-centric, rather than self-centered. Rubin, Fein and Vandenberg (1983) distinguish seven types of games that appear in succession in the development: The game motor-sense. From an initial period of non-differentiation between the self and non-self, in which each child's activity is focused on his own body and his own actions, we come to the issue of repeated signals, and thus the development of communicative exchanges. The child that is about 12 months tries to understand what objects are and start to use them as something different form the self: it emerges a space between the self and the object. Pretend play. The child is aware of his “pretend” so he will use the “fake” objects, such as a glass – toy for drinking, or a comb – toy to comb. The toys are used for their real purpose, the shares are still oriented towards the self, but now is present the simulation, the “pretend”. The processing with objects. Between 15 and 21 months, the recipient of the “pretend” is the other, for example girls serve coffee with cup – Toy to Mom or to doll etc. Objects are still used respecting their real function, but now the child is oriented towards the sharing of “pretend”. Other games of make-believe. Between 2 and 3 years old children use objects that represent different things from what they are: a chair can become a horse, a bottle can be used as a sword etc., It was born in this period the symbolic function and symbolic play. The event of the representation is extremely important on the affective level, since the object (the other) now becomes increasingly elicited during separations, then always present. The child may resort to mental representation of the mother when she is away from her, he is not absolutely fixed on physical presence.
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The sociodramatic game. This game appears around 4-5 year-old, children interpret roles, playing mom and dad, cowboys and Indians. The awareness of the roles. Near the age of 6, children can describe and define the roles they are playing, plan the game for time and assign roles to the participants. Clearly, they developed a greater awareness and intentionality that reflects the emotional and cognitive development. The games with the rules appear generally between 6 and 11 years. Initially the children will create specific rules for themselves, then use the rules defined by the group.
Caillois’ typology Caillois (1958) identifies a series of traits that can serve as a framework for different types of play, in his opinion, there are four basic categories: the competition, the fate, the fiction and the vertigo. Each game can be placed in relation to these four parameters. Many games are based on their ability to association. We can therefore find: Competition - Case (Agon - Alea) Competition - Imitation (Agon - Mimicry) Competition - Vertigo (Agon - Ilinx) Case - Imitation (Alea - Mimicry) Case - Vertigo (Alea - Ilinx) Imitation - Vertigo (Mimicry - Ilinx) The combinations Agon-Alea and Mimicry-Ilinx are for Caillois fundamental to define a sociological theory itself, tracing a political and social evolution of society. We have two essential pairs: Mimicry-Ilinx for primitive societies; Agon-Alea for modern societies. The first societies were governed and ruled by shamans, the masks, and the time of the collective meeting was the party, understood not in the current sense, but in the ritual practices in which the archaic society believed. It evoked the gods and the fears of everyone. The chieftain wore brutal and scary masks, and truly entered into the character. Both the masked that the public truly believed in the event of the incarnation of the chieftain in the of monster-God. All thanks to the complicity of hallucinogenic substances that help effectively lend the illusion that scary. As the world is adjusted, takes over democracy (in ancient Greece in particular), and with the rise of science, numbers and hereditary careers, the advent of merit and chance get determined. Caillois track a political analysis that explains so brilliant that every society, even the 37
most democratic, always oscillate between Alea and Agon. Both the personal merit and the case of the birth will always have their weight.
Descriptive categories such as theories of game At present time there are no definitive and certain theories about the nature of the game, it should therefore be careful in using the classifications. Maybe the best thing is to remain at a descriptive level. We can also use the concepts and terms introduced by Piaget, Caillois and others, as long as you consider them as descriptive categories to design the common forms of the game. So you can define the motor-sense game to mean the way children manipulate reality provided that you do not make up just for this motor-sense period of Piaget, at his staging of the development and its conception of the game as an exercise.
WARM UP After giving an overview of the main theoretical and methodological concepts underlying the stage warm-up in psychodrama, is easier to understand what is its function. The warm-up is defined as the time in which we can bring out the factor S-C, necessary to ensure that the psychodramatic experience is truly authentic and bearer of growth and prosperity. The functions of the game warm-up in the field of psychodrama are manifold. One of these is the transformative function, in the sense that participants have the opportunity to develop expertise in a new way than in the past. Through the game you produce a visible and concrete action that brings memories, without whose memory, the game would not be possible, but in this action there is the emergence of a new horizon, there is the discovery of parts of the self not proven yet. It’s in the discovery of parts of themselves that the game is defined as creative. The game allows you to communicate fluidly and freely a succession of ideas, thoughts, impulses that seem disconnected if interpreted with logical-deductive categories. This "creative act" is therefore possible in a secure environment, in which people trust each other. The game becomes a tool of communication, it becomes a bridge to create a climate of sharing in the group.
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It's important to convey to the group the importance of this step. In fact, there is a risk that if the participants are not aware of the function of the games of warming up, or they don’t understand the meaning and see them as unnecessary time-wasting activities in respect to the “important” ones. This is necessary because the setting is very different from the psychodrama training contexts in which people are accustomed. The classroom is completely unstructured. There are tables, to chairs are preferred carpets and pillows, you are in a circle and often you moves in space to perform the exercises. The handler uses a relational informal, open, welcoming and non-judgmental style. Some people might be destabilized by such a situation and experience anxiety and frustration that don’t help in having a good climate. It is therefore necessary, that the conductor takes a few minutes to explain the meaning of what will be introduced. This especially in the first meeting, when then there will be subsequent meetings, this will not be necessary. The warm-up will become instead a ritual that helps participants tune with each other to find the climate that facilitates the drivers of the psychodrama, the tele-activated factor S-C. The exercises that occur are only some that can be used and it is important that the trainer carefully choose which one is more appropriate to use is a function of the characteristics of the group, such as age, cultural background, the number of participants, sex, etc... both the objective of the course and/or the individual meeting, and the development of the group, initial, in deep knowledge, confrontational, final, etc... in addition, the trainer may decide to change and adapt creatively. But often it can access the same dynamic of the group to transform the game, making it always new and different from himself. Can be used as warm-up activities even many of the activities presented earlier, it is important for this reason that the handler/trainer insert and contextualizes the game in the perspective of the whole meeting, so that it is aimed to the emergence of those aspects that you want then treat in the central part of the session.
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When participants meet for the first time, it may be helpful to use an activity that allows everyone to introduce themselves and exchange personal/professional information. One could help to make the participants talk to each other and exchange personal information, another might help to listen and memorize the names of others, and another could be used during a break.
SOCIOMETRY The sociometrie in action can be useful activities of warm up. You can ask the participants to stand for example according to the alphabetical order: according to the proper name, or depending on the date of birth. Then to stand more or less distant from the center of the room, which represents the place where you are now, according to the place of birth or to the current residence.
BLOCKED
Participants are stranded on an island. What are the five things that everyone would bring with himself. After a first individual stage, we ask the group to choose only five things for the whole group. If the group is very large, you can introduce an intermediate stage with sub-groups of 4-5 people.
A LIE AND TWO TRUTHS
Each participant is asked to say three things about himself, one of which must be a lie. The group must work together and guess which is the false one.
IF I WERE AN ANIMAL I WOULD BE‌
We ask the participants to present themselves saying what animal they would be and explaining why. Is possible to make several variants, for example, which city in the world they would be, or which piece of furniture, which plant, etc.
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I LOOK LIKE YOU
Participants receive a sheet with a circle divided into six quadrants, in each quadrant is written a feature, for example, eye colour, hair colour, favourite food, sport practiced, etc... each participant writes his answers in the quadrant and apply the sheet on the chest, then he/she moves around the room and looks for others with the same characteristics, when he/she finds them continue to go around in pairs, then in trio and so on, until you create a chain of all the group, made according to similar features.
THE CARDS OF CHINESE EMPERORS
Each participant was given a Chinese paper, and without looking at it they had to hold the paper with a hand on their head, so that the paper was seen by others but not by the owner. With the paper on the head the group members had to interact in consideration of the paper level, and, depending on the modality of interaction of colleagues, each one would have to understand the degree of the paper he had on his head. Before that participants can see their card, they are asked to divide themselves into three groups: high-grade paper, paper of medium grade, low-grade paper; and according to what they choose a group rather than another, and then verify the correspondence of their own perceptions with the paper held. The exercise of the Chinese cards allows to reflect and raise awareness with respect to how you live the role, hierarchy, processes of labelling, possible stereotypes. The different groups of interest have agreed that would be interesting to apply it to the conduct of a task, even simple (eg. prepare the coffee break), in which the orientation of the aim, to the success and taking of roles can amplify and accentuate the dynamics experienced.
THE INTERVIEW
Participants are asked to write on a paper three questions they would like to ask to others to know them better. 41
You put the questions in a box, then one by one each participant extracts the questions and answers. A variant may be to separate the participants into pairs and make them answer before and just later in plenary.
PRESENTATION AND ALLITERATION
We ask members of the group to stand up in the shape of a circle. The conductor begins presenting himself through a feature that starts with the same letter of its name, for example, "Yan the Young," or "The Beautiful Betty", "Henry hardworking." In addition to the adjective each participant must associate a gesture. Everyone says his name and feature and makes the gesture, just after, in chorus the whole group repeats the name, feature and gesture.
BALL
With a ball each participant presents himself saying his name and a positive and a negative characteristic of himself, then passes the ball to another, that before present himself as well, has to repeat what the person that has thrown the ball to him said. The ploy helps to concentrate and stay alert, because you can’t know when the ball will be launched to you.
GARBLE THE NAMES WITH THE TANGLE
We use a ball of wool, which is launched as a ball, but each person holds a flap of the wire before launch it, so that at the end a grid of wires is created. In launching you can use the same question used in the game of the ball. Finally the group is asked about how they will rewind the ball. The best way is to let them do the reverse path. Then each persona is asked, while throwing the ball to the person who has thrown it to him before, to say something, such as a feature, an appreciation about the other.
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NAME AND NUMBER
While people enter the place where the meeting will take place, they write their names on cards and write a number on the other side of the same. Everybody has the name on his shirt (use transparent tape, for example) and must present themselves to the greatest number of people is possible. After some time, when participants could socialize a bit, ask to everyone to turn the card on the opposite side so that only the number is visible to others and not the name. Now give all participants a sheet of paper, and ask everyone to write the names of the other participants beside the corresponding number of each.
PAT ON THE BACK
Ask everyone to trace the outline of their hand on a sheet of paper, and then fix it on the back of each one using tape. You let the group spend a bit of time to socialize and ask them to write on the back of each every positive things this person said.
I NEVER
Everyone must have some candy in the hand. People arranged in a circle begin to respond, one at a time, to the question: “I never...�. Who is liable to have done what the person asking the question has never done, will give to that person one of his candy. This is a funny way to learn about others things that maybe you would not ever know.
ME TOO
This activity works best with small groups or larger groups that are divided into smaller sub-groups consisting of 4-6 persons.
Everybody receive 10 coins/toothpicks/sheets of paper, etc. The first person says one thing he did (for example, "water skiing"). All those who have done the same thing have to admit it and should put a coin in the middle of the table. 43
Then the second person says something else (for example, "I have already eaten ostrich meat"). All those who have already eaten it have to put a coin in the middle. Continue until one of the participants ends the coins.
COMMON FIELD
Even this activity works best for small groups and for small groups seated together creating a team (4-6 persons). Give the group a specific time available (for example, 5 minutes) to write all they have in common. Inform groups to avoid the obvious (such as "we all like to be part of this course"). When the time is finished, ask each group how many things in common they have been able to find. As fun, ask the groups to read aloud the more interesting.
CRISTAL BALL
In this game each, instead of asking another something, focuses on another member and shares what he imagines: “I imagine that you live alone with two children” ... “I imagine that you're a school teacher, and very strict with the students” ... “I think you're very kind to your family” ... “I think when you were little you were very naughty” ... “I think you read a lot”... Then everyone responds by saying if the things imagined are actually true or not.
MY SELFPORTRAIT WITH A SYMBOL
In this case, we ask the group to make a presentation through a drawing of themselves. The instruction can be to use a symbol, for example: draw the tree that represent you better, or draw the animal, or object, etc...
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MY SELFPORTRAIT WITH A COLLAGE
A variant of the previous game may be to provide the group a series of images taken from magazines. So ask the group to make a collage that represents or representing a characteristic of themselves.
TEAM BUILDING
BLIND NUMERICAL ORDER
In this game you can’t speak, eyes must always be blindfolded, a number will be whispered in the ear of each participant. The goal for the group is to arrange themselves in numerical order without being able to speak or see. Blindfold the eyes of all the participants. You whisper a number in the ear of each of them (make sure that the other participants do not hear the number). The numbers should be chosen randomly (not just 1-12, etc.). After whispering the number to all the participants, take them in a place. As soon as all participants have received your number they will start. Make sure that no one gets hurt during this exercise.
COUNTING IN A CIRCLE
The willing participants standing in a circle with their eyes closed, have to count in a progressive way, saying each of them a number only once. You can’t say the number more than one time. If that happens you have to start again.
ALL TIED UP
Needed materials: handkerchiefs or strips of cloth, more if needed. Time Required: 15-30 minutes, depending on the objectives and the number of participants. The aim is to work as a team to achieve the common goal. You participants are standing in a circle looking inward. Ask the group to get their hands on. Tie the members of the group to each other, so that each participant is tied to the wrists 45
of the neighbour. Now that they are "all connected", you give them a job to do together. Such as: make gift packs using wrapping paper, bows and note, eat lunch, make a drawing, etc.
THE BICYCLE
Draw a bicycle on a billboard. Ask each participant to arrange themselves on a piece of the bicycle and to explain why they have chosen that place. You can use other objects, such as a car, a tree, etc.
HUMAN MACHINES
Ask a group of 6 or 8 people to create a machine using other people, trying to mimic the appearance and operation of a machine. In other cases, you may ask to imitate a blender, a toaster, a lawn mower, a photocopier, a lamp or a washing machine, a ship, etc.
WHISPER THE PHRASE
You create two teams and the conductor make the first competitor of each group to read a sentence, sentence that must then be whispered in the ear of the close companion, and so on until the last competitor of each team, which must then come to pronounce it in front of the public. When the handler will read to the public the initial phrase, there will be funny differences. This continues with other sentences and wins the team that distorts less sentences.
DRAW OF THE BACK
A variant of the previous game consists in let the two teams arrange themselves in a row, so that everyone has his back in front of the companion. The first of the row must draw a word on the back of the persona ahead. The aim of the game is to make the word arrive correctly at the bottom of the row. 46
RAIN
Ask everyone to stand in a circle, shoulder to shoulder. It is not allowed to speak. The conductor starts the exercise and each person joins when they hear the sound that the person at his side is doing. The handler begins the exercise starting to rub his palms together. The exercise is repeated in a circle until it comes back to the conductor that, at this point, changes the sound (for example, by cracking his fingers, clapping, clapping his hands on his thighs, stamping his feet, and then in reverse order). The sound that is created is similar to the sound of a downpour.
CONSENSUS
This game is divided into several stages. Divide participants into groups of 3 or 4 people, depending on the total number of participants. 2. Ask each group to congregate close to each other and produce sounds and to make the movements for the other groups. 3. After each group has performed twice its demonstration of sound and action for the other groups, the moderator will give 10 seconds to each other group to regroup. 4. The objective is to ensure that all groups produce sounds and make movements simultaneously, and without consult each other. 5. After the group has gathered the moderator will count till three, and all groups will have to produce sounds and do the movements at the same time. (It is not necessary that the sounds/gestures are the same as those originally chosen by the group). 6. Continue to group the groups until all groups are in tune and produce the same sounds and do the same movements. Variations: If for some reason the groups can make it at the second or third attempt, divide the participants into smaller groups, and then repeat the exercise.
PHRASE AND BALL
Participants are asked to form a circle, and are said that soon they will be able to improve their communication skills to improvise a speech. Participants at this point will have to pull the stress ball from one to another, saying at the same time a simple descriptive phrase: (“the quiet lake, the young girl, the beautiful skyline of the city, a huge grizzly bear, the stress ball, etc.�). Tell them that since there are no rules, you 47
can’t go wrong by saying a wrong sentence! Tell the group begin to pull the ball from one to another until all the participants start to feel comfortable improvising a sentence (it usually takes less than 5 minutes). When you think that the group has achieved this level of communication, expects someone throws the ball to the conductor which ends the game holding the ball. Draws now the game but must respect a rule, the phrase must follow a logical continuing when stated in the previous sentence. That is, if a person says a sentence and then passes the ball to another, the person receiving the ball will have to say a phrase that refers to the preceding sentence. Start the conductor with a couple of steps. The fabricated story begins the conductor saying the phase "Once upon a time" then asks the participants to say each a word without thinking about what to say, gradually conductor writes the words that come out, in the end it will be created a fabricated story in a collective way.
THE POSTMAN
Participants are asked to write something that has never said to another member of the group, then put the messages enclosed in an envelope. The conductor that is the postman, brings messages to recipients who read what was written. You can leave free the participants to sign messages, or not, in order to give more freedom to say things.
THE WEATHER MOOD
On the three sides of the classroom are posted three different signs, which refer to the state of mind associated to weather conditions: clear, cloudy, rain. Participants are placed and then express a brief judgment on their mood and possible motives.
MASAGGES
Participants are invited to start the activity with physical contact, rubbing each other, and heating the interest and curiosity for the next activity.
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RELAXATION AND GUIDED FANTASIES
Invites participants to lie down or sit in a comfortable position and to close their eyes. You drive the breathing in a relaxed rhythm and guide the awareness on the body and on the state of tension in the limbs. You can also introduce a guided fantasy that can lead participants to contact an aspect of their history, such as the memory of the first day of school, or when you learned to ride a bike. This according to the subject or target group.
THE KNOT OF HANDS
You have the group in a circle near shoulder to shoulder. Ask them to close their eyes and put all the right hand forward higher and the left hand always forward, but lower. Make them to take a few steps forward until the participants don’t touch each other hands. Make sure that each right hand take another right hand, and the same for the left. The conductor helps make that happen. At this point make them open the eyes and the group must dissolve the tangle of hands without ever leave them.
IMAGINARY BALL
Arranged in a circle, the conductor pretends to hold a ball that goes to the person who is at his right side through the gesture of clap the hands in the direction of the person who is at the right side and everyone continues, then introduces the double clap to change around. When the group is accustomed to the game introduces another change: the launch to the opposite side through a snap. You can introduce several variations, depending on the group's ability to play the game.
BOSS MAKES US CHANGE
The conductor asks a participant to go out, the rest of the group chooses who is the conductor of the game and make enter the person who has to guess. The “boss” 49
chooses a gesture that everyone else should do while the group repeats it rhythmically saying the rhyme “head let us change, let us change the head, if you do not let us change we will change the head...”. The “boss” must introduce new gestures undetected and if he wants can pass the lead of the game to another, winking at someone who now become the chief and must introduce a new gesture. It goes on until is guessed who the boss is.
THE PET
Standing in a circle. The conductor is holding a stuffed animal, caressing it. He tells the group that this is the new mascot and that everyone will have to make a gesture of any kind to welcome it. Everyone will do something different, you can choose freely. For example, I give it a kiss on the cheek, give it a pat on the back, give it a kick, I give it a hug, etc... Once finished the tour, the conductor says that now everyone must do again what he did to the mascot, to the seatmate.
ACTIVITIES TO DO ON THE MOVE
WALKING IN THE ROOM
The conductor asks participants to walk freely in the room, gradually asks to do different gaits, slower or faster, asks to imitate the pace of animals or people. Then he asks to seek the gaze of others whenever someone else is met. Asks you to make an expression of greeting, such as a smile, then asks to introduce a gesture, then a word such as "hello". The variants may be different depending on the time available and the purpose that you want to achieve. This type of game is the introductory for example to the sociometries in action.
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KITTY KAT
Divide the group into pairs and make them stand arm in arm in the space. With the exception of two which are unrelated to the others, one is the "cat" and the other is the "kitty". The cat has to chase the kitty and takes it making a roar both with his voice and with the gesture. The kitten saves himself by attaching to one of the two couples who are still. The member of the couple that stays outside must release and becomes the kitten until it’s hit by the roar of the big cat or until it attaches to another couple.
THE BRIDGE OF CHAIRS
Divide the group into two and give an equal number of seats to the number of each team. The chairs are arranged in a horizontal line to the wall of the room. The participants will have to get to the other side of the room walking on the chairs, no one can touch the ground, neither you can go back. Each team must therefore find their own strategy and ensure that the chairs become a bridge.
FULL SACK EMPTY SACK
The conductor makes the participants take place in any order in the room. He makes them turn all in his direction: the game is to do exactly what he sets out loud. The key phrases are: super full sack, full sack, half sack, empty sack, super empty sack. Participants must think of be the sacks and then visually represent what was stated by the conductor. The postures that need to be taken are: super full sack: standing with arms raised; full sack: standing with arms along the body half sack means: standing folded with one hand touching the ground; Empty sack: on his knees with both hands touching the ground; super empty sak: completely lying on the ground.
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THE GAME OF CHAIRS
Put many chairs in the middle of the playing field. The number of participants must be greater than the number of chairs. The music starts and everybody dance or run around the chairs without touching them, until, once the music stopped, everyone try to sit. Players redundancies are eliminated, then the game starts again removing a chair and eliminating a competitor at a time. Wins the last one left.
NAPOLEON
Put many chairs in the middle of the playing field. The number of participants must be greater than the number of chairs. The music starts and everybody dance or run around the chairs without touching them, until, once the music stopped, everyone try to sit. Players redundancies are eliminated, then the game starts again removing a chair and eliminating a competitor at a time. Wins the last one left.
MIXER AND TOASTER
In this game the participants stand in a circle and one is at the centre. Who is at the centre must “call� some animated statues which are represented by members of the group that gradually are indicated by one in the middle. The aim is to facilitate the mistakes in interpreting the figure. Who has to go wrong should go in the middle. The statues are called: Blender: represented by a person who is still at the centre with the arms raised and the hands closed with the index finger pointing towards the head of the two people to the sides, which must turn in on themselves; toaster: played by three people, who is at the centre bounces, interpreting the slice of bread that comes from the mouth of the toaster, and people to the sides are given hands, personifying the mouth; Elephant: three people, who is at the centre holding the nose with one hand and another arm forward, symbolizing the trunk, the two people to the sides open their arms on the side of the person at the centre, symbolizing the ears;
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Palm: three people, the person at the centre raises his arms open and stretched, the two people on either sides simulate the Hawaiian dance. You can introduce many other figures, according to the inventiveness of the conductor and the participants.
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. BibliograPHY 5.1. Bibliography in English Arieti S. (1976) Creativity: the Magic Synthesis. New York: Basic Books. Trad. it.: (1979) Creatività. La sintesi magica. Roma: Il Pensiero Scientifico. Baas, M., De Dreu, C. K. W., Nijstad B. A., (2008). A Meta-Analysis of 25 Years of Mood-Creativity Research: Hedonic Tone, Activation, or Regulatory Focus? Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 134, No. 6, 779-806 Bayam, G. Simsek, E, & Dilbaz N. (1999),Comparing empathic ability levels of three different vocation. Journal of Crises, 3 (1–2) pp. 182–184. Bruner J. S. 1968. Processes of Cognitive Growth: Infancy, It. tr.: Prime fasi dello sviluppo cognitivo, Roma, Armando, 1971. Buber, M., (1923), Ich und Du, Rutten & Loening, Frankfurt, It. tr. (1958) Il principio dialogico, Milano: Comunità. Caillois R.1958 Les Jeux et les Hommes Les Jeux et les hommes: le masque et le vertige (1958), Paris Gallimard trad.it. I giochi e gli uomini. La maschera e la vertigine, Milano: Bompiani, 1981. Collins, L. A., Kumar, V. K., Treadwell, T. W., & Leach, E. S. (1997). The Personal Attitude Scale: A scale to measure spontaneity, “International Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama and Sociometry”, 49, 147-156. David A. Kipper Haim Shemer, The Revised Spontaneity Assessment Inventory (SAI-R): Spontaneity, Well-Being, and Stress (2007) Dokmen,U.(1994). Okuma becerisi, ilgisi ve aliskanligi iizerine psiko-sosyal bir arastirma [A psycho-social research on reading skill, interest, and habit]. Istanbul: MEB Publications Eco, U., (2004, Combinatoria della creatività, conference held in Florence for the Nobel Foundation, on September 15, 2004, retrieved on line 14/10/2014. Einstein, A. (1975), Come io vedo il mondo, N.C. Roma, Secaucus, The Citadel Press, New Jersey. Erikson, E. H. (1977). Toys and reasons: stages in the ritualization of experience; W. W. Norton & Company. Tr. It. (1981) I giocattoli del bambino e le ragioni dell'adulto, Roma: Armando. Freud S., (1920). Al di là del principio di piacere, in Opere di Sigmund Freud (OSF) vol. 9. L'Io e l'Es e altri scritti 1917-1923, Torino, Bollati Boringhieri, 1986. Friedman, P. H. (1994). Friedman Well Being Scale and professional manual. Redwood Fromm, E. (1941). The Fear of Freedom; It. tr.: Fuga dalla libertà, Mondadori 1987. 55
Geertz C. (1973) The Interpretation of Cultures. Basic Books. Interpretazione di culture, Bologna: Il Mulino, 1987. Guilford, J. P. (1950). Creativity. American Psychologist, 5, 444-454. Hillman J. (1996) The Soul’s Code. It. tr. (1997). Il codice dell’anima – carattere, vocazione, destino. Adelphi, Milano. Kellar, H., Treadwell, T. W., Kumar, V. K., & Leach, E. S. (2002). The Personal Attitude Scale-II: A revised measure of spontaneity. International Journal of ActionbMethods, psychodrama, and Role Playing, 55, 35-46. Kipper D. A., & Shemer H. (2007) The Revised Spontaneity Assessment Inventory (SAI-R): Spontaneity, Well-Being, and Stress 128 JGPPS-Fall 2006 128 JGPPSFall 2006 Heldref publications. Kipper, D. A., & Hundal, J. (2005). The Spontaneity Assessment Inventory (SAI and the relationship between spontaneity and nonspontaneity. Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama, and Sociometry, 58, 119-129. Klein M. (1929). Personification in the Play of Children, Int. J. Psychoanal., 10:193204. Liebmann, M. (2004). Art Therapy for Groups: A Handbook of Themes and Exercises. New York: taylor and francies Group Martinsen, Øyvind. The construct of cognitive styles and its implications for creativity. High Ability Studies 1997 ; Volume 8. p. 135-158 Maslow, A. H. (1970). Motivation and personality (2nd ed.). New York: Harper & Row. Moreno, J. L. (1923). Das stegreftheater (The theater of spontaneity). Postdam, Germany: Verlag. Moreno, J. L. (1944). Spontaneity test and spontaneity training. Psychodrama and Group Psychotherapy Monogram (whole No. 4). Beacon, NY: Beacon Press. Moreno, J. L. (1953). Who shall survive? Foundations of sociometry, group psychotherapy, and sociodrama. Beacon, NY: Beacon Press. Moreno, J. L. (1964). Psychodrama: Vol. I. Beacon, NY: Beacon Press. Moreno, J. L. (1964). Psychodrama: Vol. 1. Beacon, NY: Beacon. Ozcan N. K. Bilgin H, Eracar N. (2011). The Use of Expressive Methods for Developing Empathic Skills Issues Ment Health Nurs. 2011; 32(2):131-6 Piaget J. (1974). Jeu et réalitè , It. tr. Gioco e realtà, Roma: Armando, Piaget J. 1950, Introduction à l'épistémologie génétique. Tome I: La pensée mathématique, PUF, Paris. 56
Piaget J. 1950, Introduction à l'épistémologie génétique. Tome II: La pensée physique, PUF, Paris. Piaget J. 1950, Introduction à l'épistémologie génétique. Tome III: La pensée biologique, la pensée psychologique et la pensée sociale, PUF, Paris. Piaget J. 1952. Essai sur les transformations des opérations logiques: les 256 opérations ternaires de la logique bivalente des propositions, PUF, Paris, Plsek P. E. 1996 Working Paper: Models for the Creative Process Retrived online 20/10/2014 http://www.directedcreativity.com/pages/WPModels.html Posner, J., Russell, J. A., & Peterson, B. S., (2005). The circumplex model of affect: An integrative approach to affective neuroscience, cognitive development, and psychopathology. Development and Psychopathology,17, 715–73 Rubin k. H, Fein G. G, Vandenberg B. (1983), “Play”, in P. H. Mussen (ed.), Handbook
of
child
psychology,
voI.
4:
Socialization,
personality,
social
development, edited by E. M. Hetherington. Wiley, New York. Rubin, J. A. (1999) Art Therapy: An Introduction Psychology Press. Spielberger, C. D., Gorsuch, R. L., Lushen, R., Vagg, P. R. & Jacobs, G. A. (1983). State-Trait Anxiety Inventory for adults: Manual test and scoring key. Redwood City, CA: Mind Garden. Steitzel, L. D., & Hughey, A. R. (1994). Empowerment through spontaneity: A taste of psychodrama. San Jose, CA: Associates for Community Interaction Press. Sternberg, R. J. (1999). The theory of successful intelligence. Review of General Psychology, 3, 292-316. Sternberg, R. J., & Grigorenko, E. L. (2000). Teaching for successful intelligence. Arlington Heights, IL: Skylight Sternberg, R. J., Forsythe, G. B., Hedlund, J., Horvath, J., Snook, S., Williams, W. M., Wagner, R. K., & Grigorenko, E. L. (2000). Practical intelligence in everyday life. New York: Cambridge University Press. Torrance, E. P. (1980). Growing Up Creatively Gifted: The 22-Year Longitudinal Study. The Creative Child and Adult Quarterly, 3, 148-158. Torrance, E. P. (1981a). Predicting the creativity of elementary school children (1958 80) and the teacher who “made a difference”. Gifted Child Quarterly, 25, 5562. Torrance, E. P. (1981b). Empirical validation of criterionreferenced indicators of creative ability through a longitudinal study. Creative Child and Adult Quarterly, 6, 136-140. Winnicott, D. W. (1971). Playing and Reality. London: Tavistock, It. tr. Gioco e realtà, Roma: Armando, 1974. 57
5.2. Bibliography in Italian Boria G., 1997, Lo psicodramma classico, Milano, Franco Angeli. Caillois,
R.
(1958),
I
giochi
e
gli
uomini:
la
maschera
e
la
vertigine,http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gioco - cite_ref-6;R. Caillois, I giochi e gli uomini, Bompiani, Di Chiara A. (2012), Paidia – cenni per una filosofia dell’esistenza come gioco. Il Ramo editore. Huizinga J. (1939) Homo Ludens, It. tr. (1964), Homo ludens. Milano: Il Saggiatore. Jung C.G.( 1994). La psiche infantile. 1909-61 (1909-61), Torino: Bollati Boringhieri. Lemoine G. (1980) Il Gioco: giocare-godere, in Jouer – Jouir, Atti dello Psicodramma, Anno quinto, n°1-2, Ubaldini editore, Roma, Rosati, O. (2012). Interpretazione nel gioco e interpretazione del gioco in psicodramma.
http://www.rivistapsicologianalitica.it/v2/pdf2/38-1988-
discorso_inconscio/38-88-cap12_interpretazione.pdf
Seneca, L. A. (50) De tranquillitate animi, Caput XVII, retrieved on line 14/10/2014 http://www.senecana.it/pdf/de_tranquillitate_animi.pdf Vygotsky L. S. 1972 Immaginazione e creatività nell'età infantile, Roma, Editori Riuniti, 1990
5.3. Further information – Web links: http://www.stateofmind.it/2012/02/creativita-emozioni/ http://www.cre8ng.com/ http://www.fastcocreate.com/ http://www.copyblogger.com/ http://nuovoeutile.it/intelligenza-e-creativita-non-proprio-la-stessa-cosa/
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The Power of the Group Psychodrama as a tool in Education Training materials - Module 3 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
1
INDEX
1.
2.
3.
Module Description ..................................................................................... 3 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 3
1.2.
Learning Outcomes .............................................................................. 3
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and the workshop ................................... 4
Introduction to Theory ................................................................................. 5 2.1.
Historical detection of the scientific study of Group .............................. 6
2.2.
Defining Groups ................................................................................... 8
2.3.
Describing Groups ............................................................................... 9
2.4.
Group Dynamic .................................................................................. 14
2.5.
Groups & Group Dynamic in Psychodrama ........................................ 21
2.6.
The value of Groups & Group Dynamics in Education ........................ 23
Introduction to Exercises ........................................................................... 25 3.1.
Considerations & Risks in applying the exercises for the Educator .... 27
3.2.
Exercises ........................................................................................... 30
WARM UP ....................................................................................................... 31 COUNT UNTIL 20 ................................................................................ 32 CHANGE OF POSITION ...................................................................... 32 ACTION........................................................................................................... 33 WHO WILL TRANSFER ME ACROSS? ............................................... 34 GROUP-BODY .................................................................................... 36 LIKE A MOVIE ..................................................................................... 37 STORY MAKING.................................................................................. 38 CLOSURE: SHARING & PROCESSING ......................................................... 39 JUST A WORD .................................................................................... 39 WANDER AND FOCUS ....................................................................... 40 GROUP SCULPTURE ......................................................................... 41 MY ROUTE IN THE GROUP ............................................................... 41 4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 43
5.
Bibliography .............................................................................................. 44 5.1.
References in English ........................................................................ 44
5.2.
References in Greek .......................................................................... 44
2
1. Module Description The Power of the Group is the third module of the course Psychodrama as a Tool in Education. As with all the modules that compose this course, it may be studied independently. However, it is recommended the information presented here to be unified with the other modules, in order to have a more spherical and integrated knowledge of the project. It is aimed at all teachers of adult, vocational or life-long training who are interested in learning about the group process and group dynamic, from the psychodramatic perspective, and its application in the classroom. This task may be applied to diverse groups of students and may contribute to the development of a more spontaneous and creative environment in class, with straight forward communication, cooperation and empathy among all students and the teacher, which will lead to more functional relationships and to more productive learning procedures.
1.1. Aims To give to the VET adult educator a better insight of what a group is and which are its main characteristics, in its relevance for education. To have a clearer view of the obvious and underlying processes and dynamics that form and affect the group and so, the class. To present and practically illustrate sample exercises and interventions that show/ reveal how the group functions and how they can be applied in workshop environment. To develop their abilities in order to manage in a more functional way the various situations which emerge in personal and group level and contribute to the personal development of the trainees. To achieve a collective work derived from a personal work and to discuss on how they may transfer this knowledge to their classes, in order to make the educational process more pleasant, fruitful and cooperative process.
1.2. Learning Outcomes On successful completion of the course module the learners are expected to: Explain the principles of group and group dynamic and their possible benefits from their implementation in VET. Identify the benefits of psychodrama in educational process, as being a group member.
3
List three exercises that refer to group work and how these can be applied in class. Propose and run a certain exercise which corresponds to a particular challenge in a group of adult learners.
1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The collection of materials in this manual is orientated towards helping the educator apply simple exercises that have to do with group dynamics in the classroom. Such a workshop will allow educators to gain a more in-depth understanding of how a group functions in Psychodramatic practice. Where possible, the workshop will last for eight hours and will run as a single-day session. If this is not possible, it will run over two, preferably consecutive, days. It is best if the group has at least eight members and no more than fourteen. This module is divided into two main sections; an introduction to theory and an introduction to practice. Further sections complete the information that educators will need in order to achieve the specified objectives. The introduction to theory comprises six sections through which the history of group and group dynamic is retraced. The definition of group and its special features, the meaning of group dynamics and the importance to recognise them when a group is developed, as well as the stages from which a group passes during its formation, constitute the main part of this chapter. The extra value of the psychodramatic philosophy and the usefulness of psychodrama in the educational process follow and complete the theoretical part. The introduction to exercises gives the theoretical background of the proposed exercises samples and their practical application. The categorization of these exercises has been done according to the aim served in each of the phases of the group. In addition, there is a section containing considerations and risks that the leader should bear in mind when applying these exercises and the responsibility that comes with their use. In the section dealing with evaluation, the instructor will be able to assess the impact that the exercise has in the classroom. The bibliography lists the books and articles that have provided the information used to prepare this module. They make up a very useful guide for anyone who would like to extend their knowledge and study about groups in Psychodrama in greater depth.
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2. Introduction to Theory The lone individual— the single man or woman who has no connection to other men and women— is an extraordinarily rare human being. Most people prefer to live in groups. Virtually most of the activities of our lives — working, learning, worshiping, relaxing, playing, and even sleeping — occur in groups rather than isolated from others. Most people belong to many different groups, so the number of groups in the world probably reaches well beyond six billion. The world is literally teeming with groups. This ascertainment highlights the importance of groups and the benefits that result of them. VET adult educators, among others, work with groups and engage group dynamic as an essential part of it. Psychodrama through its philosophy and interventions recognizes the power of the group and contributes to its better management. Psychodrama gives a great value to the dynamics that emerge, in a more or less obvious way, to the atmosphere of the group, to the members’ mood, their body positions, their verbal or non verbal expression. According to the psychodramatic philosophy, the leader must pay attention to all these aspects mentioned before and must be very well warmed up and tuned with the group, in order to contribute to its process of development and not to restrict it. Group work, which has already played a role in the upgrading of our culture and will continue to do so, is an important instrument in promoting functional social relationships. Both personal and social relationships are reformed, as group members regularly learn to perceive and appreciate the functioning of those around them and enjoy one another’s achievements. The feelings level emerge into consciousness to a greater degree, group members are brought closer to one another and forge strong bonds that assist in the doing of creative work (social atom repair work). Life is a powerful dynamic force constantly pushing human beings toward new development. To throw oneself into the middle of life, to express oneself freely in the moment without regard to whether this is exhilarating or scary is the action of a heroic person. This is what novels, poems, songs, and dreams are made of. This leap into life must be taken. We concentrate all our energies into one brief moment of time. This approach to living calls for great development of ourselves as spontaneous actors. For centuries, sages and scholars have been fascinated by groups— by the way they form, change over time, dissipate unexpectedly, achieve great goals, and sometimes commit great wrongs. Here we examine their basic nature, their stages of 5
development, and their impact on their members. We begin our task by tracing the main parts: Historical detection of the science of group. Determination of the group. The characteristics of groups that most interest us. The meaning of group dynamics. The developmental stages of group. The psychodramatic approach of group work. Usefulness in educational process. Before proceeding to the analytical citing of the sections of this module, it is crucial to make the below clarification; in various points inside the document the term ‘’therapy’’ is mentioned. This is inevitable up to a degree, because psychodrama was conceived and developed by its creator J.L. Moreno, as a method of group psychotherapy. However, the adult educators are not invited to use it like that, nor it is the goal of our project. Adult educators are introduced to its psychotherapeutic extensions and are invited to appreciate the value of the action and dramatization and to use it in order to warm up their groups to life, as an impetus to new perspectives of learning, beyond the familiar way of lecturing- questioning- answering.
2.1. Historical detection of the scientific study of Group The science of the group and group psychotherapy has not been created by chance. At the beginning of the 20th century and between the two World Wars is observed a loosening of institutions, of values and morals and a decadent development of the society. This situation resulted in the dysfunction of individuals inside the groups and in the society as a whole, the interpersonal relationships were becoming more and more difficult and the personal and collective psychopathological issues were increasing. The social crisis had never before resulted in such personal and collective imbalances. So, the causes and the purpose of the birth of the science of the group and group psychotherapy are based on the existential and functional need of the society to redefine the lost balances in the personal and collective level. Group’s science and group psychotherapy tried to contribute to the study and reorganization of social relationships, of social interaction and change and to the restoration of the crisis of the personal and social identity of the individual. ‘’Sociologists and psychologists “discovered” groups almost simultaneously at the beginning of the 20th century (Steiner, 1974). Sociologists, trying to explain how 6
religious, political, economic, and educational systems function to sustain society, highlighted the role played by groups in maintaining social order (Shotola, 1992). Cooley suggested that primary groups, such as families, children’s play groups, and emotionally close peers, “are fundamental in forming the social nature and ideas of the individual” (1909, p. 23). Similarly, Emile Durkheim (1897/1966) argued that individuals who are not members of friendship, family, or religious groups can lose their sense of identity and, as a result, are more likely to commit suicide’’ (Forsyth, 2006, p. 23). Durkheim (1897/1966) argued that his studies of marriages and suicides provided clear evidence of the reality of groups, for it revealed that such personal acts can be predicted by considering an individual’s links to social groups. While people and generations change, the annual number of marriages and suicides remain stable. People think that they get married because they follow their feelings, but in reality they are driven by a collective rule, a collective tendency. Durkheim was also impressed by the work of Le Bon and other crowd psychologists and went so far as to suggest that large groups of people sometimes acted with a single mind. He believed that such groups, rather than being mere collections of individuals in a fixed pattern of relationships with one another, were linked by a unifying groupmind, or collective conscious. Durkheim believed that this force was sometimes so strong that the will of the group could dominate the will of the individual. At the same time, psychologists were also studying the impact of groups on individuals. In 1895, the French psychologist Gustave Le Bon published his book Psychologie des Foules (Psychology of Crowds), which describes how individuals are transformed when they join a group: “Under certain circumstances, and only under those circumstances, an agglomeration of men presents new characteristics very different from those of the individuals composing the group” (1895/1960, p. 23). Gustave Le Bon concluded that individuals in the frame of a group, obtain a collective soul which makes them react differently than they would if they were alone. He hypothesized that behind every group reaction exists a collective soul and he tried to register its characteristics. This hypothesis may be the essence of Le Bon’s work. He tried to use elements from atomic psychology in order to study phenomena which appear in groups (Letsios, 2001). Although Le Bon’s work was speculative, Norman Triplett’s (1898) laboratory study of competition confirmed that other people, by their mere presence, can change group members. Triplett arranged for 40 children to play a game that involved turning a small reel as quickly as possible. He found that children who played the game in pairs turned the reel faster than those who were alone, experimentally verifying the shift that occurs 7
when a person moves from a wholly individual circumstance to a social one (Forsyth, 2006).
2.2. Defining Groups What would you include if you were asked to name all the groups in which you are a member? Would you list your family? People who regularly log into a chat room on the Internet with you? Your political party? The handful of fellow students who often take the same classes you do? Coworkers who go out for drinks after work once in a while? The people standing in line with you at the checkout counter of the supermarket? Each of these collections of people may seem unique, but each possesses that one critical element that defines a group: connections linking the individual members. We understand intuitively that three persons seated in separate rooms working on unrelated tasks can hardly be considered a group, for they are not connected in any way to each other. If, however, we create a connection among them, then these three individuals can be considered a rudimentary group. The members of a family who live in the same house, for example, are linked to one another by joint tasks, a shared living space, strong emotional bonds, and genetic similarities. People who work together are linked by the collaborative tasks that they must complete together, but in many cases they also become connected through a network of friendships and antagonisms. Even the people who are standing in a queue in a checkout counter are a group, for they are briefly connected in a situation that demands cooperation, communication, and patience. In all these examples, the members are linked together in a web of interpersonal relationships. Thus, a group is defined as two or more individuals who are connected to one another by social relationships.
Remember Group: two or more individuals who are connected to one another by social relationships. The size of a group influences its nature in many ways, for a group with only two or three members possesses many unique characteristics simply because it includes so few members. The dyad is, by definition, the only group that dissolves when one member leaves and the only group that can never be broken down into subgroups (J.M. Levine & Moreland, 1995). Very large collectives, such as mobs, crowds, or congregations, also have unique qualities. In a very large group, for example, the
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chances for each member to be connected to all other members become very small. As groups increase in size, they tend to become more complex and more formally structured (Hare, 1976). By definition, however, all are considered groups. Like a series of interconnected computers, the individuals in any given group are networked: They are connected one to another. These connections, or ties, may be strong emotional bonds, like the links between the members of a family or a clique of close friends. The links may also be relatively weak ones that are easily broken with the passage of time or the occurrence of relationship-damaging events. Even weak links, however, can create robust outcomes across an entire group of networked individuals. Nor do these relationships need to link every person directly to every other person in the group. It takes, for example, 6 one-to-one links to connect every member of a 4-person group to every other member of that group (A/B, A/C, A/D, B/C, B/D, and C/D), but a 12-person group would need 66 links to join every member to every other member. Hence, many ties between members in groups are indirect ones. Person A might, for example, talk directly to B, B may talk to C, so A is linked to C through B. But even in large groups, members often feel group. Two or more individuals who are connected to one another by social relationships connected to the majority of the group’s members and to the group as a whole (Granovetter, 1973).
2.3. Describing Groups Each one of the billions of groups that exist at this moment is a unique configuration of individuals, processes, and relationships. But all groups, despite their distinctive characteristics, also possess common properties and dynamics. When we study a group, we must go beyond its unique qualities to consider characteristics that appear with consistency in most groups, no matter what their origin, purpose, or membership— qualities such as interaction, interdependence, structure, cohesiveness, and goals. Interaction Groups are systems that create, organize, and sustain interaction among the members. Group members get into arguments, talk over issues, and make decisions. They upset each other, give one another help and support, and take advantage of each other’s weaknesses. They rally together to accomplish difficult tasks, but they sometimes slack off when they think others will not notice. Group members teach one another new things; they communicate with one another verbally and nonverbally, and they touch each other literally and emotionally. Group members do things to and with each other.
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The development of strong links between individual group members assists the emergence of adequate and creative expression, the willingness to enter unknown areas and the development of new functioning. The development of stronger links is often encouraged by the maintenance of a lengthier interaction between the group leader and another group member. The continuing interaction brings about a heightening of the warm-up of the group member and this in turn leads to the other members of the group warming up to a much greater degree. This results in the generation of spontaneous responses. Group members begin to bring forward their own concerns and formulate goals that have meaning for both of them and the rest of the group. The development of links is further enhanced through the group leader noticing the responses being made by one group member to another and immediately asking for verbal expression to that individual. As these links form there is an increase in individualized expressions concerning aims, outcomes, and current and hoped for experiences. The free expression and interaction in a psychodrama group and the continuing of them is essential for the development of group members and for the life of the group as a whole. As a result of such expression, positive links are developed between group members and a lively atmosphere is created in the group as a whole. This means that the concerns expressed by each group member are experienced in a much different way. Group members are able to look at their concerns and those of others in a more reflective way, to let go of old responses and to begin to warm up to developing new attitudes.
Remember Interaction: the social actions of individuals in a group, particularly those that are influenced either directly or indirectly by the group. Interdependence Most groups create a state of interdependence, for members’ outcomes, actions, thoughts, feelings, and experiences are determined in part by other members of the group (Wageman, 2001). The acrobat on the trapeze will drop to the net unless her teammate catches her outstretched arms. The assembly line worker is unable to complete his work until he receives the unfinished product from a worker further up the line. In such situations, members are obligated or responsible to other group members, for they provide each other with support and assistance. 10
Interdependence also results when members are able to influence and be influenced by others in the group. In a business, for example, the boss may determine how employees spend their time, what kind of rewards they experience, and even the duration of their membership in the group. These employees can influence their boss to a degree, but the boss’s influence is nearly unilateral: The boss influences them to a greater degree than they influence the boss. In other groups, in contrast, influence is more mutual: One member may influence the next member, who in turn influences the next (sequential interdependence) or two or more members may influence each other (reciprocal or mutual interdependence). Interdependence can also occur because groups are often nested in larger groups, and the outcomes of the larger groups depend on the activities and outcomes of the smaller groups (multilevel interdependence).
Remember Interdependence: mutual dependence or influence, as when one’s outcomes, actions, thoughts, feelings, and experiences are determined in whole or in part by others. Structure Norms, roles, and other structural aspects of groups, although unseen, lie at the heart of their most dynamic processes. The leader’s immediate focus on the structure of the group brings an immediate sense of safety. This is necessary since everyone has at least some needs for safety at the beginning of any group session and this particularly applies to the beginning of the first session. In the absence of structure the learning is less and sometimes does not take place at all. Some group members withdraw either physically or emotionally and in both cases fail to develop new functioning. Group members’ actions and interactions are shaped by their group’s normsconsensual standards that describe what behaviors should and should not be performed in a given context- and by their members’ roles. These assist group members in arriving at a balanced point of view with respect to the material which other people present to them. Roles in psychodrama, are connected, by sociological point of view, with social positions and with the wider social values and structures and by psychological point of view, they indicate the actions of each individual which include certain traits of his personality. For Moreno (1953) the role is the way the individual exists and functions in a certain situation, in a certain moment in order to cope with the social circumstances and to satisfy his desires and goals in the best fitted way.
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The sociometric structure of any group has a bearing on the amount and quality of the learning. The measurement of attraction or repulsion among group members constitutes the basement of the qualitative examination of social structures and groups. The preferences of group members (Moreno called it sociogram), shows the complex grid of relationships and positions of members in the group. It shows the friendly or hostile communicative attitudes of members, the subgroups that are formed, the coherence and the dynamic that are formed and gives also other elements for the underlying grids of the social structures and the groups. When the majority of relations in the group are mutually positive the accuracy and depth of perception of one another is high. The group members have a greater ability to role reverse with one another. Thus it is helpful for a group leader to create a sense of the sociometric links that will further each person's development (Letsios, 2001).
Remember Group Structure: Norms, roles, and grids of relations among the members of a group. Sociometric Structure: The measurement of attraction or repulsion among group members. Remember Role: The specific way the individual functions under a certain situation, in a certain moment in order to cope with the social circumstances and to satisfy his desires and goals. Remember Norm: A consensual and often implicit standard that describes what behaviors should and should not be performed in a given context. Remember Sociometry: The qualitative and quantitative measurement of the relationships of group members, through the attractions and repulsions. Remember Sociogram: The result of this measurement which shows the total of relationships of members according to various criteria. Goals Groups usually exist for a reason. A study group wants to raise the grades of all of the students who are members. The members of a congregation seek religious and spiritual enlightenment. In each case, the members of the group are united in their 12
pursuit of common goals. In groups, people solve problems, create products, create standards, communicate knowledge, have fun, perform arts, create institutions, and even ensure their safety from attacks by other groups. Put simply, groups make it easier to attain our goals. For this reason, much of the world’s work is done by groups rather than by individuals.
In psychodrama groups the creation of a worthwhile goal is of the utmost importance for each individual as well as for the group as a whole. The development of a worthwhile goal is determinative for the progress of a group. It is also essential for the development of relationships within which a companionable working together is observable. The creation of a worthwhile aim brings about a diminishing of those aspects of functioning that belong to the phoney layer of the personality. It also gives strength to our efforts to let go of those roles that are determined by our fears. Thus the development of a worthwhile goal places us on a pathway which takes us through our phoniness, through our fears, and then on into other areas of life which are far more challenging and at the same time far more satisfying. A group exists to achieve certain goals, in other words a group meets in order to do work. When the leader and members of any group consciously and freely embrace a purpose there is a sudden leap into the unknown. Each individual takes up the task of formulating a precise objective that will build on their previous abilities. The preparation of precise objectives and their presentation in a group results in a consciousness of the availability of each person’s energies. This is often accompanied by a renewed hopefulness or zest for living. The fulfillment of the purpose of a group is either furthered or diminishing by the group process which predominates. The production of machinery in a factory is higher when the group process is a cooperative one. Thus the members of an effective working group are continually developing patterns and norms of interaction that will facilitate the fulfillment of the overall task (Clayton, 1994).
Remember Goal: The aim or outcome sought by the group and its members. Cohesiveness Groups are not merely sets of aggregated, independent individuals; instead, they are unified social entities. Groups cannot be reduced down to the level of the individual without losing information about the group as a unit, as a whole. Whenever a group 13
comes into existence, it becomes a system with emergent properties that cannot be fully understood by piecemeal examination. The Gestalt dictum, “The whole is greater than the sum of the parts,” suggests that a group is more than the sum of the individual members. This quality of “groupness” or unity is determined, in part, by group cohesion—the strength of the bonds linking members to one another. All groups require a modicum of cohesiveness, otherwise the group would disintegrate and cease to exist as a group (Dion, 2000). Group cohesiveness does not constitute a therapeutic factor by itself, but it constitutes a necessary presupposition for effective therapy, as it ensures the good therapeutic relationship, the trust, the warmth, the empathetic understanding (Yalom, 2005). So, the creation of cohesiveness means the development of inter- group conscience, team working spirit and common goals; It means also the consensual group action, the cooperation, the mutual support, the freedom of expression (Yalom, 2005). In psychodrama groups the development of strong links between individual group members assists the emergence of adequate and creative expression, the willingness to enter unknown areas and the development of new functioning. Group members begin to bring forward their own concerns and formulate goals that have meaning for themselves and the rest of the group.
Remember Group Cohesion: The strength of the bonds linking individuals to the group, feelings of attraction for specific group members and the group itself, the unity of a group, and the degree to which the group members coordinate their efforts to achieve goals. 2.4. Group Dynamic If you were limited to a single word, how would you describe the activities, processes, operations, and changes that transpire in social groups? What word illuminates the interdependence of people in groups? And what word adequately summarizes a group’s capacity to promote social interaction, to create patterned interrelationships among its members, to bind members together to form a single unit, and to accomplish its goals? Kurt Lewin (1943, 1948 & 1951) chose the word dynamic. Groups tend to be powerful rather than weak, active rather than passive, fluid rather than static, and catalyzing 14
rather than reifying. Lewin used the term group dynamics to stress the powerful impact of these complex social processes on group members, to describe the way groups and individuals act and react to changing circumstances. But Lewin also used the phrase to describe the scientific discipline devoted to the study of these dynamics.
Remember Group Dynamics: the scientific study of groups; also the actions, processes, and changes that occur in social groups. Kurt Lewin’s (1951) field theory of group dynamics assumed that groups are more than the sum of their parts. Field theory is premised on the principle of interactionism, which assumes that the behavior of people in groups is determined by the interaction of the person and the environment. The formula B = f (P, E) summarizes this assumption. In a group context, this formula implies that the behavior (B) of group members is a function (f) of the interaction of their personal characteristics (P) with environmental factors (E), which include features of the group, the group members, and the situation. According to Lewin, whenever a group comes into existence, it becomes a unified system with emergent properties that cannot be fully understood by piecemeal examination.
Wilfred Bion has a common perspective and he concludes in three main principles: a) Groups are looked at in terms of the whole rather than in terms of individuals making up the group. In the same way clock has parts but it is only a clock when the parts are put together in a particular way, b) the group has a function or work to do, just as a clock tells time. The group is defined as a function or set of functions of an aggregate of individuals and c) the group has come together to demonstrate group behavior.
Moreno saw the group as a distinctive and autonomous total. He tried to study the adjustment of individual not based on the personality traits but based on the status that has or had at any moment in the complex grid of relationships and roles which exist in society. In this basement, Moreno developed group psychotherapy and psychodrama, not as a continuation of personal psychotherapy, but as a result of the sociometrical analysis of the group, he combined it with sociology and social psychology. Individuals and groups form a complex grid, which in therapy evoke new questioning that goes beyond the limits of individual. This complex sociometrical network of psychic energy among the group members, which is mirrored with different heat in the sympathies,
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dislikes, conflicts and compromises, is developed during the effort of accomplishing the common therapeutic goal of the group.
Stages of Group A holistic perspective on groups prompted researchers to examine how a group, as a unit, changes over time. Some groups are so stable that their basic processes and structures remain unchanged for days, weeks, or even years, but such groups are rare. Usually, when studying group phenomena we discern three great phases from which a group passes and every group leader should have in mind, psychodramatist, educator or other:
Every group with the uniqueness of its characters and the complexity of interactions, follows its own development, but it is necessary for the leader to get familiarized with the stages of group development. In order to assist in the formation of therapeutic rules that promote the group and prevent or manage those that limit it, the leader must have a clear perception of the developmental process in which the group is. In the specific case that we are interested in education, it is not the ‘’therapeutic’’ that we are interested in, but the stages of development still remain the same and the leader must have them in mind in order to be suspicious of what comes next, know where they should direct the group, feel less anxious, make the suitable interventions in learning process and have the desirable outcomes.
In general lines, the group passes through an initial phase where it looks for its orientation and it is characterized by the seeking of structure and goals, by great deal of dependency on the leader and by anxiety for the determination of its limits. Then the group passes in the stage of conflict, since it is occupied with the domination among the members. Later on, the tension in the group increases as it deals with issues concerning harmony or tenderness among the members. In this phase the differences between the group members are not expressed, in order to maintain the cohesiveness of the group. Much later, the mature group work comes in the surface. In this phase, the main characteristics are the great cohesiveness, the important interpersonal and intrapersonal investment and the integral commitment to each individual’s goal and to the goal of the group.
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The initial stage: orientation- hesitant participation- searching for meaningdependence. The members of each new group face two basic tasks: a) they have to find a way to accomplish the goal for which they came in the group, b) they have to take care of their social relationships in the group, in order to find a position which will facilitate the accomplishment of their initial goal and also will offer them satisfaction for their participation.
Simultaneously, various perceptions are present in the first sessions. Members try to find a logical explanation for the therapy or for the experiential method or exercise; they try to find a relation between the group’s activities and their personal therapeutic or educational goals. At the same time, each member tries to shape an opinion for the other members, they wonder for themselves if they are amiable, appreciable, indifferent, rejected. All members are ruled by social powers that make them look for acceptance, appreciation or domination. They wonder about their participation, which are the others’ needs, how much they must give or reveal of themselves, what kind of relationships they have to make. Thus, consciously or unconsciously, they look for expected and acceptable types of behavior. When all the above take place, the initial group is also dependant on the leader. Obviously or not, group members look for the leader’s acceptance, to give them answers and to shape a structure. Comments, glances that wait for reward or behaviors that want to gain acceptance, are directed to the leader. His comments are perceived as guide for desirable or non desirable behaviors and group members seem to believe that their wellness or knowledge will come only from him. The members have very intense feelings for the leader (especially in a therapeutic group) and among them the intense human need for an almighty, omniscient and full of care parent, the faith in a superhuman. Freud referred to it as ‘’the need of the group to be ruled by limitless power, its thirst for obedience’’. It is quite usual to idealize the leader at the beginning of a series of group sessions, but actually the members’ actions are coloured by their previous experiences in relation to authority figures and a desire to re- create the relationship systems in the group. In the initial stage the content and the communicative style are relatively stereotyped and limited. The social code in relationships is valid. The problems are approached logically and the unreasonable side is suppressed by using the tag of support and tranquility of the group. The searching of similarities is also common in the beginning. 17
That relieves a lot the members and provides the foundations for the cohesiveness of the group. The questing and giving of advice is another characteristic of this stage. Actually, this does not have any functional value, but is offered to the members as an opportunity to express mutual interest and care. So, according to what has been presented, if someone observes a group may easily understand its age. The second stage: Conflict- domination- rebellion. The group is moving from the above themes and it gets busy with the issues of domination, control and power. The conflict takes place either among the members or between the members and the leader. The leader must wait for it around the fifth session. Around the fifth session, some or all of the group members may interact with one another in pairs in a friendly manner and the conversations develop without reference to the group leader· thus we may conclude that a new warm up develops spontaneously in the members (Clayton, 1994). Also, some members may start turning against the leader. The negative comments and the criticism are common. The social conventionalities are abandoned and the members feel free to express criticism for the behavior or the attitude of the one who complains. The members indicate and advise as part of the procedure of undertaking a role in the group.
The struggle for control is a part of the internal structure in every group: it is always present. If there are members with intense needs for control, this must be the main issue of the first sessions. This need for control becomes more obvious and intense when new members are added in the group, who instead of obeying to the older ones, they show dominating tendencies. The hostility toward the figure of the leader is also inevitable. In the initial stages of the group, ambivalence is observed toward the leader, which is accompanied by resistance to the self exploration and self exposition. This hostility is connected to the non realistic- magical properties that the group members attach to the leader. Their expectations are limitless and gradually, identifying the limited dynamic the leader has himself, the disappointment begins. This procedure is not conscious: the members want a democratic group, which is based on its own powers, but despite that in a deeper level, they desire the dependency and so they first try to create it and then to destroy the figure of dominion. The therapeutic groups deny the traditional authoritative role: they do not give answers and solutions, instead they stimulate the group to explore and use its own sources.
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Thus, the members gradually cancel their desire for a ‘’real chief’’. Another reason of disappointment toward the leader lies in the gradual realization of each member that he/ she will not become the favorite child of the leader (desire which always underlies in the beginning) and that he/ she is not more or less interested in any member. These non realistic expectations from the leader and the following disappointment, are not a childish mentality or a psychological naivety. The same happens in the groups with professional psychotherapists. And indeed, the best lesson for somebody who wants to become a group leader is to participate as a member in a group. The members who attack and the members who resist give material to the leader for the better understanding of the tendencies that will appear in the group in the future. Other members choose the side of the leader very quickly. Some of them because they feel he/ she is very fragile and others because they fantasize an alliance with him/ her and against other powerful group members. This is a reason why the leader must have the dynamic in mind in order not to become part of any sub- group. Otherwise, members will leave the group and possibly the group will be dissolved. The rebellion against the leader is inevitable. But the leader’s behavior may increase or moderate the experience and the expression of the rebellion. The leaders whose style is vague, purposely puzzling, authoritative, that offers no structure or gives unfulfilled promises, provoke more negative reactions from the members. In any case, the leader is necessary for the survival of the group. The leader has to learn to discern between the attack addressed to him personally and the attack addressed to his role in the group. The leaders who are threatened by the attacks, protect themselves in various ways, for example they do not allow the attack to emerge by seeming very kind- hearted and caring and so the members feel ungrateful toward such a leader; or they remain distant, very cool, vague, puzzling and so the members feel that an attack will be dangerous, vain or disrespectful. Such an attitude from the leader blocks the development of norms of interpersonal honesty and of feelings expression by the group. On the contrary, leader’s durability in attack and his genuine effort for understanding, convince the group that the hostile emotions are not deadly, it is allowed to be expressed and to get understood. The suppression of anger against the group leader disorientates its direction- the member does not attack against this particular teacher, but against all teachers or against all persons of authority-. Or he may turn it against another member of the group
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and then, if the leader does not intervene to bring the attack to his person, the member may be dismissed by the group. The third stage: development of cohesiveness. As the group passes through the previous stages, it is gradually developed in coherent unit. This phase is characterized by intergroup conscience, team spirit, common goals, consensual team action, cooperation and mutual support, group completion and mutuality, support and freedom of expression. In this stage the mutual trust increases and the members expose themselves. Many reveal the inner reasons that brought them in the group, especially in the psychotherapeutic group. Schutz characterizes the relation of members with the group as ‘’in or out’’ in the first stage, ‘’up or down’’ in the second and ‘’close or away’’ in the third. The main anxiety is interwoven with whether I am likable or not, whether I am close enough with others or not.
Sometimes, in this stage, the group suppresses the expression of negative emotions, because of its cohesiveness and its effort to feel the warmth of its new unity. Here exists great support among the members. If in this stage the group allows to be expressed not only the cohesive feelings but also the hostile feelings, then all the emotions will be worked out creatively.
The limits between the stages are not obvious, when a group comes out of a stage and enters in another or when it comes back to work some issues in a more profound way (‘’cyclotherapy’’).
Many group psychotherapists observed that groups first get occupied with the reason of their existence and the limits, then with issues of domination and submission and later with issues of intimate relationships. The therapists or the group leaders of any group have to know the developmental sequence of groups, in order to be able to maintain their objectivity, to follow the route of the group and to be open to appreciate whatever comes each time.
Normally a percentage of 10%- 35% of members leave the group inside the 12 up to 20 sessions. Only after that the group is stabilized and starts to commit to other issues.
The delay and the irregular participation usually shows the resistance in therapy or the resistance to whatever the group is orientated to do. If some members are often
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absent, the reason of resistance may be personal or may be related with the low cohesion in the group. In both cases, it must be evaluated and worked through appropriately by the leader. The delays and absences reveal the ways that we connect with others; they constitute parts of the social microcosm of the atom (Yalom).
Although the irregular participation provokes various difficulties in group working, Max Clayton encourages the realization of the session, independently of the group’s size or the members that have not come. The leader has to respect and appreciate the members that are here in the exact time and has to work with them. These people have come here to do some work and this work must be done. Also, the ‘’therapeutic’’ value of knowing that the group is always there, steadily, is immense.
Remember Stages of Group: the phases from which a group passes through its developmental process. The initial stage: orientation- hesitant participation- searching for meaning- dependence. The second stage: Conflict- domination- rebellion. The third stage: development of cohesiveness. 2.5. Groups & Group Dynamic in Psychodrama Moreno saw the group as an autonomous and distinctive total. He tried to study the adjustment of individual not based on the personality traits but based on the status that has or had at any moment in the complex grid of relationships and roles which exist in society. In this basement, Moreno developed group psychotherapy and psychodrama, not as a continuation of personal psychotherapy, but as a result of the sociometrical analysis of the group, he combined it with sociology and social psychology. For the sociological analysis of the group, Moreno conceived a method, called sociometry, which presented it extensively in his book ‘’How shall survive?’’ in 1934. The measurement of attraction or repulsion among group members constitutes the basement of the qualitative examination of social structures and groups. The preferences of group members (Moreno called it sociogram), shows the complex grid of relationships and positions of members in the group. It shows the friendly or hostile communicative attitudes of members, the subgroups that are formed, the coherence and the dynamic that are formed and gives also other elements for the underlying grids of the social structures and of groups. 21
The sociometrical position of this person who is chosen by many other members depicts several things for the dynamic of the group and it differs from the sociometrical position of this person who is not chosen or is rejected. The great number of single and isolated relationships in the sociogram of a group, shows the real relations among the members and focuses the leader’s attention on the development of the orientation and goal of the group. In psychodrama the group dynamic is perceived as a situation characterized by a constant tendency for balance or imbalance; this situation is formed in the frames of a continuous changing interaction among the members, as the various balancing tensions (that come from the individuals or the group’s function) transform the social behavior and the structure of personality of the person. In a group, the group leader is constantly making assessments of the balance of forces in any group situation. There are motivating forces pushing people to break through into some new way of living. The motivating forces are opposed by the forces of reaction which are controlled by some fear. The solutions which a group arrives at are the result of efforts to come to grips with the conflict between the motivating and reactive forces (Clayton, 1994). During all our life time there are internal forces which motivate the person (motivated forces) and forces which do not let him to proceed, they attract him to the back (restrictive forces). The atom’s structure of personality is a system of roles, where role is the specific way the person functions under a certain situation (Clayton, 1992, Woodcock, 2003). There are roles which encourage the person for life and promote him (progressive roles), as the role of whom enjoys life, the playful child, the creative teacher, the organizational kindergarten tutor, the tender mother; roles that disorganize the person and block him to move forward (fragmented roles), as the role of the stressful student, the worried father, the strict judge, the isolated lonely child; and roles of survival (copying roles), that each person has formulated in order to survive towards the difficult situations of his life, as the role of the one who is conflicted and opposed to the difficulties, the one who avoids them and the one who tries to approach them with conciliatory mood. Such as in life, in a psychodramatic session a person may function adequately, may have some abilities that are overdeveloped, function in a conflicted way, are underdeveloped or may be absent (Clayton, 1992). According to the systematic analysis of roles that the personality of each child, educator or other has, the psychodramatic perception has as a goal the reinforcement of the healthy sides of 22
personality, the development of spontaneity and of these abilities that assist the person to correspond in the best fitted way in life’s circumstances (Clayton & Carter, 2004). The introduction of a group member to a range of other people from the culture is normally of great assistance to a person who has been limited in their functioning and life experience. Inviting such a person to take on the roles of a business man, an artist, a poet, an electrician, or an explorer and interviewing them in such a way that they are able to enter into the different life experiences and values systems of such people, results in a person incorporating a number of aspects of the roles of these other people. And that results to the expansion of his personality.
After the dramatization, the group members enjoy their self presentation and also come face to face with their real self. In order to manage what they experience, they try to form a stance which combines the way they already function in everyday life and the new facts resulted from the enactment. The tension that accompanies this effort is mirrored, as Mérei says, in the body position and in the way of expression before or after the enactment, in which the leaders must give great attention and right valuation, in other words to ‘’read the roles’’ as we say in the psychodramatic language.
Moreno contributed to the formation and systematization of an integrated theory about roles and their usefulness, which is diffused in all the range of individual and social behavior. Through the dramatization, he combined the role with the existential entity and the constantly changing world. And finally, combining the role with spontaneity and creativity, he posed a proposal for social change and therapeutic intervention (Letsios, 2001).
Remember The structure of Personality is defined according to a system of roles (progressive, fragmented, copying roles) and to the way these roles function (adequately, overdeveloped, in a conflicted way, underdeveloped, absent).
2.6. The value of Groups & Group Dynamics in Education According to the psychodramatic philosophy, the question is ‘’how I will relate in the best possible way with the person that I have in front of me’’ and in this particular project with the learners of VET, in order to improve the atmosphere in class. The philosophy which has already been developed, its interventions and the exercises 23
listed below aim at reassuring these circumstances that will assist VET educators to create a safe, pleasant and healthy framework, through which educators and learners will develop the sense of spontaneity, creativity, freedom and emotional expression. Psychodrama contributes to the cultivation of a climate characterized by cooperation, effective and direct communication, which leads to a better connection between educators and learners. It contributes to having a better contact with oneself, to stay open in whatever new is coming, to accept more easily the diversity and so to learn to make relationships based in acceptance and not in rejection. The result of all this effort is the reduction of the sense of vanity or/ and of professional burnout and the increase of appetite for creation and life (Kavrohorianou E. & Dimou S., 2013). Psychodrama is not a method of problems solving, but of development of life inside the person and that’s why it is called ‘’method of personality development’’. It is a way of facing life with spontaneity and creativity, where spontaneity in psychodrama is to react with the best fitted way in the appropriate moment. The psychodramatic perception is summarized in this: when spontaneity and creativity are developed in a person, then no psychopathological problems exist (Letsios, 2001). And this perception matches perfectly with the goal we have for the class: to create a climate with prospects of way out, so that will detach students (adults or children) from their psychopathological fixations and will lead to their personality reformation, on which is mirrored the change and development of the inner structures of our psyche. Psychodrama’s philosophy is one and united, regardless to which group is addressed. The aim is the development and the expansion of the abilities and new roles of children, parents, learners, educators etc., in order to correspond sufficiently in a certain situation, in a certain moment. Or to rephrase it, the aim is to correlate and to correspond to the difficult everyday life’s situations in the best possible way and not to leave the dysfunctional ways of facing life to end up to psychopathological situations. Spontaneity constitutes the basis on which the abilities and the creative side of personality may be developed, so as the person to correspond successfully in situations, to be present in the ‘’here and now’’ with all his senses. Moreno defined it as a new answer to an old situation or a sufficient answer to a new situation and is characterized by amplitude, renewed approach and synthesis of intuitive, logical, sentimental and spiritual functions (Moreno, 1941). So we would say that, the regaining of this lost and shrinking spontaneity through the years or/ and the experiences of childhood, is the purpose of psychodrama (Kavrohorianou E. & Dimou S., 2013). Even
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if we manage to inflate the minimum of it inside a VET class, it will be a great benefit for the learners. The function of groups and the analysis of group dynamic according to the psychodramatic philosophy and interventions, may contribute to the development of: Direct and original communication among educators, learners, colleagues, Empathy, deeper understanding of needs, of feelings of the self and of the others, New skills and new attitudes toward the learning procedure and life, The role of educator in contemporary vocational training, Abilities for managing difficult situations inside the class, Cooperative learning, Creative teaching, A quality of life with vitality and humor.
Analysing the Group In order to better understand how your group in class functions, take some time to reflect on the theoretical concepts you have read. In particular, do not forget any of the following: What a group is. The special characteristics a group has. The meaning of group dynamic and what it reveals. The stages a group passes through its developmental process. The psychodramatic approach of group and group dynamic.
3. Introduction to Exercises In psychodrama, instead of somebody simply talking about his family or an event at school or a personal situation that bothers him, may create on ‘’stage’’ this situation exactly as he experiences it. He might get in the role of the other members that exist in the particular image, to become himself a student, teacher, father, mother, friend and to talk directly to any person is in this situation, to express thoughts and feelings that are untold in real life and so, to be released from whatever he keeps inside (Blatner, 1996, Corsini, 1966). Combining the expression of thoughts and emotions with the body action, psychodrama intrudes in depth in reality, as anybody experiences it. 25
Through action you ‘’open to life’’, as you create unlimited possibilities and you find several alternatives. In psychodrama, even the actions that seem unlikely, like meeting a dead relative, may become reality and end up in a new dynamic internalization of a positive feeling. This is the reason why a theme’s symbolic solution must not be underestimated.
By saying this we mean that the given solution in a theme – a
drama’s solution – even if it is given through playing, is internalized, it functions unconsciously in psyche and so in a certain moment the change will come – the corrective movement. The dramatization, containing the essence of experimentation and giving the opportunity of rehearsal for life, constitutes a more mature expansion of childish playing, that’s why it is a very natural and familiar way of working for the adults. In our project for vocational learning, the leader’s work is, either using psychodramatic techniques, or tools from other expressive arts, to assist the individual to explore and to feel the different perspectives of the issue that occupies him/ her, resulting in gaining better insight of the situation and at the same time to be reinforced in making choices and in creating (Corsini, 1966). These elements are strengthened through psychodrama, as it favors the initiative and the action, necessary and functional components for the present and the future of the atom (Kavrohorianou E. & Dimou S., 2013). The exercises listed below have as a goal, embodying the psychodramatic philosophy, to familiarize educators with experiential interventions; to help educators create a more cooperative climate in class and a more fruitful learning procedure, an ‘’easiest’’ if we could say and a more substantial way of learning. These exercises contribute to receiving important knowledge for all the phases of group function, divided in warm up, action and sharing. The leader must take under consideration if the participation of the members is obligatory and so there will be some specificities or if it is ‘’free’’ and so the participants will be more motivated. Their categorization has been done according to the aim served in each phase of the group.
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3.1. Considerations & Risks in applying the exercises for the Educator Here are listed some crucial points that educators should have in mind before applying the below exercises and during their implementation in their groups.
The group leader immediately focuses on the work of the group at the beginning of the session and the members of the group are positive, alert and listening well. The group leader is making an important step toward establishing credibility with the group. The members of the group have made great efforts to be there and we may assume are well-motivated to pursue the aims stated in the printed announcement. They are hoping for leadership that is in harmony with the printed aims and that will provide maximum assistance in their progression toward their goals. The leader’s immediate focus on the structure of the group brings an immediate sense of safety. This is necessary since everyone has at least some needs for safety at the beginning of any group session and this particularly applies to the beginning of the first session. Usually in our culture the expectation of group members is that the leader will do something to bring about a sense of safety. Group leaders must come to grips with the fact that no group leader is capable of making the group completely safe for everybody. The group leader who attempts to do this is doomed to fail and subsequently is likely to become overly self- critical and depressed. Other group leaders sometimes lean in the other direction, assuming that group members will continue to learn effectively in the absence of any structure or initiatives by the leader to establish a working environment. This assumption is not correct. In the absence of structure the learning is less and sometimes does not take place at all. Some group members withdraw either physically or emotionally and in both cases fail to develop new functioning. The group leader’s attitude toward time has a profound effect on the overall warm-up of the group members and therefore it is worthwhile to highlight this area. Time is our friend. -
The notion that there is the right amount of time promotes a disciplined, well organized approach to the activities of the group. It leads the group 27
leader to observe, enjoy, and think about the functioning of the group members as soon as the announced starting time has been reached. There is the gradual development of a knowledge that the group work is done between a beginning and end point. This is accompanied by an increased resolve to get down to business. -
Such an attitude toward time promotes an experience of relaxation and in such a state of relaxation creative thinking becomes possible, intuition works better and one’s imagination may start to come alive.
A group leader does well to involve everybody in some way in the first session of a group and to involve as many people as possible during the first four sessions. This enhances the sociometric position of each person, the dynamics among the members, their ability to work with others and to generate experiences which are useful to their own development. This is even more important in working with those who are new to group work and who may become more and more intimidated, isolated and fearful if they do not have a positive experience of interacting with the group leader or with another group member. The leader must evaluate the climate in the class, the mood of the members, the needs of the group, to appreciate ‘’where’’ they are, before proceeding to the choice of an exercise, otherwise the exercise is doomed to fail. Delicate matters of leadership emerge, as which intervention is more suitable and when; when should one intervene and how; to stop, to go further; how to involve everybody; what to ask and from whom, how to ask it etc. The leader must warm up well himself in the ‘’here and now’’ situation, in order to find the most suitable way to introduce the learning material in class. And there is always the possibility that someone may not want to participate or a suggestion not to work as the leader has imagined or assumed. So, we respect each individual’s choice and we explore more the dynamic to find out what is best to do. Many of the listed exercises may be introduced for several issues that emerge in a group, but it needs familiarity and experience by the leader to appreciate where they can be used and with what goal. o
Also, there is always the chance an exercise not to ‘’work’’, not to have the desirable results that the leader has in mind. This happens either because the leader misunderstood the issue that occupies the group and so the exercise is irrelevant, or because the group is not well warmed up yet.The conscious
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experimentation is a good stepping stone for learning more, not only for the learners but also for the educator. The experiential methods, as their name says, involve the personal experience. The challenge for the leader in an educational class is to contribute to the further knowledge and skills development of the learners, combining the mind, the emotions and the experiences, without falling into pseudo- therapeutic interventions. But using the experiential way, to show them that participation, cooperation and initiative are reinforced and increase the motive for learning and mainly, for learning actively. There is always the possibility for the members to regress in a situation of internal tension and to touch deeper issues through playing. Often, when we try to work the force that attracts us to the front, the force that pulls us behind appears. The leader must go up there, where the educational goal is served. It must be clear that this is not a therapy group. Shame, cautiousness, shyness may be expressed by the members. But, creating an effective group process involves essentially two major understandings. The first of these is the understanding that each member of the groups is there to make a display of themselves. The second understanding is that everybody in the group contributes by taking a thoughtful look at the display.The point of view of a group existing in order to get the group members display their functioning has many advantages. A group leader who adopts this point of view develops a positive attitude toward group members. They see value in group members expressing themselves, develop a naive interest, express a pristine spirit that approaches everything fresh and new and ask simple questions which do not have hidden hooks contained within them. They look for meaning in the expressions of group members, make assessments of relationship systems and of the abilities of individual group members based on their functioning in the group. An emphasis on accepting and valuing the display of group members means that in the first instance a leader does not seek to change what is being expressed but rather to experience it and to explore it. Such a stance by a leader may nudge some group members toward taking responsibility for what they do. In every group there are discrepancies between the goals of group members and their actual functioning in the group. Group members attend groups in order to take responsibility, to set goals, to be self-directed in their learning, to express their uniqueness. However, at the point where effort is made to create 29
a culture in which group members state their goals and actively work toward their achievement there is often a failure to do so. A group member may be faced with silence, or professed ignorance, or a seeming inability to put themselves on the map in terms of a specific aim. Some group leaders become extremely frustrated by this. They become negative and critical of a group. They may develop a strong desire to quit their job. Yet such a leader can gain fresh impetus for their work through adopting the perspective that the group exists so that its members may display themselves.
3.2. Exercises There are some elements that the leader of the group should have in mind before applying an exercise. It is worth to examine: the climate of the group, the degree of correlation among the members, the subgroups which exist in the group, to ‘’read’’ the body position of the members, their mood (who is open, close, skeptical, defensive etc), who sits next to whom, who are the central figures, who are the peripheral/ marginal persons, how they connect, the goal the group has & their motive for the goal. It is also worth to wonder in: how much scope you leave to free communication among members or where you intervene? how will you establish mutual relationships (‘’tele’’)? how will you include the most isolated persons? Here are listed some sample criteria (sociometry) that could be used for this purpose. Get up from your chairs and there to go: these who are educators and there those who are not these who work over 10 years and there those who work under 10 years these who are satisfied from their work and there those who are not satisfied these who have a good relationship with students and there those who don’t these who have a good relationship with their colleagues and there those who don’t
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these who expect from the others to find for them what they want and there those who do it by themselves, etc.
Remember: The use of these specific criteria is indicative. They can be changed and adapted to the relevant issue we want to explore. The examination of all the above elements is useful for the leader in order to evaluate the behavior of the members and also to evaluate which interventions will lead to expansion. For an educational group it is useful, because it contributes to the diminishment of conflicts, to the improvement of communication and also allows the group to see itself objectively and to analyze its dynamics and development.
Remember Because of the multi dimensional nature of exercises, many of them can be used for several issues and for several purposes!!! Remember In exercises with couples, it is recommended to choose somebody with who are less familiar. If in the same session, the group is divided more than once in couples, it is better to change partner. WARM UP
The leader, with his/ her presence and interventions, tries to create a loose atmosphere without critical comments, which provoke tension and increase the resistances for the game. The group’s goal is the members to feel as comfortable as possible, in order to express themselves freely and to formulate a complaint, a thought, a desire, a conflict, something for which they want to learn more or something which they would like to manage better. The members are activated by the discussion and an emotional environment is formed in the group. So the whole group, the leader and the members, starts gradually to warm up to an issue, in which they will focus and with which they will be occupied in greater depth. The below exercises have as a goal the members’ mobilization, their active participation, the creation of more coherent bonds, the emersion of the issues which 31
occupy them (Κ. Λέτσιος, clinical psychologist- psychodrama trainer, handwritten notes).
COUNT UNTIL 20 The leader asks from the group members to stand up and form a circle. Each one has to be close to the other, but not so much as to be oppressed. The circle will be as tight needed, so as their arms to be slightly touched. Every member must have the space to move and at the same time to be so close to the others, so as to feel them. The leader will explain to the members how the circle must be formed and will continue by saying the aim, which is to count until 20. Anybody may start the counting. Usually, the first time the leader says ‘’one’’ in order to start. The leader participates fully until the completion of the exercise. The counting does not take place in a row. The point is the one after the other spontaneously to keep on counting, until they reach number 20. But, the same number must not be said by two or more persons simultaneously. If that happens, the exercise must start from the beginning. It ends when the members finally manage to count from 1 until 20 without stop. When a session begins, usually several repetitions take place until the group manages to count non- stop up to that number. In a safe and positive environment the intention of the leader is to make the members more active, to bring them closer, to create a more ‘’loose’’ atmosphere with less stress, tension and embarrassment, to be harmonized together, to concentrate their attention each one to himself/ herself and to the rest of the participants at the same time, in order to relax and to achieve the ‘’final’’ goal, which is to manage to count until 20. This exercise may be repeated in the end of the session. Quite usually, the group then manages to count until 20 in the first round. This shows the change in dynamic that has happened in the group during the session, the members feel more relaxed, more in touch with themselves and the others, the coherence of the group is higher.
CHANGE OF POSITION The leader asks from the members to place their chairs on stage so as to form a closed circle. The chairs must have some distance in- between, so as the formed circle to be closed and at the same time not extremely tight, because the members will need to move in the given space inside the circle. The chairs must be one less than the members. 32
Anybody may start the exercise, but usually the leader starts it, in order to give the example of how to proceed. The role of the leader is not just to give the opening instructions, he/ she will fully participate until the end. The educator is standing in the middle of the circle and everybody else is sitting on the chairs. Alternatively, the members may be upstanding on small mats/ rugs, instead of sitting on chairs. The mats are placed exactly as the chairs, they form a circle as previously described. The difference is that now the participants have greater freedom of movements. The leader or the member standing in the centre of the circle, speaks in first person singular degree and expresses how he/ she would like to leave today, after the session has finished. For example, ‘’today after the workshop ends, I would like to know more things about group cohesion’’, ‘’I would like to know about how we make a group more creative’’, ‘’I would like to leave feeling more relaxed’’, ‘’knowing better the others’’ etc. Essentially, they are asked to express their expectations, what they are waiting for, from the workshop in a more playful way. Whoever from the rest of the group has the same expectation or agrees with what is being expressed by the member on stage, has to get up, to leave his/ her chair or mat and sit to another chair or stand on another mat. Eventually, another member will not manage to sit on time and so, will stand in the middle of the circle and will express what he/ she wants to learn, what he/ she wants to develop more during this workshop, etc. The members who agree with what is expressed and change position, cannot sit again in their previous chair. This change of position with several statements/ criteria will go on for several times. An estimation of time duration is about 10 to 15 minutes.
ACTION
The production phase is the main part of the psychodrama session. It follows the Warm up phase and precedes the Sharing phase. Usually in this phase, the protagonist’s drama or a group centered warm up is organized by the leader. Protagonist becomes the most warmed up person, the member who embodies and expresses better at this moment the tension or the issue of the group. The group centered warm up takes place from the chairs and the group discusses about the theme that occupies them. It is a challenge for the leader to keep each member focused on his/ her issue without making a general discussion about it, to encourage them to express the untold that keep inside, to explore how the members 33
feel about it- who agree, who disagree, who expresses a more synthetic point of view for what is discussed-. Further information about conducting the psychodrama sessions are found in the suggested bibliography at the end of the training materials and more particularly in: Enhancing Life and Relationships by Dr. Max Clayton. In Vet adult education, the leader’s goal is not to make a drama, but to introduce during the learning procedure games which contribute to the formation of the group and highlight its dynamic. In particular, they enhance more the formation of relationships and interactions among members, the development of cohesion, trust, fantasy, creativity, spontaneity. The below exercises and games must be perceived as continuation of the members’ warm up and not as something different or cut off. It must be never forgotten that in psychodrama, the leader’s aim is to constantly warm up the members. Only when reaching the highest point of the warm up, spontaneity is created and so the new role is born, meaning the new way of confronting an old or new situation. To follow and to increase the warm up of the members requires by the leader to have understood the theme that occupies the group and so to intervene with the suitable exercises. Otherwise, the exercise will look irrelevant or will not have the desired result. So, they must not be taken as a prescheduled session. The suggested games (Κ. Λέτσιος, clinical psychologist- psychodrama trainer, handwritten notes) aim to warm up the members more in group dynamic and to be connected with things that promote learning in a more creative way. And as members, instead of being simple observers, start doing, participating and sharing their personal experiences, then this knowledge is internalized and leads to personal changes and to development of new skills.
WHO WILL TRANSFER ME ACROSS?
The educator asks from the members to put in their mind one person from the group. He/ she gives no further explanations, despite the fact that the members will ask for some, because they will probably feel that they do not understand. There is no specific criteria given for this choice and most probably each one will choose the person who feels closer to him/ her at that moment.
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The leader asks one by one, if they have chosen somebody. At this moment he/ she is not interested in knowing whom. He/ she just wants to make sure that everybody has chosen only one person. If a member says that he/ she is among two persons, the leader will insist to choose one. As soon as everybody has made his/ her choice, then he/ she asks them to say whom they chose. Then, the leader gives the instruction ‘’imagine now that you have to cross the room from this side of the room to the other side’’. He/ she indicates the points, the starting point and the finishing point. They need to have some distance between them. The leader asks from all the members to stand up and gather to the starting point. At this moment, the leader adds that ‘’the way that you will pass across, will be decided by the person you have chosen’’. If some members ask what is this space in between the two points, the leader answers that ‘’it may be anything, you can imagine it as whatever you want’’. A member may be chosen by one, two or more members to ‘’guide’’ them, to lead them across. And of course, he/ she may use the same or different ways in order to pass them. But this is an explanation which will not be given by the educator, he/ she will just reassure the ‘’guides’’ that they are free to choose whatever way they want. Each member as a ‘’follower’’ will pass only once. After everybody has passed across, the group will return and sit on the chairs. A discussion- sharing of thoughts and feelings will take place. The leader will pose the below questions to each member: ‘’whom did you choose to pass you across?’’, ‘’who chose you to pass him/ her across?’’, ‘’how did you feel by the way you were passed?’’, ‘’did you like it?’’. This is an exercise which explores the way people relate to each other, in this group and in their lives outside the group. How do they accompany the others? How much do they feel what the other needs? How much do they take into account the other? Are they really with the other? Psychodramatic philosophy is based on ‘’being with’’ the other, as we try (the leader with the members, the members among them) to develop connections with the other persons in a direct, honest, true and functional way. This exercise puts some questioning about the way people are related, communicate and put limits. The members come to a greater contact with their inner self, their body 35
and the bodies of the others. This physical acquaintance creates greater trust and more powerful sense of responsibility. The members learn how to lead and to be lead, how to relax in an environment of absolute safety and trust. The teamwork in decision receiving and the cooperation in problem solving are reinforced. They learn how to add in whatever their co-player suggests and to project the dramatic conflict, without blocking the development.
GROUP-BODY
The leader asks from the members to let their chairs and to stand up on stage. He/ she shows a human body on stage and he/ she points out where is the head and where are the feet. The instruction given is: ‘’Imagine that you are something of the human body, you can be an organ or any other part of it. Choose what you want to be and go and stand where it is’’. The members start thinking what to become and start wandering until they find their position. As soon as they find it, the leader asks them to name it. ‘’ What are you?’’ Then, they are asked to say a phrase from the role they are and then, to be connected with the other organs or body parts. The leader lets them communicate. The last thing the leader asks them to do is ‘’all together as a human body make a step’’. Proposed time duration is 15 minutes. The exercise finishes and everybody returns to chairs, where an exchange of experiences and feelings takes place. This is an exercise that contributes to the formation of the group. Without realizing it, the members choose to become an organ or a part of the human body, which corresponds to their function in the group. The intense symbolism contributes to make
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a choice without the rationalization of the mind. It is very interesting to notice what each one becomes and how he/ she interacts with the others. The leader makes several thoughts whether each person feels in or out of the group, close or away from the others etc. Interpretations must be avoided in any case. According to psychodramatic philosophy, the leader’s role is not to answer why this or that happens, but to contribute so as each individual to wonder about it for himself/ herself.
LIKE A MOVIE
The leader asks for two volunteers from the group. Most probably, the members will ask ‘’to volunteers for what?’’, but no explanation will be given, just two volunteers. As soon as the two members are found, the leader asks from the one to go and stand there (he/ she shows a spot on the stage) and from the other to go and stand there (he/ she shows another spot 3- 4 steps away from the other volunteer). The rest of the members are asked to get up and go behind the one or the other, so as two groups to be formed. The only limitation is that the groups must be equally, or almost equally, in number, for example of 3 and of 4 members. They are asked to sit with their group and to discuss what occupies them. After about 10 minutes, the leader asks them to give a title to their theme, like being a title for a movie. A couple of minutes later they are asked to say the title only. Each group shares the title they have found. The next instruction is: ‘’If this is the title of a movie, find the subtitle. The subtitle which would explain a little bit more why to come and see this movie’’. Some extra time is given and they are asked if they found it. When they are ready, they are asked to repeat the title and to say the subtitle. ‘’Discuss together which would be the first scene of your movie, how it would start’’. When both groups have found their first scene and without saying it, they are asked to make it: ‘’Make the first scene of your movie. You may give it as an image’’.
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Both groups make their first scenes, the one after the other. When ending, clapping follows from the rest of the members. And the final instruction is to ‘’make the last scene of this movie, it may also be static’’. Each group presents it in front of the others, clapping, the other group follows, clapping. This exercise highlights the dynamic of the group: the issues that occupy them emerge, how close or away these issues are - and consequently the members-, how they communicate- cooperate with each other, how willingly they participated in all these, how much resistance they expressed towards the leader or against their self exposure. For example, a group may deny persistently to find a title or to make a scene, by saying that they do not understand, that they have said everything and they have nothing to add etc.
All are elements that should be given careful thought and
exploration in order to continue the session.
STORY MAKING
All members of the group form a circle, except for the leader of the group. Their task is to create a story in cooperation and this is also their instruction. There is no particular subject given. Whoever wants begins with a phrase from his mind or imagination (e.g. ‘’as I was going on feet to my work this morning, a frog jumped in front of me’’). The person next to him, in his/ her left, has to add a phrase in order to continue the story and so, the story making goes in circle. The leader gives from the beginning a particular timeframe, for example 10 minutes or a quarter of an hour. As soon as a couple of minutes are left, he/ she informs the group that they have to reach to an end in two minutes. Everybody returns to the circle of the group and the educator asks them to express how they felt this experience. ‘’Was it easy, difficult, entertaining, stressful?’’, ‘’how did you feel when your turn to speak arrived?’’, ‘’how was it for you to have something in mind and to be disturbed by the other?’’. 38
Through this exercise the cooperation among members is enhanced and so the cohesion of the group. They are called to be creative with whatever their co- player suggests and to deal with the conflict that they may feel, when the other person changes their plans or intervenes in what they had in their minds. They learn to be more flexible in different circumstances and of course, they energize their fantasy.
CLOSURE These exercises (Κ. Λέτσιος, clinical psychologist- psychodrama trainer, handwritten notes) are put in the end of the session and also in the end of a series of sessions. They contribute to the better integration of what took place during the teaching of the training material. The goal is double: to make the members an internal ‘’report’’ of what they lived, what they learnt, what they take with them as the session or the series of sessions ends; to integrate, to take inside the most of what took place during the group session and also, if the group ends, to facilitate the expression and elaboration of separation feelings from the leader and the other group members. This process of account and goodbye is an inevitable part of the procedure of each kind and duration group. The leader facilitates the members’ expression and he proposes exercises for the account and the estimation of each one’s development inside the group. And of course, he proposes exercises so as the members to experience the separation in a ceremonial way. The leader may participate to the exercises and to express himself/ herself his/ her feelings for this experience and the ending of the group. The leader determines the time that the group will dedicate to its closure. An approximate duration for closure and evaluation is 2 hours (depending always on the total duration of the session). All members will have the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings, to reflect on the procedure and to discuss on various questions, concerning the use and implementation of this knowledge. In educational groups, the leader proposes exercises also for the evaluation of the training procedure, the knowledge and skills that the participants obtained. .
JUST A WORD
The leader asks from the group members to say a word or a phrase for something that each one of them takes with him/ her, as this session ends. 39
It can be anything, something he/ she learnt, something he/ she realized, something which impressed him/ her, or anything else. For example: ‘’communication’’, ‘’I am not alone, there are others who feel the same way’’. In a circle, or in a free row, everybody talks briefly about it. The leader may, if he/ she wants, say a word that takes with him/ her, after everybody has finished talking. This exercise helps each member to focus on the most important ‘’thing’’ for him/ her. Among everything said and done, he/ she chooses one. It is related to the principal of concretization, one of the most basic psychodrama techniques. It is very important to choose one, to develop the ability of making focus only on one thing at a time. It also provides to the educator the possibility to see clearer where each participant ‘’is’’, meaning what he/ she keeps from the training course, what he/ she wants to develop more, what to learn more etc.
WANDER AND FOCUS
The leader asks the members to be separated in couples. Each one of them will discuss and share with the other what was important for him/ her, what he/ she learnt, what he/ she found out, what he/ she liked. They may leave the class, if they want and if it is possible. Otherwise, they will find a way to co- exist with the others without annoying them, scattered in different spots in the room, speaking in a low voice. They return to the class after 20 minutes and they sit on the chairs. It is preferable the couples to sit together, meaning one next to the other in the circle, but it is not obligatory. Each one shares with the rest of the group the above thoughts and feelings. Each member tries to focus on the most important things he/ she learnt and felt during this session. It is very important for each one to realize them, to give value to them, to find connections with the others and/ or to hear something that he/ she had not thought of.
40
GROUP SCULPTURE
The members are requested by the leader to make the sculpture of the group. The sculpture will be static, as a frozen image, without movement or words. If the members find meaningful the sculpture to say a word or to have a slight movement, it is totally ok. They may use objects, they may all participate in the image of the sculpture or some of the members, they are totally free to do it as they imagine. By doing that, all members come closer in order to discuss, to share opinions, to cooperate and finally to choose and create how they want this sculpture to be and what to represent. Every member starts an internal process of what group is for himself/ herself and what is for the others. The participants will depict the sense that the group leaves to them and for the educator consists the feedback for his/ her work.
MY ROUTE IN THE GROUP
This exercise is recommended for the Sharing phase of the last session, after the teaching of all training materials is coming to an end. The leader asks from each member to paint a path that symbolizes his/ her route in the group, since the beginning until today. They may add drawings, symbols or words for the important moments that experienced during it. Markers, pencils, oil pastels of different colors may be needed in order to differentiate some elements, to emphasize others, to make it more joyful, more meaningful or whatever else. As each one tries to focus on the most important moments, he/ she makes an internal report of the group process and his/ her personal route. The leader asks them also, to imagine and paint where this path will lead after the sessions finish. The members share what they keep, what they learnt, how they felt. By imagining 41
where this path leads, they make a future projection (psychodrama technique), about how they imagine themselves with this new experience, this new knowledge. Future projection helps the members to make their goal more concrete and to internally connect with their progressive roles, meaning the roles that help them to move on, to go ahead. An estimation of 15- 20 minutes seems to be enough time for the painting of the routes. Everybody exposes his work in front of the whole group and one by one presents it, talking shortly about it. Around 30 minutes seems to be required for the exposure and the sharing of the personal routes, always depending on the total number of the participants. All members cooperate for a collective painting of the route of the group.
42
4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. Bibliography 5.1. References in English Bion, W.R. (n.d.). The Perspective of Bion. In Different perspectives on Group Work. Retrieved November 8, 2014, from http://www.psychodrama.gr Blatner, A. (1996). Acting in Practical Applications of Psychodramatic Methods. (3rd ed.). New York: Springer Publishing Company Inc. Clayton, G.M. (1994). Effective Group Leadership. Book 4 in a series of Training Books. Australia: ICA PRESS. Clayton, G.M. (1992). Enhancing Life and Relationships. Book 2 in a series of Training Books. Australia: ICA PRESS. Clayton, G.M. & Carter, D.P. (2004). The Living Spirit of the Psychodramatic Method. New Zealand: Resource Books. Corsini, R. (1972). Roleplaying in Psychotherapy. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company. Durkheim, E. (2006). Suicide. A study in sociology. England: Routledge. Forsyth, R.D. (2006). Group Dynamics (4th ed.). USA: Thomson Learning Inc. Le Bon, G. (1896). The Crowd. A Study of the Popular Mind. NY: The MacMillan Co. Lewin, K. (1935). A Dynamic Theory of Personality. NY, US: McGraw- Hill. Moreno, L.J. (1953). Who Shall Survive? Foundations of Sociometry, Group Psychotherapy and Sociodrama. (2nd ed.). Beacon NY: Beacon House. Moreno, L.J. (1952). A Note on Sociometry and Group Dynamics. Sociometry, 15, 3/4, 364-366. Retrieved November 8, 2014, from http://www.psychodrama.gr Moreno, T.Z. (n.d.). The function of ‘’Tele’’ in Human Relations. In The Evolution of Psychotherapy. Retrieved November 8, 2014, from http://www.psychodrama.gr Sherif, M. (1936). The Psychology of social norms. England: Harper. Winnicott, D. (1971). Playing and Reality. England: Routledge. Yalom, D.I. & Leszcz, M. (2005). The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy. (5th ed.). United States: Basic Books.
5.2. References in Greek Άλκηστις (1983). Η δραματοποίηση για παιδιά. Αθήνα: Άλκηστις. Αρχοντάκη, Ζ. & Φιλίππου, Δ. (2003). 205 βιωματικές ασκήσεις για εμψύχωση
ομάδων ψυχοθεραπείας, κοινωνικής εργασίας, εκπαίδευσης. (γ’ εκδ.). Αθήνα: Καστανιώτης.
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Γκόβας, Ν. (2003). Για ένα δημιουργικό νεανικό θέατρο. Ασκήσεις, παιχνίδια,
τεχνικές. Ένα πρακτικό βοήθημα για εμψυχωτές ομάδων και εκπαιδευτικούς. Αθήνα: Μεταίχμιο. Καβροχωριανού, Ε. & Δήμου Σ. (2013). Ψυχόδραμα για Παιδιά. In Βοήθημα
εκπαιδευτικού μικρών παιδιών. Θεωρία- Πράξη. (κεφ. 1, τομ. 4). Ανακτηθέν Νοέμβριος 8, 2014, από http://blogs.sch.gr/symnip54/4ος-τόμος/κεφάλαιο-πρώτο. Λέτσιος,
Κ.
(2001).
Το
Ψυχόδραμα.
Η
επιστήμη
της
ομάδας
στην
ψυχοθεραπευτική προοπτική. Αθήνα: Ελληνικά Γράμματα.
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Sociometric Group Mapping Psychodrama as a tool in Education Training materials - Module 4 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
INDEX 1.
2.
3.
Module description ...................................................................................... 3 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 3
1.2.
Learning outcomes............................................................................... 3
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and the workshop ................................... 4
Introduction to theory................................................................................... 6 2.1.
The foundations of sociometry in J.L. Moreno’s writings....................... 7
2.2.
Social atom ........................................................................................ 10
2.3.
Science of action ................................................................................ 12
2.4.
Sociometric methods and techniques ................................................. 15
2.5.
Current issues debated ...................................................................... 21
Introduction to exercises ........................................................................... 24 WARM UP .................................................................................................... 25 DIVIDING LINE ......................................................................................... 26 ACTION ........................................................................................................ 28 SOCIAL ATOM.......................................................................................... 28 WHAT TO CHOOSE ................................................................................. 30 SYNERGIES ............................................................................................. 32 TRIANGLE OF CONFLICT........................................................................ 34 CLOSURE .................................................................................................... 36 MAP .......................................................................................................... 36
4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 39
5.
Bibliography .............................................................................................. 40 5.1.
References in English ........................................................................ 40
2
1. Module description Sociometric Group Mapping is the fourth module of the course Psychodrama as a Tool in Education (PaTiE). The module can be studied independently from the other parts of the course, although a grasp of the basic concepts and principles of psychodrama may be helpful in better understanding of the content of this part. The course is aimed at VET adult educators who are interested in learning how to apply psychodramatic action methods in the classroom. Basic knowledge of sociometry has the potential to sensitize the teachers to hidden factors in group interactions and provide suggestions on how to disclose them and thus make them available for further work. Accordingly, the method is of potential interest to educators seeking ways to improve their managing of group dynamics. Sociometry is a complex science which cannot be fully presented in the framework of the PaTiE course. Still the basics introduced in this module should provide VET adult educators with sufficient knowledge and skills for implementing simple sociometric exercises in their educational process.
1.1. Aims to introduce VET adult educators to the basics of sociometry in its relevance for education. to present a set of sociometric techniques most useful in giving insight into group structure and facilitating team building and conflict management. to practically illustrate how these techniques can be implemented in workshop environment. to discuss the applicability of the techniques in the participants’ educational practice .
1.2. Learning outcomes On completion of the module, the adult educators will be able to: explain the principles of sociometry and its possible benefits for educational practice in VET list three sociometric techniques and argue why and how they can (cannot) be applied in the participants’ own practice propose and run an appropriate sociometric exercise to respond to a particular problem/challenge in a group of adult learners “map” the structure of a sample group and the patters of its inherent relations 3
1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The materials presented in this module can be used in two ways. First of all, they specify the content of the respective part of the PaTiE curriculum and thus help the trainer plan and run this session of the course. Secondly, the content can be studied by the VET educators, the participants of the course, as supplementary learning materials helpful in understanding and consolidating the methodology learnt at the workshop. The module begins with a presentation of basic concepts and principles of sociometry and the theoretical context in which they originated. The focus is on those aspects of the method which may facilitate team building and resolving tensions in the classroom. The discussion covers both the benefits which can be gained through the application of the methodology in the context of adult education as well as dangers of irresponsible use of the approach which can lead to serious disturbances in the group process. The theoretical aspect of the module should not stand in the way of practical demonstrations of the experiential method of sociometry which is nowadays mainly used in psychodrama training. This will be ensured in two ways. The session follows the general scheme of a psychodrama workshop leading the participants through all the key phases of warm-up, action and sharing. Sufficient time is given to the introduction of sample sociometric techniques with a view to adapting them to educational contexts.
The activities presented in this module draw on the approaches validated in the framework of the project Psychodrama on the educational stage (POTENS) which developed innovation to be transferred to the PaTiE project. These approaches have been further elaborated for this module through the subject literature study and piloting of chosen techniques in workshops for adult learners. This complementary input is reflected in all the three main parts of the module: The theoretical part focuses on those aspects of sociometry which proved useful and applicable in the context of adult education. Now the methodology is revised in the view of specific needs of VET adult educators who are the main target group of the PaTiE course. The introduction to theory is drafted in such a way as to briefly present the basics of sociometry and define its unique character as a method of engaging with group dynamics. The theory is closely linked to the practical part of the workshop in line with the psychodramatic philosophy valuing experiential 4
learning. Further reading list is provided for self-study, for those educators willing to gain a deeper insight into the theories behind the method. The key part of the module introduces a set of sociometric exercises chosen in a way to give the participants a taste of the methodology in all its aspects covered by the course. It is believed that practical introduction to sociometry as a tool in education is a more efficient approach than lecturing or mentoring. Some of the exercises presented here have been validated in the framework of the POTENS project while the others have been designed specifically for the PaTiE course. The module is planned in such a way as to give both the trainer and the participants a clear indication of the level of attainment of the intended learning outcomes. Each activity introducing a specific aspect of sociometry of interest to VET adult educators is closed by a set of questions which should lead to a discussion involving all the participants and reflecting the level of understanding of the key concepts in focus.
5
2. Introduction to theory Sociometry is a science of human relations originally conceived by J.L. Moreno and further developed by his followers in psychodrama and sociodrama. It studies the formation and construction of groups with a view to depicting, “mapping”, interpersonal relations inherent in them. In particular, the degree of acceptance and rejection among group members is the focus of the investigation. For the purpose of this module we have adopted a definition proposed by the International Sociometry Training Network (www.sociometry.net) as the most comprehensive definition and widely adopted by psychodramatists who are the main user group of the method: “Sociometry is a study of both the quantitative and qualitative interpersonal relations, focused on the number of relationships and the nature of those relationships. We explore the choice-making activity of groups of all kinds, examining choices people make for other persons with whom to interact, share time and space, energy and states of consciousness.” The definition needs to be further clarified to underline the unique aspects of the method of interest to educators: The focus of the method is practical as sociometric exercises deal with the individual's impact on the group's cohesion, and vice versa, the group’s influence on the individual. Accordingly, sociometry has direct relevance for education facilitating the process of group building, dealing with learners’ isolation and resistance. If applied properly the method can bring results which greatly enhance motivation of the group members to engage in educational tasks. Sociometric exercises help the participants raise their awareness of the complex nature of relations among the group and better understand how these relations are connected to their personality traits, feelings and beliefs. Getting to know oneself and developing a better understanding of how the team functions has an essential influence on the evolution of each of the group members and improves their cooperation. Sociometric techniques facilitate the process of making group decisions, especially in the situations where there are conflicts among the group and consensus needs to be reached.
Sociometry has a theoretical foundation in Moreno’s writings but it is its practical application that is of most interest to teachers and trainers, including VET adult educators. In what follows we will thus outline the main theoretical concepts and 6
principles of sociometry needed to grasp the basics of the science and then focus on concrete exercises which may facilitate group work in educational contexts. However, it must be emphasised that the application of sociometry in education also carries multiple threats in a situation in which the trainer does not possess sufficient knowledge, skills and experience. Thus the following overview of sociometry should be taken as an encouragement for a deeper study of the method which can be partly conducted through reading. Nevertheless, the full grasp of the potential of the method is only achievable through practice under the supervision of a skilled trainer, preferably with the support of a peer group of practitioners.
2.1. The foundations of sociometry in J.L. Moreno’s writings Sociometry was invented by Jacob Levy Moreno (cf. chapter 2.1 of the introductory module, “The experiential method of Psychodrama”) in the course of his work on the dynamics of relationships. The core of the science is an intuitive grasp of the fact that people tend to behave in a more spontaneous and creative way when affiliating with others with whom they feel comfortable and, vice versa, tend to get stiff or tense when faced with people perceived as repulsive. This insight is not particularly new or enlightening in itself, still it was developed by Moreno in an original and innovative way. He ventured into explorations of the invisible currents of attraction or repulsion which underline interpersonal interactions and went even further to proposing tools for “measuring” them. Such a formulation of the main objectives of sociometry immediately opened a complexity of factors which are at play in interpersonal communication which had not been previously subject to scientific investigations. The bulk of Moreno’s theory is included in his seminal work Who Shall Survive? Foundations of Sociometry, Group Psychotherapy and Sociodrama, published in three editions in 1934, 1953 and 1978 (now available free in an on-line version on the website of the American Society of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama http://www.asgpp.org/). This book is the foundation of both sociometry theory and practice and still the main source of inspiration for the community of sociometrists. We shall therefore begin with an outline of the key concepts and methods expounded in this treatise. Moreno was a psychiatrist and the invention of sociometry is firmly rooted in his practice as a doctor. However, the very opening of Who Shall Survive clarifies the scope of his interests and goals which substantially distanced him from the mainstream of science: 7
“A truly therapeutic procedure cannot have less an objective than the whole of mankind. But no adequate therapy can be prescribed as long as mankind is not a unity in some fashion and as long as its organisation remains unknown.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 3) Accordingly, there is a need for a science which would first disclose the social structure of mankind, perceived as a social and organic unity, and then heal it as humanity has come to a state of substantial distortion. In brief, these are the tasks Moreno embarked on in his design of the new science of sociometry, a form of a spiritual quest for a better world in which to live, moderated to some extent by rational scrutiny and empirical data from social experiments. This needs to be stated in the beginning in order not to confuse sociometry with “science” as we know it today. Nevertheless, it is worth realising the novelty and value of Moreno’s insights into the fabric of human interactions
which
influenced
social
psychology,
group
psychotherapy
and
interpersonal communication training, just to mention the main fields where his input is still visible today. Any healing process of society needs to be guided by an understanding of what is meant by “health” in this regard. Moreno underlined two principles which should be safeguarded in order for a human being to fully realise their potential: “The cornerstones of sociometric conceptualisation are the universal concepts of spontaneity and creativity. Sociometry has taken these concepts from the metaphysical and philosophical level and brought them to empirical test by means of sociometric method.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 11) The value of human existence lies in free exercise of creative abilities which make man the highest manifestation of infinite creativity which permeates the universe. Both society and culture have value as offering an environment in which humans can flourish as creative beings. However, when they limit this potential through “conserving” the creative energy in artefacts or stereotyped patterns of behaviour they have a destructive influence on the individual, affecting them at the core of their being. This destructive process works most visibly at the level of spontaneity, understood as a state of mind opening up a flow of fresh ideas and feelings. Spontaneity and creativity are twin factors, the former being the catalyser of the latter. When spontaneity is blocked, the human behaviour takes the form of automated response, deprived of the unique qualities of creative action. Moreno saw this phenomenon as a form of pathology rooted in particular forms of societal institutions and organisations which need to be “cured” starting from the smallest “social atoms” in order to effectuate the 8
healing of mankind. To this end he developed sociometry as “a technique of freedom, a technique of balancing the spontaneous social forces to the greatest possible harmony and unity of all”. (Who Shall Survive, p. 8) When we try to move beyond the dense speculative discourse of Moreno towards more concrete ideas of his science we should look at the concept of spontaneity more closely. He defined it as a process which operates in the present and propels the individual to an adequate response to a new situation or a new response to an old situation. Moreno designed and experimented with a number of environments in which this unique skill could be trained or fostered: “theatre of spontaneity”, psychodrama and sociodrama being the best known. Common to these inventions is a play group in which the participants are encouraged to come up with spontaneous expressions. Moreno could observe in statu nascendi how spontaneity emerges and what its limiting factors are. In particular he focused on the interpersonal processes which affect spontaneous group production and the ways they lead either to a successful harmonious performance or an enactment lacking in unity or harmony. He noticed tendencies which emerge among different members of a group drawing them at one time apart and drawing them at another time together. These tendencies may have different impact on the individuals and the group being sometimes advantageous for the individuals but disadvantageous for the whole, or advantageous for some members while disadvantageous for others. These currents of emotions flow below the surface of the interactions and when they become apparent they are perceived as attractions or repulsions among group members. When it comes to playing on stage these factors have a substantial influence on the spontaneity level of the actors, either supporting a free, uninhibited expression or blocking it. The role of a skilled director is to facilitate the emergence of a group with each of its members free to contribute to the collective of whom they are a part of in line with the natural currents of attractions and repulsions distancing or bonding them together. The overarching objective is to build an enduring and harmonious group for the benefit of all, still respecting the authentic feelings of the participants and ensuring their spontaneity level of minds. The above insights, when applied to the study of society, resulted in the formulation of the law of social gravity and focus on small social groupings in which the formation of societal bonds can be studied like under the microscope. If the whole of mankind is a unity composed of small aggregates, e.g. families, neighbourhoods, clubs, etc., sociology needs to begin as micro-sociology and scientifically investigate the currents of attractions and repulsions below the visible organisational structures. This is sociometry in a nutshell as conceived by Moreno: 9
“Sociometry aspires to be a science within its own right. It is the indispensable prologue for all the social sciences. Without giving up the vision of totality by an inch, it has retreated from the maximum to the minimum, to the social atoms and molecules. It can therefore be called a sociology of the microscopic dynamic events, regardless of the size of the social group to which it is applied, small or large. The result of sociometric development has been that the investigation of the smallest social aggregates has become more interesting than that of the large ones. For the future development of sociometry it may be desirable to separate it as a special discipline and to consider it as a microscopic and microdynamic science underlying all social sciences.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 20)
Remember Sociometry explores the hidden currents of attractions and repulsions among members of small social aggregates with a view to building harmonious groups based on authentic relationships which bond them together. 2.2. Social atom Human society has an atomic structure and Moreno claimed that it is sociometry which discovered these microscopic formations of social fabric. The term “social atom” was coined to describe the smallest functional unit within a social group characterised by a pattern of attractions, repulsions and indifference relating its members to one another and the whole group. Every member of such a group is positively or negatively related to an indefinite number of co-members, who in turn may be related to him positively or negatively. There are also one-way relations observable in such groups – some members might be related to the central figure and unknown to him/her while he/she might be related to some members to whom he/she is unknown. Such total configuration comprises a social atom. Humans live and develop in social atoms from the very birth and the structures of relationships around them undergo expansions as we grow up. This close social context gives concrete meaning to life. The concept of social atom is closely connected to that of cultural atom defined as a focal pattern of role-relations around an individual. The differentiation of this aspect results from the fact that each member of a group is the focus of numerous roles which are related to the roles of other members, just as he/she is a focus of attractions and repulsions. “Ego” or “self” which are a subject of psychological investigations emerge from the actual roles in which an individual operates. And roles and relationships 10
among roles are characteristic of specific cultures, what explains the choice of the term. Still both the social and cultural atoms are manifestation of the same social reality of human interactions. It is important to realise that social atom is different from an organisational or institutional unit such as family, work group or club. These are the visible divisions of society which are the subject of investigation in sociology, the macro-science of society. Sociometry goes deeper into the fabric of human relations and explores the “microscopic” threads which bond people together. Accordingly, when a sociometrist undertakes an analysis of a certain community, visible in a certain locality, with a certain physical geography, e.g. a town filled with schools, shops, etc., he examines the concrete position of every individual in this community with a nucleus of relations around them. This nucleus may be “thicker” around some individuals and “thinner” around others and consists of the currents of attractions and repulsions in different levels of intensity, with the “threads” of indifference of less significance (in practice Moreno focuses on the polarity of these emotional bonds). Such a nucleus of relations forms a social atom. Furthermore, certain “parts” of these atoms may be linked with other “parts” of social atoms and so on and thus form complex chains of interrelations in sociometric networks. Sociometric networks are in turn parts of a larger unit, a sociometric geography of a community, which finally form the largest configuration, the sociometric totality of human society. “The responsible domain of social science requires expansion to include the immediate and practical structuring and guidance of present day human society on all its levels from the physical up to the societal plane. This job may have to begin by cleaning up our research shelves and laboratories, and concentrating all our efforts upon a few strategically selected points. The weakest spot in the armor of present day society and culture is its ignorance of its own social structure, especially of the small local structures in which people actually spend their lives. The time has come for sociometry to move from the “closed” into the “open” community. By means of practical, direct and immediate demonstrations of the usefulness of the sociometric methods faith in science can be regained and cemented. By such means can science be “saved” and put to full use. With the cooperation of “all” the people we should be able to create a social order worthy of the highest aspirations of our times. This is the meaning of revolutionary, dynamic sociometry.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 29) Moreno’s vision, revolutionary at that time, has proven to be a harbinger of our own times. For the last decades of the twentieth century the Western world has witnessed a 11
disintegration of the traditional social fabric with the basic unit of “closed” family gradually replaced by “open” relations, freely formed according to the dynamic of mutual attractions and repulsions. The “techniques of freedom”, to borrow the Morenian term, are fully in use nowadays – divorce, gay marriages, gender manipulation as the most conspicuous cases of parting with traditional norms. An idea to value the hidden currents of emotions and “act them out” freely in one’s own life tends to be predominant in the Western culture and creates a fundamental shift with traditional societies (consider the clash with Christianity – both Catholic and Orthodox - or Islam). A significant part of sociometry is devoted to a study of such invisible currents of feelings constituting the processes which attract individuals to one another or which repel them. Moreno coined a term to describe this phenomenon – tele (from Greek word meaning “distant”). It is best understood in relation to a better known concept of empathy, as an ability to “feel” the other at a distance, with a reservation that this is a two-way process, a continuum “in between” the people. Moreno claimed that there are some real processes in one’s life situation which correspond to some real processes in another person’s life situation in various degrees of intensity and polarity (positive, negative or neutral) and they explain why some people immediately “click” with each other when they meet, get rejected or stay indifferent. Each social atom is composed of such numerous tele configurations, essentially it is a telic structure. Sociometry has a range of methods designed to explore this invisible, microscopic fabric of human relations. Before we present some of these techniques, a few words need to be said about the general nature of the sociometric experiment.
2.3. Science of action The sociometric experiment requires proper conditions under which significant facts of human relations emerge. Sociometry is a social science which investigates objects of different nature than physical sciences. In the case of the latter they include inanimate objects and non-human organisms which may be subject to observation, being external to the observer. In the case of the former, the observer is a part of the subject under scrutiny which thus cannot be fully externalised, examined from an outsider’s point of view. This results from the fundamental difference between the world of organisms and the world of human beings which should translate into different scientific methodologies: “How does a social experiment start? It does not start with organisms, behaviours and cathexis (psychoanalytic technical term); such is the view of observers and spectators. 12
It starts with “you” and “me”, with meetings and encounters, with actors and counter actors. It does not start with “he” and “she”, with “interpersonal relations” and the world of the “outsiders”. A science of action begins with two verbs, to be and to create, and with three nouns, actors, spontaneity and creativity.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 45 – 46) This statement makes Moreno’s method as revolutionary as its focus on the attractions and repulsions between individual people. Actually, the methodology is a logical corollary of the concept of the object under scrutiny. The internal “tellic” structure of a group is only in exceptionally cases visible on the surface of social interactions. In order to make it operationally visible the members of the group need to emerge here and now in their capacity as “actors” in an environment filled with action provoking situations. The actors must act as if they were engaged in real life situations, “act out” their relations with other actors on stage. Thus the stage becomes the proper experimental field when the performance of actors replaces the behaviour of individuals observed by an outsider. The sociometrist joins the experiment as one of the actors in situ. His role is to foster an environment in which the participants can spontaneously open up to others and disclose their feelings in an authentic way. In brief, the science of sociometry uses psychodrama as one of its essential techniques and it is exactly how the method is introduced in Moreno’s seminal treatise on sociometry. The sociometric experiment develops in stages. It may begin with observational and interpretative stage at which it is possible to notice some regularity in groupings and attempt a provisional classification of the position of individuals in them. This is best done when members of the group are involved in spontaneous interactions, not aware of the “experiment” being carried out. However, the results of such observation are usually superficial and provide only preliminary data for a proper sociometric exploration. At the next stage the sociometrist turns into a participant observer, entering the group and becoming a part of it. At this point the study becomes experiential as he can experience the polarity of relations among the members himself and register the group’s internal dynamics. This is a form of partnership with the group which leads to a refinement of the initial observations and a more accurate classification of the position of each individual in the group. The key phase of the experiment which makes sociometry a unique method among the social sciences begins with the direct involvement of the group members, that is at the stage when diagnostic sociometry (the above stages) opens a way to dynamic sociometric procedures:
13
“We cannot adequately comprehend the central direction of an individual in his development either through observation, for instance, a child, through watching its most spontaneous expression, its play life, or through partnership. We must make him an experimenter. Considering group formation, we must make the members of the prospective groups themselves the authors of the groups to which they belong.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 73) This passage gives a clue to sociometry as a “science of action”. Its ultimate aim is not theoretical knowledge of society viewed as an “object” of investigation. Such objectivity is hardly possible in Moreno’s view as we cannot adopt a position of an “objective” outsider. We can only get closer to the nature of human relations through acting them out with other co-actors in pursuit of goals which are motivating for the group being explored. This is best done through projects perceived by the participants as effectuating a change of the social organisation of which they are a part. An example from the educational context illustrates the approach very well: a sociometrist enters a classroom and presents his proposal to the students in the following way: “You are seated according to directions your teacher has given you. The neighbour who sits beside you is not chosen by you. You are now given the opportunity to choose the boy or girl whom you would like to be seated on either side of you. Write down who you would like first best; then, whom you would like second best. Look around and make up your mind. Remember that next term the friends you choose now may sit beside you.” (Who Shall Survive, p. 75) This is a basic example of a sociometric experiment but immediately the challenge of the method can be seen. What happens if the students take the invitation seriously and point out not only their friends but also the enemies? What if the “social atom” of a network of attractions and repulsions shows a nucleus of the class well integrated through reciprocal bonds with some students rejected or isolated in the group? There are serious ethical questions coming to mind when one considers such a procedure. There are also practical issues – what next? Sociometry, in its foundations laid by Moreno, has optimistic answers to such dilemmas. First there is a belief in the power of the group. The essential point of the experiment is to help the participants realise the common good in focus – we are doing this for the benefit of all, we are creating a new reality based on the authenticity of relations. “If the test procedure is identical with a life-goal of the subject he can never feel himself to have been victimised or abused” (Who Shall Survive, p. 77). And the subject of the experiment is not an individual person but rather the whole group. The procedure must 14
bring about an upheaval in the current grouping, it has a revolutionary nature, otherwise it would remain just a “harmless, poverty stricken instrument” (Who Shall Survive, p. 87). Sociometry claims to be “social ethics par excellence”. Its fundamental principle is the truth of relations on which to base social order. In the sociometric experiment the participants are required to be truthful and spontaneous in choosing and rejecting their partner and expose themselves unselfishly. Perhaps the best known saying of the founder of sociometry is taken from this challenging part of his theory: “give truth and receive truth, give love to the group and it will return love to you, give spontaneity and spontaneity will return” (Who Shall Survive, p. 86). The sociometrist is not an external observer like a sociologist, psychologist or psychoanalyst but rather a social leader able to foster all the above qualities in the group. The initial test needs to be followed by explorations of real life scenarios which could result in a better and more fruitful organisation. The school example is a “light” case as compared with explorations of more complex social structures, for example those in which intercultural tensions come to the fore in troubled communities. In both cases sociometry cannot be separated from the other “action” methods invented by Moreno – psychodrama for treating more personal issues and sociodrama for healing intergroup relations. In neither of these methods there are prescribed scenarios to follow. We will outline some of the techniques in the repertoire of the sociometrist in the next chapter, still it is his ability to warm the group up for action and move it in the right direction for the benefit of all which safeguards the experiment.
2.4. Sociometric methods and techniques There are a number of methods and techniques used by sociometrists to explore the area of human relations. The sociometric test and the sociogram are the most important as a two-cylinder “engine” of sociometry. Thus they need to be presented in more detail than the other methods.
The sociometric test This is the first step of investigations of the depth structure of a group in focus. It is an instrument designed to examine social structures through the measurement of attractions and repulsions among the members of the group, or to use terms better suited to interpersonal relations, choices and rejections among them. Accordingly, the 15
test requires an individual to choose his associates in a group of which he or she is a member. The main objective of the test is to reveal the underlying psychological structure of the group and determine the position of each individual in it. The test can be applied to examination of different groups, e.g. households, work teams, school classes, etc. The sociometric test touches on very sensitive psychological issues hence the group should be carefully prepared for it according to their maturity and disposition towards the test. Possible resistances should be realised and taken into account. They might refer to different factors such as ignorance of what sociometric procedure is about, fear of knowing one’s actual position in the group, social consequences of self-disclosure or fear of the others openly expressing their feelings and attitudes. Thus the group needs to be properly educated about the nature of the experiment and its potential benefits in terms of a better balanced organisation of the group and a better balanced situation of each of its members. The preparation for the test is thus essentially a warm-up process which must be tactfully conducted to involve all participants. Without a sufficient degree of sociometric consciousness and readiness of the group the whole procedure is likely to end up in total or partial failure (hurting some members of the group).
The testing is done on the basis of chosen sociometric criteria, understood as the common motives which draw individuals together spontaneously for a certain end. Every particular group has a set of certain values or goals which hold it together, although this structure may not be visible on the surface of official, institutional settings. The task of the sociometrist is to reveal this hidden structure through testing. This is best done through choosing a situation in which the participants are drawn to each other by one or more criteria and selecting a criterion to which they are likely to spontaneously respond, e.g. the one mentioned in the previous chapter: “whom would you like to sit with?�. The next requirement is that the participants must be properly motivated to give sincere responses like in the above example test which might result in a better organisation of the class. The motivation will be strengthened if the criterion is strong and definite and pointing to an enduring solution to a problem affecting the group here and now.
The test should ideally involve the participants in action towards a life-goal shared by the group. It is then likely to be perceived as an opportunity for them to become active agents in matters concerning their life situation. In some cases the experiment may take place directly in a real life environment. To use the school example again, the 16
students may be encouraged to choose their desk companions as they wish through moving around and testing various sitting arrangements. In this situation it is important to remember that the final arrangement needs to benefit all, not only a leading minority of the class. However, the most common environment for the test is a psychodrama setting in which the participants can freely practice various choice/rejection scenarios without being punished for making mistakes. The stage is a form of a virtual reality where acts can be done and “undone� in a safe play environment. Nowadays sociometric tests are rarely conducted in real-life situations although the founder of sociometry was brave enough to experiment with his tools directly in whole communities
(e.g.
Hudson
community
or smaller
agricultural
and
industrial
cooperatives in the USA).
The potential benefits of the procedure are numerous. The test may reveal the underlying psychological structure of a group substantially differing from its external, visible manifestation. The use of different criteria with the same group may result in diverse groupings disclosing who prefers to associate with whom on various tasks and in various situations. The actual choices and rejections among participants may document their willingness to group themselves differently from the official, imposed structure. Such divergence is usually an essential factor inhibiting team work and an awareness of it is the first step towards effective intervention. In this respect the sociometric test may become a valuable tool for educators who deal with group tensions and conflicts on a regular basis. It may - if conducted with sufficient knowledge and skill in using the instrument as well as sensitivity to subtle psychological factors at play here.
The sociogram The sociometric test generates complex data which needs to be represented in a visual schema to be meaningful. Moreno devised a process of charting such data in the form of a sociogram. He envisaged this instrument not only as a method of presentation of the fabric of interpersonal relations but also as a tool of exploration of sociometric facts. A sociogram shows the position of each individual in a given group and all their interrelations. As such the scheme is a method of structural analysis of a community.
The charting makes some subtle relations among group members visible. The basic requirement for a sociogram is the accuracy of the depiction of the choice, rejection and neutrality structures in the group, although it may be further extended to include 17
other emotional currents interconnecting with the attraction and repulsion patters. Sociograms are devised in such a way as to enable the sociometrist to map an overall group structure but also to focus on specific relations among group members like under the microscope. Balancing both these aspects is a difficult task in view of the idiosyncratic nature of sociometry. In order to see this challenge we recommend consulting at least some of the original sociograms drawn by Moreno, available for free in the on-line version of Who Shall Survive, e.g. http://www.asgpp.org/docs/WSS/Map%20III/images/Map%20III%20%20999x739.jpg The symbols used in sociograms are influenced by the Greek mythology which accounted for the forces of attraction and repulsion among people through the figures of Eros (love), Anteros (mutual love) and Eris (discord). Accordingly, the red line with an arrow (recalling Eros shooting an arrow towards the chosen) stands for a one-way attraction and the red line with arrows on both sides stands for a mutual attraction. Similarly, the black lines are pointed with one or two arrows at the end. Neutrality is represented by a lack of connection. The forms taken by the interrelation of individuals represent the structure of a group and the overall pattern of these structures stands for the group organisation. The following glossary explains the basic symbols used in sociograms.
Circle – woman Triangle – man Red line with two arrows – two individuals form a mutual attraction Red line with one arrow – one individual is attracted to another one without reciprocity Black line with two arrows – two individuals reject each other Black line with one arrow – one individual rejects another one without reciprocity Incompatible pair – two individuals are not compatible, one sends a red line which is answered by a black line Red chain – two individuals are mutually attracted and one of them forms a mutual attraction with a third, the third forming a mutual attraction with a fourth, etc. Black chain – two individuals reject each other and one of them forms a mutual rejection with a third, the third forming a mutual rejection with a fourth, etc. Red triangle – three individuals compatible with each other Black triangle – three individuals incompatible with each other Red star – a few individuals are attracted to the same person Black star – a few individuals reject the same person 18
Isolation – an individual is not chosen or rejected and does not choose or reject
In order to make a meaningful sociogram with the use of the above symbols a criterion has to be defined according to which the people choose or reject each other. In the following sociogram the criterion is “with whom would you like to work on a project” and the graph represents a sample group’s preferences surveyed through a sociometric test. This is a sociogram drafted only for the instructional purposes.
RK
LW AN
VE
HS
LP
AP
SD
AP WI
The main benefit of such a visualisation lies in a clear grasp of the issues affecting the present group structure and dynamics in pursue of a specific goal, e.g. organising a better work and learning environment. The above sociogram shows the following issues to be taken into account in the case of the particular group presented:
the number of isolated individuals – the larger the number, the lower the level of the group integration the number of mutual attractions - the larger the number, the higher the level of the group cohesion the number of repulsions – indicates the difficulty in creating a harmonious and motivated team
Sociograms help to go further beyond generalities and focus on specific relations in the context of the structure of a specific group. Obviously, this is a situated procedure which requires the sociometrist to consider the whole interactional context in focus – the sociogram is only a tool for mapping the field of the explorations.
Other techniques The other techniques have a supplementary character to the sociometric test and sociogram and have not been developed in so much detail. They have a more generic character and are not specific to sociometry, being known and used in other contexts. 19
The following presentation thus only outlines the main methods which contribute to the “mapping” of interpersonal relations and the positions of individuals in the group.
The acquaintance test measures the range of social contacts of an individual – the level of his/her social expansion. In the course of the sociometric procedure it may come before the sociometric test as providing initial information on the volume of their acquaintances from which each individual draws significant relations. The test can be carried out while investigating whole communities with the use of social survey tools (questionnaire, interview) and the data subjected to statistical analysis. The results usually document substantial variations in the number of acquaintances of the members of the community and thus provide first insights into the structure of the group to be investigated in more detail through the sociometric test.
The test of emotional expansiveness measures the emotional potential of an individual which translates into the ability to “hold” the affection of other people for a certain period of time. It goes deeper into the microscopic fabric of a group than the acquaintance test as not only the number of social contacts matter but also the depth and the intensity of the relations. The test shows that the position of an individual in a group is conditioned by the level of his emotional “energy” and people differ widely in this respect. In particular, the tool is an important diagnostic technique in analysing phenomena of social isolation, often caused by an inability to maintain a sufficient scope of significant relations.
The spontaneity and role-playing tests are closely related. The former rates the ability of an individual to respond to a previously known situation in a new way or to behave adequately in a novel situation. Such testing is usually done by sociometrists in the psychodrama environment when enacting situations on stage is an essential part of the method. The role test measures the ability of an individual to perform different societal roles. For an integrated personality a certain role repertoire is needed, in the sense of a set of roles which can be played adequately without a discord. However, some of the roles an individual may play are underdeveloped thus limiting the realisation of his/her potential and some may be overdeveloped or conflicted. The role-playing test is a diagnostic tool which rates the range of roles performed by an individual. The psychodrama stage offers a setting in which to recreate concrete situations in which specific roles are played and replay them with a view to gaining an insight into the patterns of behaviour. This further leads to elaborating more adequate responses to life
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challenges as well as more fruitful social interactions. Sociometry is a science of action – not an analysis for its own sake.
All the above methods and techniques were devised in a nutshell by Moreno and presented in his opus magnum Who Shall Survive. Since then many modifications have been introduced by his followers in the process of adapting the methods to different scientific, therapeutic and educational purposes. This outline cannot give a full account of all these developments. Nevertheless, in the following chapter we will present some current issues being debated with a view to sensitizing VET adult educators both to the potential of the method in facilitating group work and possible harms which can be posed by its irresponsible use.
2.5. Current issues debated Sociometry overlaps with many current fields of psychological and sociological investigations and although Moreno’s input is not always acknowledged, the influence of his method can be seen in the following areas: developmental psychology in its analysis of the impact of being accepted or rejected on personality study of temperament and personality types, especially the phenomena of introversion and extraversion social psychology in its multifaceted investigation of how people behave in the presence of others interpersonal and intercultural communication theory which deals with the complexity of relations between people in various social interactional contexts management theory which seeks ways to foster effective group work environment taking into account interpersonal issues at play group psychotherapy in its various forms and types which base the interventions on the impact of the group on the individual and vice versa pedagogy which, irrespective of the age group of learners in focus, is concerned with the social dimension of learning and teaching
The dynamics explored by sociometry are relevant for all the above fields, still the method shows its limitations in the original version proposed by Moreno. Some of the main points being debated relate to the following aspects of the approach.
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Sociometry tends to focus exclusively on the patterns of interpersonal preferences within groups. However, the group phenomena involve many other factors which are beyond the narrow scope of sociometry. Even if the sociometric test includes many different criteria according to which people get attracted to each other or reject each other the results by no means approximate the complexity of human relations. Even a brief survey of the emotional “vocabulary” of humankind - consider the emotions hidden under the labels of love, hatred, sympathy, contempt, disregard, admiration, disdain, lust, disgust – show the incompatibility of the sociometric measuring tools with the actual richness of interpersonal relations. Can they be charted like a railway network map with lines, arrows, circles, squares, etc? Can all the shades of emotions be reduced to the feelings of attractions and repulsions between people? Is the even most detailed sociogram not just a gross simplification of the matter? Such issues need to be taken into account before we embark on a sociometric experiment. We are certainly dealing with a valid issue which would be acknowledged by every educator: some people in the class, including the teacher, “click” with each other while some others repel each other and some just feel indifferent. How to understand this dynamic? What diagnostic tools do we have? How to engage with these phenomena? Sociometry is one of very few systematic attempts to explore this field. As such it is, irrespective of its shortcomings, of interest to all those who seek ways to better understand and improve their working group environment.
In the areas of actual implementations of sociometric methods, there is the sensitivity of the issues to be disclosed and the resulting emotional harm on the participants at stake. Even if we acknowledge the fact that the dimension of attractions and repulsions between people is a key factor at play in any group, the question is how to deal with the consequences of their disclosure. A group may have “stars”, the focal personalities being the objects of attractions in the group, and individuals on the outskirts being rejected by the majority for various reasons (e.g. status, character, culture, appearance, etc). Publicizing these emotional currents in a form of a chart for everyone to see and work on may look a weird and risky course of action. It undermines the complex social mechanisms which are present in each culture and maintain a certain balance between the open and the hidden. Approaching the point in Moreno’s own terms we can say that life is a theatre and the façade is its inherent element. If we tear it down what remains may present a rather disappointing view. The façade in human interactions masks deficiencies and helps real life actors hide behind. Is the quest for authenticity in social life a valid case then? What sociometry proposes in its removal of masks is the demolishing of the real life stage. An interesting development, in view of 22
the fact that sociometrists are advocates of the artificial stage of psychodrama on which to train people for real life performance. Still this seems a consistent corollary as the sociometric experiment is hardly possible in other settings.
To embark on the procedure the leader needs not only the mastery of the sociometric tools (choice of appropriate criteria, tests, drafting of sociograms) but also the ability to manage the developments in the group following the disclosure of its inherent patterns of attractions and repulsions. There is no published methodology on how to proceed: all depends on the particular group structure and dynamic which excludes any prescribed course of action. Sociometrists, who nowadays mainly belong to the psychodrama community, are required to take long-term training before they are able to use the method in practice. The training is provided as part of psychodrama qualifications hence the expert knowledge of the method remains within the confines of psychodrama.
However, Moreno’s insights into the operations of “tele” in groups and his attempts to systematically explore these interrelations open a way for a less dogmatic approach than the qualification framework set by the psychodrama institutes. The most comprehensive survey of these developments is available through the portal run by Adam Blatner (blatner.com), which inspired the reflections in this chapter. Sociometry is seen as entering the gap rarely explored between the depth psychology and social psychology and proposing essential questions which need to be acted upon in practical interventions when the group dynamic has to be improved. In this context, sociometric exercises are taken not so much as a scientific procedure of investigating group structures but rather as powerful catalysers of discussion of the way an individual functions in a group: Are you aware of the way people look at you? Why are you chosen by some and rejected by others? What are you actually chosen for and what would like to be chosen for? How can you better present yourself to attract people who interest you? These are just sample questions which might be explored on the basis of insights gained through sociometric activities but they illustrate the current shift from the original Morenian “science” of sociometry to a more modest approach which uses some of the techniques to foster self-knowledge and more fruitful social interactions. This is sociometry in a nutshell as practiced today – a supplementary tool in various interventions aimed at cohesive group building.
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Remember Sociometry overlaps with many fields of psychology and sociology and is nowadays referred to as a rich resource of ideas and methods on how to deal with group dynamics in various educational, training and therapeutic contexts. 3. Introduction to exercises The exercises in this module have been chosen in such a way as to give a taste of sociometry in its practical applications in the context of adult education. The other consideration taken into account in the choice and flow of the exercises relates to the structure of a typical psychodrama session: it is a three-phase process, beginning with warm-up, gradually involving the group in action and closing with so called sharing session. The exercises in this module follow this scenario and start with “lighter� activities, then proceed to more demanding ones and finally encourage reflection on the experience. In doing so, we are following the basic principle of psychodrama which is a form of experiential learning. The third factor taken into account in planning the activities in this module relates to the preparatory research completed before the work on the PaTiE curriculum and training materials. We have identified a number of essential skills and competences of VET adult educators which could be enhanced through practical acquaintance with sociometry. The choice reflects these direct needs with a view to: helping the educator to be a team player involving the learners, encouraging them to participate in shared tasks creating an atmosphere of cooperation and trust in the group developing awareness of the students' real preferences fostering cohesion in the classroom
The presentation draws on examples of concrete exercises and techniques which proved successful in educational contexts. Some of them have been designed and tested in the framework of the POTENS project which provided a background against which to develop the PaTiE resources. Some others have been developed from the resource of activities widely practiced by sociometrists in psychodrama training. They can be used in the VET adult education if the context of training and the purpose of the class/subject makes it meaningful to apply such exercises. This is a very important consideration which always needs to be taken into account when working with
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sociometric methods. They must have a well thought purpose and cannot be just taken as ready tools on hand. They cannot be separated from the group process, which is unique due to the emotional and intellectual make-up of the participants and the specific themes in focus of the group work. The example activities featured in this module illustrate the specificity of the method and focus on:
revealing connections among the people who form a team showing the complexity and multidimensionality of common group relations facilitating group decisions, useful in situations in which learners during classes come up with different ideas as how to proceed
All the exercises can be adapted to concrete educational work. If so, it is necessary to pay particular attention to the purpose of their use and concrete challenges to be addressed by applying them. A certain degree of creativity and flexibility is essential for an effective use of the techniques. The following outlines should thus be seen as suggestions of how to proceed rather than prescribed steps to follow.
Remember Sociometric exercise may have powerful impact on the group as a whole and its individual members. Thus they should always be used with sensitivity and caution in order not to harm the participants. WARM UP
The principle of warm-up applies to all psychodrama sessions irrespective of the particular themes to be explored. In the case of a workshop focused on sociometric activities an appropriate warm-up of the participants is an essential requirement for success. The beginning of group work is of great importance in psychodrama and various approaches are used to ensure motivation and an active involvement of the members. The most important function of warm-up is to stimulate the group abilities and to prepare them for getting deeper into the themes to be explored. Warm-up activities also have an important diagnostic purpose as allowing the trainer to obtain some valuable information on the group dynamics and structure. Ideally, the exercises should have a lively, playful character raising the spontaneity level of the group and thus fostering a conducive atmosphere for creative responses to the themes in focus of 25
the session. Elements of surprise and novelty are important factors in this respect. A well-planned and conducted warm-up helps the participants overcome shyness and fear which are the most common obstacles to engagement and thus the key resistance factors in group work. Warm-up exercises introduced in an artificial way, without clear awareness of the group dynamics, may have the opposite impact and actual “freeze” the group who may perceive this form of introduction as weird, inadequate or inappropriate in the particular context. The above considerations derived from the psychodrama practice apply equally to the context of education. The decisive issue is an awareness of the here and now of the group, a clear purpose behind the proposed activities and the ability to use the feedback from the group for adjusting the course of action.
DIVIDING LINE The main purpose of this exercise is to visualise – “chart” different preferences as to group work styles. As usual in psychodrama work, the warm-up exercise should also have the capacity to energise the group for further action and challenge them with an activity requiring a spontaneous response. The exercise can be run with a group who meet for the first time as well as with participants who have already met but are now encouraged to survey their attitudes to certain issues coming to the fore in the course of group work. The activity will generate some movement in the classroom so enough space should be available for the participants to move freely. The exercise can take more or less time depending on the number of participants and the level of investigations. However, if the exercise has the function of a warm-up it should not take longer than 15 minutes, unless the group and the leader are willing to continue the activity beyond this initial stage of the workshop. The trainer needs to explain the task first: “let us survey our perceptions of the optimal style of group work. Some people might like strong leadership environment in which there is a clear framework of rules, tasks and obligations set and monitored by the leader, while some others might rather appreciate working in a collaborative space in which all the above are negotiated in a shared effort. Before we start “charting” our attitudes let us recall examples of such different styles from our own experience. Walk around or sit to reflect on your experience while the room is being arranged for the following activity”.
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While the students are reflecting, the trainer divides the workshop room with a line made of scarves to separate the two group work styles. One area is marked with green and red scarves depicting the YES/NO approach while the other is covered with colourful ones scattered around in a more chaotic order. The symbolism of the arrangement should be clear enough for the participants to immediately grasp the division between a strict, ordered approach versus a collaborative, more flexible style of team work. The whole preparatory phase of the exercise should not take longer than five minutes.
Once the room is arranged the participants are encouraged to walk to either of the two sides and choose a place on the floor closer or further from the line to express the degree of their acceptance of the particular group work style. Most likely the room will be populated in an uneven way, possibly with some participants standing close to each other with some others at distant positions. The division may be unbalanced with few participants on one side, and many more on the other. All these patterns are meaningful and give both the trainer and the participants valuable insights to work on in the following parts of the session.
The exercise introduces the group to sociometry in its function of charting attitudes in the group. If there is enough time and possibility to continue the activity beyond the warm-up stage, the positions the students have taken on the floor can be represented on a graph and provide a basis for a discussion of the optimal balance between leadership and collaboration in team work. Preferably the chart should be interactive (use of digital media) so that further criteria could be introduced and the respective positions of the participants fine-tuned. This is a “light” introduction to sociometric tests as the issue of mutual attractions and repulsions within the group is touched in this activity. Still the concept of “mapping” and measuring attitudes so characteristic of sociometry should be grasped by the students at this stage of the workshop.
It is not recommended to introduce sociometry in the context of education through directly addressing the patters of choices and rejections among the students Sociometric techniques can be adapted to visualising various other relations and attitudes The function of warm-up is to gradually enter the field of explorations
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In the framework of the PaTiE course the exercise can open a way for a discussion of the value of disclosing and visualising patters attitudes in group work in the context of VET adult education. The following points can be raised as opening the key themes of interest to educators: What is the added value of charting attitudes as compared with mere discussion? How to relate sociometric activities to the subject of the class and the dynamics of the group? How to deal with resistance which might occur if the participants cannot fully grasp the meaning and purpose of such exercises?
ACTION Sociometry openly deals with very sensitive aspects of interpersonal relations which cannot be fully addressed in classroom group work, unless the educator has strong background in sociometry and the framework of the programme allows for such explorations. However, there is a wealth of sociometric approaches and techniques used in psychodrama which can be applied in education as well. The following choice of exercises should be seen as a set of example activities which also fit educational contexts, if used with reason and caution. They have been ordered in such a way as to illustrate the essential aspects of sociometry as practiced today.
SOCIAL ATOM This exercise is a different version of the activity presented in the introductory module. For those who participated in the first session it gives an occasion to revisit the concept of drawing social atoms; for those who joined the course later it will introduce a key concept and technique used by sociometrists.
The activity can be run with basic equipment and resources available in the classroom: a whiteboard, a flipchart or a projector and medium size sheets of paper for the participants’ drawings. The activity may last up to two hours depending on the size of the group and the time available. It can be introduced at the stage when the trainer feels that the group needs reorganisation of its sub-teams who are assigned with specific tasks. An active and open involvement of all the members is needed as well as
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some acquaintance with each other hence the exercise best fits an advanced phase of group work.
First, the code of sociometric symbols needs to be explained by drawing them on the board or visualised in another way. The following list covers the very basic symbols but it can be extended with those explained in the theoretical part of the module.
Circle – female Triangle – male Solid line – firm and stable relation Dotted line – problematic and variable relation Arrow – attitude, one-sided relation or mutual
Once the symbols are presented and their basic meaning understood the trainer needs to propose a criterion against which the members of the group choose each other, reject or stay neutral. The criterion should be chosen with caution in order not to enter a very risky ground of sensitive personal issues. Such a criterion might be: “who would you like to work with on a collaborative project” (the content of the project to be specified in relation to the particular field of training in which the group is involved). Each participant is then requested to draw a social atom on a separate sheet of paper placing the symbol of himself/herself in the middle and marking the other people on the drawing by connecting them with lines and writing down their names or initials. It is important that each chart includes all or most of the participants (possible in the case of workshop groups around 10 – 15 members). Some people on the graphs might stay “unconnected” while some others might be positioned in a complex network of relations.
After the individual work is done, the presentation of particular diagrams and group discussion takes place. The sociograms present subjective perceptions of the group composition and the key point of the exercise is a confrontation of these perceptions. This part of the task may start with a brief exposition of all the drawings - placed on chairs or on the floor, so that all of the participants may see all of the graphs. However, the charts can be discussed in more depth only in smaller groups or in pairs unless the whole activity can be extended to a full workshop. Still even a small scale confrontation of the drawings is significant and may lead to a reconsideration of one’s own status in the group and the others’ positions. The participants may ask questions, point at the 29
elements of the drawing and explain their meaning, discover many things which the author himself could not see, even though they were present in his/her work. The feedback from the group helps in better understanding one's own relations with other people featured in the social atoms. The exercise is a powerful tool in fostering selfawareness in social interactions.
Social atom makes the participants aware of their position in the complex network of relations among the group It can provide a basis for improving these relations and motivation to work in the team
In the framework of the PaTiE course the exercise can be taken as an opportunity to introduce the key concept of sociometry and give the participating educators a chance to raise issues regarding the applicability of the technique in the context of VET adult education. In particular, the following questions can be discussed:
How to choose appropriate sociometric criteria for such work? What requirements are essential for the social atoms to express real attitudes of the participants? What follow-up activities to plan to capitalise on the insights gained by the participants?
WHAT TO CHOOSE The basic sociometric choices explored in length by Moreno refer to the attraction, repulsion and neutrality patters. It is however worth sensitizing educators to the fact that group work is likely to generate a more complex set of attitudes to any issue in focus. This exercise has the purpose to present an approach disclosing such complex attitudes as a positive choice, negative choice, neutral choice, conflicted choice and the “choose not to choose� options which are all likely to surface in a situation in which people are asked about their preferences.
The exercise should be run with a group who know each other and are comfortable to explore contentious issues together. The activity needs sufficient space in the room so that the choice patterns can be depicted on the floor which will require the participants
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to move freely around the room. Depending on the number of participants and the level of investigations the exercise can take more or less time (1 to 2 hours). The activity needs preparation in terms of arranging the group space. Colourful scarves can be used to map an irregular shape on the floor depicting the irregularity of human attitudes and preferences. The figure should be large enough for all group members to stand inside. The inside of the figure is arranged as follows. A central point is marked to represent the neutral position by the shape of 0. On both sides of the 0 position there are areas marked for the positive (+) and negative preference (-). At a certain distance from this polarity of attitudes there are two areas marked for the conflicting stance (+/-) and another one for the “chose not to chose” position (?). This “map” on the floor is to be used for active exploration of polarities and ambivalence in choice situations against various criteria. At the initial stage of the exercise the group needs to understand the meaning of the symbols on the floor before engaging in the activity. As in all sociometric exercises the choice of issues to be explored is essential for the activity to be meaningful. The trainer needs to prepare one or various questions in advance to which the group members can respond by taking a position on the floor. The questions must relate to the particular phase of the group process and thus cannot be proposed without knowing the specific context of work. An example can illustrate the procedure. Let us imagine that the trainer wants to involve the group in choosing an appropriate place for a study visit. Possible options should be presented and discussed with the group first. At the decision making point the leader needs to formulate a clear question, e.g. “Would you like to go to workshop X for the study visit?” and then ask the group members to choose the positions on the floor which best express their preferences. The map of preferences is likely to depict the pattern of choices in the group, showing not only the clear YES/NO answers but also conflicting stances in which some members see both pros and cons of the choice while some others choose not to choose anything. The visualisation of the preferences should give all an insight into the factors affecting the group decision making and facilitate a fair choice respecting the attitudes of all the members of the group. Obviously, the final decision will be made through a follow-up discussion and possible regrouping on the floor when the participants become aware of the factors influencing the group decision making. Moreno explored mainly the attraction, repulsion and neutrality patters in his writings. Group work may generate a more complex picture also disclosing conflicted choices and the “choose not to choose” options. It is worth having action techniques at hand to visualise participants’ preferences to better manage group processes.
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In closing the session of the PaTiE course for adult VET educators the group may hold a discussion on the “mapping” of attitudes and preferences in classroom work. The following points could be raised as potentially interesting to educators: What did you notice about the ease or difficulty in “locating” your response? What is the advantage of the exercise over mere discussion followed by voting? How could you track the group members’ responses throughout the use of the technique in your classes to gain an insight into the dynamics at play
SYNERGIES Group work always involves the challenge of engaging various skills of the participants and their personal preferences to cooperate with each other. The task of the leader is to increase the opportunities for all members to participate and play a role in the team. This is usually best done through dividing the group into smaller, more contained units and synergising their potential. The challenge is particularly visible in educational contexts where the teachers often have to work with large classes and need to master the skill of efficient sub-grouping. This exercise uses sociometry to facilitate the process of dividing the group into smaller teams based on the actual preferences of the members. The exercise can be introduced at the beginning of group work and then repeated if there is a need for reorganising the team. The advantage of the activity is that no special space or props are needed to run it so the technique can be easily introduced in regular classroom work. Depending on the number of participants and the criteria chosen for building the sub-teams the exercise can take more or less time (around 1 hour being the optimal time). The preparation for the activity mainly consists in a careful consideration of the criteria to be taken into account while forming the sub-groups. Choosing only one criterion is not recommended as it may distort the actual picture of preferences within the group. We usually chose a person for a certain criterion but reject the same individual for another. One criterion may also result in some people being rejected and left alone with nobody choosing them to work with. It is more likely that such situation will not occur if the members of sub-teams are chosen on the basis of complementary criteria, synergising their potential. The selection of appropriate criteria is obviously set in a particular context and cannot be advised without knowing the specific group and its tasks. The following are a set of example criteria:
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Whom do you choose, not choose or are neutral to working with on a project? In order to ensure a sufficient level of competences, whom do you choose to be in your project group? In order to ensure a timely delivery of results, whom do you choose to be in your project group? In order to maintain a friendly atmosphere, whom do you choose to be in your project group?
Once the criteria are selected the members of the group are requested to write their choices on a data sheet prepared by the leader in advance. Against each criterion the names of the selected people are given, divided into those chosen, not chosen and those neither chosen nor rejected (neutral). Again it should be stressed that there is always a danger that some individuals might be rejected by all or the overwhelming majority of the group and the leader needs to have strategies in place to deal with such a situation. A careful selection of criteria as not to touch on deep personal issues is a basic requirement for the use of the technique in educational contexts. A consideration should also be made whether the data are to be disclosed to the whole group. There is a possibility of keeping the findings confidential; in this case only the leader gains an insight into the layer of preferences among the group which may help him/her better manage collaborative processes in the group.
To conclude the whole process the formation of sub-groups can be depicted in a psychodramatic fashion. The participants form smaller circles according to their choices and place a hand on the shoulder of the person chosen to work with. The feeling of extended arms in small human compounds conveys the meaning of synergies in the whole group ready for taking up a collaborative task.
Group work involves the challenge of engaging various skills of the participants and their personal preferences to cooperate with each other. Sociometry may facilitate the task of dividing the group into smaller teams based on the actual preferences of the members and thus synergizing the process of collaborative work.
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The exercise is another excellent opportunity to raise the issue of potential benefits as well as risks of using sociometry in educational contexts. In closing the session of the PaTiE course for adult VET educators the group should be encouraged to discuss the following points: How to choose relevant sociometric criteria for sub-grouping the class? Which of the proposed criteria are potentially risky as opening personal issues not to be dealt with in class? What are possible scenarios of dealing with overwhelming rejection of certain individuals by the group?
TRIANGLE OF CONFLICT Group work is prone to internal conflicts and educators need to have strategies in place to handle them. Sociometry may provide some tools to deal with situations in which there is a need to make hidden tensions surface in order to face and resolve them. The proposed activity can be particularly useful in a situation when the conflict involves a smaller group of participants but the tensions impact on the performance of the whole team. Then the leader needs to be able to involve the whole group in the process of resolving the conflict. This is the purpose of the exercise which draws both on the diagnostic potential of sociometry and the experiential power of psychodrama. The activity has its natural place in the middle of group process when there is a need to openly face tensions and conflicts accumulated in the group. The leader must be aware of such conflicts affecting the group and should not propose the activity unless there is a specific need for it. Otherwise the exercise can foster conflicting attitudes instead of resolving them. No special space or props are needed but the room should be large enough to build a “triangle� on the floor with all the participants standing on its sides. Depending on the number of members of the group and the complexity of the conflict the exercise can take up to two hours. The leader should first identify the conflict through an open group discussion. It is essential to delineate the tension in order to deal with it. Accordingly, just like in the case of defining sociometric criteria, the issue should be expressed in a clear statement, understandable to all the members. It can be formulated either by one of the participants and further specified through group discussion, or reported by the leader and then concretised on the basis of group feedback. It is also worth agreeing on the pre-requisites for group work on conflict in terms of norms (e.g. ways of addressing one 34
another, listening to one another, etc), confidentiality and trust. It always helps to have in mind the worst case scenarios which the activity may follow in order to be able to deal with potential risks and harms. When an issue of concern is picked up by the group a large triangle is marked on the floor with colourful scarves. The green side represents a positive standpoint, the red side a negative one, and the blue side a neutral attitude. Then the members of the group walk around considering their standpoints and take the relevant sides on the triangle. While still standing, they should discuss their views in the three sub-groups which emerged on the sides of the triangle. At best, each team should agree on a common argumentation to face the opposite sides in the following discussion. This is the next phase of the activity in which all the participants sit on the floor along the three sides of the triangle. The sitting position makes it easier to pacify the emotions which might have accumulated in the group around the issue in focus. The presence of the neutral side, which is likely to emerge in such debates, has also the potential to moderate the opposing views and facilitate a common agreement on how to resolve the conflict. This final achievement, if effectuated through the activity, can be depicted on the floor by transforming the triangle into a colourful circle of intertwined green, red and blue scarves with the group standing around and embracing each other. The concluding “shape� of the activity obviously depends on the extent to which the conflict has been resolved, moderated or left for further work. The scarves on the floor can be rearranged in various ways to depict the complexity of the issue. It is however advisable to conclude the activity with a shape best reflecting the results of work so far and resume it, if needed, in the following sessions. Group work is prone to internal conflicts and educators need to have strategies to handle them. Sociometry provides tools to make hidden tensions surface in order to face and resolve them. They add value to mere discussion or debate through action and visualisation of the tensions.
The exercise opens a way for discussing sociometry not only as a resource of diagnostic tools but also as supporting conflict management. In closing the session of
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the PaTiE course for VET adult educators the group should be encouraged to discuss the following points: Is it essential to disclose hidden tensions and conflicts to improve group dynamics? When should such disclosure be avoided? What activities need to follow a sociometric visualisation of cracks in the group structure?
CLOSURE Sharing is an essential part of the psychodrama session. It gives each participant an opportunity to give his/her feedback to the group on the learning experience. This closing part of the workshop should be connected here with processing the value of the introduced knowledge and techniques in VET. The recommended procedures should make use of sociometry to give the participants more insights into its possible applications. Sharing by its very nature is a spontaneous activity which cannot be “managed” but should rather be facilitated by the trainer on the basis of his/her grasp of the group dynamics and surfacing issues. The flow of activities can thus only be suggested.
MAP The purpose of the exercise is to “chart” the results of a session in terms of the benefits gained by the participants. The map technique serves here as a tool to concretize various perceptions of these benefits in the group through a spatial visualization. This is a free adaptation of sociometry which focuses on measuring relations between people against a set of specific criteria. In this case the objective is not so much to delineate interpersonal relationships but rather show how individual members of the group relate to specific reference points, in this case benefits of a learning process. Still the essential elements of sociometric procedure are visible in the activity as the final map discloses not only “clusters” of people around concrete criteria (identified benefits) but also their proximity or distance from each other.
The technique is particularly valuable as facilitating a closure of a group process through sharing views of the participants on the value of the learning experience. The 36
focus on benefits has the potential to highlight its positive sides but the leader should also be aware of the possibility of negative aspects surfacing and allow the participants to report them. Otherwise the exercise may be seen as a manipulative technique to boost achievements at the expense of an accurate overview of the learning outcomes. The room should be large enough for the “charting” as in the case of most of the other exercises presented in this module of the PaTiE course. Depending on the number of members of the group and the benefits to be explored the exercise can take 1 – 2 hours. The activity begins with gathering participants in a circle and initiating an open sharing of feelings and insights resulting from the session. The discussion should focus on concrete competences, skills or knowledge the participants have derived from the learning process. It is important to elicit various aspects of the benefits as it is only in very rare cases that the learning is one-dimensional, it usually impacts on the learner in many different ways. Once the group has surveyed all the aspects of the learning experience in terms of the gained competences, skills or knowledge the leader should hand out pieces of colorful tape to all participants: each person is getting the same number of pieces representing various benefits identified in the group discussion. Then a “map” is created on the floor by the participants, each marking a point in the sharing circle with a composition reflecting his/her individual benefits. Similar patterns should be placed close to each other and non-compatible ones at distant locations. The “charting” should be done consecutively by the participants. When one person marks a point on the floor the following learner has a reference point to which relate his contribution, and so on. The final result is likely to present a colorful picture with some condensed areas and some isolated islands. The map can be taken as a visual closure of the session or, if time allows, as groundwork for more focused discussion.
Spatial visualisation of perceptions coming up in the course of a group learning process is a valuable method of sharing views. Sociometry is a rich resource of techniques which can facilitate “mapping” of various perceptions, attitudes, etc.
In closing the session of the PaTiE course for VET adult educators the group should be encouraged to discuss the following points:
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Why is it important to concretise the benefits of a learning process at the closure of a session? What is the added value of “mapping� such benefits as compared with a summary by the leader? How can the information gained through the exercise be used for further work?
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. Bibliography 5.1. References in English Blatner, A. (1994). Tele: The dynamics of interpersonal preference. In: P. Holmes, M. Karp, & M. Watson. (eds.), Psychodrama Since Moreno: innovations in theory and practice. London: Routledge. (pp. 283-301). Blatner, A. (2000). Chapter 18: Sociometry I: General considerations; Chapter 19: SociometryII: Methods and related chapters on role theory. In: Foundations of Psychodrama: History, Theory & Practice (4th ed.): New York: Springer. Blatner, A. (2010). The dynamics of rapport: theoretical underpinnings fostering the elements in group psychotherapy (Part 1). The Group Psychologist Society for group psychology and group psychotherapy, 20 (2), pp. 9-11. Carlson-Sabelli, L., Sabelli, H. & Hale, A. E. (1994). Sociometry and sociodynamics. In: P. Holmes; M. Karp & M. Watson. (eds). Psychodrama Since Moreno: innovations in theory and practice, London: Routledge. (pp. 147-189). Casson, J. (2001). The social role and cultural atoms. The British Journal of Psychodrama & Sociometry, 16, 15-22. Dayton, T. (2004). The Living Stage: a step-by-step guide to psychodrama, sociometry and group psychotherapy. Deerfield Park, FL: HCI. Hale, A. E. (2009). Moreno's sociometry: exploring interpersonal connection. Group: the journal of the Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society, 33 (4), 347-358. Holmes, P., Karp, M. & Tauron, K. B. (eds.) (1998). The Handbook of Psychodrama, London: Routlege. Horvatin, T. & Schreiber, E. (eds.). (2006). The Quintessential Zerka: Writings by Zerka Toeman Moreno on Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy. London: Routledge. Howie, P. (2010). Using sociodrama and sociometry to create group environments. The Group Psychologist Society for group psychology and group psychotherapy, 20 (2), pp. 11-14. Hollander, C. E. (1978). Psychodrama, role playing and sociometry: Living and learning processes. In: D. Kurpius, (ed.). Learning: Making learning environments more effective. (pp.168-241). Muncie: Accelerated Development. Hollander, C. E. (1978). An introduction to sociogram construction. Denver: Snow Lion Press. Jones, D. (2001). Sociometry in team and organisational development. The British Journal of Psychodrama & Sociodrama, 16, 69-78.
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Kuethe, J. L. (1975). Mapping into a structure: a method for studying social cognition. Psychological Reports, 37, 1279-1283. Miller, C. (2013). Who's Calling? Cell Phone Sociometry. Journal of Psychodrama, Sociometry, and Group Psychotherapy, 61 (1), 73-76. McKimmie, Peter. (1999). Building a student support system using sociometry. Australian & New Zealand Psychodrama Association Journal, 8, 39-42. Moreno, J. L. (1953). Who shall survive? Foundations of sociometry, group psychotherapy and sociodrama (2nd ed.). (Revised and expanded version of 1934 1st ed.). Beacon, NY: Beacon House Moreno J. L. & Zerka T. (1987). Psychodrama, role theory and the concept of the social atom. In: J. K. Zeig, (Ed). The Evolution of Psychotherapy. New York: Brunner Mazel. (1989). Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama & Sociometry, 42, 178-186. Remer, R. (1995). Using strong sociometry as an interpersonal feedback tool. Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama & Sociometry, 48 (2), 69-83. Treadwell, T., Stein, S. & Leach, E. (1989). The Social Atom Test Revised. International Journal of Small Group Research, 5. (1), 47-63. Treadwell, T., & Collins, L. (1992). The Moreno Social Atom Test -R- Brief Report. Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama, and Sociometry, 45 (3), 122-124. Treadwell, T., Stein,S., & Leach E. (1993). The Social Networks Inventory: a diagnostic instrument measuring interpersonal relationships. Journal of Small Group Research, 24 (2), 155-178. Zachariha, M. & Moreno, R. (2006). Finding My Place: The Use of Sociometric Choice and Sociodrama for Building Community in the School Classroom. Journal of Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama & Sociometry 58 (4), 157-167.
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Conflict Management Psychodrama as a tool in Education Training materials - Module 5 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
INDEX
1.
2.
3.
Module Description........................................................................................................ 3 1.1.
Aims ....................................................................................................................... 3
1.2.
Learning Outcomes ................................................................................................ 3
1.3.
Organization of the materials and the workshop ..................................................... 4
Introduction to Theory ................................................................................................... 5 2.1.
What means Normal function of the Group? ........................................................... 6
2.2.
What means Non- Normal function of the Group? .................................................. 8
2.3.
How a Confrontational situation is expressed in a Group? ................................... 12
2.4.
How a Group Conflict is Resolved? ...................................................................... 12
2.5.
What Leading Weaknesses appear? .................................................................... 14
2.6.
The Leader’s Attitude in a Conflict situation.......................................................... 16
2.7.
Social Elements in Groups ................................................................................... 18
2.8.
Conflict Management in Psychodrama ................................................................. 20
2.9.
Conflict Management in Education ....................................................................... 21
Introduction to Exercises ............................................................................................. 22
WARM UP ............................................................................................................................. 26 DOGS & CATS ...................................................................................................................... 26 CONFLICT ............................................................................................................................. 27 ENEMY .................................................................................................................................. 28 ACTION ................................................................................................................................. 28 FOLLOW AND BE FOLLOWED............................................................................................. 29 TEACHER – REACTIVE CHILD ............................................................................................ 30 THE SHOE ............................................................................................................................ 31 CLOSURE ............................................................................................................................. 32 SOMETHING THAT HAS NOT BEEN SETTLED ................................................................... 32 GROUP SCULPTURE ........................................................................................................... 33 JUST A WORD ...................................................................................................................... 33 WANDER AND FOCUS ......................................................................................................... 34 MY ROUTE IN THE GROUP ................................................................................................. 34 4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................................... 36
5.
Bibliography ................................................................................................................ 37 5.1.
References in English .......................................................................................... 37
5.2.
References in Greek ............................................................................................ 37 2
1. Module Description Conflict Management is the fifth module of the course Psychodrama as a Tool in Education. As with all the modules that make up this course, it may be studied independently. However, it is recommended the information presented here to be unified with these of the other modules, in order to have a more holistic and integrated knowledge of the project. It is aimed at all teachers of adult, vocational or life-long training who are interested in learning about the management of conflict in groups, from the psychodramatic perspective, and its application in the classroom. This task may be applied to diverse groups of students and may contribute to the development of a more spontaneous and creative climate in class, as members learn to interact in an open, honest and sensitive way. No matter how angry or disappointed they get, they learn to preserve communication and not to interrupt it, as opponents usually do in social circumstances. Empathy grows and as students and teacher gain better insight of their functioning, they are led to more functional relationships and to more productive learning procedures.
1.1. Aims to introduce VET adult educators to the psychodramatic way of managing conflict situations in personal and group level, in its relevance for education. to develop their personal abilities in order to stand and to manage in a more functional way conflict situations in workshop environment and to contribute to the personal development of the participants, to present and practically illustrate how these exercises, interventions and techniques can be applied in workshop environment, to achieve a collective work derived from a personal work and to discuss on its applicability in the participants’ educational practice.
1.2. Learning Outcomes On successful completion of the course module the educators are expected to: indicate the extra value of the psychodramatic intervention in conflict management, identify the benefits of ‘’opening’’ and confronting an existing, obvious or underlying, conflict in the group and how this influences the learning procedure, point out the limitations of such an exploration in the classroom, list three exercises that refer to conflict management and how these can be applied in class, propose and run an appropriate psychodramatic exercise which corresponds to an emerged conflict situation in a classroom of adult learners. 3
1.3. Organization of the materials and the workshop The collection of materials in this manual is orientated towards helping the educator apply simple exercises that have to do with conflict management in the classroom. However, the content presented here can also be used to organise a training workshop, led by a Psychodramatist, for adult educators themselves. Such a workshop will give trainers and trainees the chance to expand their perception about the several aspects of conflict that they should take into account. Where possible, the workshop will last for eight hours and will run as a single-day session. If this is not possible, it will run over two, preferably consecutive, days. It is best if the group has at least eight members and no more than fourteen. More specific guidelines for this workshop can be found in the handbook for instructors. This module is divided into two main sections; an introduction to theory and an introduction to practice. Further sections complete the information that educators will need in order to achieve the objectives set out. The introduction to theory comprises nine sections through which we explore some very important questioning about conflicts and conflict management. In particular, we explore what means normal and non- normal functioning of the group, how a confrontational situation is expressed in the group and how it is resolved, what leading weaknesses appear, which should be the leader’s attitude in a conflict situation and the social elements in groups that we should take into account. In the following section ‘’Conflict Management in Psychodrama’’ we highlight the psychodramatic intervention in standing and handling difficult situations and finally, the psychodramatic contribution in ‘’Conflict Management in Education’’. The introduction to exercises corresponds to the exercises examples and to the practical application of the above knowledge. The goal of all the exercises is to experience an issue spontaneously and unconsciously, because only like that people function without thinking and with their defences and resistances low and so, they show how they are really related to a specific issue. Thus, the members start wondering about the way they function in class and in similar or corresponding situations in their lives. In addition, there is a section containing considerations and risks the leader should have in mind when applying these exercises and the responsibility that comes with their use. In the section dealing with evaluation, the instructor will be able to assess the impact the exercise has in the classroom. The bibliography lists the books and articles that have provided the information used to prepare this module. They make up a very useful guide for anyone who would like to extend their knowledge and study about groups in Psychodrama in greater depth.
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2. Introduction to Theory Interpersonal conflicts are universally present in human relations and become especially visible in group psychotherapy and in groups in general. The mere fact of being together in a group assures that there will always be some amount of friction among its members. Though such frictions may have an apparent ‘’negative’’ effect on the group, they are not necessarily something ‘’bad’’ or pathological of what to get rid of. Rather, like states of crises, conflicts may be viewed as normal in healthy relations and if properly managed, as opportunities for development, growth and new learning (Bach and Goldberg, 1974; Ormont, 1984; Cornelius and Faire, 1989; Gans, 1989). Pines (1988: 57) observed that group analysts are trained to be sensitive to the balance between cooperation and conflict in the groups and they bring to the attention of the group members the presence of both these centripetal and centrifugal forces. Interpersonal conflicts are so central to the group therapeutic process that the learning gained as a result of their exploration is regarded by some practitioners as the sine qua non of group therapy. In groups, the expression of negative feelings towards other group members or towards the group leader may open up a more intimate and honest level of the relationship and may, in a paradoxical manner, contribute to the maintenance of groups as well as to the disturbance of interpersonal relations. If the open conflict is denied or suppressed, then it will be definitely manifested in indirect, erosive and often nasty ways. Although our direct associative thinking for conflict is negative- destruction, bitterness, war, violence-, if we think a bit more, positive associative thoughts come to our mind: action, stimulation, change, development. That happens also in therapeutic groups. Some groups become «extremely good» and avoid thoroughly the conflict and the juxtaposition, mirroring usually the leader’s avoidance of aggressiveness. However, conflict is so inevitable in the process of group development, that its absence indicates a deficit in the developmental sequence. Additionally, conflict may be used in the service of the group, provided its intensity does not exceed the members’ tolerance and provided that proper norms have been established in the group. Learning to successfully manage the conflict, is an important therapeutic step that contributes to atomic maturation and to emotional adaptability and resistance (Yalom, 2006: 490- 1). We begin our task by tracing the main parts: What does Normal function of the Group mean? What does Non- Normal function of the Group mean? How is a Confrontational situation expressed in a Group? How is a Group Conflict Resolved? What Leading Weaknesses appear? The Leader’s Attitude in a Conflict situation. 5
Social Elements in Groups. Conflict management in Psychodrama. Conflict Management in Education.
*
In this particular module a historical detection is not probationary. Each social and cultural frame
defines the way the individual’s function, the way the conflicts emerge, the way the functional and non functional aspects of persons’ personalities emerge. A certain resolution given in a particular frame cannot be generalized. This would constitute stereotype or prejudice and so, it would lose the special nuances that receives in the particular environment in the particular moment in ‘’here and now’’.
2.1. What means Normal function of the Group? The suitable relationship with the leader, the coherence of the group and the trust between the group members and the leader are necessary presuppositions for the effective process and outcome of a group. Research in psychotherapeutic groups highlights the value and the determinative role that the relationship between the member and the leader plays in therapy, characterized by trust, warmth, empathic understanding and acceptance. The aim is to inflate these virtues in educational process. A strong and positive bond between the leader and the member refutes the depressive beliefs and facilitates the modification of cognitive distortions. The absence of a positive connection makes the intervention techniques ineffective or even hazardous. The corresponding of relationship between the leader and the member in the atomic psychotherapy, in group psychotherapy and in groups in general has a broader meaning, which includes the relationship with the leader, with the other members and with the group as a whole. We refer to all these relationships in the group by the term «cohesion of the group». Cohesion is defined as the resultant of all the forces that act on all members, so that to remain in the group. Simpler, cohesion is the quality that makes a group attractive to its members. Members of a cohesive group feel warmth and comfort in it and a feeling of belonging. They appreciate the value of the group and feel in return that their value is also appreciated, they become accepted and supported by the other members. We should not forget that the members of a group are attracted by the group in different degrees and that cohesion is not stable- conquering it once does not mean preserving it forever-. On the contrary, it shows great fluctuations during the life- time of the group. The early cohesion and commitment are necessary for the group to be able to stand and include the most difficult personal 6
work that will come to later stages of group development, as more conflicts and greater discomfort emerge. Group members see that they do not only benefit passively from group cohesion, but they produce themselves this cohesion creating functional and durable relationships- maybe for the first time in their life. To belong to a group increases the self esteem and covers the needs for dependence of group members, but in a way, it also cultivates the responsibility and the autonomy, as each member contributes to the welfare of the group and internalizes the atmosphere of cohesion. Groups with great cohesion have better total effect than groups with low group spirit. The emotional connectedness and the experiencing of group’s effectiveness contribute to its cohesion. The individuals form more mutual satisfactory relationships with other members. In very cohesive psychotherapeutic groups, members show greater levels of self- disclosure, self- expansion, selfexploration and receiving of interpersonal risks. The presence of cohesion in the beginning of each session and in the first sessions of a group, is in correlation with positive effects. It is essential for the group to develop cohesion and the leader to be alert to conceive the way with which each member experiences it. Cohesion is experienced in interpersonal, intrapersonal and intragroup level. Members of a cohesive group accept each other, support and trust each other, tend to create essential relationships in the group and the validation that each one receives by the other group members consists for them a new and vital experience. In conditions of trustful acceptance and understanding, members are more willing to express and explore themselves, to realize and integrate some aspects of their personalities that they did not accept until now and to relate to others in a deeper way. Self esteem is greatly influenced by the role of the member in a cohesive group. The social behavior that the individual will develop in order to gain the appreciation of the rest of the group, is also adaptable to form new social relationships outside the group. Additionally, cohesive groups are more stable, with more systematic presence of their members and with less alternations (‘’member turnover’’). The early termination excludes every benefit for the member who leaves, but also blocks the development of the rest group. Cohesion favors selfdisclosure, taking risks and the creative expression of conflicts- elements that facilitate the goal of the group.
Remember Group Cohesion: The resultant of all forces that act on all members, so that to remain in the group. Simpler, the quality that makes a group attractive to its members. Meaning & importance of Cohesion. 7
2.2. What means Non- Normal function of the Group? When we are thinking of the non- normal function of the group, there are some elements that every group leader should have in mind, due to the important role they play in the formation of the group and in its progress. These main components are: the dynamic of the group, the subgroups that are formed inside the maternal group/ Work Group and the ‘’shift’’ created from the primary aims of members when entering the group to other aims and secondary satisfaction.
Group dynamic An analytical reference to the developmental goals which appear in the process of a group has already been done in Module 2: The Power of the Group and cited in the corresponding Training Materials, in 2.4.a. Stages of Group. So it is recommended, if needed, consult that module and read the whole citation, in order to remember how the dynamic of the group changes and influences its process. The early sessions of a group are characterized by a dynamic caused by the members’ focusing on authority relationships. During this period, the experience and actions of members are colored by their previous experiences in relation to authority figures and a desire to re- create the relationship systems within the group in order to enhance the power to express themselves freely and creatively (Clayton, 1994). At the beginning of a series of group sessions, members usually idealize the leader. They turn to him/ her for every single answer, they look for the approval and acceptance of the authority. Important issues which occupy them are the seeking of acceptance and approval, the commitment to the group, the determination of approved behavior, the seeking of orientation, structure and meaning. As the group proceeds, the members are occupied with issues as the domination, the control and the authority and there, quite usually, conflict arises. Conflict happens either among members or between members and the leader, as each member attempts to establish the degree of initiative and power he/ she prefers. An ambivalence towards the leader begins when the members start to realize that he/ she has not the ‘’magical’’ qualities they attributed to him/ her and he/ she cannot fulfill the limitless expectations they had, no matter how capable he/ she may be. Around the fifth session, some or all of the group members may interact with each other in pairs in a friendly manner and the conversations develop without reference to the group leader, thus we may conclude that a new warm up develops spontaneously between the members (Clayton, 1994). Also, some members may start turning against the leader. Members doubt about the whole procedure, whether it has meaning or not and also doubt about him/ her. This is the moment when they are afraid that the beautiful sense of the group will be destroyed. It is the moment when each one goes to his/ her deeper personal issues and 8
unconsciously resists taking the responsibility of himself/ herself. In this phase, some members may abandon the group. In between the tenth and twentieth session some secedes may take place. A perceptive group leader will value what is developing in the group in the fifth and succeeding sessions and will then naturally mobilize other roles in their personality that are appropriate to this new situation. The way the leader stands and manages the conflict plays a determinative role to the way the group may be developed, it may constitute a precious and fruitful experience for the personal development of members or may even lead to the dissolution of the group.
Subgroups The creation of subgroups is an inevitable and often disruptive fact in group’s life, but may also promote the group work, if we understand it and use it in the appropriate way. Often the members’ concern for their personal connection and status, stimulates the creation of subgroups. A subgroup appears in the group because of the belief of two or more members that they can derive more satisfaction from a relationship between them, than by the group in its whole. In therapeutic groups the members who violate its norms with secret relationships, choose to satisfy their needs instead of aiming their personal change- the primary reason for which they are in therapy. It is important to note that the out- of- group behavior which is not ‘’brought’’ into the group, is transformed into powerful resistance. Meanwhile the out- of- group behavior which is ‘’brought’’ later in the group and is ‘’opened’’ there, may be proved of great therapeutic value. The creation of subgroups may show a high degree of hostility that is not liberated in the group, mainly towards the leader. This is more possible to happen when the leading style is authoritative and restrictive. Group members that are not in position to express directly their anger and frustration to the leader, deliberate their feelings indirectly by creating a subgroup or by transforming a member into a ‘’scapegoat’’. Other times, the creation of subgroups reveals problems in the group development. The lack of cohesion within the group encourages the members to withdraw from the great and complex relationships of the group, to simpler, smaller and more functional subgroups. Sociability out of the group is often the first stadium of the creation of subgroups. A clique of two, three or more members may start to talk on the phone, to meet for coffee, to exchange visits etc. The members of a subgroup may be recognized by a behavior code: they may agree with each other no matter what the issue it is, they may avoid juxtapositions, they may exchange meaningful 9
glances when somebody out of the clique speaks, they may arrive and leave together. Their desire for friendship exceeds their commitment to look into their behavior. The creation of subgroups may have an extremely disruptive result in the progress of the group. Whether a person is included or excluded by a subgroup, difficulties usually emerge. Those who are included in a subgroup of two or more people, often feel that life in the group is much more complex and finally less retributive. Also, a member transmits his faith from the goals of the group to the goals of the subgroup. They ‘’forget’’ that their primary goal of entering a group was to be facilitated in exploring their personal relationships, in expanding their knowledge or any other reason. The exclusion from a subgroup complicates also the group’s life, as it may energize a stress feeling which is connected with previous experiences of exclusion. The subgroups, with or without social relationships out of the group, are not always disruptive. If the aims of the subgroup agree with the aims of the Work Group, the formation of subgroups may finally increase the cohesion of the Work group. The principle is clear and fundamental: any contact out of the group may be proved useful, if the goals of maternal group are not abandoned. The subgroup is not by itself destructive for the group, but the silence conspiracy that usually surrounds it might be.
Primary aims- Secondary satisfaction The primary task of every group, therapeutic, educational or other, is to achieve its initial aims. But, as soon as a group begins strange things happen: the members ‘’forget’’ the original aim for which they entered the group. They shift their energy from their original aim in order to pursue some other secondary aims in the group. This shift in relation to the aim of the group, as well as the dynamic tension between them, offers the leader important information about the group and its members. Dr. W. R. Bion has focused attention on the fact that a group is an entity that is defined by its function. Group work per se is not the focus on the needs of individuals because a group is more than the sum of its individual parts. At the same time, Bion is clear that there are different forces operating within a group that militate against the achievement of group aims. The concepts which he presents with respect to these other forces, correspond to a number of diverse apparent phenomena. They are, therefore, integrative concepts and when understood, they provide big assistance to a group leader in understanding and relating to the group. In every group there are two groups: the "Work Group" and the "Basic Assumption Group", each of them with their function and mode of behaving. 10
The Work Group (W) The Work Group is the aspect of group functioning that has to do with the real task of the group. One group may have the task of planning a program, another one to review the activities of the year and another one to study the behavior of the group or to explore the socially unacceptable behavior. The Work Group functions in the same way as the ego of a rational and mature person. The Work Group is therefore conscious of time and the processes of learning and development. Thus there will be an acceptance and tolerance of the fact that group members may take a good deal of time to solve a problem or develop a new way of functioning. The Work Group defines its task and then creates a structure that will be likely to assist the completion of that task. For example, one group may decide to appoint a treasurer to collect dues and assign other group members to carry out specific tasks for the good of the whole. The individual is in this group by choice and his interest is identified with the interest of the group. The Work Group is in touch with reality and constantly tests its conclusions in a scientific spirit. It seeks knowledge, learns from experience, and constantly questions how it may best achieve its goal. Three Basic Assumption Groups (ba Groups) Basic assumptions are primitive states of mind which come automatically into being when individuals get together. The fantasies and emotional drives associated with the basic assumptions unconsciously dominate a groups functioning in such a way that interfere with its explicit work task. Thus in a personal development group the members will start to act as if they had met together for another purpose other than to develop their abilities. As just stated the basic assumptions are unconscious. Thus they are tacit, unspoken and out of awareness. They can only be elucidated by a process of deduction. Conclusions are drawn on the basis of the emotional state of the group (Bion, 2009). For further information on the Three Basic Assumption Groups (ba Groups), which namely are the Basic Assumption Dependency (baD), the Basic Assumption Fight- Flight group and the Basic Assumptions Group, you will find in W.R. Bion’s bibliography.
Remember There is a fine line between the experiential group with educational aims and the experiential group with therapeutic aims. If the experiential educational 11
group becomes more ‘’personal’’ and ‘’emotional’’, it will be most probably dissolved, because it will be disorientated from its initial goals. 2.3. How a Confrontational situation is expressed in a Group? A situation of conflict in the group may be provoked either among members and/ or between members and the leader, and it may be expressed either directly or indirectly. The group is never totally consensual in attacking the leader. Always some members of the group join the attackers and some others join the supporters of the leader. The leader may have difficulty to perceive the underlying way the conflict is being expressed. Some members may come late to the group, after it has started or they may get in class with delay after the interval. The leader may notice that while he is speaking, members change the subject of discussion. Some may have formed subgroups. A sociometric exercise with the criterion ‘’whom I feel closer’’ also depicts the relationships between the members and will help the leader shape an opinion. Disagreements may be expressed or inactivity/ withdrawal may appear, members sit on the chairs and don’t want to get up and play or they refuse to express themselves. They may speak generally for a topic and avoid making focus on something in particular, e.g. ‘’all psychologists are…’’. In any case, the leader has to perceive it and bring it to the surface, otherwise group members will abandon it or the group may even be dissolved. From the moment the conflict begins, it follows a certain route. Both ‘’sides’’ develop the belief being right and the other are wrong, they are good and the others bad. Additionally, although at that moment it is not recognized, both ‘’sides’’ support their point of views with the same certainty. In such case, we have all the requested elements for a deep and continuous tension, which may lead to a dead end.
Remember Conflict is expressed either among members and/ or between members and the leader, either directly or indirectly. Pay attention to the underlying way the conflict is being expressed. 2.4. How a Group Conflict is Resolved? Usually what happens is a break in communication. Both sides stop listening to each other with a certain degree of understanding. If both objecting sides were in a social circumstance, the most probable is that at this point they would interrupt their relationship and they would never be in position to correct their misunderstandings. 12
Objecting sides not only stop listening, but is possible to unconsciously distort the perception of each other. Their perception is filtered though a screen of stereotypes. Words and actions of the opponent are distorted, in order to fit in a point of view that has been established in advance. Each one sees his actions as honest and logical and the other’s as mean and calculated. That’s why is very important to quickly establish a collective spirit in a group’s life, to avoid such a sequence. For the effective management of group conflict, the primary presupposition is coherence. Members have to develop a sense of mutual trust and respect and to appreciate the group as an important mean for the coverage of their personal needs. It is of great importance to preserve communication for the survival of the group and for their better inner understanding. The coherent group will move far from using underestimating characterizations and towards being aware of those aspects of others that make them angry and so, of those aspects of themselves that make them angry. It must become clear that everybody is here to develop a better understanding of himself and not to smite or make foul of others. When a member feels that others accept him and try to understand him, he relaxes, he feels less the need to stay stuck in the old patterns of behavior and maybe more willing to explore different sides, new roles of his personality. When empathy grows, the management of conflicts is facilitated. At this point is good to remark that the final goal is not to permanently abolish conflict. Conflict will keep on emerging in the group, despite the effective management of previous conflicts and despite the existence of important mutual respect and warmth. The leader’s work is to use conflict in favor of members’ maturation. When people get angry with each other, that by itself shows that are important for each other and take each other seriously. For the members who have difficulty to express their anger, the group is a safe place to try to express it. For the members who easily react aggressively, the group is a place of experimentation, to test how to express themselves. It is a challenge to recognize quicker that they are angry by observing the body language: the fists are tight, the mouth is tight, that others may react negatively to a certain behavior of them, but they still appreciate them. It is worth feeling that being direct and fair is neither dangerous nor destructive and can work in their favor. Group leaders attempt to convert the conflict procedure into a learning circumstance for the members. Apart from the ‘’sources’’ of their aggressiveness, they may gain great feedback by realizing the way they have been expressing it. In psychodrama during an intervention, the technique of «mirroring» or «role reversal» may give fruitful feedback to the member for his stance, body position, face mimic, behavior. He may realize the divergence between his intention and his final action or reaction, which increases importantly the self awareness. 13
The management of conflicts contributes to the development of members’ emotional tolerance and the sharing of intense feelings increases the importance of the relationship. The group cohesion increases when members experience together intense emotional experiences, independently from the nature of the emotion.
Remember Necessary presuppositions for the effective management of competitive and confrontational situations are the coherence and the preservation of communication. Remember The final goal is not to permanently abolish conflict. Conflict will keep on emerging in the group. Remember The leader’s goal each time is to use conflict in favor of members’ maturation. 2.5. What Leading Weaknesses appear? Managing a conflict is a hard work: there are so many delicate matters that the leader should have in mind and such is the complexity of the emerged dynamics, that some leading weaknesses may arise. As group members express themselves, some group members are positive to them, others negative and others are neutral. Thus, subgroups form around different stars who may express a particular set of values in a more memorable way. Some members may push the leader to take a position on what is going on and the leader may slip on becoming part of a subgroup. The group leader can take a position, but the point is how he will express it, so as not to block the expression of the individuality of others and also how he will manage to connect with others in the exact point they are trying to compose. Group leaders who have developed the ability to conduct crisp, quick sociometric enactments so that everybody is involved, create a sense of companionship and a positive feeling amongst everybody. Their position is also more stable. Participation in a neutral sociometric activity brings everybody out to the fore where they are able to work on overcoming any fear about exposing themselves. At this point a healthy daring and courage begins to develop in everybody. Each subgroup is also associated with certain roles and role clusters.
14
Many people in their conversations in everyday life as well as in more formal group situations focus on their lack of ability and many of the responses which are made by other people also focus on their lack of ability. This is consistent with the desire of many people to put themselves in a superior position and put the rest of the world in a weak, underdog position. Once the superior and inferior positions have been established, it is only a small additional step for the ‘’superior’’ person to take on the role of fixing up the problems of the ‘’inferior’’ person and setting them on a new path (e.g. the eager advisor, the rational thinker). This method of assisting other people to let go of the old repeatedly fails. The relationship system that psychodrama encourages, involves a broader analysis and development of a relationship system in which both people are actively involved in relevant aspects of the work. When the leader starts to focus on the possibility that the group members will spontaneously express themselves in forms that he/ she cannot predict and bring forward complex conflicts that they urgently wish to resolve, he/ she may very well find himself/ herself planning some strategy, for any strategy that he/ she dreams up will give him/ her a greater sense of being in charge. The trouble with this is that any strategy he/ she dreams up for making him/ her feel more secure immediately creates a barrier between him/ her and each individual in the group. The antidote to this is to quietly reflect on who he/ she is. As the leader does this, he/ she will realize that there is something within him/ her that will be available to him/ her at the point where a group member throws him/ her a curved ball. He/ she will be able to make a response at the time and therefore there is no need to develop a strategy in advance. There is no need for the educator to rely on the power or authority associated with his/ her status as the group leader (e.g. the organized strategist, the unmistakable judge). When he/ she depends on his/ her status, he/ she will mentally warm up to concepts associated with control. On the other hand, every leader has experienced the value of feeling small when conducting a group. When he/ she does that, he/ she is being more at home with himself/ herself and it is possible to be at home with the other people as well. It is possible to be together, to appreciate and enjoy one another, to be friendly and approachable. His/ her field of vision expands. There is a much more acute perception of one another's actions. It is possible to be aware of the emotions of others and to pick up the overall atmosphere in the room. And this is good, because his/ her work as leader of the group requires that he/ she knows each person. He/ she is not there simply to relate to the masks the members hide behind. He/ she wants to know the people as they really are. And when he/ she thinks about it, he/ she knows that he/ she has risen to the occasion when a person has brought up a complex concern and has felt an inner sense of satisfaction in doing so. In all group work we experience the fact that learning throws us into the new and that at the same time we want to stick with the old and familiar. When anyone says something to us our mind seeks to play tricks on us and to translate any new items into something old. We miss the nuances. We 15
miss the delight of coming into contact with the unique elements in the person who addresses us. Our minds take up certain aspects of the content of a sentence and reduce it to a caricature. In working with colleagues we find ourselves constantly floored by the limited responses we receive. In our work as group leaders or group members we make great efforts to say something that is filled with meaning and another person in the group will dismiss it with a shrug or say something like: "You're right but I've heard it before." You know that they have missed hearing you. There is already enough isolation in this world yet in many groups each person speaks only about themselves. Sometimes the stubbornness of the group leader is a factor. The group leader may stubbornly wish to keep focusing on authority relations with the idea that some more work in this area will finally assist a group member to arrive at a permanent resolution of a conflict about authority. There is also that inner emotional need in the leader to stay safe by focusing on the familiar area of authority relations. One person in the group states that they want to stand firm in the face of criticism. Immediately another group member states that they can really identify with this because they have the same problem. Each person wants to get something for themselves. Sometimes different people in the group are free associating and there is no apparent connection being made. Yet, although there are always forces pulling us to sustain easy patterns, it is needful that we awaken ourselves to the fact that we are not quite the same as the others and that we make the effort to enter into the situation of the others. Eventually we must learn to be with the other and teach them to be with us.
2.6. The Leader’s Attitude in a Conflict situation When a conflict situation is being emerged, it is very important that the leader does not seek to change what is being expressed but rather to experience and explore it, to act as a trusting explorer. It is better to be with group members rather than trying to get group members to do certain things. Naturally it is necessary to develop the ability to let go of any tendency to control the content of what other people express or the means by which they express themselves. It is necessary not to tranquilize what is being emerged, but to let it be developed in order to reinforce the expression towards various and different perspectives. However, in order to give up the need to control others, the ability to stay conscious of yourself and of what is going on around you and even to maintain an attitude of appreciation or enjoyment must be developed by every group leader. The leader has to reinforce the members who have difficulty in conflicting to stay open at that point, which means to stay in touch with their inner selves without looking for quick responses in ‘’why am I doing this?’’ type of questions. The same work is required by the leader with the members who easily come into conflict, which means to learn, despite their anger, to stay in touch with 16
themselves. It is good to give the appropriate amount of time to the expression of the conflict and not to hastily close it. It is good to explore the subgroups which are shaped, members who avoid conflict, members who pursue conflict, members who support the leader and members who are against him. When a situation of conflict appears, the leader’s response must be immediate and drastic, more even when there is indirect expression, mockery against some group member etc. When a group leader responds immediately and relevantly to the group member who is most warmed up to the work of the group the spontaneity level of the group is increased. And relating to the emergent interaction, whatever this interaction might be, puts the group leader in touch with the vital essence of the group. Intervention must be swift and decisive whenever a restrictive solution is being enacted. The intervention may be made by anyone in the group. If the group members make the intervention this is excellent since it indicates the development of an ability to actively create a better future for themselves. However, if a group member makes no intervention then the group leader does so. Sometimes a group wants to be comfortable all the time· and refuses to assist in the clearing away of blind spots or to enter into unknown areas. Sometimes a group leader will have to strongly focus on drawing out the motivating creative forces. Group members and group leaders maintaining an emotional contact is a requirement for letting go of the old and developing something new. Obviously it is also necessary for them to be present physically in the group. In the early sessions of a group particularly, there are many moments when individuals make a move to break off emotional contact. Capturing these moments is a big factor in the development of the group norm that everybody is present with each other while maintaining contact with their own experience. Whenever an effort is made to open the group to a wider range of perspectives, individual group members make opposing efforts to maintain a familiar stereotyped focus. The effort to widen the focus is sooner or later opposed, because the fear for the new and its management brings internal conflict. Any stereotyped familiar focus promotes a cozy experience of safety. Such opening out stimulates the warm up of each group member not only to their own individual concerns but to the life experiences of others in the group. As any people enter into a more intimate communication they will always experience some difficulty. There will be an emptiness, a vacuum in their experience as they open up to something new. It is essential that group leaders do not overemphasize the presence of a difficulty or the presence of emptiness. Rather there is a need to maintain the attitude that individuals can keep going in the midst of a difficulty or an experience of emptiness. Over-emphasis on how hard it is may simply result in group members becoming introspective or playing "poor me", to focus on relationships which have gone nowhere and to feel sorry for themselves. 17
A group leader is constantly making assessments of the balance of forces in any group situation. There are motivating forces pushing people to break through in to some new way of living. The motivating forces are opposed by the forces of reaction which are controlled by some fear. The solutions which a group arrives at are the result of efforts to come to grips with the conflict between the motivating and reactive forces. Group members bring up a wide range of concerns including experiences of defeat. The group has great value for them when they are able to re-experience their concerns in a new context. The old defensive patterns may be safely discarded in a context where they are accepted and even enjoyed and where others are actively involved with them in the discussion of relevant issues or through teaching and coaching. Also, it is very important to realize that this group leader is not a strategist. This tends to create an atmosphere of safety and this helps in freeing the group from preoccupation with old battles with authority figures. The group is freed to be there with one another and to experience one another in the here and now situation as equals. When a group leader functions as a lover of life and as a trusting explorer or something similar to that, this enhances group members’ ability to write their own script as they go along and to unfold their life. Merely because a group member states that they wish to express anger or focus on some other aspect of their personality is not a good reason for the group leader to become fixated on them acting in any particular way. The ability of a group leader to relate to the real purposes of group members and also be responsive to the emergent realities requires a high level of spontaneity. A leader/ trainer with spontaneity, openness and optimism will manage to relate with the new.
2.7. Social Elements in Groups The values of different cultures and sub-cultures influence the functioning of every member of a group. Here we will highlight the value of exploring social influences and their impact on the individual in groups and to discuss means for carrying out productive exploration. The personal functioning of every human being clearly shows the influence of the different cultures in which we have lived and of the culture in which we currently live. In the different roles we play there is a peculiar blending of socio and psyche elements. The nature of that blending varies greatly. At one end of the scale the influence of the conserved social roles of a culture may dominate to such an extent that our functioning is stereotyped and predictable and holds little interest either to ourselves or to others. A preponderance of social roles in our daily life leads us in the direction of despondency. If this situation continues for a long time it is a difficult task to resurrect any creative spark and cut a new path for ourselves. On the other end of the scale a person's individuality may be developed to such a degree that the rest of the world can make no sense at all of their behavior. An individual who takes no account of the history, values and norms 18
of the culture and sub-cultures around them may be regarded as an oddity or an object of ridicule and be forced to live in isolation from the rest of the world. Such a person may land up being an angry fighter, or a writer of manuscripts that are never published, or a soap box orator whose audience never takes them seriously. In group sessions various group concerns and themes emerge. The way in which individual group members and sub-groups come to grips with each concern or theme is influenced by social forces. The type and extent of this influence usually remains out of the awareness of group members unless the group leader makes a special effort to shape the group in such a way that group members warm up to this area. Let us consider a situation in which members of an organization have met for the purpose of reorganizing their work system. The group trainer has asked them to divide into smaller working groups of five with a view to completing particular tasks. One group of five people has formed. A group of four people is in process of coming together. There are two groups of three people. There is one person who is standing on their own. There is another group of five which is in process of forming. The group of five people which has already formed is quickly leaving the room. They act superior to the others. The trainer enquires what they are doing and they, in a perfunctory way, say that their group has formed and they plan to meet in another place to complete their task. At this point a number of other people in the room are ignoring the fact that they are leaving. Some group members do not even notice them leaving. Much of the functioning of the group at this point is expressive of habitual patterns in different subcultures. For example, the group of five who are leaving have the attitude that ‘’I'm alright Jack, I've got my act together and too bad about you if you haven't got yourself organized’’. There is also the attitude of getting things done as quickly as possible without wasting time, even if the quick actions are carried out mindlessly and have a negative effect on others. Some of those who ignored the group leaving held to the attitudes of a sub-culture which values non-interference in what other people are doing irrespective of the cost of this. Some of those who did not even notice the group leaving actively held to the values of an isolationist subculture which had no concept of completing a task co-operatively. In this particular instance the trainer involved everybody in the task of identifying the elements in the culture that influenced them to ignore the task of the whole group and to pursue their own immediate aims. This task was done briefly. The members of the group became much more conscious of their actions and became immediately more committed to taking account of the whole group. They developed better means of working co-operatively with the whole. Ultimately this resulted in a more buoyant atmosphere in the organization. Productive investigation of social factors calls for an appreciative attitude by the group leader and members of the group. Learning proceeds more easily through allowing ourselves to be conscious 19
of whatever life is throwing up in front of us. Attempting to understand cultural factors before entering into the experience of the different cultural forces results in a know-it-all approach. Pretending to understand in advance makes the learning frustrating and painful. A group leader who thinks they understand all about the values of a particular culture may play an adversarial role with group members. The letting go of any superior position that implies possession of knowledge in advance assists in the achievement of that relaxed stance that goes along with real discovery. Social exploration leads to a greater consciousness of the impact of the values of sub-cultural groups on the functioning of individuals as well as the group functioning in an organization or group. The greater conscious awareness and thinking through of a situation results in a better integration of social and individual values and to a more unified working group (Clayton, 1994).
2.8. Conflict Management in Psychodrama Psychodramatic philosophy contains terms as spontaneity, creativity, openness, development, joy, appreciation, expression, sharing and mutuality. Endorsing this philosophy, the psychodrama leader tries to bring each individual to a point in which to form and state his inner thinking and feeling. When conducting a group we pursue to keep each member and the whole group in touch with their real essence and not to be connected with the masks they wear. The leader also pursues to do this when a conflict situation appears. It is very important for the leader to remain open to whatever is coming in the group and to approach and explore it with an attitude to know it better. The more open and accepting the leader is toward a new situation, the more he contributes to the real expression of members’ individuality. And the more the members express their real selves, they gain a better insight of themselves and they become more functional because they develop a stance of acceptance toward their functioning. In a conflict situation, the leader is called to keep each member in touch with himself/ herself and his/ her inner tension. He has to enhance expression towards all sides and options, to let the anger or any other feeling to be expressed, to be enacted and not to quieten things down. There is a hard work to be done both by members and the leader, as the management of the new brings conflict. The fear for the new, the fear for the change, brings internal conflict and makes us stick to the old and repeat the old patterns of living, even when we do not like them, or we recognize that they are not functional for us. You may see how obvious is this in social, political or cultural situations. The psychodramatic intervention emphasizes the importance of connection among members and leader without rational judgments, preexistent stereotypes and counseling. Respecting everybody and giving value to the continuation of communication, will lead sooner or later to a better and more integrated sense of self and to better and more functional relationships. 20
2.9. Conflict Management in Education Conflicts or frictions inside the training class are a very common phenomenon. Because of their difficulty and complexity in management they are commonly faced as undesirable, but it should not. Conflicts constitute part of life and an important ply of the social interaction. They may create chances for knowledge and progress and contribute to the development of adults in VET. If conflict is faced with an open and effective way, it functions as a constructive training chance. The effective conflict management contributes to the development of social skills, of having better contact with feelings and their expression, of facing stressful situations and of standing more stable under pressure. In a training class where the members are gathered for learning, we notice that sometimes for some reasons they cannot learn and be effective and reach the desirable results. This becomes an internal conflict and the trainer must relate to it. Taking under consideration the system of roles of the person’s personality (for refresh and further information, take a look at Training Materials 2: The Power of the Group and specifically: 2.5 Groups & Group Dynamic in Psychodrama and the corresponding bibliography), the trainer may apply an exercise which focuses on the roles of the person. By exploring the roles of the person, progressive roles, fragmented roles, copying roles, the leader must evaluate and perceive the fragmented roles that the trainee experiences and impede his learning. Our goal is to focus on the person’s abilities for development, but often this is achievable by working with the forces that pull the member to the back and don’t let him to proceed. So the theme is, if a member or some members cannot attribute in learning because they experience a conflict inside, how will the leader take under consideration all these abilities and work with all this material. The role of the trainer and how he facilitates the process of learning and the management of conflicts, is very important. The adults’ educator must be properly trained, so as to be able to relate to all group members, to evaluate correctly the tension that is expressed and which ‘’shakes’’ the climate of security and trust in the class. The interventions of the leader must be connected to the function of the group and group members and also to the content of the lesson (Smith& Berg, 1987). It is of great importance the leader to take into account the group in its total and to try to keep the communication among members despite the tensions. Only in this way the members will learn not to avoid conflicts but to stay there and manage them in the group and so in their lives.
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3. Introduction to Exercises The American philosopher John Dewey writes down ‘’only what you accept with your soul, only that you learn, only that you integrate in your life and character’’ and it is totally compatible with the psychodramatic philosophy. In adult training or re- training and in lifelong learning, much attention has to be given to the experiences of adults and to the significance for their further development, to realize how many things they have learnt and how many things they still can learn from their experience (Evans, 1994, 4). It is characteristic that since 1972, Unesco emphasizes that a central principle of lifelong learning is the integration of learners’ experiences in it. Experiential learning is very rightly connected with the strengthening of learners. If persons gain trust on their ability to learn, they gain better control over their lives and so they may act toward the direction of social change (Mezirow, 1991, 197). With the experiential exercises and interventions listed below, we pursue the mental and emotional mobilization of learners, aiming to the integration of these two into one process. We aim to stop connecting knowledge with provision of sterile information, memorization and repetition, because the relationship which is cultivated between learners and knowledge is external and mechanical. We aim to create a relationship with knowledge in which learners will express the way they perceive life, will come in contact with their experiences and appreciate them, will develop their fantasy, creativity and spontaneity, will take over the responsibility for the proceeding of their learning, will increase their consciousness, will face the world, situations and relationships, more actively and lively. Psychodrama in VET and in Conflict Management contributes to the development of: maintaining a direct and genuine communication between trainers and trainees, empathy, meaning to better understand the needs and emotions of oneself and others, the role of trainer as he/ she learns to stand more in the conflicts and not to avoid them, abilities for the better management of difficult situations in class, cooperative learning, creative teaching and, a life quality with liveliness and humor. Through the implementation of the following exercises, interventions and techniques, which combine the expression of thoughts and emotions with body action and enactment, the whole group will have the chance to gain knowledge through experience and to search for personal meaning into it. It will become more sensitized in issues of human relationships and in forming of a working atmosphere based on cooperation and co- creation.
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The exercises listed below have as a goal to familiarize educators with experiential interventions in order to develop a more open stance towards conflicts, to feel more comfortable in confronting them and not to avoid them and in having some extra tools in handling them. These exercises contribute to receiving important knowledge for all the phases of group function, divided in warm up, action and sharing. Their categorization has been done according to the aim served in each phase of the group. All exercises are connected and they can be used in different points in the session, depending on what the leader evaluates as the most suitable intervention at that point. Of course we cannot know the content of the possible conflict that will emerge in class, so the trainer has to find out the central meaning of what is expressed and so to intervene suitably toward the direction he wants to explore and expand.
Considerations & Risks in applying the exercises for the Educator Many trainers try to resolve crises and conflicts in a rational way, but the only thing they get is the increase of conflicts or the dissolution of the group. It is necessary not to only pay attention to what is logically expressed, but also to the latent content of what is going on. We often use our sense in order to control things and so we leave the real essence out. To ‘’read’’ well the situation, to catch the essence of what is being told and/ or done. Otherwise, the leader will intervene in an inappropriate way, he may even wonder what went wrong or why this great exercise didn’t work and finally and most probably, he will be disappointed and the members will too. The tension, obvious or underlying, must be brought to the surface and worked out. Either with some exercises, or with an open discussion or, in a psychotherapeutic psychodrama group, by conducting a drama with the most warmed up person, with the person that has most internalized the situation. Common ways of members’ resistance or aggressiveness are to be withdrawn, silent, with no desire to express themselves, to change the subject of discussion, to be delayed. And in psychodrama especially, is their denial to play and to display themselves. They prefer to discuss in general and in the abstract, than to concretize and make focus on their real issue. Attitudes by the leader like being afraid of confronting conflict, trying to tranquilize it or to ignore it by acting like nothing happens, have no desirable result, because frictions, tension and conflict will emerge despite these and because of these. A compassionate, respectful, trusting explorer leader tries to be with the group members and not to get them to do certain things. This enhances group members’ ability, during a conflict management situation and not only, to write their own script as they go along and thus bring about an unfolding of their life. 23
The maintenance of a good level of self esteem is necessary for free flowing leadership. It is necessary that a group leader develops a good sense of his/ her own value before the group commences and does not rely on the good- will of the group to maintain that sense of value. So, in dealing with difficult or pressing situations, it is more unlikely to be disappointed. There are some elements that the leader of the group should have in mind before applying an exercise. It is worth to examine: the climate of the group, the degree of correlation among the members, the subgroups which exist in the group, to ‘’read’’ the body position of the members, their mood (who is open, close, skeptical, defensive etc), who sits next to whom, who are the central figures, who are the peripheral/ marginal persons, how they connect, the goal the group has & their motive for the goal. It is also worth to wonder in: how much scope you leave to free communication among members or where you intervene? how will you establish mutual relationships (‘’tele’’)? how will you include the most isolated persons? Here are listed some sample criteria (sociometry) that could be used for this purpose: Get up from your chairs and there to go… these who are satisfied from their work and there those who are not satisfied these who have a good relationship with students and there those who don’t these who have a good relationship with their colleagues and there those who don’t these who express what they feel and there those who do not these who keep inside their thoughts and feelings and there those who share them these who expect from the others to find for them what to do and there those who do it by themselves, etc.
*
The use of these specific criteria is indicative. They can be changed and adapted to the relevant
issue we want to explore. The examination of these elements is useful for the leader in order to evaluate the behavior of the 24
members and also to evaluate which interventions will lead to expansion. For an educational group it is useful, because it contributes to the diminishment of conflicts, to the improvement of communication and also it allows the group to see itself objectively and to analyze its dynamics and development.
*Because
of the multi dimensional nature of exercises, many of them can be used for several
issues and for several purposes. In exercises with couples, it is recommended to choose somebody with who are less familiar. If in the same session, the group is divided more than once in couples, it is better to change partner.
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WARM UP The leader, with his/ her presence and interventions, tries to create a loose atmosphere without critical comments, which provoke tension and increase the resistances for the game. The group’s goal is the members to feel as comfortable as possible, in order to express themselves freely and to formulate a complaint, a thought, a desire, a conflict, something for which they want to learn more or something which they would like to manage better. The members are activated by the discussion or/ and by some exercises and an emotional environment is formed in the group. So the whole group, the leader and the members, starts gradually to warm up to an issue, in which they will focus and with which they will be occupied in greater depth in the Action phase. The below exercises (Κ. Λέτσιος, clinical psychologist- psychodrama trainer, handwritten notes) introduce the members to competitive situations which hide conflict and as they experience spontaneously and unconsciously a certain situation in class, they start wondering about the way they function in corresponding situations in their lives. The conflict usually emerges around the 5th session, together with resistance, when it is time for the group to go deeper. Inside the class the educators face many times students’ resistance during the learning process. The resistance appears with the form of isolation, denial of participation, rivalries, aggressiveness toward the educator, by trying to attract other students to their side, by having difficulty in learning.
DOGS & CATS The leader gives the instruction that ‘’half of you will become dogs and the other half will become cats’’. They are free to choose what they want to be. A few minutes will pass until they make their choice and they finalize that the number of dogs and cats is equal or almost equal. Alternatively, as everybody sits on the chairs of the circle, the leader turns to his/ her left and says to the member next to him/ her: ‘’dog’’, to the next one ‘’cat’’, and so on. Thus, he/ she gives roles to the members. All members stand up and the interaction begins for about 10 minutes. There is no limitation in their playing, except of course for the expression of violence of any kind. After time has passed, they return to their chairs and a sharing of thoughts and feelings follows. The leader poses some questions, as: ‘’how did you feel during playing?’’, ‘’what dog/ cat you 26
were? Playful? Wild?’’, ‘’How did you interact with the others?’’, ‘’did you enjoy it?’’ or some other relevant questions that result from the member’s talking. This is a directional exercise in order to provoke feelings of intensity. It is interesting to notice that in some members a tendency to predominate emerges, while in others a tendency to recede. While it seems a very simple exercise, it may be hard for some participants. This happens because the feelings which emerge in this particular situation are connected at the same time and unconsciously with other deeper situations. So, the leader needs to be alert and present with all his/ her senses in order to manage whatever comes up.
CONFLICT The group is separated in two smaller equal numbered groups. The stage is the territory of the two groups. There is a line in between them, which divides the territory. The line is not depicted in reality, it is just in their imagination. The leader shows with his/ her hand, where this line is. The instruction given is ‘’the members of the A group want to reach to the other side of the room, where is the territory of the B group. The members of the B group resist and try to repel them’’. After around 5 minutes of interaction, the groups reverse roles. The time for the change is given by the leader. Other 5 minutes of interaction follow and the exercise ends. When they return and sit on their chairs, a sharing of feelings and thoughts follows. Also, the leader poses to each individual the question ‘’how did you feel from these two positions? How was for you to be in the group that attacks and how to be in the group that defends?’’ The aim of this exercise is the same with the previous one, the ‘’dogs and cats’’. The use of violence is forbidden and the leader must be always alert and have in mind every single member of the group, how they feel or if somebody cannot stand it. There is no particular recipe for handling unpredictable situations, apart from staying calm and trying to relate with what emerges. If somebody does not want to participate, he/ she is free to do it. The leader may encourage the person who resists or denies, by saying that we always gain things for ourselves when we enter in things. But still the person may deny and the leader respects each one choices. If somebody is very touched by what happened, he/ she will share it in the group, with absolute respect in his/ her feelings.
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ENEMY The leader says to the group to choose somebody from the group and to become couples. Then, they are called to stand up from the chairs and go to the stage with their partner. The instruction given is to stand face to face with each other and to touch their hands. Their hands will be almost stretched to the height of their shoulders, so there will be some distance between them. All couples are ‘’set up’’ in line, the one next to the other but also in some distance from others, in order to have freedom of movements. When everybody has taken this position, the leader says that ‘’person A sees in person B everything he does not like. Person B also sees in Person A everything he does not like. Each one of you tries to repeal the other. Start’’. The leader leaves them in interaction for about 5 minutes. A sharing of thoughts and feelings follows this exercise. It increases the members’ warm up, as each one connects to his/ her themes and he/ she projects to the other his/ her competitive or confrontational feelings. It is interesting to see how each individual experience it, the differences and the similarities among members. Variation: The opponents do not touch each other. Their hands are straight down, next to their bodies. There is a distance between them, almost the distance that they would have in between if their hands were touched. Again the one repels and the other resists and they interact for about 5 minutes.
ACTION The Vet adult educator in the action phase, aims to continue warming up the members to conflict and conflict management. The situations that provoke intense feelings, distaste, antagonisms, divergences, are usually faced with fear. So the leader pursues to get busy with these situations, in order to teach in practice what happens to group dynamic when confronting conflicts and what when avoiding them. It is not a matter of giving a solution to a conflict, but of creating a new warm up, a new experience that has to do with developing the ability to relate with others when things are difficult. Conflict management becomes effective, when people learn gradually not to avoid them and to keep the communication with others open. The below exercises and games (Κ. Λέτσιος, clinical psychologist- psychodrama trainer, handwritten notes) must be perceived as continuation of the members’ warm up and not as 28
something different or cut off. It must be never forgotten that in psychodrama, the leader’s aim is to constantly warm up the members. Only when reaching the highest point of the warm up, spontaneity is created and so the new role is born, meaning the new way of confronting an old or new situation. To follow and to increase the warm up of the members requires by the leader to have understood the theme that occupies the group and so to intervene with the suitable exercises. So, they must not be taken as a prescheduled session. The suggested games aim to activate the members and to warm them up more in confronting persons and situations and in expressing the untold. The leader may use an exercise in order to introduce members in a competitive situation or he/ she may organize a game based on the experiences or the worries of a member or some members. Also, the various forms of personal or group resistance are handled successfully through playing. If the issue of the group is organized and dramatized in a way which corresponds to the tension that the group experiences in the ‘’here and now’’, then great opportunities are created for expressing these difficulties. In a Vet class, the playing builds more functional relationships which reinforce the unity of the group and connects each individual with his/ her progressive roles which lead to the internalization of the knowledge, to personal changes and to development of new skills.
FOLLOW AND BE FOLLOWED The leader asks from the members to put in their mind somebody from the group whom they want to follow and somebody by whom they do not want to be followed. Everybody stands up and starts following the person who has chosen, keeping a distance from him/ her. At the same time, he/ she tries to avoid the person that he/ she does not want to be followed by. After 2-3 minutes, the leader changes the criterion into: ‘’now just follow the person you want, by keeping a distance’’. After 2- 3 minutes, change again: ‘’now just try to avoid the person you do not want’’. After 2- 3 minutes, change again: ‘’now follow again the person you want and avoid the person you do not want’’. This exercise brings individuals in contact with what they avoid and with what they confront. They may have chosen a person from the group to follow and one to avoid, but inside them they have been connected with all these they avoid and face. Their stance towards conflict becomes more obvious and also, how closed or open are towards people and situations.
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TEACHER – REACTIVE CHILD The group is divided in two smaller groups. Group A takes the role of the teacher. Group B takes the role of the reactive child. The leader asks from the members of each group to come closer with their chairs and to discuss a little about their role. What kind of parent they are, how this reactive child reacts etc. At this point, there is no interaction between the two subgroups, only the members of the each group talk together. They have around 10 minutes for their preparation. They place their chairs in a way so to have visual contact with the other group and the interaction begins. The educator explains to them that each time a member from a group has an idea, he/ she freely expresses it. The same happens with the other group, whoever has an idea immediately answers. And so the enactment continues. After around 15 minutes (the leader evaluates the appropriate amount of time according to the enactment), the leader gives the instruction ‘’you have 2 minutes to complete it’’. After finishing, they return with their chairs to the initial circle, preferably the members of each subgroup sitting the one next to the other but it is not obligatory, and the sharing begins. The instruction is ‘’Thoughts and feelings that were agitated in you during the enactment’’. Some possible questions are ‘’how did you feel from this role?’’, ‘’how did you cooperate with your team?’’, ‘’did you end up finding a solution?’’ etc. Depending on the number of participants, the leader may create more subgroups in order to explore and expand more the members’ perspectives. For example, if we have 8 members, we will form 2 subgroups of 4 persons, ‘’the teacher’’ and the ‘’reactive child’’. If we have 12 members, we will form 3 subgroups of 4 persons (or 4 groups of 3 persons), ‘’the teacher’’, ‘’the reactive child’’ and ‘’the parent’’. If we have 16 members 4 subgroups of 4 persons, ‘’the teacher’’, ‘’the parent’’, the ‘’reactive child’’ and ‘’the cooperative child’’. The leader leaves in free interaction all the subgroups, for a certain period of time and then, the sharing follows. This is a very interesting game because it can be adjusted to many different working environments and situations. It works in multi levels, it transfers in here and now the competitive situation, it brings to the surface the untold messages, it helps expand oneself as he/ she experiences the different perspectives. As the members get the opportunity to play different roles their empathy 30
grows, because they start thinking, talking and acting like him/ her, they start understanding him/ her better. They will start wondering about how he/ she feels and what he/ she wants to express. It is very possible to be surprised by their own reaction, as they warm up being in the different roles. Variation: At the end or at a certain point of the enactment, the leader may reverse roles the two groups. Meaning, the members who were ‘’the teacher’’ will become now ‘’the reactive child’’ and vice versa, the members who were ‘’the reactive child’’ will become now ‘’the teacher’’. The interaction will start over again with the same time duration. So, both groups will experience both roles. Variation: At the end or at a certain point of the enactment, the leader may ask ‘’if somebody, one or more, wants to go to the other group’’ and he/ she goes. The interaction starts over again or continues for some time more.
THE SHOE The members of the group are asked to take off their left shoe and place it in the center of the stage. Each member separately will stand up and will move one shoe at a time, except for his/ her own. This will be repeated for several times. Some limitations will be given, in particular: the shoes will not be turned upside down, will not be thrown away and will not be placed outside the frame of the stage. Approximate duration: 10 – 15 minutes. As soon as a couple of minutes are left, the leader will inform the group that they have two minutes to conclude. A sharing of thoughts and feelings follows. This exercise is related with how individuals feel when somebody intervenes and ruins what they have in mind. It reveals also the dynamics, while some people have the tendency to disrupt things while others to ‘’gather’’ them, to keep things calm. Through this exercise the anger and the untold tension is expressed in a symbolic level. This exercise may be used in the beginning of the action phase for better exploration of the dynamic and the antagonisms of the group or in the end of the action phase for bigger defuse of the tension.
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CLOSURE These exercises (Κ. Λέτσιος, clinical psychologist- psychodrama trainer, handwritten notes) are put in the end of the session and also in the end of a series of sessions. They contribute to the better integration of what took place during the teaching of the training material. The goal is double: to make the members an internal ‘’report’’ of what they lived, what they learnt, what they take with them as the session or the series of sessions ends; to integrate, to take inside the most of what took place during the group session and also, if the group ends, to facilitate the expression and elaboration of separation feelings from the leader and the other group members. This process of account and goodbye is an inevitable part of the procedure of each kind and duration group. The leader facilitates the members’ expression and he proposes exercises for the account and the estimation of each one’s development inside the group. And of course, he proposes exercises so as the members to experience the separation in a ceremonial way. The leader may participate to the exercises and to express himself/ herself his/ her feelings for this experience and the ending of the group. The leader determines the time that the group will dedicate to its closure. An approximate duration for closure and evaluation is 2 hours (depending always on the total duration of the session). All members will have the opportunity to share their thoughts and feelings, to reflect on the procedure and to discuss on various questions, concerning the use and implementation of this knowledge. In educational groups, the leader proposes exercises also for the evaluation of the training procedure, the knowledge and skills that the participants obtained.
SOMETHING THAT HAS NOT BEEN SETTLED
The leader gives the following instruction to the members: ‘’Think of someone with whom you have a communication difficulty. Think of something that you have not settled with this person the way you would like, e.g. you wanted to say something to him/ her but you didn’t, or to do something that you didn’t or anything else’’. This exercise is done with couples and so the leader asks from the group to become couples with the person who sits next to them. So everybody becomes dyads and if we have single number of participants, there will be also a triad. In the triad, the exercise is also done in couples, each one chooses his/ her partner and it does not matter if somebody has been chosen twice. Both persons will have the opportunity to express themselves consecutively. 32
To be clearer, person A expresses what he/ she wants to person B. Then he/ she changes role with person B and gives an answer from that role. And there the enactment finishes. Person B in his/ her turn does the same thing. When everybody has finished, they turn in the circle and a sharing of thoughts and feelings follows. Alternatively, the couples may discuss together how they experience it, without making an open sharing in the circle. This exercise, as all the experiential exercises, does not give answers or solutions, it contributes to make people wonder about their functioning: about the way they do things, the way they express themselves, what they could do differently etc. It also contributes in expressing the untold and gives the opportunity for a correctional movement. This kind of questioning contributes to self expansion through the generation of a new warm- up, of new responses to old experiences. So, as the individual gains a clearer, image of himself and his personality, he/ she creates clearer, more direct and functional relationships with the others.
GROUP SCULPTURE
The members are requested by the leader to make the sculpture of the group as they would like it to be. The sculpture will be static, as a frozen image, without movement or words. If the members find meaningful the sculpture to say a word or to have a slight movement, it is totally ok. They may use objects, they may all participate in the image of the sculpture or some of the members, they are totally free to do it as they imagine. By doing that, all members come closer in order to discuss, to share opinions, to cooperate and finally to choose and create how they want this sculpture to be and what to represent. Every member starts an internal process of what group is for himself/ herself and what is for the others. The participants will depict the sense of the group as they would like it to be, probably the sense of a good functional group and that contributes to greater integration of group work.
JUST A WORD
The leader asks from the group members to say a word or a phrase for something that each one of them takes with him/ her, as this session ends. It can be anything, something he/ she learnt, something he/ she realized, something which impressed him/ her, or anything else. For example: ‘’communication’’, ‘’I am not alone, there are others who feel the same way’’. In a circle, or in a free 33
row, everybody talks briefly about it. The leader may, if he/ she wants, say a word that takes with him/ her, after everybody has finished talking. This exercise helps each member to focus on the most important ‘’thing’’ for him/ her. Among everything said and done, he/ she chooses one. It is related to the principal of concretization, one of the most basic psychodrama techniques. It is very important to choose one, to develop the ability of making focus only on one thing at a time. It also provides to the educator the possibility to see clearer where each participant ‘’is’’, meaning what he/ she keeps from the training course, what he/ she wants to develop more, what to learn more etc.
WANDER AND FOCUS The leader asks the members to be separated in couples. Each one of them will discuss and share with the other what was important for him/ her, what he/ she learnt, what he/ she found out, what he/ she liked. They may leave the class, if they want and if it is possible. Otherwise, they will find a way to co- exist with the others without annoying them, scattered in different spots in the room, speaking in a low voice. They return to the class after 20 minutes and they sit on the chairs. It is preferable the couples to sit together, meaning one next to the other in the circle, but it is not obligatory. Each one shares with the rest of the group the above thoughts and feelings. Each member tries to focus on the most important things he/ she learnt and felt during this session. It is very important for each one to realize them, to give value to them, to find connections with the others and/ or to hear something that he/ she had not thought of.
MY ROUTE IN THE GROUP
This exercise is recommended for the Sharing phase of the last session, after the teaching of all training materials is coming to an end. The leader asks from each member to paint a path that symbolizes his/ her route in the group, since the beginning until today. They may add drawings, symbols or words for the important moments that experienced during it. Markers, pencils, oil pastels of different colors may be needed in order to differentiate some elements, to emphasize others, to make it more joyful, more meaningful or whatever else.
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As each one tries to focus on the most important moments, he/ she makes an internal report of the group process and his/ her personal route. The leader asks them also, to imagine and paint where this path will lead after the sessions finish. The members share what they keep, what they learnt, how they felt. By imagining where this path leads, they make a future projection (psychodrama technique), about how they imagine themselves with this new experience, this new knowledge. Future projection helps the members to make their goal more concrete and to internally connect with their progressive roles, meaning the roles that help them to move on, to go ahead. An estimation of 15- 20 minutes seems to be enough time for the painting of the routes. Everybody exposes his work in front of the whole group and one by one presents it, talking shortly about it. Around 30 minutes seems to be required for the exposure and the sharing of the personal routes, always depending on the total number of the participants. All members cooperate for a collective painting of the route of the group.
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
36
5. Bibliography 5.1. References in English Bion, W.R. (n.d.). The Perspective of Bion. In Different perspectives on Group Work. Retrieved November 8, 2014, from http://www.psychodrama.gr Clayton, G.M. (1994). Effective Group Leadership. Book 4 in a series of Training Books. Australia: ICA PRESS. Clayton, G.M. (1992). Enhancing Life and Relationships. Book 2 in a series of Training Books. Australia: ICA PRESS. Clayton, G.M. & Carter, D.P. (2004). The Living Spirit of the Psychodramatic Method. New Zealand: Resource Books. Evans, N. (1994). Experiential Learning for All. London, New York: Cassell. Kellermann, P.F. (1992). Focus On Psychodrama. London: Kingsley. Kellermann, P.F. (1996). Interpersonal Conflict Management in Group Psychotherapy: An Integrative Perspective Vol. 29. London: Sage Publications. Lewin, K. (1997). Resolving social conflicts and field theory in social science. Washington DC, US: American Psychological Association. Mezirow, J. (1991). Transformative Dimensions of Adult Learning. San Francisco: JosseyBass. Moreno, L.J. (1953). Who Shall Survive? Foundations of Sociometry, Group Psychotherapy and Sociodrama. (2nd ed.). Beacon NY: Beacon House. Sherif, M. & Sherif, C. (1969). Social Psychology. New York: Harper. Yalom, D.I. & Leszcz, M. (2005). The Theory and Practice of Group Psychotherapy. (5th ed.). United States: Basic Books.
5.2. References in Greek Αρχοντάκη, Ζ. & Φιλίππου Δ. (2003). 205 βιωματικές ασκήσεις για εμψύχωση ομάδων ψυχοθεραπείας, κοινωνικής εργασίας, εκπαίδευσης. (γ’ εκδ.). Αθήνα: Καστανιώτης. Γκόβας, Ν. (2003). Για ένα δημιουργικό νεανικό θέατρο. Ασκήσεις, παιχνίδια, τεχνικές. Ένα πρακτικό βοήθημα για εμψυχωτές ομάδων και εκπαιδευτικούς. Αθήνα: Μεταίχμιο. Καβροχωριανού, Ε. & Δήμου Σ. (2013). Ψυχόδραμα για Παιδιά. In Βοήθημα εκπαιδευτικού μικρών παιδιών. Θεωρία- Πράξη. (κεφ. 1, τομ. 4). Ανακτηθέν Νοέμβριος 8, 2014, από http://blogs.sch.gr/symnip54/4ος-τόμος/κεφάλαιο-πρώτο. Λέτσιος, Κ. (2001). Το Ψυχόδραμα. Η επιστήμη της ομάδας στην ψυχοθεραπευτική προοπτική. Αθήνα: Ελληνικά Γράμματα. 37
Τσιμπουκλή, Α. (2012). Δυναμική Ομάδας και Επικοινωνία στην Εκπαίδευση Ενηλίκων. Αθήνα: ΙΝΕ/ ΓΣΕΕ.
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Working with Symbols Psychodrama as a tool in Education Training materials-Module 6 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
INDEX
1.
2.
3.
Module description ...................................................................................... 3 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 3
1.2.
Learning outcomes............................................................................... 3
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and the workshop ................................... 3
Introduction to the theory............................................................................. 5 2.1.
What is a symbol? ................................................................................ 6
2.2.
The class and the collective unconscious ............................................. 9
2.3.
Playing with symbols, a source of talent ............................................. 10
2.4.
Implicit and explicit knowledge: reading the class............................... 12
2.5.
Psychodrama and symbols ................................................................ 15
2.6.
Intermediary objects ........................................................................... 18
2.7.
The value of the symbol in group learning .......................................... 22
Introduction to exercises ........................................................................... 26 PUPPETS ................................................................................................. 31 Working with puppets ................................................................................ 31 Understanding the students better............................................................. 31 One puppet, one concept: learning difficult topics ..................................... 32 MASKS ..................................................................................................... 35 PAINTING – DRAWING ............................................................................ 37 SCULPTURES .......................................................................................... 38 ACTING ROLES ....................................................................................... 40 ACTING OBJECTS ................................................................................... 42 IMAGINATIVE EXERCISES ...................................................................... 44 EXERCISES WITH MUSIC AND MOVEMENT ......................................... 46
4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 47
5.
Bibliography .............................................................................................. 48 5.1.
References in English ........................................................................ 48
5.2.
References in Spanish ....................................................................... 48
2
1. Module description Working with Symbols is the sixth module of the course Psychodrama as a Tool in Education. As with all the modules that make up this course, it may be studied independently. However, it is recommended that the information presented here be integrated with knowledge of the other Psychodramatic techniques and actions. It is aimed at all teachers of adult, vocational or life-long training who are interested in learning the symbolic process, from the Psychodramatic perspective, and its application in the classroom. This knowledge can be very useful when identifying obstacles to learning, contending with diverse groups of students, and improving communication, empathy and, consequently, the learning environment.
1.1. Aims The adult educator will learn the value of symbolism in Psychodrama as applied to adult education. The educator will learn how to make basic use of symbols, in the classroom, under the perspective of Psychodrama.
1.2. Learning outcomes On completion of the module, the teacher will be able to: Explain the importance of the use of symbology in education practice. Suggest diverse symbols and identify their possible function. Choose exercises that are appropriate to the objectives set out. Understand the importance of protecting and maintaining the integrity of both the group and the individual. Integrate the use of symbols with active Psychodramatic techniques. Appreciate the importance of sharing in Psychodrama. Develop a simple Psychodramatic exercise, orientated towards adult education, in which symbols for a real life classroom situation are used.
1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The collection of materials in this manual is orientated towards helping the educator apply simple symbolic exercises in the classroom. However, the content presented here can also be used to organise a training workshop, led by a Psychodramatist, for
3
adult educators themselves. Such a workshop will allow educators to gain a more indepth understanding of how symbols are used in Psychodramatic practice. Where possible, the workshop will last for eight hours and be run as a single-day session. If this is not possible, it will be run over two, preferably consecutive, days. It is best if the group has at least eight members and no more than sixteen. This module is divided into two main sections; an introduction to theory and an introduction to practice. Further sections complete the information that educators will need in order to achieve the objectives set out. The introduction to theory comprises 6 sections through which the history of the symbol is retraced. The processes of symbolisation are discussed, as are the main concepts of the most important authors; from Sigmund Freud, father of psychoanalysis and discoverer of the connections between symbolic language and the unconscious, to J. L. Moreno, the founder of Psychodrama. This first block will last one hour of the workshop. The section that is concerned with practice corresponds to the exercise examples. The exercise examples are classified according to the work materials used, and the main purpose of each group of exercises is explained in the corresponding section. In addition, there is a general introduction and a section containing points that the educator should bear in mind. Even more importantly, there is also a section on the risks involved when applying these techniques and on the responsibility that comes with their use. In the section dealing with evaluation, the instructor will be able to assess the impact the exercise has in the classroom. The bibliography lists the books and articles that have provided the information used to prepare this module. They make up a very useful guide for anyone who would like to extend their knowledge and study symbolism in Psychodrama in greater depth.
4
2. Introduction to the theory Everything is a symbol in Psychodrama, but its importance rests more in the acting out of the symbol than in the genesis of the concept. The symbols par excellence are myths that are recorded in archetypes — more primitive and universal types of expression — but words, letters, objects, gestures, and behaviour may also be symbolic. Each corporal expression is loaded with meaning that is exhibited in the action. Jacob Levy Moreno (1889-1974) believed that Psychodrama illustrated the symbols of the action, the integration and the resolution. That is to say, in a Psychodramatic action, the personal or group change effected through symbols will depend on “the intensity of the connection between the word, the symbol, the behaviour and the action”. If the study of symbols can be applied to a situation that is recorded in the Psychodramatic action, the symbol will shed light on any latent phenomena within the group. These latent phenomena often place limits on the education process. The aim of this module, therefore, is to understand the symbolic function through Psychodrama, in order to work on both explicit and implicit information that is present in the adult education process. Although this course focuses on the adult vocational training classroom, the management of information is important in any learning process. The course attempts to help the educator with awareness, and the connections between the visible and the invisible and their consequences, such as obstacles to learning, leadership, motivation or communication. Learning through symbolic dramatization strengthens the education process because it allows implicit knowledge to surface by encouraging multidisciplinary skills such as communication, leadership, trust and teamwork. Working with symbols can also be an excellent tool for assimilating concepts, and for strengthening and reinforcing the explicit learning of contents. Psychodrama in general, and symbols in particular, can help us to both appreciate and evaluate the expectations, limitations and beliefs of the group with regard to specific information, specific training or an educational process. On the other hand, depending on the adult educator's expertise and their own vision and experience of life, Psychodrama and symbols can be a powerful tool for dealing 5
with situations that may limit the capacity to learn in the classroom. Through the use of symbols, scenarios that provoke fear can be represented in such a way that the group helps the vocational training students to examine their fears and facilitate the learning. In line to understand deeply the symbolic process, even when in Psychodrama the importance lies in action, in this module will be reviewed the next essential complex, mostly because its theoretical importance in order to apply a symbolic expression in the classroom: Symbos in Freud’s theory, difference without symbol and sign. Jung and the possibility of collective symbols and meanings. Klein and the importance of playing to develop talent through a symbolic process. Implicit and explicit knowledge. A Pichon-Rivière introduction Intermediary objects: what can act like a symbol? Psychodrama, symbols and learning in group
2.1. What is a symbol? Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), was an Austrian psychiatrist and the first to study the symbol deeply. According to him, working with symbols involves inquiring directly into the unconscious of the class. Therefore, it is understandable that this module is particularly advanced in PaTiE, and must be applied in the classroom with caution. Symbols are linked to meaning, dreams and the unconscious, in such a way that they provide us with implicit information that conceptual thought does not encompass. This link may sometimes be related to emotional, motivational or unconscious processes. The symbol and the symbolization process are complex concepts that can be defined simply as an operation of substitution in which a symbol may have a different meaning for each individual, group or society. Sigmund Freud was the founder of the psychoanalytic method, based on the existence of the unconscious that the doctor discovered through his work with hypnosis. Freud felt the need to study repressed memories by means of “free association”, a rule by which patients have to speak about whatever occurs to them without any kind of moral restriction. He called this method psychoanalysis, and he assumed that, thanks to him, patients made connections to those gaps in memory that originate in the unconscious and remain latent. The therapist had an intervening role of building an outline around these lapses in memory.
6
In this sense, symbols that appear in dreams were, to Freud, an important source of knowledge about the desires of the unconscious. This is so because of the nature of the symbol. Symbolization involves a process in which a thing represents something different to an individual. However, it is not concerned with the substitution of one object for another, in such a way that, for example, a flame is understood to represent fire. What takes place in the symbolic process is not a substitution, but an operation that involves the capacity of an absent object to be represented by means of the symbol that signifies it, and the participation of an individual who is able to distinguish between the symbol and the symbolized. In order to better understand what is involved when talking about symbols, it is helpful to bear in mind the difference between sign and symbol. The sign is a communicative unit that transmits representative contents with a precise meaning, and it is formed by a duality between signifier and meaning, the sign and the thing described. Continuing with the previous example, a flame signifies fire. The noun “fire� itself forms part of a system of signs that shape a language, and it indicates the specific meaning of fire. The symbol, in contrast, does not indicate a precise meaning but evokes abstract ideas, values and feelings. While the sign is unique to language, the symbol is an iconographic or mimetic type of inscription of what it attempts to represent. It reveals itself through practices other than speech, such as dreams and games and, sometimes, behaviour. In this way, we could consider imaginative play as true symbolization, since the latter increases the capacity to fantasize and organize the psychic space. At the same time, however, the symbol is a signifier and it allows separate elements, whose meaningful connection has been lost, to be connected by creating a link between subject and object, between psychic and material reality, and between the past and the present. As understood by the Freudian model in clinical practice, analysis assumes a dual relation between the analyst and the person being analyzed that only can work when a third entity is represented in the scene. That is to say, the analytical situation assumes its true form when both the symbol and the symbolized act in the scene, allowing a process of symbolization to develop – an action that has its opening and closing processes.
7
Freud emphasizes an essentially individual symbolism that resists cultural influence in a social dimension. In fact, the individual symbolism attests to the adventure of symbolization within the same treatment; it is assumed that a closed and repetitive form of symbolization provides a way in which the symbolic process can open up and avoid repetition, by introducing a new system of exchange between the symbol and the symbolized. Symbols link different emotions. Describing the symbol as signifier makes it clear that, although its nature may be removed from language, it may be expressed through speech and revealed linguistically. However, in symbols, the unconscious is filtered through consciousness, that is to say, it is a real – externalized – manifestation of the unconscious when awake. In dreams, the unconscious is not restricted to the structures of conscious perception. The dream has a syntax all of its own, its own language, and the language of wakefulness and its signs become obsolete. In the Freudian theory of the symbol, the symbol involves an opening up of the individuality of each person, a form of expression that is beyond socially acquired grammar. What links the symbol and the symbolized is not the same as what links signifier and meaning, and that is exactly where the difference between symbol and sign lies. In the case of the sign, the link between significance and meaning is arbitrary, and is chosen and agreed upon by the individuals who use the sign, but it is not necessary. *For example, the word 'fire' (signifier) can mean that compendium of flames, smoke and heat (meaning) to which a name is given, but it could also be described by a different sign. According to Freud, the symbol, on the other hand, is linked to what it represents in a way that could be described as appropriate and that is not at all arbitrary. This is because of the iconic mimesis of the symbol with that which is being symbolized. Thus, the symbol seems to free the individual from the word, from what has been agreed by men, from what pertains to language and its grammar. In Psychodrama, and this is one of the main Moreno novelties in the symbolic work, the goal is not to understand or analyze a particular process of symbolization, but to act the symbol. This way of working with symbols can be very helpful in the classroom, especially in conflict solving or to work with heterogeneous classes.
8
The study of symbolization processes can be extremely complicated. Nonetheless, in order to be able to intervene effectively, adult educators only need to recognize and be aware of the symbols that can appear in both the classroom and drama scene.
2.2. The class and the collective unconscious The rule of “free association” in Freud is based on his idea that human beings are imbued with subjective drives that are directed from the individual to social reality, linking him or her with the people round about. This theory of free association was the one that attracted Carl Gustav Jung (1875-1961), the Swiss psychologist and psychiatrist, to Freudian theories. However, Jung ended by distancing himself from psychoanalysis because it concerns the working of the unconscious. Freud´s idea of unconscious is always individual. Jung concluded from his investigations on ancient myths that not only individual unconscious occurred, but also a collective unconscious. Human beings enjoy as members of a species a type of mental schema that we are all born with and that we all share. Jung named these contents 'archetypes' because they constitute paradigms, thought systems and words that make it easier for the members of a society to understand the cultural values they share, rituals and all forms of communication. That is to say, as opposed to the individual unconscious of Freud, motivated by the libidinal drive of each particular individual and based on their repressed desires, Jung instead proposes a universal drive and, therefore, a universal, symbolic and collective unconscious that nullifies, to a great extent, the singularity of each person. Freud heavily criticized this aspect of Jung's theory, and considered that no individual is completely forced to accept any universal archetype, however much they may be shaped by all the emotions experienced in a lifetime of relationships. The importance of the use of symbols, for understanding the unconscious, the latent, the emotional and the non-rational, is developed in the Psychodramatic action in a dual way. On the one hand, each person may work individually on a symbol while explaining it to the group – who may in turn reveal their own unconscious – or it may be that signs of the collective unconscious are glimpsed, creating a powerful space for change for the class. As Jung explains in his seminal work, Man and his symbols, although all cultures resort to a symbolic expression in order to represent concepts that they cannot define or 9
understand completely - such as divinity - it should also be remembered that man produces symbols unconsciously and spontaneously in the form of dreams. These dreams may be certain events that the individual has not been aware of and that have been absorbed subliminally. Nonetheless, the individual may become aware of these events, not only through dreams, but by means of a process of deep thought or intuition through which an understanding can be gained. They emerge from the unconscious as a kind of delayed reflection. To sum up, the Psychodramatic action can encourage this understanding by transferring information from the unconscious to the conscious through symbolic work, at both an individual and a classroom level. In the classroom certain processes allow the group to share common cultural values allowing that way communication between individuals. In case of groups with different cultures, is also created –or can be–, a common space for sharing and communicating through the symbols.
2.3. Playing with symbols, a source of talent Along with Freud, the Austrian psychoanalyst Melanie Klein (1882-1960) was another pioneer in the use of the symbol that would later be applied to Psychodrama. Her languages and theories on the symbol belong to an advanced level of therapeutic clinical practice, one that the educator will not require when applying Psychodramatic exercises in the classroom. Nonetheless, it is essential to learn her theoretical basis in order to illustrate the power of the symbol in the individual and in the class as a whole. The Austrian psychoanalyst Klein also worked on the unconscious, and did so by means of free association. However, the nature of the symbolic material with which she carried out these practices was different to Freud's, a difference that may have come about because she carried out her work with children. For Klein, the symbol is no longer that unconscious manifestation which is revealed in dreams, but a malleable and indispensable element. Symbolism for her is the bridge between the representations fantasized by the individual and the real objects. The ego develops its perception of the world by creating symbols. So, in 1946, she coined the term projective identification, an essential factor that allows experiences, initially inaccessible, to be thought and verbalized. Kleinian symbolism sees play as the symbolic expression of underlying and unconscious conflicts, desires and fantasies. Symbolism no longer corresponds to the unconscious and involuntary oneiric manifestations, but to the capacity to connect 10
or associate equivalent fields of experience in terms that allow drives to be discharged. Psychodrama opens the possibility for the unconscious to be activated and spoken by playing. In games, especially those of an athletic nature, libidinal impulses are released in ways that are less repressive and closer to sublimation, which allows the individual to connect inhibitions. It does so by making sublimation possible with the displacement of one of these inhibitions, in a way that is more in tune with the preferences of the individual's own ego. The symbol, by means of substitution, displaces the inhibition and makes it possible for the repressed emotion to disappear. This operation is based on the capacity to establish activities that provide the individual with some sort of satisfaction to which they may symbolically link libidinal fantasies. In order to achieve this, it is necessary to consider the aptitude demonstrated by the individual. If it is not excessively hindered, the symbolic operation to expel the repression may be a source of talent. When an individual comes across an activity that meets with widespread approval by society, and they find within that activity a substitute channel for discharging unsatisfied libido, sublimation takes place. The process of symbol formation plays an essential role in sublimation and, therefore, in the talent, as it allows the association between the activity and libidinal desires to be established. The talent –or more specifically, its development– is a key concept in the theory of Klein that occurs precisely as a result of sublimation. This is because the individual's fixation for discharging libidinal drives impels them to cultivate the activity that facilitates this development. And, says Klein, this development of a specific activity is what we call talent. This alternative is always more constructive than others that have repressed or less suitable channels, because these generate fixations that usually result in symptoms. And sublimation is only achieved by means of the symbolic capacity that links the inhibition with the chosen activity. Klein believes that the formation of symbols is a process that affects the psyche. It creates an exterior in which the interior can make a safe base for drives that will create the individual's reality. In her work Infantile Analysis, Doctor Klein places great importance on the role of symbolism in intellectual development, since it equates intellectual inhibitions with the inhibition of the symbolic function. The symbolization process is considered as a 11
dynamic process of substitution of objects that are driven by angst and sadism. These aspects are very much related to the intrapsychic world of each individual. Nonetheless, the educator has to be, if not expert in them, then at least aware of these theories related to the processes of symbolization. Both the individual and the class are connected with deep aspects of their identity and functioning by the processes involved in the symbolization process, perhaps of an unconscious nature. According to Klein, the game as a therapeutic activity that works with the logic of free association, allows both guilt – for example – to be detected, and the symbolic relation, that causes this guilt, to be established. Symbolism makes it easier for the person to transcribe their affective and emotional history and in Moreno’s Psychodrama, this will be ‘acting a role’. Through the role, the person projects him/herself giving the opportunity to communicate freely. Therefore, Psychodrama opens the possibility for the unconscious to be activated and spoken by playing, and playing with symbols may be a source of talent.
2.4. Implicit and explicit knowledge: reading the class Enrique
Pichon-Rivière
(1907-1977),
a
psychiatric
doctor
who
introduced
psychoanalysis to Argentina, followed this line proposed by Klein. This Swiss-Argentine doctor understood that the anxiety of the individual is motivated by their needs that, in turn generate fantasies. The fact that an individual perceives a fantasy as something that can be accomplished, in order to satisfy a need, generates a type of anxiety. The articulation between the conflict of needs and certain defense mechanisms is resolved in one way or another by provoking a specific behaviour on the part of the individual. This behaviour is the observable, the explicit, and trying to understand the conflict that causes it is useful for attempting its understanding, that is to say, to shed light on the implicit. In addition, someone's Psychodramatic performance is always within the group context of the class, in such a way that issues such as bonding, commitment, group anxiety, limitations, etc. can be worked on. The psychoanalytic theory of Pichon-Rivière follows a dialectic method that revolves around the central concept of ECRO (Conceptual, Referential and Operational Schema), used in the field of social psychology. He believed that this schema, when operating as a scientific model based on observed natural events, could help to understand those visible events and bring out the non-visible from within them.
12
Among other things, his theory feeds from the symbolic interactionism of the philosopher, sociologist and psychologist George Mead (1863-1931), who bases his understanding of society on communication, seeing the latter as a production of meaning within a specific symbolic universe. That is to say, the symbols, whether archetypes or individual, are delimited by the symbolic system of the different societies in which they are created. This concept of Pichon-Rivière adds to the contribution made by psychoanalysis with regard to the study of the latent in the everyday life of individuals. He was also influenced by the surrealist current and he emphasizes the concept of the obvious as the explicit; what goes on in everyday life, what appears so ordinary to us that we do not see it and that, when it corresponds to a learning of a specific social form that contains imported values, is accepted as the natural. The essential Rivierian proposition lies in questioning the obvious in order to distance oneself from it and gain a more objective understanding of reality. It is understood, therefore, that symbols, as communicative expressions that convey the latent values of every society, are explicit forms that contain implicit knowledge; a latent memory. Pichon-Rivière understands that the explicit is the manifest and that the implicit is the latent. Between one term and another, this psychoanalyst establishes a dialectic spiral. The dialectic method is a scientific study method of reality. It assumes that all elements are connected – that everything affects everything else, while all reality is transformed and is in continuous change. Three phases of reality are therefore set out and the latter is examined so that its development, change and connections may be understood. To start, the thesis or first idea is followed by the antithesis or the opposite idea to the first. Then, the synthesis or combination of both ideas gives rise to a third. The latter, in turn, is the thesis that opens a new process of transformation of reality and of connections. Pichon-Rivière follows this method of analysis in order to set out that the link between the implicit and the explicit of an individual or a society is structured in a way that is not linear but spiral, and that in each turn the concept of multiple causality underlies or, in Freudian terms, overdetermination. According to Freud, overdetermination or multiple determination, describes the fact that a formation of the unconscious (a symptom, a dream, a symbol) refers to a plurality of determining factors, and that there are several causes that may explain this formation, never a single one. 13
Along the same lines, multiple causality understands that, just as behaviour may be expressed in different ways, it also owes itself to various causes. These causes concern the history of that person, the context and the here and now. At the same time, within the same historical and current framework – within the same class – individuals may develop more than one fantasy, desire or need that will cause everything to come together and move towards a specific behaviour, one more meaningful than the others; a condensation that holds the contents of different desires. In a dream, and in a symbol, different aspects may converge that are completely unrelated to each other but that find the channel of the symbolic through which to express themselves. When applying the behavioural theory of Pichon-Rivière to the group field, we can understand two dialectic games that are articulated: the individual-group and the implicit-explicit. To that end, Pichon-Rivière refers to a little-known English psychoanalyst, H. Ezriel, according to whom the manifest content of group discussions may encompass any topic that is a manifest content - that is, explicit. This content quickly develops an underlying, implicit problem: a common, unconscious group tension that determines the behaviour of the group. This group tension is the common denominator of the individual, unconscious fantasies that are dominant in all group members at that moment. In this way, each group member takes on a particular role within the group, one that matches the specific manner in which they defend themselves from the unconscious fears that are wakened by the group problem. It is here that the restorative and transformational power of Psychodrama and exercises in the classroom are vindicated; when it comes to devoting energy to resolving the class's problem. It should be pointed out that, when talking of group fantasy, Ezriel himself admits that it does not exist as such. The group is not an entity that has a fantasy, rather each individual has a fantasy and the other group members enter into what is known as resonance. This resonance that occurs in the conversations and actions of the group produces a contagion of fantasies between the group members, based on one fantasy that is more powerful and that ties with the fantasies of the others. This English psychoanalyst understood that the manifest behaviour of individuals within a group has characteristics that represent an attempt to resolve a conscious tension emerging from the connections with unconscious objects of the fantasy. Thus, each group member projects the objects of unconscious fantasy onto several other
14
group members, with whom he or she is on terms, according to those projections. The latter become clear during the process of allocating and assuming roles. Communication in a society – also in a class – is a production of meaning within a specific symbolic universe. Through symbols we can study the latent in the everyday life on individuals, also in a classroom. The obvious is the explicit, what goes on in everyday life, the ordinary to us, but that contains imported values accepted as the natural. In consequence, by attending and using symbols, educators can take distance from the explicit and read in the class, having a better comprehension of reality. The unconscious refers to a plurality of determining factors, and that there are several causes that may explain this formation, never a single one. Therefore, reading the classroom through symbols helps to understand that whatever happens explicitly has different underlying causes.
2.5. Psychodrama and symbols According to Moreno, we can represent three types of scene: Real, Imaginary and Symbolic. When someone thinks about dramatizing a real life situation, their proposal is the result of a chain of events that start off as the perception of what is real for that person. They have mobilized a series of unconscious contents that lead to the manifest proposal. This represents a coming together of the observable and the latent contents, forming a symbolization process. Man has been described by various authors as the animal that creates symbols. Through symbols, human beings can transcend the here and now, but the inverse journey is also possible, according to which man integrates remote symbols into the most immediate here and now. Three phases in the evolution of human beings can therefore be considered: The here and now of the animal. The animal that creates symbols and transcends the here and now. The integrated, symbolizing creativity in the specific here and now. This new human being, who integrates symbols in the here and now, is what is described as “cosmic man”, as realistic as the animal and as symbolic as homo sapiens; a synthesis of both. Moreno understood this concept of the cosmic early in his childhood, when he would play role games by following his religious beliefs or using other types of situation. In fact, Moreno's favourite childhood game was the one that was about representing God. 15
For Moreno, this role was the warming-up process for his future mission: to have the cosmic personality that would associate his name with that of God, thereby transforming himself into the father. The transcendental symbol of the divinity is registered in the here and now of the father, the here and now of the father is reflected in the divine symbol, and both converge in Moreno, who is at once his own God and his own father. Moreno was playing a role in this first Psychodrama that he described as ‘The Psychodrama of the Fallen God’. The spontaneity and the creativity of role playing, in both the Psychodramatic process and the classroom, heal us and remove us from any blocks, conflict or psychopathological rigidity, thereby making the learning easier. Moreno later manages to limit the complexity of the symbolization process when, while studying medicine, he experiences roles in other games – such as making reconstructions of court trials that he attended, or organizing theatrical performances for children in the gardens of Vienna and, among other things, giving them the chance to temporarily choose a father. These and other rebellious practices, that cost him several visits to jail, serve to illustrate how the founder of Psychodrama understood psychotherapy, and the evolution, from the Freud analyst of dreams and symbols, that his point of view entails. A phrase that Moreno himself recounts in his autobiography illustrates this point well, although Freud never mentioned the meeting: “In 1912 I went to one of Freud's readings. He had finished his analysis of a telepathic dream. Surrounded by students, he came over to me and asked what I was doing. I replied, ‘well, Dr Freud, I start where you finish. You bring people together in artificial places, like your office. I do so in the street, in their homes or in natural settings. You analyze their dreams. I give them the courage to dream again. You analyze them and divide them into different parts. I allow them to act out their conflicts in roles, and I help them to put the parts together again”. The classroom also corresponds to a natural setting, since it is a space where the student can take on roles and act them out; where there is room for actions that can be Psychodramatised, with no need to be in a consulting room. Despite Freud and Moreno's differences, the fact is that psychoanalysis and Psychodrama are forms of therapy that study the psyche and the soul. To speak 16
of drama is to speak of action. Psychodrama, therefore, is the psyche in action, it is the human in action, in any work, home, educational, sporting, or social setting… Psychodrama involves the group therapy of Moreno. The latter is based on the idea that the representation of roles, in both children and adults, serves to partially satisfy the needs or desires that are repressed by family upbringing or social and cultural restrictions. That is to say, in the group form, this psychiatrist understood that those unconscious drives, censured by the conscience, were allowed to flow by either representing a role within a group and reliving an individual experience – in such a way that all members of the group relive similar experiences - or by representing imagined scenes. As he himself says in his response to Freud; new dreams, new creative and spontaneous inventions that are developed in the Psychodramatic scene, giving rise to the creation of new symbols. It could be said that each individual's desires and unconscious join with the group unconscious through certain universal archetypes. These archetypes allow both the unconscious and desires of the individual to be understood via these same symbols. They also allow common and individual drives to be shared through the individuals' creations, both alone and within the group. Role-playing is based on the same idea as Freudian symbol theory; that play and dreams are a channel through which the unconscious is revealed, along the lines of Melanie Klein's concept of play. In role-play, this allows for the development of spontaneity, understood, according to the classical idea, as either a new response to an old situation or a response adapted to a new situation and seen as such by Moreno. According to Moreno, psychotherapeutic practice goes one step further; not only does it interpret dreams themselves in the light of new emotions, but it creates new emotions by means of both one's own and the group's new dreams, symbols, performances and dramatizations. Moreno's concept of spontaneity is a key element throughout his theory, as he understands that it is the unconscious potential through which emotions are expressed. Spontaneity is the creator of 'vital values' – the individual's own values – although it is often masked by official and stereotyped values, those values Freud would understand as social and censorial that crush the individuality of each ego's unconscious. An spontaneous, creative human being is the Morenian key. This creation is brought about by changing roles in such a way that the protagonist acts from the position of some other person, object or part of themselves. The range of roles 17
is limitless and open to the symbolization process, creativity and the needs of the process. The roles can be imaginary characters, animals, objects and others that make it easier for behaviours to be demonstrated and thoughts, emotions and other aspects of the protagonist to be externalized. The role may be represented from the symbolic or through symbols in such a way that the protagonist acquires something more than a specific meaning; a wider set of values and beliefs that may be shared in common or respond to an individual idea about that symbol. To sum up, we can say that certain roles like God, the wisest man in the world, Superman, angels, Judas, Achilles, Cinderella, Hitler, Dionisio… are roles based on symbols that can facilitate, depending on each culture, the discovery of new answers and allow group aspects to be investigated. Working with symbols in the scene using other materials that allow greater creativity, such as masks, plasticine, painting or collages, can also generate high levels of unconscious projection by creating situations that are difficult to contain for adult educators who lack specific training in Psychodrama. In the action, the symbol acquires the role of what it represents, not of what it is. The mask is no longer a mask, it is what it symbolizes, an excess of meaning that delves deep into the unconscious. Although Freud is always present in Moreno's work, it is nearly always in opposition to him. So, let the spontaneity and the creativity play in the classroom, giving to the students the opportunity to dream again, creating new symbols. The classroom is a natural setting, a space where students can take on roles that can be psychodramatised
2.6. Intermediary objects As has already been seen throughout the course, the “auxiliary ego” is a concept introduced by Moreno that operates in the area of “transitional phenomena”. The function of this third ego has already been explained thoroughly, in the introduction to the key concepts of Psychodrama. Nevertheless, gaining an understanding of intermediary
objects
regarding
the
symbolic
dimension
of
Psychodrama
is
recommended. The intermediary objects may work as an “auxiliary ego”. They are objects that are neither inside nor outside. They form a part of the individual as a projection of partial aspects of their ego, or, in other words, of some of its internal symbols, multiple egos and/or internal characters. At the same time, however, it is an object that is outside. It
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is and it is not part of the individual. To a certain extent, the character of auxiliary alludes to that ambiguous character of the object: It is ego; aspects of the ego/egos embodied within itself. It is auxiliary because it helps the individual – and the educator in the context of the class – to become aware of, not only those parts of his/herself that are divided and "projected" onto the object, but also the extent to which it is someone different from the learners themselves. This makes it easier to differentiate between what is inside and what is outside, between ego and non-ego. Any intermediary object can be a symbol. If we want to carry out a symbolic process in the classroom, the objects selected by the students will not be mere aids, but will have, in their very symbolism, more meaning than the mere representation through them of a message of the unconscious. The symbolic aspects may be innumerable, and more so if one considers that almost all the elements have a symbolic value, especially in a Psychodramatic action. There is an excess of underlying meaning beyond what is observed, at both an individual level and in the classroom as a whole. The term intermediary object was the result, after a long process of investigation, of a treatment that used Psychodrama for a large group of chronic psychotic patients in the Hospital Nacional J. T. Borda in Buenos Aires. The patients had been hospitalized for years and had almost no family or social contact outside the hospital. As he explains, it was not felt that a treatment was at all possible and the initial expectations for what the application of Psychodrama could achieve were not ambitious. Instead, the aim was to restore both the communication that had been disrupted by the patients' specific pathology and that which stemmed from the hospitalization. The analysis of the results concluded that this response was directed at the object and not at whatever character the puppet represented. That's why the puppet went on to be considered both as an object and as a puppet on the basis of the character it represented. This object was therefore called intermediary. That is, communication could be established with the self-absorbed patient through the intermediary of the object. The capsule that represented the patient's self-absorption was called "psychological self". Subsequent investigations were practiced with other objects such as masks, tunics, hoods and pieces of fabric. The visual response of the patients in the presence of the objects was an important phenomenon that should be noted. After a period of interaction, almost all of the 19
patients would try to touch the object. This has led to a very productive variant; handing the puppet or another object to the patient, and letting them use and interact with it as they see fit. In the same way, when this type of symbolic play is applied to the classroom, it may be the students themselves who decide what value to give to the objects they use, by projecting their unconscious ideas onto them. Through more extensive studies it can be established that any object may serve as an intermediary object: from concrete objects such as cigarettes to elements like air or fire, and including fantasies - characters, dreams, colors‌. Having this wide variety of uses and meanings is similar to what has happened with the term of role; applied without much rigor, it ends up having so many meanings that a prior definition is required in order to be able to understand the terms in which it is being used. Attempting to conceptualize what an intermediary object is, can seem an awkward task. With regard to this module, however, a definition that offers some clarification may serve as a guideline when it comes to applying and recreating the exercises, providing the educator with the necessary resources so that they know how to use almost any object as an intermediary object. Nonetheless, understanding and using this type of object requires an experiential component, away from theoretical precision. Going back to its etymological origin, object first comes from the Latin objectus and means 'thrown against'; something that exists outside of ourselves, something material that is made visible and presented to the senses. On the other hand, the intermediary is what mediates between two or more people. An intermediary object, therefore, is a real and concrete object - the puppet, the mask, the piece of fabric, the umbrella - that is given a new function. When the intermediary object was used originally, its function was restoring the blocked communication in the case of a self-absorbed patient. Over time, however, and paying heed to Moreno's prediction that this technique can be applied far beyond the psychotic chronic, it has been used to offer new channels of expression wherever communication has not been lost but where the latent requires other means by which it can emerge. In the Psychodramatic session, the same object may be used for different purposes and these will mark the object's function, the technique for its use, and the type of occasions on which it will be introduced. There may be three main functions:
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Auxiliary function: the object emphasizes or highlights something that is already happening in the session. The point of these objects is to help create or highlight something that occurs in the scene: a character or a specific emotional atmosphere. Warm-up stage: the intermediary object is frequently used in the body warm-up for purposes of communication and expression. The object is used as a “radar” at the outset, in order to define the roles and situations that are in play (emerging). A meaning beyond the object itself is not explicitly attributed during this stage – it is simply interpreted. It intervenes by favouring and protecting the interactions (ropes, nets, tapes, cushions, etc.), the creation of characters, etc. Dramatization stage: they facilitate the action in particular. It is usually the leader who takes the initiative for using them, although the auxiliary egos and protagonists may also use them spontaneously. The most usual auxiliary objects are chairs and drawers, for emphasizing different levels, and pieces of fabric, lights, music and other elements for complementing or emphasizing character traits. An example: a piece of fabric used as a cloak highlights a character's power; a white sheet covering a character who is lying down emphasizes death; a character who is interpreted standing on a bucket is attributed a hierarchy and placed on a different level from his interlocutor, etc. Mediating function: the presence of the object is a determining factor for the appearance of communicational and expressive behaviour on the part of the protagonist. Without the object, the act would not take place, that is, its introduction produces – or facilitates – a change in the way the protagonist acts. As an intermediary object, it restores disrupted communication; the object chosen by the leader, and handled by the auxiliary ego, works as a communicational bridge with the self-absorbed patient, allowing them to communicate. In this case, the patient communicates with the object; he responds to the object itself and not to the person who is operating it. As an intraintermediary object: the object is used by the protagonist himself/herself, who acts as a catalyst for communication with himself/herself and with the rest of the group. The protagonist uses the object, provided by the leader, as a protector of the ego, something that makes it easier for him/her to communicate. Creative or creator function: the object is created by the participant and facilitates the expression of contents that manifest themselves in shapes. With the previous functions, the objects have meaning based on what they are. In this case, they do 21
so based on what they represent, since the individual does not express him or herself through the object, but in the object. This object takes on a form that is modeled on the contents that emerge in the protagonist. The creation of an object by the protagonist favors the emergence of new material and new perspectives from which to review the previous material. The contents expressed in these objects generally refer to very intimate matters concerning the individual.
The use of intermediary objects involves, therefore, a symbolization process in which the student communicates information that is either impossible to verbalize or not conscious, allowing it to appear through the object. In Psychodrama, the individual does this in a group. He/she discovers that the other is different, and sees them as such, so the others take on importance. This highlights the importance of the group in the recognition of oneself and one's egos that are expressed and communicated through symbolic intermediary objects. Any intermediary object can be a symbol. If we want to carry out a symbolic process in the classroom, the objects selected by the students will not be mere aids, but will have, in their very symbolism, more meaning than the mere representation through them of a message of the unconscious. The symbolic aspects may be innumerable, and more so if one considers that almost all the elements have a symbolic value, especially in a Psychodramatic action. When a symbolic play is applied to the classroom, students themselves should decide what value to give to the objects they use, by projecting their unconscious ideas onto them. Any object may serve as an intermediary object and everything is symbolic in Psychodrama, so every object can act as a symbol.
2.7. The value of the symbol in group learning As has been seen all along this journey through the origins of the psychoanalytic symbol, working with symbols in Psychodrama involves a process of group learning; archetypes, group fantasies and play are concepts that work at a group level and that intervene in Psychodrama. Although Psychodrama can work at an individual level, the work that is set out in the classroom is for groups, with the group being an essential element for dramatization. The group allows the acting out of the dramas of the group situation that the individuals experience everyday. In particular, when working with symbols, it allows a reading of the symbol that is experienced within the group. That is, it permits the conversion of the participants into cosmic, creative and spontaneous man. Group
22
fantasies can therefore be expressed as a Psychodramatic group process that reveals the implicit of each individual. Psychodramatic group work, through symbols, provides a channel that favours a connection with aspects rejected by the group, and that helps to bring out the creative and pacifying strength from these aspects. The symbolic process can be particularly helpful when coping with diverse groups and different levels of learning, since the students can get closer to the other from the symbols. A group that accepts itself makes it easier for adults to overcome any resistance to learning. Working with symbols can also help the teacher to understand the feelings of their students, as well as the difficulties and different situations that can arise within a class of diverse people. In addition, expression through the use of symbols is a channel for getting students to participate in the classroom and creating an atmosphere of trust, one in which all participants can get along and enjoy equality of opportunities with respect to learning, although their individual situations may differ. The publication in 1998 of the book by the American psychologist Daniel Goleman (1947-), Emotional Intelligence, had very important implications for Psychodramatists. In his study, Goleman distinguished two different aspects of the mind –the rational and the emotional –that are directly connected to the hemispheres of the brain. Thus, the right hemisphere receives rational information whereas the left receives emotional information. The great importance of working with symbols lies in the fact that they activate the left hemisphere, which results in implicit knowledge being generated. At the same time, and because it is concerned with action, Psychodrama activates the brain all over when it works with symbols. According to Goleman, the logic of the emotional part of the mind is associative and understands symbolic elements as reality. For that reason, similes, metaphors and images speak directly to the left hemisphere, in the same way as do the arts – literature, film, music, theatre, etc. Freud described this logic in his concept of “primary process”, according to which this process is the logic of religion, poetry and psychosis, as well as that of children, dreams and myths. Immersed in Psychodramatic action, the group discovers elements of itself that it did not know. Through the others and their roles, the individual discovers his or her own ego, and the group evolves. This is not only based on Moreno's Tele concept – reviewed earlier in other chapters – but on the neurosciences, with their discoveries on mirror neurons, the Polyvagal theory (Porges, 2011) and limbic resonance. 23
Mirror neurons are a particular type of neuron that are fired when an individual performs an action or when they observe a similar action being carried out by some other individual, in such a way that, in the presence of this stimulus - the action of another individual - the observer's neurons are stimulated as if they were performing the action. These neurons are called mirror neurons and they form a system of neural networks that allows for not only the perception of the action, but the perception-executionintention-emotion. Mirror neurons allow us to understand the minds of our fellow humans, not through conceptual reasoning but directly, by feeling and not thinking. For theory of mind, attributing a mind to another individual is a theoretical activity since we cannot really observe it, but we do generate hypotheses on what they think and feel – we interpret their behaviour. These two facts encourage empathy, the capacity of a person to experience the thoughts and feelings of others and to react appropriately. Psychodrama encourages connections between people, empathy and understanding. The creative and spontaneous processes that take place within groups allow us to connect with our individuality through others and the other, from the particular to the general and vice versa, sharing dreams and myths. As the American mythologist, Joseph Campbell, said: “Dreams are private myths, myths are shared dreams”.
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The symbolic process can be particularly helpful when coping with diverse groups and different levels of learning, since the students can get closer to the other through symbols. A group that accepts itself makes it easier for adults to overcome any resistance to learning. Working with symbols can also help the teacher to understand the feelings of their students, as well as the difficulties and different situations that can
Analysing with symbols Think of a real or imagined experience that could take place in the classroom. Take some time to reflect on the theoretical concepts you have read. In particular, do not forget any of the following. The difference between sign and symbol. The rule of ‘free association’. Explicit and implicit content in symbols. Spontaneity and creativity. Role-playing. Functions of intermediary objects in the Psychodrama session.
arise within a class of diverse people. Expression through the use of symbols is a channel for getting students to participate in the classroom and creating an atmosphere of trust, one in which all participants can get along and enjoy equality of opportunities with respect to learning, although their individual situations may differ. Playing with symbols in Psychodrama allows getting in touch with the emotions and encourages the empathy among the group by feeling instead of thinking.
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3. Introduction to exercises Exercises in educational settings can be created according to the demands of the situation, the challenges present in the educational process or the ability of the educator. “When in doubt, try it yourself first” should be a major rule for the educator when working with classes and using active techniques and Psychodrama. The most important thing is to avoid situations or processes that you may not be able to handle as an educator. Psychodrama is not fragile – the exercises can be stopped or redirected by the director, and auxiliaries can be coached and given advice on how to redirect a situation. It is sometimes even correct to stop the exercise, sit down and discuss what has just taken place. (White, 2002). This module relies heavily on the educator's own judgment and, although the techniques presented can be summarized in a list, the educator must always be clear about the goals, their own experience, the nature of the group, the character of the individuals, and the particular circumstances at that specific point in time. For the educator or group leader, a safe way of deciding which exercise or technique to use is to be clear about the goal of the intervention. What am I proposing this exercise for? What are the goals of this intervention? Is there a simpler way of approaching this matter? Every single intervention of the leader needs a clear reason, a justification; bearing in mind that the welfare of the individuals and the group must be protected at all times. Perhaps the less experienced group leader-educator can choose exercises with a lower symbolic content; however, another golden rule is to “expect more impact than you bargained for”. This is particularly relevant when working with symbols and, as you are learning, everything is a symbol in Psychodrama. It is better to choose a “gentle, complete and inspiring encounter, with full sharing and questions, than a brilliant exercise that proves overwhelming and uncontained and leaves the participants with migraines” (White, 2002). From reading these lines, you can see that some of the exercises proposed in the module on symbols may require greater presence and skills on the part of the educator-leader than some of the more structured sociometric techniques, for example. A major aspect of active and Psychodramatic exercises is spontaneity. Spontaneity is required for the group to explore new ways of resolving conflicts and seeing itself, and for it to access implicit learning. In order for spontaneity to appear, the individuals need to feel safe. Providing a safe space so that change may appear is the responsibility of the educator, facilitator or leader. This is especially the case when working with 26
symbols. The symbol carries a large amount of unconscious information, projections and identifications, and the educator must be aware of the dynamics and processes that each exercise may mobilize within the group. In many of the techniques and exercises that have already been presented, symbols and the process of symbolization play an important role. In Moreno's world, the symbol is out there to be played, symbols are not to be analyzed or interpreted; their value lies in being acted. In a way, everything is a symbol; playing the role of a soldier can be interpreted by someone's mind as a symbol of bravery. It can also symbolize the grief and pain caused by the death of their grandfather in a battlefield in France during World War II. Some other exercises may propose working with or handling objects, or the identification with certain objects that can be understood by the collective unconscious as symbols. A crucifix, a snake, an angel and a Nazi swastika are all clear symbols and can be used as real objects, drawings or shapes created with ropes, pieces of fabric, scarves, etc. Each person or group places different energies onto each symbol, and has different ways of viewing and identifying with them. These techniques allow us to “see ourselves”, and, in doing so, we can “recreate ourselves” and “cocreate ourselves”. Everything is open to whatever the educator proposes, the materials available and the spontaneity of the group. A crucial point for the educator to understand is the nature of the group, the setting and the goals of the proposal. Every aspect of Psychodrama can be classified within the warming-up phase, the action or the sharing. The principal categorization of techniques in Psychodrama, according to its nature, is defined by its warm-up, action or sharing goal. Nevertheless, if the group is ready for action we may not need a warming-up exercise. For example, if there was a clear conflict between two learners that was causing problems for the correct setting of machinery for the following classes, it would not perhaps be necessary to use any warming-up techniques, and an appropriate exercise could be presented for working on the explicit conflict between the classmates.
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Identify your objectives When choosing an exercise to carry out, ask yourself the following questions: Why am I proposing to do this exercise? What is the challenge that I am planning to overcome in the classroom? What objectives do I want to achieve?
Once you have identified your answers, look over the suggested exercise examples and select those that best suit your needs, according to their characteristics. *If you are working on the materials in a workshop, discuss your responses with the other participants.
Considerations & Risks in applying the exercises for the Educator When working with symbols and Psychodrama in an educational setting, we may face some of the following difficulties: The need for a warm-up process may be a problem due to lack of available time in the classroom. For the students to get more deeply into symbolic work, it may be necessary to go through a planned warm-up, before starting on the symbolic work. Another problem may be the difficulty the group members have in understanding the active work as a horizontal, group-based, circle-based process and not as an individual process. Educational systems are often designed for the individual; individual grades, mentions… but the basis and meaning of Psychodrama has to be understood as a group process. The group is not used to performing in front of the others. Most of the time, it is the teacher who is the centre of attention and who does the work. This is in contrast to the acting, when it is the group that takes charge and does the work. Embarrassment may be a big barrier. The safety of the participants and the rule of “do as much as you want and, if you don’t feel like it, just watch” are important. Remember that in Psychodrama and active techniques sometimes “less is more”; students may remain silent whilst watching somebody act, and the entire class atmosphere and matrix changes after the acting, so do not push anyone into acting or taking part. Other important aspects of the use of these techniques in an educational setting are:
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Not to slip into personal or pseudo-therapeutic interventions. It is intended only for working on the educational, professional and developmental aspects of education, not on personal ones. In this respect, it is important for the educator to always be clear about the “contract” he or she has with the student. If it is a training and educational contract, it is not a therapeutic contract. Sometimes personal development runs close to the learning process, but educators must be clear about respecting personal space. It can be an advantage working with educational groups as they are accustomed to taking part in activities that are centered on tasks. The students may be “task focused" in some way, and that is excellent for applying active techniques. Asking the “entire group” for help can be a very good motivating factor for those students in the group who receive little recognition or who are lacking motivation. This is because it makes them the protagonist and they often feel important. It is a collaborative effort that can greatly benefit the class. The schedule may be determined by the academic rules of the institute, company, centre of studies or educational entity. Time limits are important in Psychodrama; the educator must take responsibility for, and be clear about, the time frame set aside for each stage of the work.
Risks
in
applying
the
techniques
and
considerations
Most of these exercise proposals are just suggestions, and they should be combined with the educator's own “know-how”. Learning about active techniques and Psychodrama involves action. It requires a set of implicit skills in order to read the group's needs, know when there has been enough acting, know the right moment to move to the sharing, be familiar with the different exercises to propose, or protect a particular member of the group. There are a number of interrelated and complex skill sets involved; when the class gets to the action phase, the educator must be an action analyst, a producer, a counselor and a reliable, trustworthy, calm and secure group leader (Moreno, 1953, p. 83). When working with exercises, techniques or Psychodramas, the educator must be especially clear about the boundaries, assignments, responsibilities and the nature of the educator-learner relationship. All these boundaries acquire particular relevance in symbolic work. As mentioned earlier, symbolic work, archetypes and implicit memories may place the class members in a particularly vulnerable situation, and it is the educator's responsibility to protect the welfare of the students and the class at all times. 29
The goals of the proposed exercise must be clear and the possible benefits for the class clearly understood. Any show-off or narcissistic traits in the educator should be left to one side; they should play a serving role to the class. There may be strong pressure from within the class to change the class process, but it can also make the individual feel compelled to take part in the activities. This should not be allowed to happen. It is the role of the educator to always recognize the right of the others to say no. On many occasions, the technique or proposed exercise might not happen, and that is completely acceptable. Maybe the proposal was too risky for the students, perhaps there is still not enough trust between the group members, or it might be the case that the class is just not ready. Always remember, therefore, to “walk behind the class”, never pushing, and always respecting the rhythms and needs of the class, especially when proposing or working with active techniques. Remember, also, “to try it yourself first” before proposing anything. The categorization of exercises or techniques is never easy in Psychodrama. The basis of the work is “spontaneity”, something that does not lend itself to categorization. The natural way of presenting exercises may be related to their nature as warming up, acting or sharing. Here we present some exercises that have an important symbolic content and that are designed to meet the skills that adult educators themselves have indicated as being essential: Helping the educator to be a team player, networked with the students Involving the learners, encouraging them to participate, and share opinions and experiences Being a motivator Dealing with diverse groups and creating an atmosphere of trust Developing awareness of the students' real needs Encouraging minds to be open to new knowledge Promoting respect in the classroom Developing the students' confidence and faith in their own learning abilities
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PUPPETS The puppet can communicate with words what group members cannot say, and it introduces creativity that can redefine the group experience. There are different types of puppets, cloth dolls and marionettes, but glove puppets are easy to use and do not require any particular technical skills. Sometimes, finger puppets can also be used – they are small and easy to use and transport.
Working with puppets Working
with
puppets
facilitates
communication within the group A glove puppet is just the hand moving – a transformed hand. Such a puppet can be used behind a simple piece of fabric held by two people, or behind a table or a window. Nearly every Psychodramatic technical resource can be used when working
with
puppets:
role
reversal,
doubling, soliloquies, acting out of scenes, acting with a script, etc. Glove puppets that are available on the market usually symbolize human roles, animals or fairy-tale characters, and these can be excellent elements for facilitating the symbolization process and the emergence of communication.
Understanding the students better In stressful situations such as an external examination, a real life application of learned skills, fear of the professional world, lack of self-belief… From a selection of different glove puppets provided by the educator, each participant can choose one puppet. The instructor can present one of the following situations – or any other that is relevant – for the students to act out using the puppets selected. Two people face an obstacle they have to overcome. A danger presents. One of the characters wants to deal with it, and the other wants to escape from it. They have to come to an agreement. One character has to convince the other one about something. 31
One character has to sell something to the other one. The characters played by the puppets may adopt one of the following profiles, chosen by the participants: Amusing, fast and stammering Nervous, slow and restless Playful, sleepy and happy Sad, chatty and bored An old man, rascally and forgetful This exercise may not require a specific warm-up; if the group is already struggling with the challenge, the exercise can be presented and acted out. In a class with low levels of motivation, or little involvement in the learning process, this simple exercise can mobilize energies and change the students' attitude towards the learning process. It depends on the educator's understanding of the situation whether one of the suggested situations should be presented for acting out, or a more specific proposal in accordance with the educator's goals. Once the scene enacted with puppets has finished, the educator will open up a space for sharing and allow both the audience, and those playing roles with the puppets, to have their say. Anything that evokes a real life situation may also be drawn up. A variation on working with puppets (or masks, fancy dress, makeup, etc.) may be to let each member of the class choose a puppet with which to speak from the role, to make the puppet speak. The classmates can be asked to introduce themselves, talk about something that worries them, discuss a difficulty they have in class or something about the learning methodology that they would like to change, etc. Again, the educator's understanding of the needs of the class will play a crucial role
One puppet, one concept: learning difficult topics If learning a particularly difficult topic, another variation may be to assign a puppet to each concept of the topic and have each puppet explain that concept. Each puppet can be asked to explain its concept in different ways‌ with an Italian accent, in an animated way, in an extremely quiet way‌ It may seem simple but it is an active Psychodramatic exercise that meets the demands of adult educators. This exercise can wake up a sleepy group of students, be part of the ongoing evaluation of the class, get the students to participate, etc. 32
CARDS AND POSTCARDS
Cards, postcards, or pieces of paper that carry differing ideas, icons, symbols or other information can be used for performing active symbolic work in a classroom. Any topic or piece of knowledge can be separated or divided into smaller pieces of information or concepts. Each concept or topic area may be presented on a card and group members can be asked to play the concept or reflect upon it. If teaching a team of professionals who are working on the same project, exercises with cards can be created in order to boost the skills and hidden abilities of the group. Instead of having the educator discuss their talents or the topic, we can use an exercise to get the group to discover both itself, and the topic being learned, through symbolic work with cards. Other elements could also be employed, but using written cards can be a simple and cost-free method as it does not require any particular materials aside from sheets of paper and pens.
Learning through Cards Following a brief presentation, multiple intelligences can be a topic for learning. Concepts cards can be created with the names of different types of intelligence. The cards can read as follows:
Naturalist intelligence (Nature smart)
Musical intelligence (Music smart)
Logical-Mathematical intelligence (Number/Reasoning smart)
Existential intelligence
Interpersonal intelligence (People smart)
Bodily Kinesthetic Intelligence (Body smart)
Linguistic Intelligence (Word smart)
Intrapersonal intelligence (Self Smart)
Spatial intelligence (Picture smart)
The cards marked with each type of intelligence can be spread out on the floor and the group members asked to position themselves according to their “most dominant” intelligence, the “second most dominant” and, finally, their least-developed intelligence. While at each position that corresponds to a type of intelligence, a few words can be shared about the specific competences this intelligence implies.
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This may be the end of the exercise and a subsequent sharing can take place. Using an exercise with cards, the educator can develop real life awareness of the needs of the students, with the play part of the exercise being an excellent space for an evaluation and for promoting group coherence and motivation. If the goal of the educator is to continue to take an in-depth look at the implicit learning process of the contents, the exercise may develop a second part. The educator has to make these decisions according to the learning contract and the needs of the group.
Small groups Small groups may be formed with each receiving pieces of paper and “two intelligence� cards. They can then be asked to list the ideas that they would use to teach these intelligences and encourage their expression. This extension of the exercise would allow students to continue to inquire and share information about the subject while getting to know each other. It would also place each student in a proactive learning situation. Using an exercise with cards places the focus of the work on the students, creating an atmosphere of trust and sharing responsibility for the learning process with the students.
The Postcards This can be an exercise that introduces the power of images and symbols for discovering about the class and each of the students. It is an exercise that will involve the class in dealing with diversity, providing them with a space in which to speak safely about themselves through images. Using images, the students will be able to express themselves differently. It can be a diagnostic tool for the educator to assess the group's state of mind. The educator will prepare a large collection of postcards, photos, pictures, etc. from a wide range of subjects. They will then spread them out on the floor. They can have various symbolic aspects: sport-related, social life, art, some can be enigmatic or historic, others romantic, colorful, black and white and so on. The educator will also prepare some sheets of sugar paper of varying colors and place them on the floor. They will then ask the group members to select the picture they are more comfortable with, and the one that makes them feel least comfortable. The students can also choose a coloured sheet of sugar paper to present their picture. When selecting the
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pictures, they can be asked to introduce themselves or to share something about their choices. A space can then be opened up for the sharing phase of the exercise.
MASKS
In a similar way to puppets, masks are an excellent way to encourage communication within the classroom. Wearing the mask focuses attention on it, and allows verbal or nonverbal messages to appear. The mask becomes the intermediary object that allows the internal messages, kidnapped in the classroom, to be projected. It may be a concern about the running of the education centre, a conflict between students, the lack of support during the learning process, an overload of study material, or whatever other issue is present in the classroom. Masks or eye masks can be constructed in many different ways using paper, cardboard, clay, glue or even ceramics, etc. Making the mask can be a warm-up process full of communication and sharing in the classroom. And, again, the educator's experience and common sense with regard to the needs of the class and the goals of the intervention will determine the content of the exercise. In a classroom setting, it is perhaps most practical to make them from cardboard. However, there may be a two-year class coming to an end and, if there is time available, the educator could provide the materials and opt for a more complex mask-making exercise. That would be a wonderful experience for the group. For cardboard masks, a rectangle large enough to cover the face can be cut out. Shapes can then be made to symbolize animals or other characters. Two small holes can be made to pass an elastic string or band through and attach the mask to the head. Another two holes can be cut out for the eyes and the masks then painted, coloured, etc.
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What does your mask have to say? The students are asked to create a mask – or choose one from a selection – and wear it. Being aware of the lack of inhibition and the free expression that the mask provides the students, they can be asked to interact among themselves from the mask roles. This can be the end of the acting phase, and the exercise can finish with a sharing about the experience. This may be seen as a simple exercise; nevertheless, it is surprising how much information comes out in the sharing, and how the energy of the group can be changed by this exercise. By encouraging this kind of exercise, the educator becomes a motivator, redirecting the class's moods and providing a space where the class can express themselves.
Masks – character interactions Once each class member has produced their own mask and presented their mask character, the students can exchange the masks. This exercise can generate empathy, respect and understanding for the positions of the other students in the class. When working with diverse groups, this can be an interesting exercise. If enough time is available, the mask can be made from photos or pictures from magazines or newspapers. The students can make masks that correspond to the characters, and then be asked to interact with each other. At some point, students could be asked to exchange masks, encouraging role reversal. For an inexperienced adult educator, an easy way to understand how this exercise works is to realize that a first year student would perhaps not talk about his creative ideas on the subject of study, but Yoko Ono will. It is a way of getting the most out of the class and the students, and of encouraging them to open their minds to new knowledge.
PAINTING – DRAWING Painting and drawing can be an extremely simple way of working with symbolic content. An important element of this type of work are the instructions provided by the educator. The latter must be clear about what challenges the class faces and what classroom situations they want to tackle.
Painting on your own After an exhausting week of intense theoretical classes or of learning difficult topics, the educator can, in a spontaneous manner, provide the students with crayons or pencils and ask them to express, by drawing on their own, how they feel about the information and teaching received that particular week. They can later explain their drawings. Drawing places each student in a position where they can reflect, in a creative way, about their own experience, one that they can later share with the group. This allows each experience and reaction to be normalized and validated. Here are some of the explanations a student may provide with regard to their drawing.
Creating a mural
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The educator can hand out cardboard, pens and coloured pencils to the class. The group can then be asked to create a mural about a particular topic relevant to the class: learning, the classmates, professions, etc. This can be an excellent way of encouraging group cohesion and teamwork. It also allows us to observe the leadership qualities of each class member and the roles that they assume when dealing with a group task. Examples of proposals for the painting exercise could be: The future of our studies. A representation of the learning process. A representation of the class itself. The situation of computer technicians in Italy. Renewable energies. Religion and faiths. These are just examples. Although, as mentioned earlier, it is up to the creativity and responsibility of the educator to create, adapt and present other topics for the mural, that are related to the needs of both the class and the individual students. Not forgetting that the sharing phase is also part of the drawing exercises.
SCULPTURES Sculptures can form a part of the acting in Psychodrama. A sculpture is a graphical representation, using the participant's body, of a relational image or associated experiences. A sculpture may represent a real situation, one that is wished for or feared, in the present, the past or the future of the relation. It mostly concerns relationships.
Sculpting
strongly
encourages
spontaneity,
creativity,
group
cohesion, empathy and respect within the group. It is also a very good way to cast off rigidity, and for the students to recognise their own self-belief and that of the rest of the class. It is a very powerful tool and requires, therefore, a present, calm and experienced facilitator who has clear “know-how” about sculpting.
Let’s celebrate with a difference If a class has achieved success as a group, let's say everyone in the class passed an 38
exam, the class received an award in a contest, or they earned enough money selling lottery tickets to go on a class trip, then the educator can suggest that the group form a group sculpture at that particular moment. Afterwards, in the sharing phase, they can all talk about how they felt, the images that were evoked and so on. The educator must always be aware of the issues that can arise during active work. Proposing an exercise that has a strong reinforcing element, or is highly positive or celebratory, can allow conflict to surface and group members to be criticized or discredited. The educator must, therefore, be attentive to the group's safety.
Let’s Grieve for Our Friend Sometimes losses and grieving occur within groups. These emotional processes can interfere with the learning process and the normal development of the group. Dealing with strong emotions and grief is something that must be supervised and dealt with by psychology or psychiatry professionals. That point having been made clear, the educator of adult learners can use some techniques to regain stability within the group and facilitate its development from an educational point of view. Following a loss within the group, the educator can ask all the members to walk around the room looking at each other; sharing glances. After a few moments, students can be asked to spontaneously start a free sculpture that will be completed by the other students.
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ACTING ROLES
Acting out a role may have a powerful symbolic message for the class. In Psychodrama anything can be played or acted out. Creativity can transfer us from one place to another. In a dentist training group, playing the role of the dentist or the patient would carry a large amount of symbolic content: projecting fears, aspirations, hopes, distrust… and allowing the group to discuss and share these important non-implicit aspects of the performance of an excellent dentist. Another useful practice is to suggest the dramatization of not only roles of people, but that of roles of objects as well. In this type of work with objects, the students are asked to represent abstract or intangible feelings, situations or memories with real objects. These can be real objects that are present in the room or verbal descriptions of imagined objects. Examples will be provided in the following exercises.
If you were… With the group standing in a circle and a medium-sized ball, the educator starts with a question for the group: If you were … (for example: a flower, a car), you would be a … And after a short while, allowing the group to answer mentally, the educator throws the ball to one of the students in the class who answers out loud. That student then formulates the next assumption. If you were …you would be a … After a few moments to let the group think internally, and allowing space for personal reflection, the student points to another classmate for an answer and passes them the ball. The exercise would finish with a sharing: ¿How did you feel during the exercise? (When you had the ball, while reflecting mentally, on receiving the ball, etc.) What was evoked during the exercise?
Training design engineers Training technical designers to build electrical appliances. The group can be separated into two subgroups using any of the sociodrama techniques presented earlier. We can
then ask one of the groups to play the role of the “electrical device”. By doing so, we attribute the “electrical device” object the human ability to speak, sing, complain, cry, celebrate, be grateful or do whatever the object needs to do. The other subgroup can take on the role of the designer, relating to the object, speaking to the “electrical device”, answering queries, questions or whatever comes up. We can use the variation of forming a third subgroup that has the role of symbolizing the opinions and needs of home users. The home users can come up with views such as: “I need a long life appliance”, “I need a user-friendly appliance without complicated controls that my husband will never understand...” This exercise brings creativity, new thinking, confidence and interaction to the group as they prepare to carry out the professional role they are being trained to perform.
Parts of the group When two contradictory positions are held on a particular issue in the classroom, this exercise can be a strategy for conflict resolution; a place where different solutions can be investigated, a way of handling a doubting group, etc. The two positions can be given a role symbolized by two chairs placed one in front of the other. One chair represents one view and the chair in front the opposite view. The classmates are asked to give their opinions one at a time from each of the chairs. This way, the various opinions and positions regarding the issue can be heard. Even if the students have a clear idea and they naturally place themselves on one chair's “point of view”, they should be asked to sit and talk in the opposite role. This method of face conflict, as with many of the techniques provided, empowers the leadership role of the educator who, being a team player, involves the learners by asking them to share their opinions and experiences.
Heroes and heroines Group members are asked to reflect on which literary or historical character they respect, admire or love. Each person is invited to perform a short representation of a famous character in front of the group. After the self-representation, each group member should find another member to play his beloved role. Each member may have a conversation with his own chosen character, enacted by another group member. This is an excellent team building exercise that promotes respect and support for classmates. 41
Shaman and apprentice Two chairs can be placed in the middle of the class and students can place themselves in the role of either Shaman or Apprentice. The role of the Apprentice poses questions and the Shaman answers from wisdom. Students may reverse roles, with each student asked
to
place
themselves
in
both
roles.
This can be an exercise that motivates the class and allows the students to connect with their inner capabilities and resources, promoting empathy and allowing vulnerabilities and strengths to be demonstrated.
Improvising characters A free space can be provided for group members to improvise characters. These can be television or movie characters. It is a space in which to break rigidly structured learning, to play, for students to show what they cannot in a normal class, subject to a regulated structure. Pieces of fabric, fancy dress, makeup or masks could be used for this exercise. The sharing phase and the closure should also be carried out.
Animals The students can be asked to become a particular animal and to interact with the other animals. It is a simple exercise that allows the educator to understand the dynamics, relationships and hierarchies within the class. Each student places a large amount of symbolism on each animal, and it can be an excellent diagnostic tool for dealing with diverse classes. This is an example of a simple, but powerful, exercise that is suitable for an experienced educator.
ACTING OBJECTS
An important aspect of working with symbols is the use of all kinds of intermediary objects. One of the characteristics of the intermediary object is that it encourages the restoration of disrupted communication. The use of these objects makes it easier to modify or increase communication within the group. Anything can be an intermediary object: a cushion, clay for making shapes, a rope, a piece of cloth, a balloon, a mask, toys, hand puppets, crayons, colour pencils, etc. The object can take on a role, suggest symbolic language or be an instrument for communication. The objects facilitate the 42
creative aspects of the groupwith their symbolic power. For example, a piece of fabric used as a cloak may provide a role with incredible powers, and if the person also carries a measuring ruler (magic sword) the powers may be infinite.
Presenting a “thing” In a particular moment of crisis, confusion or lack of trust and confidence, the educator can ask the students to transform themselves into an object that better represents how they feel about themselves in the class at that specific point. The educator can then leave the objects to interact. The exercise could also be presented by asking the group to choose an object that: You admire You detest You find useful You do not find useful at all Following the interaction, it will be necessary to open a space for sharing.
An object in the room When the class is blocked, boycotted or taken over by some students. The educator may ask them to take on the role of an object in the room and interact with each other. This simple exercise will remove the blockage and allow the students, who are feeling oppressed because some classmates have taken over the class, to regain their voice. An open and respectful sharing will be crucial.
The speaking stapler This exercise is about taking on the roles of objects in the room. One of the students may take on the role of a stapler. If the “stapler” turns out to have a beneficial role for the class, such as adopting a position of rescuer, or presenting sensible ideas and options, the educator can move that particular role into a protagonist position and propose a dramatised soliloquy by the “staple”. It becomes “a talking staple” that comes to the rescue of the entire class. The soliloquy would be the action part of the exercise and the sharing phase would come later. This
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kind of exercise may require a deeper understanding and more experience of Psychodrama on the part of the educator.
Empty chair Empty chair is a classic exercise in Psychodrama. The chair becomes a symbol that provides unspoken characters or elements with a space, and allows embedded feelings or experiences within the class to be aired. It is a space from which a student can speak to the other; it can be someone real or imaginary, from within or from outside the class. The proposal may be to imagine someone is sitting in the chair and to interact with that person. For example, students can be asked to imagine the head teacher of the school sat in the chair and to then have a chat with him or her. Or, they can place their anger in the empty chair, and speak angrily from it. The chair can take on the role of an emotion or a situation from which feelings can be aired.
IMAGINATIVE EXERCISES
Imagination and spontaneity are the basis of this work; the educator whose idea is to serve the group will be able to create and shape the exercises. Here are some examples of creatively designed exercises for working on different issues.
Taking for a dance Ask group members to silently invite another member of the group to a dance. The person inviting can then take the other person to a separate space, inside or outside the room, and tell them what it is they like about them. It is important that the invited person remains silent during this phase. The two then go back to the group. The invited person can take another person for a dance, and so the dancing continues. This is a powerful exercise for encouraging self-motivation, respect and trust, and an easy one for the educator to do.
The door after the training An imaginary line can be drawn that crosses the room from one side to the other. Someone can be asked to position themselves at the start of the line and talk about the 44
first time they heard about this training or particular type of education, and about all the steps they have taken to get into the class. When the person returns to the present moment, they can be asked to close their eyes and to imagine a door in front of them. They can then be asked to describe the door. Is it big or small? Made of wood or metal? Does it have a large handle? Is it silver or gold, etc.? The student can then be asked to open the door and talk about what they hope to find on the other side, once the training has ended. All the students can pass through the door, and they can all be invited to cross the line. Afterwards, the class can move to the sharing phase, where the proposal may be: How did you feel during the exercise? When you were on the line or when others were on the line? What has the exercise evoked for you? This can be an excellent exercise for exploring the self-imposed limitations of the student with regard to the materials learned, the implementation of their knowledge, etc. It may provide an opportunity for the students to become aware both of their fears and of what motivates them, moving from explicit knowledge to being able to put into words what the learning experience means to each one of them.
Once upon a time… A group story can be created starting with “Once upon a time…”. The group members sit together with their backs to each other. Each member can add a phrase to the first one, and so complete a story. The story created could be enacted in a full Psychodramatic session; this requires expertise in handling full Psychodrama sessions on the part of the educator. Nevertheless, the creation of a shared story on its own can be incredibly revealing for both the students and the general atmosphere in the classroom. It is about group cohesion and creating a task force, and it can also provide information about how the class feels at that particular moment.
Imaginary power Ask the students to lie down face up, and to imagine a powerful force pinning them to the floor. Command them to face that power with their bodies to a no-end situation. Let them relax. The exercise may be repeated if necessary. The class can then move on to a respectful sharing. This can be a very good exercise for experiencing the importance of attitudes towards tasks, mind games, etc.
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Studying power and trust Form the group into pairs, and ask one of the students in each pair to go onto their hands and knees. The other student can then position a chair beside the first student, stand on the chair and place one foot on the back of their partner. The person standing can try placing more and less weight on the other, in different positions, and so on. While in those positions, they can be asked to express what they feel about the power of control, their feelings regarding power, trust, the nature of their relationship, etc. The students can then reverse roles so that the person on their hands and knees moves to the chair. It can be an exercise for studying the power of games both in the classroom and in the professional field, among client suppliers‌
EXERCISES WITH MUSIC AND MOVEMENT
Music and movement have strong symbolic power and disciplines such as Dance Movement Therapy or Music Therapy study this particular approach. In Psychodrama, however, music, dance and movement are part of the acting.
Moving to the music Different types of music that have strong symbolic power may be played: Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, heavy rock, punk, romantic and gentle music, the Rocky movie soundtrack, etc. The students can be asked to interact without speaking, to just dance and to try to identify their bodies' reactions and their feelings with regard to each type of music. This could lead to a group dramatization of a particular song. It may be an excellent exercise to develop spontaneity within a group and to release tensions and feelings. A variation could be to ask the students to each bring their favorite song to class and to listen to them all, allowing space for a good sharing afterwards. This exercise encourages encounters within the group, an opening up, class cohesion‌ The exercises presented can be used in the warming-up, action or closure phase of a pure psychodramatic session. Once again it is the director or educator judgement based on experience and intuition which will lead the group to one or another exercise, assessing group challenges and safety.
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. Bibliography 5.1. References in English Apter, N. (2013). J. L. Moreno’s method: a rich ground for developing multiple intelligences. A workshop on the use of Action Methods in companies, organisations and institutions. Revista romana de Psicodrama, 1, 12-17. Cukier, R. (2007). Words from Jacob Levy Moreno, Editorial Lulu. Fox, J. (2000). The Essential Moreno, Springer Publishing Company, Incorporated. Freud, S. (1999). The Interpretation of Dreams, Manchester University Press, 1999 Jung, G. (1990). The Archetypes of the Collective Unconscious. Princeton University Press. Jung, G. (1968). Man and His Symbols. Random House. Moreno, J. L. (1953). Who Shall Survive? Foundations of Sociometry, Group Psychotherapy, and Sociodrama (Revised from the 1934 edition. Reprinted as third edition in 1978). Beacon NY: Beacon House. Moreno, J. L. (1977). The theatre of Spontaneity. Beacon NY: Beacon House. Moreno, J. L. (1946). Psychodrama, Vol1. (Republished 1972 and 1994). Beacon NY: Beacon House. Porges, S. W. (1995). Orienting in a Defensive World. A Polyvagal Theory. Psychophysiology, 32. Cambridge UK: Cambridge University Press. White, L. (2002). The Action Manual. Techniques for Enlivening Group Process and Individual Counselling. Canada: Liz White.
5.2. References in Spanish Bastin, G. (1966). Los tests sociométricos. Buenos Aires: Editorial Kapelusz. Bustos, D. M. (1992). Peligro… amor a la vista. Buenos Aires: Lugar Editorial. Freud, S. (2004). La interpretación de los sueños. Madrid: Alianza Editorial. Jung, G. (1995). El hombre y sus símbolos. Barcelona: Paidós. Jung, G. (1992). Formaciones de lo inconsciente. Barcelona: Paidós. Moreno, J. L. (1977). Psicomúsica y Sociodrama. Buenos Aires: Hormé/ Psicología de Hoy. Rojas Bermúdez, J. (1979). ¿Qué es el Psicodrama? Buenos Aires: Genitor. Rojas Bermúdez, J. (1997). Teoría y técnica psicodramáticas. Barcelona: Paidós. Zito Lema, V. (1985). Conversaciones con Enrique Pichón-Rivière sobre el arte y la locura. (Octava edición 1992). Buenos Aires: Ediciones Cinco.
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Klein, M. (1921-1945). Obras completas: amor, culpa y reparaci贸n y otros trabajos. Barcelona: Paid贸s.
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Role Playing Psychodrama as a tool in Education Training material - Module 7 Leonardo Da Vinci Project – Transfer of Innovation
1
INDEX
1.
2.
Module description ...................................................................................... 3 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 3
1.2.
Learning outcomes............................................................................... 3
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and workshop......................................... 4
Introduction to the theory............................................................................. 5 2.1.
Definition of Role Playing ..................................................................... 5
2.2.
Role definition ...................................................................................... 7
2.3.
Group definition .................................................................................. 12
2.4.
Among role and group in psychodrama .............................................. 16
2.5.
Distinction between Role playing and Psychodrama .......................... 20
2.6.
Methods and applicative contexts ...................................................... 23
2.7.
Application of these key theories in education .................................... 26
2.8.
Educational Role Playing ................................................................... 28
2.9.
The conductor’s role........................................................................... 31
2.10.
Construction of a role playing sesión .............................................. 33
2.11. Setting construction and classroom learning ...................................... 35 3.
Introduction to the exercises...................................................................... 37
STRUCTURED ROLE PLAYING ......................................................................... 37 THE FIRST DAY ............................................................................................. 37 UN DÍA ORDINARIO ....................................................................................... 38 HOW THE OTHERS SEE ME ......................................................................... 39 SEMI-STRUCTURED ROLE PLAYING ............................................................... 39 MY FUTURE ................................................................................................... 39 MY DOUBTS ................................................................................................... 39 THE BEAUTIFUL AND THE BEAST ............................................................... 40 WHAT WILL BE............................................................................................... 40 WHAT I WANTED TO SAY ............................................................................. 41 I SAY IT TO MY SELF ..................................................................................... 41 NON-STRUCTURED ROLE PLAYING ................................................................ 42 4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 43
5.
Bibliography .............................................................................................. 44 5.1.
Bibliography in English ....................................................................... 44
5.2.
Bibliography in Italian ......................................................................... 44
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1. Module description Role playing is the seventh module of PaTiE course. Like the others already presented, is intended to give an overview of the theoretical and methodological background related to role playing. We discuss some distinctive aspects of role playing in psychodrama that characterize and differentiate it from the use of the technique in other training areas. Initially the definitional aspects , are described and the main theoretical concepts that underlie the theoretical model of the main areas of application are discussed. The technique and methods to design and conduct role playing are then presented. Finally, examples are given of role playing that can be useful as a guide for application. At the end of the module, VET educators will gain the theoretical knowledge useful to theoretically frame role playing and to define training needs that can be answered with a teaching unit that uses role playing.
1.1. Aims The module has the following interrelated aims: to introduce VET adult educators to the basics of role-playing and its relevance in education to present a set of the most useful role-playing techniques for giving insight into group structures and facilitating role-taking and group dynamics to practically illustrate how these techniques can be implemented in workshop environments to discuss the applicability of the techniques in the participants’ educational practice
1.2. Learning outcomes Upon successful completion of the course module the learners are expected to be able to: explain the principles of role-playing and its possible benefits for educational practice in VET list some role-playing techniques and argue why and how they can (cannot) be applied in the participants’ own practice
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propose and run an appropriate role-playing exercise to respond to a particular problem/challenge in a group of learners.
1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The collection of materials in this manual is orientated towards helping the educator apply simple role playing exercises in the classroom. However, the content presented here can also be used to organise a training workshop, led by a Psychodramatist, for adult educators themselves. Such a workshop will allow educators to gain a more indepth understanding of how role playing is used in Psychodramatic practice. Where possible, the workshop will last for eight hours and be run as a single-day session. If this is not possible, it will be run over two, preferably consecutive, days. It is best if the group has at least eight members and no more than sixteen. This module is divided into two main sections; an introduction to theory and an introduction to practice. Further sections complete the information that educators will need in order to achieve the objectives set out. The introduction to theory comprises the historical evolution of the concepts about role playing is retraced. It wants to give a general vision of the theoretical and methodological basis of the role playing. Firstly, the definition aspects are introduced and the main theoretical concepts are analyzed, the ones which support the theoretical model in the principal fields of application. The technique to design methods and to drive role playing are presented later. Finally, there are given some examples of role playing as a useful guide for its application.
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2. Introduction to the theory 2.1. Definition of Role Playing Role playing is perhaps the most used technique in the educational, pedagogical and clinic field with a “moreniana” derivation. It’s employed as an auxiliary technique by systemic,
psychoanalytic,
gestalt,
cognitive-behavioural,
psycho-sociological,
professionals and others. The role playing used in a classical psychodrama context has meanings, functions and finalization different from those assumed in other contexts. Moreno uses the term “psychodrama” referring to all action methods: role play, sociodramma, psychodrama, mimodrama. This has created some confusion and makes it more difficult to specifically define role play. Moreno describes two meanings of role playing. The first refers to a specific process related to the learning process and to the development of roles in the individual (Schutzenberger, 1992). The term role playing is used to point out both an educational technique and a development phase of the role. As an educational technique it is based on the putting into play, by the members of the group, specific roles of the professional or social area. As a stage of development of the role, role playing is set between role taking, that is the assumption of a role imposed by the social and organizational culture of belonging, and role creating, the creative and personalized transformation of a role. In any case, role playing brings changes and transformations in respect to the role assigned because it relates the protagonist, through the action of the game, both with his inner world, and with the external one. In the words of Moreno: “Each role presents itself as a fusion of individual and collective elements, and comes from two factors: its collective denominators and its individual differentiations. It may prove useful to distinguish: the assumption of the role (role taking), namely the fact of accepting a defined role, fully structured, that does not allow the subject to take the least freedom from the text; playing the role (role playing), which allows a certain degree of freedom; and the creation of the role (role creating), which leaves scope to the initiative of the subject, as occurs in the case of the spontaneous actor ". (Moreno, 1980, p. 76) The assumption of a role (role taking) and playing a role (role playing) show a common origin; they are phases of the same process. In fact, the assumption of the role is not merely a cognitive process and the role play is not reduced to pure behavior. In the 5
process of learning a role, cognitive, perceptual, behavioral and action elements cannot be separated cleanly.
Remember The term role playing is used to indicate both a training technique and a phase of development of the role. As a training technique it is based on putting into play, by the members of the group, specific roles of the professional or social area.
Remember “Playing a role perceiving a role, playing a role and assuming a role are processes that go hand in hand in the first phase of learning and conditioning. In situ, are inseparable�. (Moreno, 1980, p. 81) Remember The second meaning of role playing refers to a specific educational technique. Moreno claims authorship of this technique, emphasizing its derivation from the language of theater. Playing a role can be considered a way to learn to support roles with greater adequacy. Role play is characterized therefore as a space for learning, where the role played is contrasted to the crystallized role. In this sense, role playing is the field of the development of spontaneity and of the meeting between the subjectivity and the socio-cultural mandate of the role. Role playing is a strategy based on a reconstruction of a real situation in which learners are invited to impersonate organizational or social roles to develop relational and decision-making skills. Indeed S. Caparanico notes that "role playing is one of the active learning methods classified under the term simulation, which aims to miniaturize a real experience in a protected environment, based on a model that starts from reality itself� (Capranico, 1997 p. 39). Role playing is the spoken, acted and participated dramatization of communicative and interpersonal situations that can be experienced in real life, with an emphasis on the aspect of the role. The learner-actor, indeed, is not called to be himself but he is invited to play a character, an alter ego, a figure that will be affected by the personality of the "actor" but that will not totally identify itself with it. Role playing is therefore a playful 6
technique that consists of representing a situation in which each of the actor-learners plays a role according to certain statements that may be more or less structured. Role playing is educationally an active methodology because the passive acceptance of rules and instructions given by the teacher at the start is not enough. It requires from the student-actor, the active reworking of these. The primary point of interest of this methodology is undoubtedly that the role playing is not free from constraints but mediated by precise directions that the student-actor must still follow.
2.2. Role definition To better understand what is meant by role in psychodrama, it is useful to analyse the concept. The structural and dynamic unit underlined by the drama play, in which, like many partial elements, verbal, conceptual codes and codes expressed by sequences of images and actions, flow together, is called in psychodrama terminology the role: this term has a different and much more complex meaning then the one conferred on it by social psychology. Role, in fact, means function that integrates, coordinates and articulates the set of ways in which an individual is related to a given class of situations and contexts. Compared to the outside world the roles structure the way in which each interprets what he perceives and interacts with it. Moreno states that: "Assuming a role is the way the ego uses of being real and perceptible; the way of being and acting which the individual assumes when it reacts to a given situation, in which they are engaged with other people or objects�. (Moreno, 1965). Among the roles can be distinguished: emerging roles, latent roles (which become operational much later in life: examples of this are certain professions undertaken later or certain interests that occur in old age); exceeded roles, and current roles. Roles can also be divided into: psychosomatic roles (established from birth in the interaction with the mother, and that are reflected in the drink, eat, sleep, etc...); social roles (father, mother, teacher); psychodramatic roles (the same social roles, as they are played on the stage of psychodrama); sociodramatic roles: ideas and collective experiences. In particular, it expresses the individual resonance of the socioprofessional world or of a specific social group, in its externalization on the scene in the 7
space of semi-reality; individual roles and collective roles. The role can then be managed adequately or inadequately, with flexibility or stiffness, in consonance or dissonance with the other roles, and so on.
Remember "Assuming a role is the way the ego uses of being real and perceptible; the way of being and acting which the individual assumes when it reacts to a given situation, in which they are engaged with other people or objects�. Compared to the world inside the roles developed by each person during previous interactions with other people and with themselves, present as clear models of their own behavior and of the organized behavior of others, give them a sense, impulses, memory traces, images, representations, so that they can interact and present themselves to consciousness, as occurs in dreams, through a real inner theater. The dream, in the Jungian perspective, is considered as a "theater in which the dreamer is the scene, actor, prompter, director, author, critic and audience together" in which the "dream figures are personified traits of the personality of those who dream "(Jung 1916 to 1948). Starting from this perspective, then recovered by Hillman (1983), in the Jungian concept not only dream, but also the inner fantasies, of everything that moves in the unconscious can be understood from the inside through a theatrical logic "if the viewer understands that it is his own drama that is being represented on the inner stage, he cannot remain indifferent to the plot or its dissolution, he will gradually realize that the actors follow one another , and that the plot thickens ... that is the unconscious that turns to him and makes these images appear in front of the imagination. He therefore feels forced, or is encouraged by his analyst, to take part in the play". The roles are genuine mediators between both the inner and the outer world and the many aspects and levels of structure and integration present in each of the two worlds. In Moreno’s theory it’s also essential to differentiate the concept from the two main meanings of role: role in the sociological sense and role in the theatrical sense. The sociological role refers especially to the concrete achievements of social roles, referring to cultural and social categories of representation of social life. A social role (e.g.: traffic warden, doctor) has certain pre-established boundaries, duties, penalties and status hierarchies, etc., that are independent from the individual and from the person who has to assume this role. The role in the theatrical sense refers immediately to the concept 8
of "mask", fiction and illusion. In this case we are talking about playing a role or part, not to be that role or part. In both cases, whether we speak of social role attributed to an individual, or we speak of playing a role, there is a separation between subjectivity and appearance. The specificity of Moreno’s contribution to the theory of the role concerns on the one hand the extension of the concept of role in all areas of human behavior, on the other hand, the connection to bodily, subjective-intrapsychic and social aspects. Moreno defines the role as: "The operational form that the individual takes in the specific time when he is reacting to a specific situation in which other people or objects are involved" (Moreno, op. Cit., P. 158). To understand how the roles are interconnected with the individual and are not only an external overlap, it is necessary to think about the structuring function of the role for the personality. It is the ego that emerges from the roles and not vice versa. The direct experience of multiple roles by the newborn baby, structure a bodily, emotional perception which is subsequently representative of its self and its place in the world. The infant gradually experiences various roles, the sucker, the sleeper, the pampered, accepted or rejected, etc. and it will be the convergence and the body-emotional unification and representative of such experiences that will bring out the ego. Furthermore, Moreno (1985) argues that: "Everyone lives in a world that seems to him totally private and personal, and in which he plays a number of private roles. But the millions of private worlds partly overlap. The major parts that overlap are the elements that are actually collective. Only minor parts are private and personal. Each role is therefore a fusion of private and collective; each role has two sides, one private and one collective. "Each role is a fusion of private and collective elements: the first belong to subjectivity, which in turn are determined by the experiences and the way in which each role takes shape according to those who play it; the second belong to the ideology, the expectations and social pressures that are poured into the role. In this sense it is evident that the ego develops through and owing to a significant penetration of the social in the individual.
Remember The specificity of Moreno’s contribution to the theory of the role concerns on the one hand the extension of the concept of role in all areas of human behavior, on the other hand, the connection to bodily, subjective-intrapsychic and social aspects.
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According to Moreno, mental life is organized through the gradual activation of those relational bipolarities identifiable in the pairing of role / counter-role. "The role can be identified with the real and perceived forms that the self takes. Therefore we define the role as the operational form that the individual takes in the specific time in which he reacts to a specific situation in which other people or objects are implicated. The symbolic representation of this operational form, perceived by the individual and the other, is called role. "The counter-role is the complementary role with which an individual interacts when he takes a particular role. For example, if the role is a husband, the counter-role will be his wife. Another assumption of fundamental role in psychodrama is the "auxiliary ego." This is a person of the group that plays at a certain time of the psychodramatic action, a role of another significant character ‌ of the relational world (and/or professional) or of the inner world of the protagonist (= the person who is at that moment at the centre of the action). For example, in a situation of supervision, an educator (the protagonist) will represent the relationship difficulties with a disabled boy. In this situation, other members of the group can become auxiliary-egos, assuming the roles
of the other "significant
characters": the disabled boy's mother, the colleague, the manager of the facility, but also internal characters such as the father of the educator himself, whose internal presence determines the experiences and attitudes of the educator towards the disabled boy.
Remember The '"auxiliary-ego" is a person of the group who in psychodramatic action play the role of another significant character of the relational world or of the inner world of the protagonist. The auxiliary-ego may also represent symbolic or imaginary parts: for example in the previous case, it can become the "sense of duty of the educator", or the sense of "weight on his shoulders" that the educator physically gets from the relationship with the disabled person. The auxiliary-ego therefore has the function of making perceptible and visible (and therefore subject to interaction and discussion) the other characters real and imaginary that populate the experience of the protagonist.
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The auxiliary-ego, from the point of view of the director, serves as extension of the therapeutic or training intentionality; on the other hand the auxiliary-ego takes the role of protection from the transposition of transference attributes on the conductor. In psychodrama indeed, the transfer is acted on the auxiliary-ego, not on the therapist or trainer. The role involves a relationship with others within a specific situation: if there were nothing else but us, a role could not be assumed. Moreno identifies four categories of roles that later overlap in the development of the human being: Psychosomatic roles (bodily): they are the first to emerge in child development. They are all
those roles that affect bodily functions (eating, sleeping,
proprioceptive sensations, etc.); Ghost-like or psychodramatic roles: begin to appear early when the representative life of the child is first structured. They are those roles related to the inner world of the person and encapsulate the imaginary and emotional uniqueness of every human being (the role of "obedient child" or naughty, the dreamer, magical, imaginary roles of fairies and witches, devouring ghosts and dream images ...); Social roles: appear experientially at birth (in fact a baby already lives the social role of the child even if he is not aware of it), but their representative internal structure (intended as the ability to perceive individuals as belonging to social groups) is given at the beginning of elementary school. They are those roles that belong to the society in which the individual lives and develops. They are culturally and socially encoded (roles of child, parent, male or female, work etc ...). To further clarify: if we talk about the parent (his role, his duties) we refer to a social role; if we speak about a specific parent, conceptualized and interpreted by a single individual, we refer to a role of psychodrama. Value-roles (or transcendental): They appear and have their emotional explosion during adolescence (elective time for dreams, illusions, projects and “philosophy of life�). The value-roles express the sense and aim of human beings: they are the container that directs life through hierarchies of values, utopias and existential planning. Value-roles are strongly related to both psychodramatic roles and social roles: on one hand they represent the existential specificity of the individual (his values), on the other hand they are also the product of social representations (for example, the role of educator brings with it a host of value meanings such as: helping others and fixing what is not right, etc. ...). 11
Roles in psychodrama are the expression of relationships that make up the personal self and allow one to occupy a place in the relational networks in which each time the person finds themselves living and directs the construction of the meanings of the experiences that we make of ourselves and the world. In their somatic and social dimension, roles contain many traces of which we have no awareness either because they are genetically preset, or through cultural codes that are structured in the individual without being aware of them. They are activated at every encounter with reality with a directing strength that prevails over all other possibilities. The person has then to carry out actions primarily expected and compatible with the existing models, without being able to search for a sense, as it is difficult to pursue the ability to perceive with objectivity (i.e. without emotional influences from the shadow or the unconscious part) and to develop human intentional relations. When the person asks himself about the significance and meaning of his life, to understand the complexity and seek the possibility of transcending the meanings given, the ability of the imagination of the psyche exerts its creativity questioning its own foundations through training and the exploration of images that is gradually building and that are offering space for new gestalt, which are sometimes strongly evocative. From the interweaving of these facets of the roles, especially in those aspects that are most affected by unconscious emotions that are acted out, and from the tension that is created between the roles, new meanings emerge on their own life experience. The social dimension, the somatic dimension and size imagined of the roles are linked by a circular relationship: the imagined size draws on the social dimension and on the somatic one to develop new potential inherent in human nature by breaking with the predetermined meanings. The social dimension like the somatic one, contain impersonal psychic aspects and sanction the belonging to a cultural and emotional environment. From another side, they make affirmation and personal development difficult. Both dimensions are transformed by the imagined dimension, giving rise to new synthesis that may subsequently fall into rigid plans and back into the circle of knowledge to find their expressive and transformative skills (Casca, 1992).
2.3. Group definition Role playing is focused on the process, therefore, on doing and feeling: what is on stage is the individual in his relationship with the others, with the group. The group is
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also the audience who watch with the function of giving feedback in relation to the objectives, roles and situations established. The action and observation are balanced because it is a concrete simulated experience which follows reflexive observation through the analysis of what was represented. This allows the next step, that is the essential transfer from simulation to reality: from the fictional group being portrayed to the actual group to which one belongs. During the performances, which are always an abstraction of reality, the "as if" of the game, the polarization is on the needs of the individual and on the emotional aspects that emerge. This would involve some level of risk, which is contained by the frame of the nonjudgmental attitude. The group is the setting for human excellence, the place where the individual encounters himself and others like himself, the one in which he lives, develop skills, knowledge and ability. Within it relationships are born and grow which range from attractions, sometimes repulsion, or indifference. The status of belonging is inevitably conditioned by their own choice and from the desirability that the group exerts on the subject. For example, the spontaneous groups that gather around an interest, such as going on a journey or attending a meeting, give off an invisible force that somehow is related to the expectation of meeting like minded-people which creates a feeling of belonging. It is a natural tendency that leads people to need a social location that enriches their identity through collective roles, which in turn represent that part of the world that everyone carries within himself. Thus the "fathers" and "mothers" are the pillars of education, as are the "leaders" for the history of organizations and management (...). A group is a set of interdependent people who pursue a common goal, and within which there are psychological mutual relations, explicit or implied. Another more general definition, is that "a group is a set of people who interact with each other influencing each other. "In order for this mutual influence to be perceived, it is necessary that the team does not exceed 15-20 units (which is why we often speak of the "small group"). The philosopher J. P. Sartre (1970) adds that a juxtaposition of individuals, understood as a grouping, a set of people, is not a group. To make it a group three conditions are needed: A common interest; 13
Direct communication with feedback; A "praxis", namely a common action to achieve a certain shared goal or revolt against other groups. Is possible to provide a classification of different types of group using the following criteria: size, composition, constitution, aims, position in society, formal or informal. If we consider the size, the groups can be classified into small, medium and large. If we consider the composition, the groups can be homogeneous and heterogeneous depending on the considered variables (age, sex, ethnicity, occupation, etc...). The objectives are possible: some to be shared by all members, others not; they may be clear to the whole group or only to some members. If we consider the position in society, a group can be in accordance with social norms or inconsistent. The official or unofficial character is also defined in social psychology as formal or informal. When identifying groups according to how they are constituted, the reference is to natural groups (family, neighborhood, district), artificial or occasional groups (meetings, training groups, missions), durable groups (offices, associations, gangs, classes). The group performs three major psychological functions: integration, security and regularization. The isolated individual is more fragile than an individual integrated in a group. The latter is a matrix that gives the individual a security key: on the one side the ability to be himself, on the other, the ability to change (you can be someone just for someone else). In fact, a group allows an individual to look at himself in the social "mirror" and compare his self-image, often devalued in our competitive society, to the image of himself for others and consequently feel good about himself. On the other hand a united cohesive group, has the tendency to give importance to its life and tends therefore, to perpetuate its existence. In psychodynamic terms a group is defined
as a mental organization, a psychic
operator, a feeling of belonging, and a shared past and, at the same time also a complex network of psychic relations between people to observe from a cognitive and phenomenological point of view. An important contribution to the study of "group dynamics" was given by K. Lewin (1948). This term refers to both the specific knowledge of the small groups and the laws that govern it, as well as the method of intervention aimed at changing attitudes of the individuals in the group and of the groups and of the physiognomy of the group itself.
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K. Lewin stressed the fact that a person is within his environment and that we must therefore take into account all the factors that have influence on it. From here the notion of field, defined as "the totality of coexisting facts which are conceived as mutually interdependent. Psychology must conceive the living space, including the person and its environment, as a single field. " The dynamic personal fields constitute the elements of the group field. The other elements are the different roles, channels of communication, the way in which the group is directed, the rules, the group's values, the goals to be achieved, actions carried out and the different economic, social, cultural, ideological factors that determine its reactions to the environment. All these elements of the social field of the group are interdependent, so much so that the modification of one bring the alteration of the others. The main concepts of Lewin’s theory are as follows: the living space which consists of a person surrounded by a psychological environment; the person is differentiated into two regions: perceptual-motor and internalpersonal, the latter divided into a group of peripheral cells and central cells; also the psychological environment is divided into regions; the living space is surrounded by an external fund that is part of the nonpsychological or objective environment; the regions of the person and the environment are separated by borders which have the property of being permeable; the regions of the living space are interconnected so that a fact of a region can influence a fact of another. This influence between two facts is called event; it is said that the regions of the environment are connected when the person can make a move among the regions themselves; it is said that the regions of the person are connected when they are in communication with each other. Having focused on the strengths rather than individual components brings about two important consequences in the understanding of a group: It is a body in motion, that under the influence of emotional factors, beliefs, values, ethical forces makes a series of choices, objectives or otherwise falls back on errors and inefficiency, but nonetheless is always in relation to vectors of emotions and feelings;
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It is an area of operations, a place crossed by numerous trails, a site of encounters, an interweaving and comparison of these forces.
2.4. Among role and group in psychodrama In the works of Moreno (and psychodrama in the tradition that most directly relates to him) it is persistently emphasized
from the beginning the importance of group
dimension. As written by J. Pundik (1969): "The man is a social being. He is born in the womb of a human group, he grows up within it, he learns from the group what its traditions and its norms of coexistence pass on (...) he is a member of groups, organizations, associations. He is a citizen of a community and is subject to its destinies. These concepts, which are now common currency, were not taken into account when Moreno burst onto the scene (...) he set out to create a science of group, of the work of groups, of causes and consequences within groups, between individuals and between groups (...) Moreno (...) invites people to encounter." Psychodrama is therefore an experience lived in group: of group, through the group and with the group. The most superficial level of analysis originates in direct comparison through the multiplicity of codes activated as much verbal as impressed in perceptual-motor models of each of the group members. The ways in which the protagonist, those he calls to impersonate the other parts and the spectators, act and perceive the situation, in the different versions of the same scene, due to the change of roles of the actors, introduce a plurality of alternative points of view. These allow the examination of the event in relation to its different possible meanings, to the affections evoked by it in the different stakeholders and with respect to the adequacy of the role to the context, to its complexity, differentiation and integration in the overall personality of the protagonist. But, simultaneously, psychodrama affects a deeper level: a thorough examination of the findings in each group for a certain length of time underline in fact a triple correspondence: In the group everyone assumes and/or attributes to others some current roles, both in the way of presenting oneself and of interacting, as well as through images that, telling or dramatizing certain parts of the self they bring to the group. The network of current roles reflects and is reflected by the network of ones own roles and those of others which formed the relations of the personal history of each. 16
The first and the second network of interpersonal roles also reflect and correspond to the network of intrapersonal roles of each participant. These can be understood both as parts of oneself, not involved in relating to the outside world, and sometimes attributed to others, but not recognized as one’s own, or as independent complexes or as functions or elements which make up the psyche, like the shadow and animus in the Jungian perspective. The played scene is as it were, that which puts into focus the relationships between these three polarities: the here and now of the group, which has emerged through the choices made by each member, underlines through how they personify their parts, clarified and modulated through the pasts subsequently expressed, plays (and is interpreted through) the elsewhere and then of the scenes played. The building process of the current ways of being (interpersonal or intrapersonal) can be historically reconstructed from the combining and crystallizing of one’s own or other’s roles which presented themselves during the past existence and, at the same time, to this past history, relocated by the game into the horizon of the present, new meanings are given, as many as are interpreted by the participants. The internal or intrapersonal roles show then through the scenes proposed, mainly those concerning dreams, but also scenes of reality as the intrapersonal roles determine the way in which everyone sees, understands, interprets other people important to him. The intrapersonal roles are those attributed to other outside the self: the characters of past history evoked and group members called to represent them. In the series of psychodramatic games the protagonist repossess them, recognizing them as their own parts, through the change of roles or identifying himself with the parties that, in turn, the other group members attribute to him. In each session, the dramatic play can reveal only some of the many strands of the plot that continually weaves, edits, dissolves, reweaves between the inter and intrapersonal parties of those present. (Gasca, 1992).
Remember The matrix is an area in which the person develops encounters, acts roles and counter-roles that will determine his typical characteristics operating in relation to others. They are given by both the relational methods that everyone carries within themselves, and from how the dynamics of the role and counter-role are acted in the here and now of the experience.
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En el psicodrama, la experiencia de un miembro del grupo, el protagonista, se convierte en los ojos del grupo la expresión de un problema colectivo, es un sentimiento de grupo en el que las necesidades del individuo se funden con el sentimiento de pertenencia a un grupo y la posibilidad de crear su propio destino. Posteriormente, el grupo en el psicodrama se concibe en dos perspectivas: la primera como un contenedor positivo de las necesidades, deseos y ansiedades de sus miembros; el segundo como el suelo compuesto de las relaciones télicas (o no télicas) en constante movimiento y evolución. Por lo tanto, es necesario operar continuamente a dos niveles: por un lado, para construir un grupo que "contiene" a sus miembros; y por otra parte, trabajar, especialmente con la ayuda de técnicas sociométricas, para hacer transparentes y sujetas a modificación y evolución positiva, las relaciones entre los miembros individuales del grupo. En el proceso de grupo diferentes matrices creadas a través del encuentro entre el rol y el contra-rol emergen gradualmente. Para Moreno las matrices son un "locus nascendi", compuesto por los lugares y espacios formados en términos relacionales. Es un área en la que la persona desarrolla encuentros, actúa roles y contra-roles que determinarán sus características típicas de funcionamiento en relación con los demás. Se dan tanto por la modalidad de relación que cada uno lleva dentro de sí mismo, como por cómo se actúan las dinámicas de rol y contra-rol en el aquí y ahora de la experiencia. Son los siguientes: In psychodrama, the experience of a member of the group, the protagonist, becomes in the eyes of the group the expression of a collective problem, it is a feeling of group in which the needs of the individual merges with the feeling of belonging to a group and possibility of creating their own destiny. The group then in psychodrama is conceived in two perspectives: the first as a positive container of needs, desires and anxieties of its members; the second as the composite soil of telic relations (or not telic) constantly moving and evolving. Therefore it is necessary to continuously operate at two levels: on the one hand to build a group that "contains" its members; on the other hand to work, especially with the help of sociometric techniques, to make transparent and subject to modification and positive evolution the relations between the individual members of the group. In the process of group different matrixes created through the encounter among role and counter-role gradually emerge. Matrixes for Moreno are a "locus nascendi”, made up of places and spaces formed in relational terms. It is an area in which the person develops encounters, acts roles and counter-roles that will determine his typical operating characteristics in relation to 18
others. They are given by both the relational modality that everyone carries within himself, and from how the dynamics of the role and counter-role are acted in the here and now of the experience. They are the following: Group matrix or sociometric matrix: the constraint structures of a group that may arise with sociometry. It also expresses the cultural, normative, value and symbolic characteristics of a particular group. In this sense it includes the concept of group co-unconscious. Matrix of identity: both at a stage of development and at a level of Psychodramatic participation. As stage of development, it indicate the time when the child evolves from the maternal matrix, experiencing dynamic fusion/individuation, through the relationship with the maternal counter-role, which primarily performs the function of the mirror. In psychodrama, when dealing with a scene related to the developmental stage of the matrix of identity or a scene characterized by fusion/detection dynamic, the level involved is the matrix of identity. Family matrix: it is both at a stage of development and a level of psychodrama intervention. As a stage of development it is placed after the matrix of identity, and is marked by the evolution from duality (mother figure/child) to triangularity. In psychodrama the level of the family matrix is worked on when processing scenes related to the development or related to issues of triangularity or of the function of the third party (paternal). Mother matrix: it is both a stage of development and a level of psychodrama intervention. The maternal matrix is the first phase of development of being and is characterized by the fusional and nutritious relationship with the mother figure. It temporary overlaps with Freud’s oral phase. In psychodrama the mother matrix is involved when processing scenes related to this stage of development or related to themes of dependence and functionality. Social matrix: indicates both a stage of development and a level of psychodrama intervention. As stage of development it is placed after the family matrix and is characterized by the importance of the development of social skills outside the family and the internalization of social roles of the culture to which the child belongs. In psychodrama when processing scenes related to this stage of development, or related to the topic of the integration between socio-cultural and psychodrama roles, the level of the social matrix is involved. In this sense the intervention coincides with the work at the sociodramatic level. A matrix of values: indicates both a stage of development and a level of psychodrama intervention. The matrix of values is later than the social matrix and covers the period of puberty and adolescence. It is distinguished by a comparison 19
with the values of one’s culture and the search for personal identity. In psychodrama the level of a matrix of values is involved when processing scenes related to this stage of development, or related to the topic of value and the search for identity.
2.5. Distinction between Role playing and Psychodrama There is often confusion between the terms role playing and psychodrama, because both these experiences are linked by the presence of a certain play or scenic action. Is necessary to define what distinguishes role playing and make it different from psychodrama. The main difference is the level of deep involvement of the participants. Catharsis, the intense emotional experience belongs to psychotherapy and not to training and education. On the other hand, role play can produce even deeply felt emotional resonance. In role-playing, typical social and professional situations are proposed, with the aim of training or creating awareness of the problems, while in psychodrama the subject plays real or traumatic situations of his life. In psychodrama there is a protagonist who is staging his inner world, with the help of auxiliary egos. The auxiliary egos are chosen by the protagonist, on the basis of subjective criteria often unconscious, to be the site of projection of ghosts, and opportunity for the realization of desire. They may have secondary therapeutic benefits in acting the role of auxiliary egos, but they do not choose the type of role to act. In role playing, instead there is not a protagonist, but only one chance to "put into action", an initial theme that will result in the scenic action. There may possibly be a focus on one or more roles, on which attention is concentrated (e.g. the role of teacher or parent); all the roles in the game, however, are taken into account. In role-playing group members have the opportunity to choose the role they want to act. From this point of view, in role playing, there are many players who, playing a role, interpret a part of themselves (desired or feared) or a part of the other (known or unknown). The action and the analysis of the experience will foster important insight in each participant. In parallel to this personal insight, it also produces an insight of the group, following the comparison of different experiences, leading to the reformulation of the problem which was the start of the role play. Role playing is suitable at various stages of the training process, because of its dual ability to engage the group around a central theme and to allow a personal emotional
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learning for each participant. Role playing can be proposed from two different situations. Real situation proposed by an operator. Role-playing, in this case, allows you to shift the emphasis from the one who poses the problem (subjective view), to the overall relations (systemic or global view). Built or symbolic situation. Role playing in this second case allows to actively deepen the understanding of a specific professional problem integrating emotional data of experience with those obtained from the rational analysis of the context. A typical example of role playing is the invention of the case: Participants build together an emblematic case, which reflects the work experience common to the group. Characters are introduced (e.g. the psychologist, the social worker, the manager, a patient, family members, etc.) and a specific situation. From here a role play is developed in which all or part of the members of the group will play a role. Whether there are observers or whether all participants are involved as actors in the role-playing game, it is important that they meet the psychodrama criteria. In particular it is necessary to pay attention to the clear alternation of moments in semi-reality and moments of reality. Because of this the scenic action should not be intertwined with interpretive, educational or cultural-general intervention. Equally important is to predict, at the end of the role-playing game, a moment of communication of the emotional experience by actors and observers. This time must be clearly separated from the subsequent theoretical, cultural or operational elaboration by the group. Much the same has to be done about the alternation of interdependent relationships and interpersonal relationships. An interdependent dynamic between roles on stage can be allowed to develop into role playing (unlike in psychodrama), without the handler immediately stepping in with particular techniques (e.g. Role reversal, double, mirror). It must be clear, however, that such an interdependent dynamic is granted only in the space of semi-reality of role playing and during the communication of the experience will be restored an intersubjective relationship.
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The table below summarizes the differences and the common points of the two techniques presented so far: Role playing
Psychodramma
Is applied in a group context
It is applied in a group context (protagonist - the public - "auxiliary ego")
(actors - a observing)
group
that
participates
in
In contrast to the real situation, the process In psychodrama, instead, the relationships that develops in the role-playing game will not can become "real." have consequences in real life (simulation) Actors follow a "part" focusing on the The character follows and play according characteristics and behavioral patterns of the to his personal inclinations, staging his role, avoiding however attitudes too "acted� inner world Subject of role playing, meant as an exercise, Subject of psychodrama is the personality it is the dramatization here and now of role of the subject behavior Learning objective
Therapeutic target
As underlined also by Lai (1973) role playing presents substantial differences in the actual practice of trainers and clinical. The following are the main changes in applications. Conduction - The role of the conductor in some cases is almost absent; he is out of the scene and lets the game develop spontaneously in some sort of not-structured encounter. The presence of the conductor varies in other cases with a more active role in one or more steps of the activity: game preparation, scene and final processing/interpretation. Scene - For some the space of representation must be clearly separated from that of the discussion; for others scene and discussion (or interpretation) are intertwined. Type of meanings attributed to role playing - The scene played is considered in some cases like a dream, to be deciphered and interpreted. In some cases the function of symbolic communication of the scene, is emphasized; in others the focus is on the analysis of social/institutions roles and their interactive dynamic or their suitability or functionality. Interpretive reading - There are significant variations in the use of interpretation: centered on the individual, or group-centered. Also in relation to the group role 22
playing is sometimes evaluated in terms of systemic dynamics; in other cases, we focus on an interpretation of the ghost common to the experience of all participants. In the most instructional contexts, interpretation relates more to the adequacy of the role to the situational or institutional context. The group and the observers – Some consider that in role play all members of the group participate. Others believe that is an important part for the participants to maintain a role of external observer. The audience in this case represents the context to which the actors on stage send the picture of the role and from whom they receive answers that feed the relational circuit. Differences also emerge in the management of the verbalizations by the group. The representation of the protagonist: the character plays out "his own history". He can spontaneously recite what he feels or, through the stimulation of the director, use some techniques. One of the most important things to use during a psychodrama session is the technique of role reversal. It is based on the principle that, to be able to see and understand what is on the other side you have to get into it. Here some exercises to perform it: -
The family atom in which the protagonist
brings on stage the
relationship he has with his family and the people important to him; -
The social atom in which the protagonist brings on stage the different roles he plays in his personal and social life;
-
The technique of the empty chair in which the protagonist is in front of an empty chair and first talks about what he feels and then passes into the empty chair, speaking in the place of the person with whom he wants to enter into a relationship, putting himself in their shoes.
The participation of the audience: what the protagonist plays stirs something in the group, such that at the end of the performance everyone who wishes to can go behind the back of the main character and tell how he felt, trying to report it by words or mime gestures. The members of the group, even during the performance of the protagonist, actively participate in the experience both as auxiliary-ego (chosen by the protagonist to assume the role of real or imaginary people in his life), as well as being involved by what is happening and is brought on scene.
2.6. Methods and applicative contexts Role playing has its place at various stages of the training process, because of its dual ability to engage the group around a central theme and to allow at the same time an 23
emotional individualized learning process for each participant. The action and the analysis of the experience will foster important insight into each participant. In parallel to this personal insight, it also produces an insight of the group, following the comparison of different experiences, leading to the reformulation of the problem which was the starting point role play. The objectives for which role playing is usually used are: To train: to give instructions on how to perform certain work tasks, for example in a course for a sales personnel, the sale of a product can be may be staged and the customer-seller interaction simulated. To select and examine: Candidates can be assessed during the selection process based on the behavior shown in scenarios of organizational life. Alternatively a verification of certain skills can be organized through the staging of a particular phase of work. This is especially useful to test skills and abilities related to knowhow and knowing how to be. To animate: It can be used as a method of pedagogical animation, in order to liven up teaching and increase participation in the lessons. To educate: in order to work with the group class on the axis of knowing how to be, trying to bring out the experiences, attitudes, values and personal representations related to the function of role specific to a profession. In this case the interest is directed to less prescriptive and more personal aspects, that allow not only the role and behavioral rules to emerge, but also the person. In the first two cases we are mostly facing structured role playing, quite rigid and prescriptive. In the latter case, instead, the role playing is less structured, closer to improvisation. The following table summarizes the technique of role playing:
IL ROLE PLAYING Where Role playing can be used in seminars, tutorials, training courses. Especially in the case of role play involving the participants, it is necessary to consider the need to develop a group environment that allows the person to feel comfortable and free to express themselves. The physical environment does not require any special features other than to give enough space to move, while ensuring confidentiality.
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Who
Role play can be aimed at many different types of people according to the context and the objective to be achieved; within the setting there is also the trainer and possibly an assistant, a person who helps the trainer in leadership, observation, recording what happens and who, having gained experience, can impersonate specific roles (antagonist, double, ...).
How
Four main stages in role play can be identified : Warming up: This phase includes all those techniques (short sketches and skits, interviews, discussions ...) designed to "warm up" the environment, to create, if missing , a welcoming atmosphere. There can also be a phase of cluster warming up in which the participants are divided into subgroups. Action/Game: is the stage of the actual game between the actors. It can include techniques such as role-reversal, twice (the server is placed behind the actor and tries to give voice to what the actor does not seem to be able to express. It is a support function). Cooling off: opposed to warming up, this phase is used to exit from the roles and the game; it is . used to regain distance. Analysis/Eco of the group/sharing: role playing provides learning opportunities related, primarily, at the time of the staging of the drama, due to the involvement that is stimulated; Second, the chances for learning are connected at the time of review, discussion, analysis of what happened: words, gestures, posture, attitudes, and of that which is said and that which is left unsaid.
The existence of the last phase of analysis depends on the presence of several converging factors such as: a group that performs the function of the container, the ability and motivation of the participants to get involved, the ability of the trainer to understand at what level of involvement of the interpretations it is appropriate to stop. Each interpretation not required or that can’t be tolerated by the participants will induce defenses and could be less useful for the success of the process stimulated during the session of role. Role playing can be a source of change, but for this to occur, it must be recognized that there is a dysfunction in the current practices of behavior and to be able to create new patterns; this is done through the establishment of a cooperative, relaxed, friendly atmosphere. Summing up the purpose of this technique, its application allows you to: develop the ability to communicate and manage interpersonal relations; improve the skills of listening and understanding the viewpoints of others; know how to observe and analyze the behavior of others; develop the ability to mediate; 25
produce strategies to face real and complex situations. Role playing has an effect both on the emotional and cognitive aspect, “on the knowing, on the know-how and the knowing how to be” (Quaglino, 1985). The limit of the technique, especially when the setting is non-structured, could be the inadequate training of the conductor, who needs to be very skilled and capable of correcting at the appropriate time, any un- suitable behaviors
of the participants;
moreover, the use this experiential technique in situations of limited socialization among members of the group, may be counterproductive and block/inhibit learning (Capranico, 1997). One of the main advantages however, is to lead participants to a flexible understanding of behavior, stimulating learning both through a commitment to play a certain role, as well as by observing the behavior of others and through feedback.
2.7. Application of these key theories in education Role playing has been used in the educational field since the Second World War in the US programs of military training for instructors. In the 50’s it was introduced in companies in the English-speaking world and is currently practiced with success in management education, in courses that introduce new roles, roles which are difficult from the point of view of human relationships (e.g.: educators, health workers, etc...), delicate roles in the front office and in sales roles. But psychodrama role-playing takes on specific characteristics. Training through role playing is in any case a powerful stimulus for change. One of the major indicators of the success of the training, in fact, is the motivation which is common amongst the participants. However, the latter is almost never entirely at a level of consciousness. Change is always difficult, painful and often not immediately perceived as a process that provides a great deal of advantages. In most cases this is due to the fact that participants are afraid to give up their experiences and having to go through the steps particularly critical to change again. In addition, change is often required by the organization or by the social context, which does not always take into account the conflicts that arise between the personal needs and those of the same organization or community. An example of this would be a group of parents participating in a sociodrama on their educational role. One of the personal needs will undoubtedly be to safeguard as much as possible one’s own behavior, which in turn is the results of one’s experience as a child, as well as to learn and to propose an educational model that is on the one hand 26
compatible with those proposed by society and on the other with that of one’s own family system. In general it is quite unlikely that a parent will want to share his emotions with others; the solitude of a mother or a father faced with difficulties is often a well-known condition, frequently it is also associated with the fear of being judged by others, and the fear of seeing one’s own sense of inadequacy reflected by the others. But the need to preserve one’s role often leads to closure and isolation rather than a display in front of others. Already this is a clear manifestation of a conflict. In the modern society in which we live the multiplicity of available information, which is not always entirely consistent, suggests on equal terms, completely different models. Permissiveness against severity, tolerance against social judgment, integration against racism, emotions against tangible goods. The problem is that there is no "best" model without taking into account social needs, the needs of the cultural context and of the surrounding environment. This is a collective problem that can be faced by the entire collectivity because it becomes itself the main source of appropriate response, without one necessarily take an antithetical form to the other. The same thing happens thinking of the role of educators, teachers, social workers, nurses, doctors, and so on. There are issues for which a clash is inevitable with the collective problems of the role for which it is indispensable to reflect in order to work better. The socio-educational environment is the area in which people whose job It is to care for other people, work, in a completely or partially structured way. Whether they are children, students or patients, they are in a state of temporary or permanent disadvantage. "What is being proposed as an" intervention "is basically about three different objectives: learning in order to shorten as much as possible the distance to the collective culture, rehabilitation from a state of uneasiness to a state of social ease, acceptance of a status of disadvantage with a range of tools available that limit the condition of marginalization due to the size of the difference. The care of others is therefore a condition of "social advantage" that tends to promote growth in order to eliminate or minimize hardship determined by the disadvantage of others. It's clear and absolutely inevitable that all this involves the presence of an introspective level of acute awareness and, particularly to prevent one’s own private world from entering in a disruptive and interfering way in the private world of he who actually needs to be "guided". For this reason, sharing, looking at the problem from different points of view and its processing are the priorities for the development of the social role. Role-playing 27
presents itself as a tool and not as a model, as a technique and not as a medicine, as a protected area by subjectivity and not as the bearer of absolute truths. We are faced with the need to facilitate the encounter of all those private worlds that overlap in becoming a "collective", without the threat of open and unmanaged conflict taking over "(Zanardo, 2007).
2.8. Educational Role Playing Educational role playing allows those who take part, to act as if they were in a situation that is meaningful and then sift through their performances with the trainer and the group. The advantage of its application is in the fact that, in contrast to the real situation, the process that develops in the role-playing game in real life will have no consequences. Training can be triggered either by structured role playing, a model mostly used in training, conducted with the use of statements on the situation and roles to play, either through a non-structured role or free, with a focus on the personal aspects and character brought by the participants during the interpretation of roles. In the case of a non-structured session some spaces of freedom and creativity will be left to the participants; In fact, the group will be able to choose the topics that it directly perceives as most important. The instructions in role play are the canvas and the student/actor has the maximum freedom of expression provided it meets the role and instructions. Antonio Calvani, referring to the central idea of constructivism,
which "at the center is placed the
construction of the meaning, emphasizing the active, polysemic nature, which can’t be determined in this activity" (Calvani, 2001; p. 41) confirms how it is possible to notice the veracity for the method of role playing in which "the actor-student must adapt to their role in accordance with the information required but can choose according to their own categories his own interpretative line, putting it into question with the class and developing a learning that becomes more significant "(Calvani, 2001; p.41). Role playing encourages cooperation. In fact, the cooperation is what makes "the game" materially successful. If communication does not take place on the stage and if attention is not paid to the relationship with others, it undermines the very essence of the transaction. The teacher does not have to
insist on the need to cooperate
because the need to lean on the drama partner flows directly from the reality of the "game" and becomes valuable in itself without the need of explanation by the teacher.
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Another fundamental quality lies within the ability of role playing to give body and movement to those situations and contents that in a reading, in a listening or in a video segment may appear as essentially static and thus, less attractive and engaging . Through role playing, the student is helped to penetrate complex systems and is encouraged to ask questions to others and to himself, which perhaps would not have emerged with only the reading of a text or listening. It’s useful to keep in mind that, before starting the exercise, you need to identify to which depth you want to lead the group. Below is a table showing the different levels of intensity, opening and processing during the game:
First level
Pedagogical animation
Second level
Structured Role playing - by chance - following instructions on the roles
Third level
Non-structured Role playing -on third party Roles or invented -on one’s own role (actually covered)
Fourth level
Psychodramma - about oneself as a person with other protagonist played
Table from Capranico S., 1997, p.49 Participants who function as "actors" will be assigned some "parts/instructions" in which their role will be defined in the situation that is to be re-created; everyone will receive a scenario that defines the context in which the action takes place. It is essential that each "actor" studies his "part" in an autonomous and independent way. Each performer will have to act (speaking), not so much according to his own inclinations, but more according to the personality of the characters described in the individual instructions. While the "actors" will investigate the "parts", the other members of the group, with the conductor, will formulate hypotheses about which aspects of the play should be observed, and in view of which results, even through the use of grids of observation and detection cards. The latter, for example, can be formed by a series of questions to which observers can respond when the game is finished on behaviors,
29
attitudes, or on which they can take note of any concerns or questions on the conduct of the session. At the end of the preparation phase, we proceed with the staging of the situation, which may or may not include a first warming phase through short sketches or other exercises to "warm up" the group spirit. During the action, the trainer can also intervene with some techniques such as the "reversal of roles" that allows amplification of the identification process. After the drama, and after deciding whether or not to spend time at the so-called cooling off or closing of the game, both players and observers are able to assess what happened. Through stimulation provided by the trainer, that can be even a simple question like, "What happened?", there can develop a dialectic between roles or between individuals in order to comment on what happened. In this case, the trainer must create adequate spirit and conditions to allow the development of the analytical work; one way would be to give a voice to those who have just finished playing as he is still within the character (for example, asking "How did you feel in the role?", "what impressions do you have?"), later the observer’s comments are included , and the interpretations of the conductor are also expressed. A video recording can be used of what happens in role playing. Through the use of a camera it is possible to have the content of the entire interpretation. For the purposes of training it is important that the recording permits the analysis of the salient points of the game. The advantage of recording is the opportunity to listen to and review the game, focusing on details that during the real performance, observers hadn’t noticed, commenting analytically the unfolding action. The use of video recordings is attractive to students because it creates a sort of "TV effect" but unlike television - which excludes the viewer relegating him to a passive role - in this case, the students move actively within the process. The self-criticism that the learner makes not of himself but of his performance, is active, something which is milder and educationally meaningful if the criticism is not moved in a unidirectional way by the teacher as it would be unwelcome or rejected by the student. One of the disadvantage could be due to the fact that being aware of being recorded may take spontaneity away from the "actors" inhibiting their expression, or it could trigger a "escape into detail", that would be misleading since the observers could linger in a micro-analysis without taking into account the combination of actions. A method to 30
overcome the latter problem could be to take note of the precise minutes corresponding to moments considered to be salient by the trainer, so as to revise exclusively those points. One of the advantages unanimously recognized in the technique of role play is to break with the inevitable monotony of traditional teaching. It is known that in a lesson, after about 45 minutes, the index of attention of the listener, whatever the subject matter, tends to decrease. Role-playing and more generally active methods, help to overcome the "curve of monotony" in an effective way because it implies active involvement. In addition, during role-play, a playful, practical and concrete spirit is established which compensate the theoretical aspects previously treated and often confirms them. The index of learning inevitably increases because the listening, together with the acting, improve the effectiveness of what has been learned and its retention. Finally, as a "game", role playing has an intrinsic motivational value which Johan Huizinga argues that "[...] limits and makes free. It attracts interest. It fascinates, that is, it enchants. It is full of the noblest qualities that humans can recognize in things and themselves: rhythm and harmony "(Huizinga, 1973; p. 52). Compared to the holistic character of the ludic experience, the psychologist Donald Walcott says, "it is playing, and is only in playing that the individual, child or adult, is able to be creative and to use all his personality "(Walcott in Bruner & Alii, 1981; p. 125).
2.9. The conductor’s role It can be said that leading role playing is not synonymous with teaching as the trainer is not a teacher and should not assume a position of superiority over students; he does not present himself as a "container of knowledge" to be transferred to the listener but, putting himself in a symmetrical position in respect to the participants, stimulate the thinking and directs the group in situations of impasse. The trainer can conduct both unstructured and structured settings, differentiating his method of management of the group. The role of the trainer is to facilitate the establishment of a working group in which everyone has a certain freedom of expression; he becomes the container as a metaphor for someone who is able to understand and process that which has been produced. The development of a training exercise is richer as more various perspectives and levels of reading are taken into account, for example, giving more 31
importance to certain events during exercise than others. At the first step the group is asked to observe, detect; subsequently, depending on the goals, they will proceed with further analysis by the conductor. It’s important to enhance the work carried out by the conductor of integration between the group and the single member; in fact, group work becomes for each participant preexisting and within this is put his individuality and he draws lessons through analysis or personal processing of content that emerge. One of the tasks of the trainer is finalizing, which consists in producing analysis and interpretations that are useful outside of the group. This leads back to the objectives and implicit contract signed at the beginning of the course/seminar as well as to the motivations and defenses that the participants manifested towards possible learnings. In a more structured role, the trainer will tend to comment on the adequacy of the model, that is, how much and how the messages were incorporated, while in a semistructured situation he will need to assess in advance the level of depth reached during exercises, to calibrate the ability of people to metabolize the interpretations produced that usually run on multiple levels. Generally the focus of interpretation is agreed between the trainer and the participants; to interpret then takes on the meaning of relating and explain the meaning of what is difficult to understand. In the classic psychodrama, Moreno talks about action insight or reflection on action. The purpose of any interpretation in this context is the increase of information on aspects of the game, so that it may allow a behavioral change. It is not always acceptable to disrupt the balance which has crystallized and that is why sometimes the task of interpretation can harden the defenses and undermine self-image; the trainer should be able to contain and support this process. The adequacy of a trainer is precisely to be able to stop where it is best, avoiding inappropriate interpretations on psychological issues that fall outside the purpose of the training exercise. With regards to dealing with resistance it is necessary that the trainer is alert to their own way of defending themselves often voiced through the expression of personal intrusive views and assumptions that lie outside his role and which are not interpretations of what actually happened in the here and now of the group. The task of the educator is not to provide the one best way, which as well as falling outside the scope of the role playing, excludes the multiplicity of variables in human interaction. The interpretation, therefore, does not arise as indoctrination as those it is aimed at or performed for may support it or reject it. In this regard, the trainer may need to manage the resistance of those who participate; these defenses are expressed in difficulty 32
interacting with others, and may occur with attitudes of hypervigilance or emotional denigration of analysis. A fundamental skill of the trainer must therefore be to know how to treat in a balanced way the defensive dynamics within the group.
2.10. Construction of a role playing sesi贸n In a role playing session there are three stages: the warming up of the group, the performance, the longer stage, and the final participation of the audience: Warm up: the target aim is to reach a state of greater spontaneity, allowing the energy and personal emotions to emerge; working in the construction and consolidation of the bond of canvases established within the group. The performance: Depending on whether it is a structured role-playing or a free one, the story or group or personal situation to be performed, is presented. The roles
can
be
played
either
spontaneously
or
by
stimulation
of
the
director/conductor/trainer, with the help of some techniques. One of the most important in terms of psychodrama is the technique of reversal of roles. It is based on the principle that to see and understand what's on the other side you have to enter into it. At the end of the dialogue the protagonist and the other person say goodbye giving each other a message. Another technique you can use is that of the double, in which the protagonist is gradually joined by another member of the group who acts the role. A further technique is the soliloquy, where the conductor may interrupt the scene by having the protagonist express how he is feeling at that time. Another specific technique is that of the mirror, which highlights the specific relationship between role and counter-role in certain situations. During the performance a catharsis can occur, a moment in which the actors live the story in such an intense way that they can actually end up expressing their identification with the role through crying or through other forms. The participation of the audience: what is represented stirs something in the group, such that at the end of the performance starting with those who have acted directly, followed by the audience/observer, there is a moment of expression and emotional sharing about what has been performed, and then there tends to be a summary and a cognitive integration that leads to a greater awareness, a greater learning. The three key techniques of psychodrama, particularly of role-playing: Double, Mirror, Role Reversal 33
Double. To understand what is meant by double in psychodrama it is sufficient to think about what the mother does with the baby when she tries to perceive and respond to his needs. The mother is the first auxiliary ego of the personal and social history of the child: a mother can respond to the needs of her child if she can "dub" him, that is to say, to give voice to what the child feels, desires, fears etc... The term double refers to the double meaning of "film dubbing" (= give voice to ...) and double in the sense of "another like me who lives the same experiences next to me (it is common in children to create an imaginary double, which supports them in the experiences of life.) The technique of double enables a group to perceive the universality of perception and to enhance internal unspoken contents. The Mirror. Again it is useful to use the image of the mother figure that, who after an initial phase in which she must above all "dub" the baby, begins to act as his mirror, sending him back his image and restoring with real data the perception of the egocentric child. In adolescence, instead, it is often represented by the best friend with whom the same attitude and the same form are taken, going as far as to choose the same clothes, cut and hair color etc... The mirror technique consists of replicating a scene or a posture of the character (for example, a perplexed attitude of a teacher in front of a student) by the auxiliary ego so that the same character can be seen from the outside. There is a mirror situation and a situation of reflection in psychodrama, both when a member of the group has the opportunity to see himself from the outside (sometimes perceiving new or unknown aspects of himself ), as well as when the reference to the reality of the other members of the group ("I see you like that...") favors an insight of reality and greater awareness of hetero-perception. Role Inversion: in the psycho-affective development of the child, the ability to reverse roles (put themselves in the shoes of others, to see things from their point of view) marks the transition from egocentricity to social skills and intimacy. The technique of role reversal can expand awareness of one’s psychosocial relations and at the same time facilitate the capability to identify the other: indeed there is no complete self-knowledge without at least a partial exit from the self, that allows a shift of perception. Role reversal is a powerful tool for restructuring relationships strongly influenced by elements of transference, as it approaches the true humanity of the other, in his unique way of looking at life. To paraphrase the Gospel Moreno says, "Love your neighbor through role reversal" (Moreno, 1984; p. 158)
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2.11. Setting construction and classroom learning When programming a unit or an entire training course that involves the use of active methods and in particular of psychodramatic techniques, which as we have seen tend to stir up deep feelings and personal experiences, it’s essential to pay attention and clearly explain what you are going to do with the group of students. Being an innovative teaching method, often people don’t expect to have to be personally active, nor are they aware of how useful this is for the acquisition of practical skills and for enhancing the wealth of theoretical knowledge. First of all the space of the classroom must be organized: it is good to have a room free from desks, the chairs must be arranged in a circle and easy to move to allow the reorganization of the space that has to become "performance space" in which it is possible to move freely or in which you change positions and roles. Being arranged in a circle in the first phase allows to give a representation even just symbolic, of the basic assumptions that define the rules of the role playing’ setting and of the psychodrama session in general. It is about explaining to the participants that the use such techniques allows a learning centered no longer on theoretical knowledge, but rather on the experience lived of each person. Through the experience of playing this game and experiencing roles different from one’s own one or one’s own role in different situations, participants become aware of aspects of themselves not yet discovered, facilitating positive change or the acquisition of new skills. It is beneficial to clarify this assumption, otherwise group members may be disoriented by the request for action and consequently not be able to participate constructively. Another basic assumption to explain is the non-judgment one, it should be emphasized that in the role-playing game, there is no right or wrong behavior and that it is not an acting course, the aim is not to achieve a perfect performance, but rather to learn from the experience lived personally. In this sense, then there are no better or worse roles, but every role and every attitude must be expressed in respect and in mutual nonjudgment. The final rule to be shared with the group is the one of confidentiality. As intimate experiences can be expressed in this type of activity, it is important to negotiate with the group the rule of confidentiality, which involves explaining the fact that if stories and personal experiences emerge, each participant agrees not to discuss outside anything that has happened. These aspects are also important when doing role play in an educational and not therapeutic setting, and which is aimed therefore at training for a specific profession or 35
function. In fact, changes still occur that are on the level of group dynamics and not only on the skills to be acquired. It is therefore essential to be aware of what is happening, as already stated both on the level of knowledge and on that of the knowing how to be or, in other words, on the group’ process. Playing a role gives the opportunity of living from the inside and becoming aware on the one hand of aspects of oneself and on the other hand of the role that is being played, which are different from one’s own everyday perspective. This process necessarily leads to enrichment not only of technical skills, but also of the whole person.
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3. Introduction to the exercises It is not possible to provide complete examples of role playing, as it doesn’t involve exercises or games with static and predefined rules. To create a role play it is first necessary to use the rules and techniques described in the preceding paragraphs that must provide the framework within which to design teaching units centered on the training needs and objectives of the course that the teacher or conductor is planning. Here then are some examples that can be a guide for creative elaboration of role playing to be implemented according to the group of students or to the specific contents of the subjects. Role playing can be applied in any situation, but it is essential to take into account the basic rules of psychodrama and to stick to the phases of warmup, performance, final sharing.
STRUCTURED ROLE PLAYING In this type of role playing, as explained above, predefined roles to be staged are given to the participants. It should be emphasized that in the initial phase of the work session it is essential to provide a moment of warm-up through an exercise or game intended to create a mood that facilitates, in which the personal defenses are lowered and there is a willingness to listen and the absence of mutual judgment.
THE FIRST DAY
An example can be the simulation of the first day of work. The conductor previously prepares the cards for each role which explain some features to represent. For example, the "boss": polite, formal, for each role that express some characteristics to stage. For example the “director”: nice, formal, serious, efficient, etc... the “colleagues”: the veteran: explains everything, efficient, authoritarian; the "the critical one l": nothing ever suits him, he is always angry, etc...; "The jolly fellow": he starts talking about everything and overlooks his work, etc...; the "silent one": never speaks, he is always bent over his work, etc...; the "friendly one": nice , affable, efficient at work, etc...; the "protagonist": in this case it is the newcomer who enters for the first time in the working group and has to find the most suitable personal strategy to address the situation. Depending on the number of participants, several viewers/ observers can be considered to watch the scene from outside.
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During the performance the conductor may decide to suspend the action to ask someone in the group if he wants to help the protagonist in the representation by being the auxiliary ego through the technique of double. The conclusion is fixed by the conductor when he believes that the necessary interactions have occurred to make the experience meaningful. At the end of the performance, the conductor proposes a round of applause and has the group go back into a circle. The sharing phase starts always allowing the protagonist to speak first followed by the other roles, and finally the spectators. To support the discussion, a board can be used on which write down the main elements of the discussion.
UN DĂ?A ORDINARIO
Another example is the planning of an ordinary day of a person who has the same characteristics of the course participants. For example, for a young person that is attending a course for sales assistants, the played action can be the day from when he wakes up, the journey to work, the arrival at work and the relationship with the customers and colleagues. In each phase there are structured roles to stage. For example, in the first phase, the messy housemate that hasn’t washed the dishes, the girlfriend who asks to use the car; in the second phase: waiting at the tram stop with the other workers; in the third one: late arrival because of the tram resulting in a warning bythe boss, but a colleague who is friend, helps. In the final sharing, experiences and emotions emerge that influence the actions and interactions and information on how these effect other situations as well.
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HOW THE OTHERS SEE ME
In this example of psychodrama work is done through the double technique. The activity starts by asking the group members to select, another member who is not wellknown to them. Each person of the couple is asked to choose one characteristic of the other and to stage it in a dialog. The aim of the sharing is to make hidden aspects of the way one interacts with others emerge and should provide an awareness to the participants about what the others think about themselves.
SEMI-STRUCTURED ROLE PLAYING In this case the conductor does not identify a situation and roles preconceived by him, but gives an open delivery that will be filled with characteristics by the participants.
MY FUTURE
One way is to give a topic and then to make the group decide which roles to choose and with what characteristics. It can be an example "How I see myself in ten years in this profession." A volunteer chooses to be the protagonist and chooses those who have to play the counter-roles of the scene which will be built spontaneously according to the interactions that emerge.
MY DOUBTS
Another method can be the use of the technique of inversion, where participants are asked to think about a situation experienced with respect to a certain theme, for example in a course for teachers of family caregivers: "my doubts about being a family assistant, I have spoken about it with a person close to me". Everyone is asked to choose another member of the group who should play the main character, while he in turn will have to interpret the scene in the role of the 39
"person close to me"; i.e. if the student x was referring to his wife, the student will have to interpret the wife and the other student y, chosen by x, will have to interpret the student x. After each micro representation, participants are asked to say goodbye and thank each other in the way they want, they can simply say "goodbye, thank you" or perhaps a handshake or a kiss or a hug. When all students have performed their scene, the conductor asks what were the feelings experienced. This reflection should lead to the emergence of personal doubts with respect to the profession and by comparison with the others, the group may find useful ways to cope with the doubts or even to overcome them.
THE BEAUTIFUL AND THE BEAST
In this case students are asked to write on a sheet a positive and a negative situation relating to a theme, for example, the relationships within the group. In small groups of four people, the subgroups have to decide at least two situations to act out , one positive and one negative. The audience is represented by the other students, who must try to identify which situation the scene represented relates to.
WHAT WILL BE
In this case during the warm-up phase, images are used representing landscapes, people, objects, paintings, etc... that are presented to the group. Each participant will have to choose at least one image to represent a characteristic of themselves now and another to represent a characteristic they would like to have in the future (e.g. in ten years). Each presents to the others the images chosen and explains why. Then using a sociometry in action participants are asked to move closer to those who told something with which they feel in tune. Subgroups are therefore formed of about 4-5 people. Each subgroup will have to invent the story of a character in the future starting from the stories of the individuals. Each subgroup will act out the story to the other groups. The
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final sharing is aimed on the one hand at bringing to light the fears and limitations, on the other hand the hopes and strengths towards the future.
WHAT I WANTED TO SAY
In this role playing the technique of the empty chair is used. It begins with a brief warmup, which can be done in a circle (see chapter about warming up). After that the participants are asked to think about one thing they would have liked to tell a person close to them but were not able to . For example, a family member or an old friend, an ex-boyfriend, a colleague, etc... The chairs are placed in a semi-circle and an empty chair is left in the same area. One by one participants can sit in front of the chair and say out loud what they thought. They are then asked to sit in the chair and try to reverse the role and identify themselves with the person wo whom they were speaking and to respond as him to what he heard. They are then asked to express what they felt through a soliloquy. The final sharing should make past experiences emerge actualizing them in the here and now of the psychodrama experience. A new meaning of the experience should be activated with a new reading of the past and of the indications of the present.
I SAY IT TO MY SELF
A variant of the previous role-playing is using two empty chairs. It’s useful for bringing out the conflict between several different inner roles. For example, between the role of mother or father and that of the worker. Each participant comes to sit on a chair where they express themselves by making the role of parent speak, then they move to the other chair and respond by talking about the role of the worker. The sharing will highlight the feeling of being in two roles and from the group comparison meanings and strategies may emerge which are useful to improve the dialectic between roles.
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NON-STRUCTURED ROLE PLAYING
You can talk about unstructured role playing when no kind of delivery is given to the group neither related to the topic nor to the method. This type of role playing is more typical of psychodrama therapy, but it can be used in training. Often this type of roleplaying is used in situations of supervision, when the participants are called upon to talk about what they want. It can be used for example at an intermediate stage of the training to make students express how they are progressing, in order to make a shared appraisal of the experience. Initially a warm-up exercise is done, which can be carried out by walking in the space of the room with relaxing background music. A series of gaits, can be proposed - faster, contracted, slower, until the participants chose the gait that matches their own breathing rhythm. Everyone is asked to sit down and the conductor asks participants to comment on how they feel at this time with respect to the course. Depending on the direction that the discussion takes, the conductor asks if anyone feels up to acting out what he has recounted verbally. That member is also asked to choose counter-roles that can be co-protagonists and the staged action starts. In the event of an impasse, someone else can be selected to carry out the role of double to help the protagonist to express something different. On another occasion a reversal can be used, asking for example the protagonist to assume the counter-role and vice-versa. In a course for tour operators, for example, students can be asked to express themselves about the difficulties encountered during the internship in managing clients of a certain nationality. Or in a group of students who have serious difficulties to get along together, they can be asked to re-enact a quarrel they had and the various techniques can be employed to include other more marginal characters in the scene, that replace the protagonists of the conflict, which then contribute to the emergence of solutions for its resolution. During the sharing phase, it is important in these kinds of role playing to focus on the emotional aspects that are raised which are often powerful, so as to make them explicit, to work them through and contain them within the session itself, otherwise they may lead to serious negative reverberations for both the individual and the life of the group.
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. Bibliography 5.1. Bibliography in English Hillman J., Healing Fiction (Spring Publications, 1994. Original 1983.) (1983) Le storie che curano, Cortina, Milano, 1984. Jung C.G., (1921) Jung, C. G., & Baynes, H. G. (1921). Psychological Types, or, The Psychology of Individuation. London: Kegan Paul Trench Trubner. Tipi psicologici, Boringhieri, Torino, 1969. Huizinga, J. ( 1939)Homo ludens. Amsterdam; Tr. It. Torino: Einaudi. (1973). Lewin, K. (1935), A Dynamic Theory of Personality, NY, US: McGraw- Hill. Moreno, J. L. (1980) Il teatro della spontaneità, Guaraldi, Firenze, Moreno, J.L. (1985) Manuale di psicodramma, vol. 1(1946-1980), Astrolabio, Roma, Moreno, J. L. & Moreno, Z. T. (1987) Manuale di psicodramma, vol. 2, Astrolabio, Roma, Schutzenberger A. A. (1992), Le jeu de role, Esf, Paris,
5.2. Bibliography in Italian Boria, G., Muzzarelli, F. (2009) Incontri sulla scena. Lo psicodramma classico per la formazione e lo sviluppo nelle organizzazioni. Franco Angeli, Milano. Boria, G. (2005) Psicoterapia psicodrammatica - sviluppi del modello moreniano nel lavoro terapéutico con gruppi di adulti. Franco Angeli, Milano. Calvani, A. (2001). Educazione, comunicazione e nuovi media. Sfide pedagogiche e cyberspazio. Torino: Utet Libreria. Capranico, S. (1997). Role Playing. Milano: Raffaello Cortina Editore. Cocchi A. (1992), La parola e il pubblico, Psicologia e lavoro, 86, Patron, Bologna, Dotti, L. (2017) Forma e azione – metodi e tecniche psicodrammatiche nella formazione e nell’intervento sociale F. Angeli , Milano, terza ed 2007 Dotti, L. (2010) Lo psicodramma dei bambini - i metodi d'azione in età evolutiva. III ed. Franco Angeli, Milano. Dotti, L. (2009) Lo psicodramma pubblico: aspetti personali e aspetti sociali. In Rivista
Psicodramma
Classico.
Quaderni
dell'associazione
Italiana
Psicodrammatisti Moreniani, agosto anno XI. Dotti L. (2013) La forma della cura. Tecniche socio e psicodrammatiche nella formazione degli operatori educativi e della cura, Franco Angeli, Milano. Gasca,
G.
1992,
lo
psicodramma
come
analisi
attraverso
il
gruppo.
Psicodramma Analitico, 0, dicembre Torino.
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Zanardo, A. (2007) Action methods nella formazione - Approcci e strumenti per la gestione di piccoli e grandi gruppi. Pardes Edizioni, Bologna. Walcott, D., in J.S. Bruner & Alii (1981). Il gioco. Ruolo e sviluppo del comportamento ludico negli animali e nell’uomo. Roma: Armando.
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Sharing with the group Psychodrama As a Tool in Education Training materials-Module 8 Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
INDEX
1.
2.
Module description ...................................................................................... 4 1.1.
Aims ..................................................................................................... 4
1.2.
Learning outcomes............................................................................... 4
1.3.
Organisation of the materials and the workshop ................................... 4
Introduction to the theory............................................................................. 6 2.1.
Sharing, expressing ............................................................................. 9
2.2.
The 'Tele' concept .............................................................................. 14
2.3.
The role of the leader: structure vs. norms ......................................... 16
2.4.
Sharing and neuroscience.................................................................. 20
2.5.
Ethical concerns ................................................................................. 21
Responsibility ............................................................................................ 22 Competence.............................................................................................. 23 Welfare ..................................................................................................... 23 Advertising ................................................................................................ 24 Confidentiality ........................................................................................... 24 Therapeutic relationships .......................................................................... 24 Values ....................................................................................................... 25 3.
Introduction to exercises ........................................................................... 26 ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SHARING PHASE............................. 26 What you say is important ......................................................................... 26 Learning about Sharing in Psychodrama ................................................... 27 Sharing Action ........................................................................................... 28 Not listening .............................................................................................. 28 TO SHARE INFORMATION ......................................................................... 29 The Nosy Ball ............................................................................................ 29 Reasons to be Here .................................................................................. 30 Exchange of problems............................................................................... 30 Who am I?................................................................................................. 30 A Name, Letters, Words and a Sentence .................................................. 31 Yes or No .................................................................................................. 32 Presentation .............................................................................................. 32 Money ....................................................................................................... 32 Sharing Statements ................................................................................... 33 2
CLOSURE .................................................................................................... 35 Take for a dance ....................................................................................... 35 Write a Story ............................................................................................. 35 Positive Pyramid ....................................................................................... 36 Bullseye .................................................................................................... 37 Stand up together...................................................................................... 37 Once upon a time ...................................................................................... 37 Drawing names to let go............................................................................ 38 Affirmation circle........................................................................................ 38 Allowing departure .................................................................................... 38 Wrap up hug ............................................................................................. 39 4.
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 40
5.
Bibliography .............................................................................................. 41
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1. Module description Working with Symbols is the eighth and last module of the course Psychodrama as a Tool in Education. As with all the modules that make up this course, it may be studied independently. However, it is recommended that the information presented here be integrated with knowledge of the other Psychodramatic techniques and actions. It is aimed at all teachers of adult, vocational or life-long training who are interested in learning the symbolic process, from the Psychodramatic perspective, and its application in the classroom. This knowledge can be very useful when identifying obstacles to learning, contending with diverse groups of students, and improving communication, empathy and, consequently, the learning environment.
1.1. Aims The adult educator will learn the value of sharing in Psychodrama as applied to adult education. The educator will learn how to make basic use of sharing exercises, in the classroom, under the perspective of Psychodrama.
1.2. Learning outcomes On completion of the module, the teacher will be able to: Explain the importance of the use of sharing in education practice. Suggest diverse sharing techniques and identify their possible function. Choose exercises that are appropriate to the objectives set out. Understand the importance of protecting and maintaining the integrity of both the group and the individual. Integrate the use of sharing with active Psychodramatic techniques. Develop a simple Psychodramatic exercise, orientated towards adult education, in which sharing exercises for a real life classroom situation are used.
1.3. Organisation of the materials and the workshop The collection of materials in this manual is orientated towards helping the educator apply simple sharing exercises in the classroom. However, the content presented here can also be used to organise a training workshop, led by a Psychodramatist, for trainers themselves. Such a workshop will allow educators to gain a more in-depth understanding of how sharing is used in Psychodramatic practice. Where possible, the workshop will last for eight hours and be run as a single-day session. If this is not 4
possible, it will be run over two, preferably consecutive, days. It is best if the group has at least eight members and no more than sixteen. More specific guidelines for this workshop can be found in the handbook for instructors. This module is divided into two main sections; an introduction to theory and an introduction to practice. Further sections complete the information that educators will need in order to achieve the objectives set out. The introduction to theory comprises 5 sections through which the history of the sharing is retraced. The processes of sharing are discussed, as are the main concepts of the most important authors; from Professor Samuel A. Culbert and Sidney M. Jourard and their theories on self-disclosure, to J. L. Moreno, the founder of Psychodrama and his concept of sharing and its ethical concerns for the group leader. This first block will last one hour of the workshop. The section that is concerned with practice corresponds to the exercise examples. The exercise examples are classified according to the work materials used, and the main purpose of each group of exercises is explained in the corresponding section. In addition, each exercise contains points that the educator should bear in mind and the risks involved when applying these techniques and on the responsibility that comes with their use. In the section dealing with evaluation, the instructor will be able to assess the impact the exercise has in the classroom. The bibliography lists the books and articles that have provided the information used to prepare this module. They make up a very useful guide for anyone who would like to extend their knowledge and study sharing in Psychodrama in greater depth.
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2. Introduction to the theory In Psychodrama, sharing is a space and the final stage of any Psychodramatic exercise. As such, it has two functions or meanings. On the one hand, it is a space in which the protagonist of the scene may be rescued, one that people are able to share, and where they can put into words, and integrate,their experience of the scene. At the same time, it is where the closure of the Psychodrama session itself takes place. After the warm-up and the action, comes the sharing phase. Following the scene, the director of the Psychodrama session invites all group members to express how the former has affected them personally. Those who have played an auxiliary role can share in two ways. First, they can be encouraged to share how they felt when playing the role; the feelings that emerged during the scene. Secondly, they can detach themselves from the roles they played, and express something from their own lives that emerged during the enactment of the scene; the evocation may be an image, a scene or a memory. Sharing is not a rational reflection, but a personal and very profound process for which Moreno left some guidelines to be followed: The group should not offer advice or analysis to the protagonist. Instead, they should talk about themselves and about how the scene has affected them. During the action, the protagonist will have performed an open exercise in sharing, for which they deserve more than simple analyses or critiques. It is useful to consider each person's own experience of the scene: their feelings, the evocations, and whatever they have been reminded offrom their own lives. Sharing has restorative effects. Listening to and dealing with experiences described by others allows people to see they are not alone, reinforcing the unity of the group. When the protagonist is in a vulnerable state of mind, having been exposed to the rawness of the scene, interpretation and analysis are inappropriate.
The function of the leader during the sharing phase in Psychodrama is to initiate and to lead, so that as much information as possible can emerge and participants are able to express within the group itself whatever they have experienced in the group. This phase gives all members of the Psychodrama group the chance to articulate their feelings. If they have opened up by expressing deep sentiments, they will require a space in which to find the support of the group and fit in with the others. This can be
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achieved through the posterior discussion, and by exploring the meaning of the experience. If this phase does not take place, the protagonists may leave the session feeling lost and rejected as opposed to stronger and freer. The director should reinforce a type of post-discussion, or sharing, that involves the free expression, support and commitment of the group members. This will be a wellstructured space for sharing ifduring the Psychodrama session participants are able to describe and share their feelings, and so encourage integration, transparency, knowledge and their own participation. When applied to adult educators of lifelong learning or Vocational and Educational Training, sharing allows a space to be opened up in the classroom in which trust and mutual respect are present, and where students are able to express themselves. This can help to overcome a certain resistance to participation as well as to facilitate communication between classmates. In other words, in an educational context, Psychodrama empowers both teachers and students with regard to problem resolution – this is especially true on its sharing phase. It also improves communication and individual self-awareness with respect to the peer group. The sharing phase has an additional role for the director, particularly in groups that are working together. Group cohesion improves during the post-discussion as the members are able to perceive those characteristics they have in common, creating ties between them. With the feedback received from the other group members, after this sharing phase, the protagonists generally consider themselves to be accepted and realise that they are not alone. This leaves them feeling stronger and in receipt of support. This sentiment is not produced solely in the protagonists, but extends to the entire group. The interactions generated during the sharing have a very powerful effect on the group dynamics. Beyond the dramatic action, the sharing phase can be particularly surprising in mixed groups where cultural differences are present – a common occurrence in adult classrooms. This is because the post-discussion helps the group to look at others and understand them. At the same time, it allows them see that there are always points they have in common, despite the fact their ways of understanding may differ.
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In this case, then, the role of the leader of the pilot course is essential when it comes to helping
the protagonist, the auxiliaries,
and the other
participants
of
the
Psychodramatic action to close the work carried out in the session. He or she does so by creating a sufficient, quality space for sharing. Closure does not necessarily mean the resolution of whatever concerns the group may have worked, but closing the session does allow the participants to at least talk about both their feelings and the evocations the scene has produced in them. The sharing of these feelings and evocations can contribute new information and aspects about the conflict or the situation under consideration, as well as possible ways to resolve it. One key aspect of the closure lies in providing a specific space for the roles acted out by the protagonist and the auxiliaries. By inviting the participants to speak, and reaffirming the opportunity to share, the director facilitates communication within the group. This role of communication facilitator can be observed by adult educators taking part in the workshop, as they themselves may become facilitators of a communication process and post-discussion in their classroom. The way in which the closing phase is conducted can vary, and many factors determine which type of closure is the most suitable. These include the group's situation, the length of the session, the level of cohesion between participants, and the intensity of the work carried out. Closure is essential if there is no plan for the group to meet again. However, if the group meets regularly then there may be occasions when the leader will want to postpone the closure until a later session. Before bringing a session to an end, the leader usually encourages participants to articulate those feelings that have developed during the exercise or the action, but that have been left unsaid. It is important to talk about any unfinished concerns before ending the session. It is likely that some problems will arise, but exploring them can be an enriching process even when the protagonist or the class remains a long way from resolving the issues. With classroom work we tend to make the whole class work and not so much individual protagonists. These individual protagonists are often left very exposed at a personal level. Following the completion of a good sharing session, it is likely that new work will be defined as a result of what other members have identified from the experience they have just had. Of course, it is not advisable to carry out this work in the same session or period of sessions if there is not sufficient time to do so correctly. On the other hand, the fact that new topics can emerge relating to the original matter is reassuring for the class, and also opens up new ways of looking at the issues concerned.
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The participants of the session should be warned of the danger involved in forcing the closure of the said session. It is essential that the class has enough time to act out the conflicts and situations that restrict the spontaneity of the group, as well as to later share their experiences and put them into words. It is also important not to expect perfection, as this can lead protagonists to feel they have failed unless an apparent solution is found for everything. To avoid feelings of this kind, a leader could try to force the closure in situations where it is better for participants to continue reflecting on what has happened. One of the biggest challenges for leaders is learning to direct the closing phase of a session without restricting any sharings. Another aspect related to both the closure and the sharing are the exercises designed for this purpose. Some examples designed with this aim in mind are set out in the exercises. Just as each session comprises the three main parts – the warm-up, the action and the sharing – the group also has to complete these phases in its journey through the process. It is in this place, where the closure of the group occurs, that these exercises can be used in a particular way.
2.1. Sharing, expressing Sharing involves revealing one's own ideas, being open to other people, and expressing oneself in front of others. Self-disclosure has become an essential part of empirical research in behavioural sciences. It is currently understood to concern a large number of apparently unrelated variables such as better communication, interpersonal perception, group cohesion, self-esteem and confirmation. Communication and group cohesion are two particular variables that have a notable influence on classroom dynamics. According to Professor Samuel A. Culbert, self-disclosure involves an individual communicating personal information to others – data that would most likely remain unknown, if not for the individual expressing it. This UCLA academic explains that the information must be “personally private". In other words, it is information that under normal circumstances an individual would not wish to disclose to anyone who might ask. Of course, what is “personally private” to one individual may not necessarily be so to others, for various reasons. Self-disclosure differs from self-description precisely because the latter contains information about an individual that they feel relatively free to reveal to most other people. This includes facts that an individual knows about him/herself, and that might readily be deduced by other people; information such as civil status, occupation, 9
physical characteristics, etc. By definition, a requirement of self-disclosure is that others must be present. If this is not the case, it becomes self-information. Selfinformation usually comes before self-disclosure. The Canadian psychologist Sidney M. Jourard (1964, 1968), one of the thinkers who has most thoroughly researched self-disclosure, explains that the path to knowing oneself is to reveal that self to others. In other words, the best way to know oneself is through other people and the ways in which they respond to one. If an individual expresses him/herself in an authentic manner, they obtain an authentic response, and can see the results of showing their real self. On the contrary, a person that does not reveal him/herself becomes "out of touch" with the self. Someone presenting a false self, on the other hand, is responded to with falseness, and obtains the impression that others do not know them very well. People may know an individual only to the extent to which the latter reveals him or herself, and they can respond accurately only to the extent to which the data they have been offered is authentic. All of these apparently individual processes are of vital importance to group dynamics within the classroom and, therefore, in the creation of spaces that can facilitate learning and education. Research into self-disclosure has produced results that seem significant in sociometric terms, and many of the analyses carried out, based on these results, appear useful for both understanding and practising Psychodrama. In fact, when a Psychodrama action is completed and the sharing phase begins, the very essence of what is shared constitutes a self-disclosure. This is so because during the sharing session each individual can potentially experience the relief of having revealed a life event, an opinion, a vision or a secret, in addition to receiving responses from the other group members. This experience represents the lifting of a burden – that carried by the secret – while also helping the individual to see that the other members do not reject their revelation. Moreover, the individual who reveals him or herself may see that, far from being rejected by the group, they in fact become more accepted. Often, the shared experience is neither unconnected to nor distant from other classmates who undergo similar processes. Psychodrama is clearly not intended only for the protagonist and those who take part in the action of the scene, but for the auxiliaries and the audience as well. The class also works on its own difficulties related to the Psychodrama experience that has itself just been worked on. In the sharing phase, each participant is given the chance to integrate the action that has taken place on the stage with their own experience of life. In a 10
sense, spectators and auxiliaries both take part in the Psychodramatic action, relating it to life events of their own. At the same time, they can offer their experience of life to the group during the post-discussion. The self of each individual is in some way reduced in this giving, and the personal character that is revealed enriches the group through a certain shared "universal character”. Sharing therefore implies a space for understanding, integration and unity, one where the individual is reflected in the common. During the post-discussion, the members of the group are able to relate their own past experiences to the protagonist's past experiences, represented in the present. Psychodrama can help to articulate some issues within the class – with regard to the learning process, the group or the teaching staff – or even problems external to the classroom that have been carried forward from other courses, other types of training, or situations apparently unrelated to learning. These unresolved experiences or conflicts may be revealed in the sharing phase, and they can provide the educator not only with very valuable keys to understanding their students and managing their classes, but also with material for future Psychodrama sessions. Each member of the group experiences a personal confrontation during the Psychodramatic action in the classroom. First, they are faced with: “What similarity does it bear to my experience?" And secondly: “How would I have handled this situation?” In this sense, each Psychodrama session facilitates the transformation from an individual's identification, between what they see in the scene and their own experiences, to the presentation of an action. It is important to bear in mind that each individual has a different capacity for sharing, as well as a different tolerance to the act of sharing. For example, there may be someone who is reluctant to recount their experiences through the action, but conversely is able to use the sharing space to explain why they feel incapable of acting. However, there may be someone with a different capacity for sharing who is also incapable of explaining this inability to act. In such a case, this person would supposedly feel more threatened and unable to disclose things. It is also important to remember that the position of the leader is one of total respect towards each individual. Technically speaking, as the one who is knowledgeable about Psychodramatic practices, the leader is obliged to provide sufficient space and time for the sharing session. On the other hand, he or she has to trust that whatever the individual members or the group share, they do so to the best of their ability. The sharing sessions should not be forced by pressuring people with questions, or using personal 11
or, indeed, any sort of information. What is shared spontaneously should only be what the class is prepared for at any given time, and the leader has to accept this, irrespective of their own ideas, objectives, prejudices, etc. In general, a new group member will feel threatened, at least unconsciously, by the other members of the group. This applies not only to Psychodrama but to any group situation such as a classroom. What a new member usually fears is being hurt. These threats or fears normally diminish in an atmosphere of sharing. This is why it is important for the leader to appear to be always walking behind the group, and to never pressure the members or lead them along his or her own paths. When people share, they become more human, trustworthy and vulnerable. When they share, barriers come down, and there is increased cohesion and hope of change. Each person establishes who they are within the group, with their strengths and weaknesses, problems,
defects,
imperfections,
capacities,
mean-spiritedness
and
personal
resources. As each individual becomes better known to the rest of the group, he or she also becomes less formidable, less isolated, less equivocal and less threatening. In short, a more authentic person who is more at ease in the group. Part of that “bonding effect”, revealed during the sharing phase, is a result of the group becoming aware of the shared nature of their experiences. Although true that each of us is different, it is also the case that we all share similarities and have the capacity to feel empathy with the experiences of others. Despite the diverse nature of the participants, any differences generally become blurred as they become shared, and the fear of being hurt diminishes as interpersonal relationships emerge. This is where some “universal themes” may be revealed and acted out in Psychodrama, issues that virtually everyone in the group can relate to. The sharing phase is also useful for evaluating the rest of the Psychodrama session. A poor sharing phase is usually a reflection of a poor Psychodrama session. On the contrary, a good sharing session, including many interventions, generally indicates a process of transformation for the whole class. Having said that, how do we identify a good sharing session? What elements do we need to consider? What we can say is that there is no correct way to carry out a postdiscussion process, but there are some elements that should be avoided. Analyses, advice, opinions, judgements and moralising do not mean sharing. They do not reveal anything about an individual, and they do not contribute to the growth and development of the group. No member of the group should be in a position to evaluate another. It is 12
on this point in particular that the leader has to show him/herself to be unequivocal and in charge, with the sole aim of protecting the people taking part. The leader must interrupt, restrict and redirect interventions that are either judgemental or opinionated about other members, or that in general do not respect the true nature and quasisacred value of each individual's experiences. Whatever is disclosed in a work of this type is “group property�. Ideally, it is assimilated by the group for the personal growth of each and every member. Whatever is said from the heart should be responded to honestly, dealt with honestly, and used honestly. If someone wishes to revisit the information that emerges during a session, it should be handled very carefully by the leader, and only used in a descriptive or interpretative way that is never judgemental. The participants of a sharing session have very subjective views of the information that has been shared. It would therefore be an error to interpret an individual's description or conclusions, regarding their own experience, following the Psychodrama action. In fact, we should not draw conclusions about the nature of a difficulty concerning the protagonist based on their description from a previous sharing session. The space given over to the sharing involves a period of "warming down" for the protagonist, the auxiliaries and the audience, during which time each person can leave their own mental and individual scene and return to the group. After an especially cathartic session, the group may be left mentally and emotionally wrenched from the Psychodramatic action if the session is brought to an abrupt close. Providing a good space for the sharing session allows for a complete closure, like a circle, where Psychodrama begins with verbalising (the interview), continues with the action, and ends with verbalising once more (sharing).
Guidelines for the sharing session: Psychodrama does not end when the action is over, but when the sharing phase is concluded. The leader's responsibilities continue throughout this space. For many Psychodramatists the sharing session is the most important phase of Psychodrama, as it is often what a person takes away with him/her, and it determines how that individual integrates his/her experience. The sharing session should be neither analytical nor evaluative. Questions and intellectualising about whatever is shared should be avoided. The act of sharing should be encouraged, but not forced. The simplest ways to achieve this are to openly establish the procedure as a norm, and to provide an 13
example of a role model oneself. Even the most willing members of a group may prove resistant when the procedure is vague, there is no model to follow, or they feel pressured. The leader must remain vigilant and prevent whatever information is disclosed in the session from later being used to the apparent detriment of another participant. If it becomes the practice of the group to collect the shared information in order to make diagnoses, explain the backgrounds to issues, etc., then participants will become more cautious with regard to the information they contribute, and more resistant to the idea of sharing. Moreover, blockages will start to appear. The essence of sharing will have changed from “giving oneself to others” to “leaving oneself exposed before others, for future evaluation”. Care should be taken to ensure that participants do not regret having shared certain things, or become more cautious when expressing themselves. The leader must be alert to the socioemotional aspects of the session, and avoid being misled by the content that is shared throughout its duration. The manner in which something is disclosed, and what happens during its disclosure, can be very important indicators of the group's development and the needs of its members. Critiques, analyses and evaluations may interfere with the correct use of the sharing session. They are more suitable for separate sessions intended for such purposes.
2.2. The 'Tele' concept As has already been mentioned in Module 6 Working with symbols, Moreno believed that Psychodrama differed from psychoanalysis in the fact that it started where the latter left off. At least, he held the view that his work continued beyond Freud's. If Freud analysed dreams, then Moreno asked people to dream again, to act out the dream. If the father of psychoanalysis worked with his patients in the consulting room, Moreno did so in the street, in their houses, in classrooms, and in natural or everyday spaces. Moreno understood that creativity and spontaneity, basic pillars of Psychodrama, were strengthened in this way. Specifically, the essential differences between the two theories can be found in these concepts: the role of the therapist, transference and tele, perception and catharsis, the concept of time, the body, and the psychology of development. Transference and tele are two key terms in Psychodrama, especially regarding the sharing session. According to Freud, this idea refers to irrational feelings that people hold towards the therapist when the latter is analysing them. An example of transference is when 14
childhood feelings towards people who were important to the child are redirected towards the therapist in the here and now. These feelings may be activated by any situation that bears similarity to the child's relationship with their parents. In other words, feelings from our childhood can be transferred in the classroom towards new people who are not linked to that past – which is why transference is irrational – but who, in one way or another, remind us of that previous relationship. For Moreno, the tele concept is derived initially from sociometric work, like the process of attraction or rejection between some individuals and others; a flow of feeling that composes social networks (Moreno, 1953, p.25). Tele is the simplest unit of feeling, like an atom of feeling that can be transmitted from one individual to another. This expression of attraction or rejection has a grading. A positive tele is the one that occurs within a relationship of attraction. A relationship involving rejection would mean a negative tele, while indifference – the minimum level – indicates a lack of tele. Psychodrama is an interpersonal theory, and its method involves interaction and role changing with other people. The tele concept lies in the investigation of this interrelation, especially as a way of understanding or conceptualising empathy. Tele means 'distance', and it is usually described as the reality based on the interperception between two people. Tele is mainly based on unconscious, reciprocal, non-verbal
communication.
This
concept
has
been
used
considerably
by
Psychodramatists, and Moreno contributed to a certain amount of confusion when he described it differently in separate areas of his writings. In particular, he used the expression 'self-tele' to describe the relationships that emerge between different parts of the same personality. Kellermann (1992) also suggests using the theories of the German philosopher of dialogue, Martin Buber, to illustrate the difference between tele and transference; the theory of 'I-Thou' includes the idea that “I cannot be myself except in a relationship with you”. On the other hand, the ‘I-it' relationship of ‘I' is the relationship in which another person is treated as an object and not as a subject. In this context, the term 'tele' acquires the meaning of an ‘I-Thou' relationship while the term 'transference' can be characterised more as an ‘I-it' relationship. In Psychodrama, the basis is the relationship between human beings, the 'I-Thou' relationship; an encounter between people. Transference
and
‘counter-transference'
are
regular
phenomena
in
any
psychotherapeutic context. Moreno uses the expression ‘distorted tele' for both. Moreno and Freud would both agree that transference is a pathological phenomenon. 15
The difference in their approach to the phenomenon is one of emphasis. In psychoanalysis, the characteristics of the situation are technical means for developing transference reactions. Moreno, on the other hand, uses Psychodramatic techniques with the aim of facilitating genuine encounters through tele that are based on reality. In fact, most Psychodramatists now agree that transference occurs regularly between the members of a Psychodrama group and with regard to the leader, and that it can be explained through the technique of role changing. Transference can therefore be described as a specific counter-role, where a participant may assume the role of a child when in the presence of a therapist or the director of a Psychodrama session. In other words, we can observe the tele, and the rejections, attractions, and transference that take place between the members of a classroom group during the sharing phase, perceiving certain unconscious feelings of the class. Better still if the observation is based on the roles that the group members play in the action phase.
2.3. The role of the leader: structure vs. norms In the sharing phase, there is a structure that the leader should bear in mind when guiding the process, and that we will meet in this chapter. One of the most appropriate ways to structure sharing sessions is described as follows: after the scene ends, a session for sharing feelings is opened first, before that session is then closed, and another opened for sharing the evocations. In the first part, we look at whether the auxiliary egos and the rest of the class can put into words the feelings that emerged during the action. We are looking for terms that put a name to the emotions experienced: “I felt scared”, “happy”, “surprised”, “abandoned”, etc. Any emotion is welcome, without evaluations, analyses or justifications. After respectfully inviting everyone to take part, the session can move on to the next part; the evocation. Before closing, the sharing session may be stimulated by using impersonal questions such as "Does anyone want to share anything else regarding feelings that emerged during the scene?" or "Anything else before closing?"If nothing else is raised, the session can move on to the evocations. When dealing with evocations, the aim is for each student to share scenes from real life or fantasy, that resonate with whatever was worked on in the session. The aim is to have each person present scenes evoked from their own experiences: a photograph taken in a certain place, the people who were present, what time it was… For example: “The scene reminds me of the argument my brothers had this summer, when we were deciding which beach to go to. My older brother shouted at the youngest one, and, in the end, my father got angry and we didn't go to any beach…"With the sharing of evocations, the idea is to put the experience of the scene 16
into words and to integrate it with whatever resonates from the life experiences of each group member. Painful or dramatic memories may present themselves in an evocation and the leader should accept them in a respectful manner, validating the experience of each person and normalising the emotional process if it emerges. The space set aside for the members of the Psychodramatic group to share will depend on the members themselves; on whatever they wish, and are able, to share. That said, although there are no correct ways to conduct the sharing process, there are certain guidelines. This structure is relatively simple: Share your feelings about the enactment performed by the protagonist, and, with regard to the evocations, explain whether you have been reminded of something from your own experiences. It does not have to concern an identical situation, but some point in your life when you had similar feelings. Advice should not be given. Suggestions should not be made. People should not say “That's exactly what happened to me, and this is what I did…” because that would mean giving advice. Praise should not be given. It is not the time for saying “You are really brave for doing that” or, “From my point of view, you were right to be angry with that person”. By not making these comments, it may seem that an indifferent attitude is being shown towards the protagonist. But the fact is these statements do not share anything about one's own experiences, and this is precisely what a sharing session is useful for. It is interesting that the protagonist remains silent during the sharing phase. It is time for them to take a rest after the exhausting work done in the scene. It is also a way of protecting them and preventing them from entering into sterile debates. The spontaneity of the action has ended for the protagonist, and “it is now time to listen to their classmates”. The protagonist, or protagonists, reveals a great deal about him/herself during the Psychodramatic action, and they hope that neither the leader nor the other participants view them as someone “bad” or “emotionally crippled”. Their feelings are raw, which is why the leader has to protect them jealously. When guiding a sharing session, the person speaking should be stopped if it is thought they are going to offer advice or are not speaking from personal experience. It is occasionally necessary to quickly interrupt someone in the middle of their contribution, and to apologise for doing so. But it is 17
always better to do this than to allow the participant to hurt the protagonist, deliberately or otherwise. The objective of the sharing or integration phase is to return the protagonist to the group. The protagonist will have shared a personal matter with the group and they will be feeling very vulnerable. When other members of the group share something, it helps the protagonist realise that the others have similar feelings to those expressed by him or herself. Speaking about personal issues also helps people to work on personal change, and those issues will lend themselves to future Psychodrama sessions. When we share profound parts of ourselves with others, we produce personal change and build connections – we build a team. It is difficult to initiate a group conversation until at least one participant shares an experience or a personal feeling. Particularly after the phase of Psychodramatic action various factors may emerge that make the post-discussion difficult: I played a negative role during the Psychodramatic action, and now I don't think I like the protagonist. What should I do? This reaction is completely normal in many participants who have played an auxiliary role, but it may be the case that the protagonist does not exactly perceive them as such. When we come up against thoughts of this type, the term used is “de-role". It means something along the lines of “to come out of the role”.
“I am not that person” Some leaders demand that the auxiliary egos “come out of the role”. Those who have acted in auxiliary roles should then say their real name, and declare that they are not the person they have interpreted. For example, someone could say: “I am not Laura, your sister. I am Amaia”. The auxiliaries will then be asked to describe their experience of playing the role in question, and to explain the ways in which they identified with this role during the scene. The leader may remove anyone from a role using statements such as the following: “You are no longer a table”, “You are no longer Jimmy Carter”, “You are no longer the Head of Studies”, etc. This technique leads to some problems. Let us suppose that Amaia identifies with the sister, and says: “I think you were really unpleasant to me, just like you were with your sister. I don't know how you can treat her like that. I didn't feel at all comfortable being your sister”.
18
These statements can completely undermine the action, even if they are untrue and it is Amaia who is identifying too much with her auxiliary role. From this point on, expressing how she identifies with the auxiliary ego will probably mean being very critical towards the protagonist, or, at least, of very little benefit. The job of the leader is essential at this point; to interrupt the badly understood sharing session and protect the protagonist or protagonists. In moments like these, the leader may become unequivocal and play a supervisory role, but they should always remain respectful and explain the reasons for their interventions.
Remember It is essential to protect the protagonist during the sharing process. Brush it off Another way to come out of the role is the so-called Brush it off technique, i.e. casting the role aside, discarding it. To do so, those who have played auxiliary roles during the session have to brush their arms, shoulders and chest with the palms of their hands. This technique can be useful in closed work groups that are scheduled to work in many sessions together. In more natural groups, it is the leader himself/herself who can assume the responsibility of removing each individual from their role.
Relinquishing the role naturally On the other hand, participants usually come out of whatever role they have played when they carefully share the ways in which they have identified with the protagonist. This allows the latter to perceive those who really have played a given role. With training groups it is possible to open a space for sharing from the technique. This follows the closure of the aforementioned sharing phase that comprises the sharing from feelings and the sharing of evocations. It is a space for technical considerations orientated towards training where the students can discuss things such as: what they would have done differently, the leader's decisions, why something was done in suchand-such a way, etc. It is also a space that very much facilitates the learning process and demystifies the work of the leader, since the latter is able to share things that he or she could have done differently, give and receive feedback, etc. It is important that the leader continues to take great care to protect the people who have worked during the scene. During this phase of sharing from the technique, he or she needs to protect them from the interpretations, judgements and evaluations of any one of the participants. Respect for the experiences of each individual, and adherence to aspects that are solely technical and never personal, is imperative. 19
2.4. Sharing and neuroscience Dr Rameson and Professor Liebermen (2009), from the University of California, explain that our lives cannot really be called our own. This idea has to do with the fact that, to a great extent, our lives revolve around the thoughts, ideas, feelings, behaviours and intentions of others. Psychology has demonstrated the many ways in which our lives are shared and shaped by our social relationships. In recent years, cognitive social neuroscience has shown increasing interest in the neuronal mechanisms that underlie the experience of empathy. To a large degree, this is because empathy is, in some way, a part of the essence of what it means to be human; not only are we able to recognise the happiness and sadness of others, but we can reflect and share experiences that relate to those emotions. For example, this form of participation is also a motivator of altruistic behaviour. But, what is empathy? Researchers themselves cannot reach consensus on a concrete definition. Some believe it has more influence on the affective element, while others are of the opinion that its impact is greater at a cognitive level. Lastly, there is a certain current of thought which considers that a dual process occurs in empathy involving two separate, but interrelated, experiences; one affective and the other cognitive. Empathy plays a fundamental role in the sharing process. We understand the minds of others by using our own as a model. So, not only can we put ourselves in someone else's shoes but we are better able to understand ourselves. The discovery of these "mirror neurons" and other “shared circuits” is commonly activated by oneself, based on the actions of others. The group members can therefore view the action of the protagonist during the Psychodramatic action, and whatever they see themselves reflected in – from their own experiences and based on their own parameters – will be explained in the sharing session. It is this resonance that produces change in the classroom. According to research, the neuronal mechanisms involved in these shared circuits suggest that it is an automatic response; empathy carries the emotional state of another person to the observer, activating the latter's own representations. It is what has come to be known as “limbic resonance” (Lannon, 2003). In this way, the system of mirror neurons lets us experience the emotional state of another person and place ourselves in their role, allowing the sharing that is characteristic of empathy to take place. When viewed from this perspective, it can be understood that certain judgements, opinions or advice should not interfere in the space set aside for sharing. 20
The objective is not to analyse whatever is expressed, but to sense, experience, and understand others through our mental models, and to therefore better understand our own minds by creating ties based on empathy between the participants. A large part of this work is realised through observation, which in Psychodrama occurs during the action. The expression of feelings and evocations is what takes place, more specifically, during the sharing phase. Through the sharing, this neuronal process centred on other people can prove to be of great benefit, creating a powerful means for change and personal growth for the class on the basis of expression, listening and understanding. It is the leader's duty to facilitate a space for sharing in which participants will be listened to respectfully and shown understanding, and where they are able to express themselves without feeling judged or pressured by others.
2.5. Ethical concerns All disciplines require a code of ethics, but this need is even greater in Psychodrama because of the emphasis that its techniques place on creativity and spontaneity, with certain transgressions that would be impossible in other contexts. Some Psychodrama associations or training institutes have already developed their own ethical codes that may be consulted. These include the American Society of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama, the British Psychodrama Association, the Australian and New Zealand Psychodrama Association, the Norwegian Psychodrama Association and the Finnish Psychodrama Association. Other professionals recommend adherence to an ethical code concerning mental health that has already been drawn up (for example, APA, 1992). Nevertheless, there are some people who champion the idea that an ethical code would be too strict and dogmatic, and would prevent their work from being sufficiently spontaneous. This is the proposal of Meara, Schmidt & Day (1996), who would like the voluntary virtues of professionals, such as prudence, integrity, respect and benevolence, to serve as sufficient guide for leading Psychodrama sessions. Notwithstanding this suggestion, it is safe to say that the vast majority of Psychodramatists now agree to the adoption of a formal ethical code. This would include certain standards of confidentiality and basic concepts for the practice of Psychodrama. Based on the understanding that, within the framework of this course, it will be adult educators who will be tailoring specific experiential techniques of Psychodrama to the 21
classroom, it seems even more important to consider a specific code as guidance, one that is accessible and less concerned with mental health. The aim of this chapter, therefore, is to offer some illustrative examples of problem situations that may serve as a basis for discussion on ethical conduct, and that may be incorporated into whatever models are applied in the classroom by individual educators. Moreno suggested several principal forms of ethical conduct such as autonomy, benevolence and justice. The code of ethics and practice of the British Psychodrama Association includes references to the wellbeing of those taking part in Psychodrama. These references take into account both the protection of the participants and the professionalism of the leader of the session. For this course, we have chosen to deal with the following basic elements: responsibility, competency, welfare, advertising, confidentiality, relationships and values.
Responsibility A Psychodramatist, or, indeed, anyone who applies Psychodrama methods in some way, must take responsibility for whatever consequences result from their actions. In other words, let us suppose, as is the case with this course, that a long Psychodrama session is conducted over a few days – a weekend, say. In a situation such as this, the subjects dealt with in the workshops should be of a somewhat general, largely nonpersonal nature. This also applies to the classroom, where it is possible that the educator is neither a therapist nor a Psychodramatist. He or she should therefore adhere to topics that are less personal and more orientated to the following: the present; the classroom group, and interests related to the subject material; roles within an educational setting; possible blockages to learning; etc. In other words, the most indepth work at an introspective level requires a different approach, and sessions should be led by a qualified therapist. In any case, the feelings exposed or perceived during the Psychodrama action may be seen to be profound when discussed in a sharing session. For example, a session that at first provides the protagonist with a sense of relief, may later result in some kind of angst away from the Psychodrama session. It is therefore important that the leaders of this workshop, and any adult educators applying the techniques in the classroom, are aware of this fact.
22
Competence Regarding Psychodramatists, it is advisable to consider what their competences are – that is to say, how they work best. There may be professionals who get along better with children than with adults, or with men better than with women, etc. To a certain extent, the crux of the problem shifts in the case of adult educators. The latter do not have to be therapists, but they already supervise a specific niche; adult students who participate in their classrooms. Classes can in many cases contain students from mixed-age groups and diverse backgrounds who may differ in their levels of learning and knowledge. Although the teacher may get along with some types of student better than with others (for example, with those aged 50 and over, better than with those in their thirties), it is expected that he or she will apply the Psychodrama techniques to the whole class. This is why they should take into account the issues that they understand best (lack of communication, group cohesion, etc.). What is important about this reflection is to bear in mind that Psychodrama and those who apply its techniques both have their limitations. It is not advisable, therefore, to make promises to the participants. We should never promise that a problem will be resolved through Psychodrama, because there would be no reason for this to be the case with every issue. At the same time, it is worth repeating what was mentioned in the section concerning responsibility; if one is not a Psychodramatist, the topics dealt with in Psychodrama should be directed towards the academic role and not personal matters. And, of course, the more one reads about the matter, and the more workshops that are held, the more likely one is to become even more competent with regard to the subject.
Welfare Again, in a learning environment such as the classroom, we assume that educators will apply specific experimental Psychodrama methods as seen in this workshop, according to the guidelines and recommendations set out. In other words, by orientating those methods towards specific problems within the classroom. Despite this, situations of insecurity may arise in which a student displays an aggressive attitude towards a classmate or, more accurately, towards the role interpreted by the other student. This can occur at any stage of the Psychodrama session. For that reason, it is absolutely essential to warn students of the risks involved, and to specify the need to respect fellow participants at all times. Students should also be reminded of their rights, such
23
as the right to not take part in a specific exercise or to leave the group whenever they see fit. This point is particularly important.
Advertising Let us suppose that a day of Psychodrama is being organised in your centre. It should be advertised in an honest and careful manner. It would be inappropriate to sell the sessions as a solution to problems, an antidote for students who have difficulties fitting in, or a mean of making them better students, in other words, to sell specific promises of happiness. The Psychodrama proposed in this course is a resource for working on certain tensions or issues within the classroom, but it is not a magic formula. Nevertheless, if the group is in the right frame of mind, magical things may sometimes happen.
Confidentiality Psychodramatists must respect the confidentiality of whatever is expressed during the session by those taking part in it. This applies equally to any educators employing certain experimental methods in the classroom. However, it does not include any confessions that involve feelings harmful to either the participants themselves or other people. The leader will weigh up the measures to be taken in such cases. This is why it is also essential to advise the participants on the importance of confidentiality. It is unacceptable for third parties to be told about whomever or whatever is discussed during Psychodrama work. This point is hugely important in allowing the group to function correctly.
Therapeutic relationships Just as romantic or sexual ties between teachers and students are to be avoided, leaders and participants of Psychodrama should similarly eschew such relationships. As we have seen, empathy and transference can lead to irrational feelings being projected towards the director – sentiments that, deep down, may be connected to unconscious memories and not genuine feelings. Psychodrama sessions may establish bonds of friendship between the participants and the leader. Beyond these ties, however, it is not advisable to have a more intimate relationship while the Psychodrama sessions are being run, or even for the 12-month period following their conclusion.
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Values Objectivity in Psychodrama is more of an ideal than a reality. There are few Psychodrama sessions that do not bring one set of values into conflict with another. Nevertheless, the leader of the session should not allow him/herself to be unduly influenced by his/her own values, irrespective of whether these relate to age, race, gender, ethnic group, religion, sexual orientation, disability or social status. These values may become visible when forming close relationships with some participants, or pressing them in ways that are too intimate or personal. This can lead to suggestions that protagonists perform certain inappropriate actions– hitting, for example – against one of the roles. Again, it will be up to the leader to understand and value his or her relationships, and at the same time avoid being overpowered by them.
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3. Introduction to exercises These exercises are designed to promote implicit knowledge about the importance of sharing in any kind of active or Psychodramatic technique. Some of them can also be used with a slight adaptation to promote the sharing in VET classes of any given event, topic or issue. In Psychodramatic terms, sharing is the last phase of any Psychodramatic work. Through the work carried out using these exercises, participants will gain a deep understanding of the relevance of providing enough space for the sharing phase in any Psychodramatic method. As class facilitators, we must understand sharing as perhaps the most important part of any Psychodramatic method. Sharing encourages integration, the “putting into words” of experiences from the action phase that sometimes make an impact. The pace of the sharing session is crucial; the rule should be “always provide more space and time than what seems necessary”. It is not always easy for an individual to put experiences into words. So, before moving onto something else in the class, ask the group questions along the lines of “Does anyone wish to share?" or "Is there anything else to be shared?”, and provide more time. Important and very strong aspects will usually emerge in the final minutes, and we do not want to prevent that information from coming out because of our impatience as facilitators. Some of the exercises presented in this module may be appropriate for the “closure” of a class. The final days of a class and classes before holidays are also important. These are periods of anxiety, angst, fear, farewells, separation, and new projects, and Psychodramatic exercises for “closure” can be a great tool for capturing most of that angst and transforming it into creative energy.
ABOUT THE IMPORTANCE OF THE SHARING PHASE
These are specific exercises for gaining knowledge about the importance of sharing, and they may be used in training groups for educators.
What you say is important The exercise starts by creating two groups and calling one of them “A” and the other “B”. Each group forms a row facing the other group, in such a way as to form “A&B” pairs. Each member of the A group says to the person opposite to him or her: “What you say is important to me and the group”. The members of group B listen attentively.
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The members of group A rotate and each is given the chance to say the phrase to every member of group B, and vice versa. The exercise should conclude by sharing the feelings and sensations of both the role of speaker of the statement and the role of the listener of the statement. This exercise aims to provide a Psychodramatic space in order to investigate the importance of sharing and the leader's role in this phase. The exercise is designed for training, although with slight modifications it may also be used for sharing specific issues in a real VET classroom situation. For example, the As give their opinions, ideas or comments to the Bs with regard to a particular difficulty they are facing in the learning process, applying the course content to real life situations etc. The Bs respond by saying “What you say is important to me”. The roles can then be reversed, so the Bs are able to express themselves and have the As acknowledge their comments. The exercise can be used to share a particular issue, to build cohesion and respect between group members, and to promote empathy between participants. Although the exercise is concerned with sharing, it is not intended for the “closure” of a class or a group. Other exercises for sharing, that may be more suitable for the “closure” of a class, will be presented later.
Learning about Sharing in Psychodrama As this is an ”action” exercise, it could be used for a group that has already been warmed up. Depending on its type, each exercise will also have a warm-up, an action phase, and a sharing. With the group warmed-up thanks to previous exercises, a group conversation, or perhaps even a brief theoretical explanation, the following instruction may be given to the group: “Create either a static or dynamic sculpture that represents”: A "bad sharing": rapid, with no pauses, encouraging neither expression nor integration, with interpretations of the enacted roles, and personal references to the participants, advice, analyses, etc. A “good sharing”: as defined by having an opening, an unhurried pace, trust, the integration of content, respect for the individuals involved in the action, no rash judgments about others, sympathy for the experiences of others.
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Share the experience as an individual in both of the sculptures, one after the other. Remember to also provide time for those individuals who did not participate in the sculpture and stayed in the class. The sharings of the audience, or observers, of the sculpture-action maybe very illuminating and provide the class with extremely interesting insights.
Sharing Action This exercise could be described as the authentic Psychodramatic way to learn about something. To learn about the importance of sharing, “let´s act it”. The educator can request four or five volunteers from the group. Away from the main group, the educator can ask them to share in a group, in two different ways and in two different scenes. First scene: The volunteers talk or debate among themselves about any issue, public or personal. The idea is to encourage a disrespectful and impertinent way of listening, one that does not respect speaking turns or the pace of the speaker, that tries to change others' point of view and gives advice, and soon. Second scene: They can replay the same scene but this time by being attentive and respecting everyone's turn to speak, giving enough time for the others to finish speaking, and generally being open to the experiences of others. Following the action phase, the group can get back together and share their experiences. Firstly, there could be space for the volunteers playing roles to share, and the rest of the group could then share their feelings on viewing each of the two scenes. Afterwards, they can discuss the implications for their role as educators using Psychodramatic techniques in adult education groups.
Not listening The class can be divided in two subgroups. One of them will play the role of not listening – trying to switch topics, not listening to their partners and being absent from the talk. The other subgroup will try to speak about something that is relevant to them, something important to them, maybe not too personal, but important nonetheless. The roles should be explained to each group separately. Pairs with a member from each group can then be formed and asked to play the assigned roles. If there is
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enough time, the roles can be reversed, so the group that was talking can then take on the non-listening role. As group directors, this can be an excellent way to reflect on the type of sharing we want in our groups, and to gain implicit, applied knowledge about the same. Directing or participating in a simple exercise such as the one presented will be a lesson learned forever as a group director. The subjective experience of the individuals and the group will be closely related to the ability of the facilitator to lead the sharing in a deferential, tidy, way one after the other, respecting the pace of the participants.
TO SHARE INFORMATION
In each Psychodramatic action there is a sharing of information, an exchange of ideas, opinions, feelings, and points of view. We use this space to propose exercises that can help students share information. This can be useful when a new class starts, in the warm-up process, to encourage respect, empathy, mutual understanding, conflict resolution, etc. In purely Psychodramatic terms, sharing refers to that specific phase of Psychodramatic work when group members are asked to report back to the group with their feelings, and to recall information from the action. However, in order to support the learning process, some sharing exercises are presented.
The Nosy Ball This could be an exercise for sharing ideas about a particular topic. It seems to be a warm-up type of exercise. With the entire class sitting in a circle, and the group director holding a medium-sized ball, the latter can formulate a question: “What is your very first sensation on joining this group?�. Some time must then be left so that everyone can answer the question mentally. After a few seconds (approximately, 10-15),the director should throw the ball to one of the group members. The person catching the ball has to answer aloud, formulate the next question, and pass the ball for the next member to answer. Sometimes, the themes presented by the director are followed, although they may take different routes. Always provide enough time for sharing, and lead with the usual questions: How did you feel during the exercise? What were you reminded of during the exercise? Which memories, places, events came to your mind?
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One variation could be to throw the ball and ask the question "When was the last time you‌ (e.g. laughed out loud?)?" This is an exercise that can be fun, and one in which some personal information is shared. It has the feel of a warm-up exercise.
Reasons to be Here
This is an exercise for warming up about an idea, and for sharing information about the backgrounds and expectations of group members. Each participant receives a blank piece of paper and writes three reasons they have for being in the group. All the notes can then be collected and handed out again, so that everyone reads someone else's reasons. The reasons can be written on a board by the educator. It is a time for sharing the feelings that emerged: during the exercise; while writing; when listening to one's reasons being read out by others; when reading someone else's reasons, etc. It is always interesting, afterwards, to create a space in which to share whatever came to mind during the exercise. It can be a subtle, respectful diagnostic tool for the educator to monitor the group, levels of motivation, goals, etc.
Exchange of problems
Each individual writes down a problem they have, regarding their previous learning experiences, on a piece of paper. All of the papers can then be put into the same basket, say, and each individual can take one and read it as if the issue was their own – as if the difficulty was one of their own. Time and space for sharing should then be provided. This exercise normally creates an atmosphere of understanding between peers, with most problems being similar in.
Who am I?
We can ask the group to place themselves in two parallel lines. Those in line A are As and the ones in line B are Bs. Each A and B then form a couple. They are each given ten minutes to talk to their partner about themselves, one after the other. Once they return to the main group, each person introduces his or her partner using the information they have been provided. Make sure to provide space for the group 30
members to share their experiences of speaking, of listening to others, and of listening to their partner's introduction of themselves. It is an easy exercise for warming up and sharing personal information. It can be used to build cohesion, encourage a relaxed introduction to the group, etc. All exercises are open to the spontaneity of the director. This one can be turned into a great closing exercise by changing the instructions. For example, if the time set aside for talking is used to speak about “where this learning places me?”, ”what challenges growth in me after the training?”
A Name, Letters, Words and a Sentence
A piece of paper is offered to each person in the class, and they are told to write their own name vertically and in capital letters. They are then asked to write down a word starting with each letter of their name as quickly as possible. Finally, they are asked to write a sentence containing all the words. Remember to provide enough time for the group to share their feelings during the exercise, as well as the recalled memories, scenes or images.
P - PETRIFIED E - ERECTED T–TREASURE E - EXTINGUISING R- RAPIDLY “I AM AN ERECTED PETRIFIED TREASURE, EXTINGUISING RAPIDLY.”
This is a simple exercise to encourage self-disclosure between group members. It is a particularly powerful exercise as creativity involves many unconscious processes, projective identification can be triggered. An extended sharing session is required.
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Yes or No Divide the class into opposing pairs. Those standing on the right will be the YES group, and those on the left the NO group. Set up a simple way of having a Yes line and a No Line. The class director can ask the question: 多have you lived abroad? And the students will position themselves in the line corresponding to their answer. After the first question, the group members will take turns to ask spontaneous questions. It is a way of speaking without words, talking while moving, that makes it easier to share. Always remember to provide a space for sharing. It is important to bear in mind that people may lie, decide not to respond, or not join either of the two lines.
Presentation
This can be an exercise for warming up a group, to present and share information about oneself in a subtle and protected manner. Ask each member of the group to introduce someone they know well (father, mother, friend, partner, boss, etc.). They can then explain what kind of relationship they have with that person. Provide enough space for the sharing and remember that simple exercises can become triggers of important changes for both the group and the individuals. For two group members who have fallen out with each other, seeing the other playing the role of introducing a friend may potentially alter the relationship between them.
Money
This exercise is designed for sharing information, growing and reflecting on a specific issue. In this example, the topic is Money. The instruction issued to the class may be to work on the importance of money for each one of us. An imaginary line is marked out by placing two chairs at either end of it. Each of the chairs represents one of the two limits of importance, one being 0 and the other 10.
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The rest of the line – the space between the chairs – represents the intermediate levels of importance. Class members can then be asked to find the point in the continuum from 0 to 10 of the imaginary line created by the two chairs, according to the importance they place on money. Class members are encouraged to talk from each position, and to explain how they feel being at that particular point on the line, and how they relate to others at other points on the line. It is really interesting to reverse roles, that is to say, different points on the line. For example, someone near the 9 can reverse roles with someone close to the 2. They can then be invited to speak from their new role, justify it, explain how they feel, and so on. It is important to provide enough space for sharing from each role, even for those who choose not to position themselves on the line. It is a good exercise for encouraging empathy, respect for the ideas of others, mental flexibility, etc. Again, a major factor would be the spontaneity and experience the class leader has in proposing issues or topics relevant to the group's development. In the context of leadership training, after working on the theory, the director can design an exercise that concerns the different styles of leadership – autocratic vs. democratic – placing one of the styles on each end of the imaginary line, and then asking people to find their corresponding point on the line, talk about it, reverse roles, and so on. Something similar, for sharing differing views on an issue, can be carried out in groups. Two groups can be formed by asking a question that divides the class. Placed opposite one another, they can be asked to defend and explain their position. The members of both groups can then be told to switch to the opposing side and asked to defend their new role.
Sharing Statements
Place several jumbled pieces of paper, each with a statement written down, in a box. Each person picks a piece of paper and comments on the statement written on the paper. This is only a proposal for phrases, but, again, the spontaneity and creativity of the leader can create opportunities for leading the group to many different places. Statements:
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Things may happen in training that you don’t like. It is your choice to make something momentous out of these situations, by not allowing them to affect you forever. Happiness is where you find it, rarely where you look for it. People learn from their mistakes. People feel lonely because they build walls instead of bridges. Help someone to lift their load, but don't feel you have to carry it for them. Each of us is here to discover our own journey, and we'll never be happy following that of another. Who never fails, never takes a risk. No one can make you feel inferior without your permission. A space for sharing should then be opened up in order to share the feelings and the memories evoked during the different parts of the exercise. This can be a way for the group members to be introduced using some phrases or ideas presented by the director.
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CLOSURE
Take for a dance
The exercise introduced here can be great for providing an enjoyable class closure. As a way of warming up, ask the students to walk around the whole room. A pleasant, gentle tune can be played in the room, and the members told to walk around and be aware of the people they encounter in the room, look at them, greet them and greet with them. Once back in the chairs and sitting in a circle, anyone can ask anyone else for a dance. The take for a dance would be a real ritual: someone stands up and approaches another person, reaching out to offer them a dance. The one receiving the invitation then follows and is taken to a separate space, away from the rest of the class. They should remain expressionless at this point while the one asking for the dance tells the other something they really like or enjoy about them. It may be a value or attitude of theirs, something they have done, etc. The person receiving the compliments should stay straight-faced and not express any appreciation. Both then return to the main group. A time limit can be set if necessary, although there is no limit to the number of times someone can ask others for a dance, or be invited themselves. This exercise can also be understood in sociometric terms, by looking for the group members who receive most offers to dance, the ones who most invite others to dance, etc. It usually turns out to be an enjoyable experience in which everyone receives pleasant emotional strokes.
Write a Story
Each member of the group writes a story about a particular topic, “my story in this class”, “things I learned”, or “life after this training course”, etc. The story can be about anything, or the group leader may specify a topic relevant to the class. Sufficient time should be allowed – around 12 minutes should be enough. Once the stories are written, they are placed in a box. Volunteers are then asked to stand up, randomly pick stories from the box and read them aloud. The exercise then moves on to the sharing 35
phase: sharing from both the role of writer and that of listener, as well as from the evocations. This can be a good exercise for sharing unexpressed feelings or ideas in the group. It can also be useful for the closure of a group and getting a general idea of the energy contained within it.
Positive Pyramid
Peter Smith Everyone in the class should have a piece of paper with a Positive Pyramid and their name on it, as shown here. The qualities of each person should be written by their classmates inside the corresponding pyramid. The group can do this task spontaneously. Space for a sharing session should then be provided. The pyramid is something that each member can take home with them. It can be suggested to them that they attach the Pyramid to their refrigerator door at home. The exercise can be a great closure for the end of term time, for a class closure, and so on.
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Bullseye
The facilitator will pass 5 pieces of paper to each participant, they can then be asked to write 5 important moments about their personal journey in the group. An object can be placed in the centre of the room and the pieces of paper positioned around it to make a bullseye. Everyone places the more important moments close to the centre. The last part of the action would be some time to let the group read whatever is written on the papers, and observe the bullseye. Sufficient time for sharing should be allowed. This can be a nice image for saying farewell to the class and closing the group.
Stand up together
Ask the class to form pairs, sitting back to back on the floor with their arms locked. The couples are asked to stand up using only their legs and backs. They can then join up with another couple and, with the four of them sitting on the floor, stand up at the same time using the same technique. Couples can keep being added until the entire group is able to stand up together from a seated position, just by linking arms with the adjacent person. The following questions can then be asked: How did you feel during the exercise? What memories or images from your everyday life came back to you?
Once upon a time
"There was a class‌" And complete the story. Each member of the class can contribute a few lines. Make sure enough space is provided for sharing. The story will then be a farewell message for the class.
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Drawing names to let go
Ask each class member to write their name on a blackboard with a piece of chalk, or on a paper board with coloured pencils. Then, one by one, ask the rest of the students to decorate each name with symbols that will hold a special meaning for the person, or with elements that may be of future help to the person with regard to learning in the classroom. Coloured chalk or a large paper sheet with coloured pencils is required for this exercise.
Affirmation circle
This exercise was developed by Liz White, a relevant Psychodramatist who passed away in 2014. The exercise can be great for the closure of a small class. The members of the group can be sent outside for a fifteen-minute walk, to review the VET in their own minds, to be aware of the truth that is important to them, to find the statement that will best help them remember their training experience. Or perhaps something they can take back to their companies, groups of friends, communities, etc. When they return from the walk, put some chairs together in a circle and ask the group members to close their eyes and recall the one statement they most need to remember – the one they want to take away from the learning experience. Ask the participants to stand up and say aloud their statement to themselves. “Then they can be asked to move around the group, putting their hands on the shoulders of each person, repeating their own affirmation to encourage the other� (Liz White, 2002).
Allowing departure
It can be an exercise to let the members of the group integrate their learning and say goodbye. They can be asked to sit in a comfortable position. Depending on the nature of the group, they can also be asked to lie down on the floor or sit straight up so that their energy is free to flow through their bodies. At that point, the group facilitator can read the following: You have been together in this class for a long time, learning, sharing, and trusting and offering support and encouragement to one another. As you breathe in slowly, 38
you can take the energy of the class into your bodies as you prepare to go back to your schools, companies, families or communities. (pause) You will now hear the name of each group member and you will be reminded of the different ways in which they have given something to you, sometimes without even noticing. The same way in which you may have encouraged them, or provided or offered them something. As you hear the names, picture them, remember them, wish them all the best and let them move on. At this point each group member can be named, one by one, (the leader can also include his/her own name). Having named everyone, the facilitator can continue, saying: Breathe in and slowly come back to this room. Say goodbye to each of your classmates at your own pace. Thank you all, and a safe journey home.
Wrap up hug
With appropriate music playing – classical or perhaps of significance to the philosophy of the group – the participants can be asked to hold hands with a classmate. Each of the pairs can join up with another, and so on, until the entire group forms a long line. One of the people standing at either end can then be asked to wrap themselves up by pulling in the rest of the line, forming a massive hug. The group can stay like that for a couple of minutes, listening to the music. The hug can then be undone. Perhaps there is no need for sharing, and it is just time to go.
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4. Evaluation Following the application in the classroom of one of the recommended exercises, the educator can carry out an evaluation on two levels: a self-evaluation and an evaluation of the students. This evaluation can be made by focusing on the objectives that are set out when the exercise is performed in the classroom, and by using the questionnaires and tables that can be found are in trainer’s Hand Book for Psychodrama as a Tool in Education course.
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5. Bibliography Barbour, A. (1972). The Self-Disclosure Aspect of the Psychodrama Sharing Session. Group Psychotherapy & Psychodrama, 25, 132-138. Barbour, A. (1977). Variations on psychodramatic sharing. Group Psychotherapy, Psychodrama & Sociometry, 30, 122-126. Corey, G. (2008) Theory and Practice of Group Counseling. Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole, Cengage Learning. Kellermann, P. F. (1999). Ethical Concerns in Psychodrama. Journal of the British Psychodrama Association, 14, 1/2, 3-19. Decety, J. & Hodges, S. D. (2006). The Social Neuroscience of Empathy. In P.A.M. van Lange (Ed.), Bridging social psychology: Benefits of transdisciplinary approaches. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum. Dayton,
T.
(2013).
Emotional
Repair
through
Action
Methods,
from
http://www.tiandayton.com/wpcontent/uploads/2013/03/EmotionalRepairThroughActionMethods.pdf Rameson, L. T. & Lieberman, M. D. (2008). Empathy: A Social Cognitive Neuroscience Approach. Hooboken, New Jersey: Blackwell Publishing Ltd. Wysong,
W.
H.
(2013).
The
Psychodrama
Companion
from
http://psychodramacompanion.blogspot.com.es/ Ruscombe-king, G. (1998). The sharing. In: M. Karp, P. Holmes & K. BradshawTauvon, (Eds). Handbook of Psychodrama. London: Routledge. R. Lannon, F. Amini and T. Lewis (2000). A general theory of love. New York: Random House.
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PaTiE: Psychodrama as a Tool in Education Handbook for workshop directors Leonardo Da Vinci project – Transfer of Innovation
Project No: 2013-1-GR1-LEO05-14123
This project has been funded with support from the European Commission. This publication reflects the views only of the author, and the Commission cannot be held responsible for any use which may be made of the information contained therein.
INDEX Foreword ............................................................................................................ 3 1.
Psychodrama in educational process .......................................................... 5
2.
Introduction on PaTiE training materials ...................................................... 8 2.1
Recommendations and key points ....................................................... 8
2.1.
2.2 Requirements, materials and tools ................................................. 9
2.3
3.
Specifications for each workshop........................................................... 10
2.2.
Module 1: The experiential method of psychodrama .......................... 10
2.3.
Module 2: Warm up ............................................................................ 12
2.4.
Module 3: The power of the group...................................................... 14
2.5.
Module 4: Sociometric group mapping ............................................... 16
2.6.
Module 5: Conflict management ......................................................... 18
2.7.
Module 6: Working with symbols ........................................................ 21
2.8.
Module 7: Role playing ....................................................................... 25
2.9.
Module 8: Sharing with the group ....................................................... 28
Evaluation ................................................................................................. 31 3.1.
Evaluation Form for Workshop Director in Psychodramatic exercises 31
3.2.
Evaluation Reports Template for Workshop Director .......................... 33
3.3.
Evaluation Forms for Course Participants (1 form per Module) .......... 35
Module 1: “The Experiential Method of Psychodrama” ............................................ 35 Module 2: “Warm Up” .............................................................................................. 37 Module 3: “The Power of the Group” ....................................................................... 39 Module 4: “Sociometric Group Mapping” ................................................................. 41 Module 5: “Conflict Management”............................................................................ 43 Module 6: “Working with Symbols” .......................................................................... 45 Module 7: “Role Playing” ......................................................................................... 47 Module 8: “Sharing with the Group” ......................................................................... 49 3.4.
Evaluation of the results ..................................................................... 51
BIBLIOGRAPHY .............................................................................................. 53
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1. Foreword The Handbook for trainers on Psychodramatic Experiential Teaching Methods has been developed in the framework of the project "PaTiE - Psychodrama as Tool in Education", funded by the IKY National Agency of Greece within the context of the Leonardo Da Vinci, action Transfer of Innovation, EU Programming 2007-2013. The project, which was approved in 2013 for an overall duration of 24 months, terminating on 30 September 2015, involves 4 EU countries and 6 partners: Region of Crete/Lifelong Learning Department/Vocational Training Centre Regional Unit of Rethymno, ECTE, European Centre in Training for Employment Rethymno (EL), EST Lifelong Learning Centre, Bielskie Stowarzyszenie Artystyczne Teatr Grodzki (PL), Centro Machiavelli Firenze (IT), and ALECOP, S.COOP. (ES). The overarching goal of the PaTiE programme is to introduce VET adult educators to the experiential method of psychodrama and train them on how to effectively apply selected psychodramatic principles and techniques in their educational processes.
Moreover, PaTiE project aims to transfer to partners the experiential learning methods of Psychodrama developed by Polish partners and applied in their educational seminars. The Polish partner “Grodzki Theatre Association” was leader of POTENS project (project no.: 142673-LLP-1-2008-1-PL-Grundtvig-GMP) and “EST LLL Centre” was partner in the consortium. Through the implementation of POTENS project Polish partners developed a “Guideline on psychodrama use in AE” and a book entitled “The search for creativity”. These educational materials and “know-how” were transferred to PaTiE project, and were adapted to the needs of participating countries and VET sector. The elaboration of the guidelines is rooted in the cooperation of an international team of experts. The draft version of the guidelines was tested in national pilot workshops organized to evaluate the formerly developed PaTiE curriculum and training materials. That was achieved by delivering four pilot courses for adult educators on psychodramatic learning techniques in each of the project participating countries in the national languages (Greece, Italy, Poland and Spain). The four national pilot courses were led by experienced psychodramatists. These pilot courses were running in 2015, completing 64 hours in each country and having totally 48 adult VET educators as participants
experiencing
and
experimenting
psychodramatic
techniques
and
approaches.
3
This handbook is divided in three chapters; the chapter entitled Psychodrama in educational process contains the main guiding ideas related to the psychodrama use in adult education. Most of the parts of this chapter were transferred by the Guidelines on psychodrama use in adult education developed in the frames of implementation of the EU project POTENS. The chapter with title Introduction on PaTiE training materials aims to provide guidelines on how to use the exercise book and theory, and where to find the material to be taught. PaTiE workshop directors will also find guidelines for structuring each workshop with regard to time and content, and identifying the objectives of each activity. Finally, the chapter entitled Evaluation is dealing with course evaluation. In this chapter workshop directors could find guidelines on the criteria based on they should evaluate the completed workshop activities. Also, in this chapter workshop directors could find the corresponding recommended evaluation sheets and questionnaires, designed to facilitate the evaluation of the techniques and methods that each module of the PaTiE curriculum presents.
4
2. Psychodrama in educational process The starting points of the educational psychodrama are the personal and the professional boundaries of the two relational partners: those of the learner and the educator. The education aims for transformation of knowledge, of attitudes and of skills. Psychodrama offers an adequate approach and useful tools especially for changing attitudes and developing skills in different domains of education, but also for the application of the theoretical knowledge. The domain of attitude change includes the learners' emotions, values, beliefs, biases, role expectations that influence the learning atmosphere and the learners' relationship to the educator and education, to the learning process and the learning environment. This is the main domain in which the psychodrama can set the stage for creative contributions, addressing both the learners' and the educators' emotions and beliefs, offering possibilities to clarify roles, expectations, values, beliefs and biases. The skills are the abilities to put specific acquired knowledge into practice. The knowledge domain refers both to the pure theoretical knowledge and to its application. Psychodrama means action, that is doing in practice what the person knows or even doesn't knows, or simply experiencing in practice what the person is able to do and what kind of effects some actions might have. Addressing the domain of the attitudes and the interpersonal skills, psychodrama can offer first of all, an excellent approach and beneficial means for undergraduate and graduate educators’ training, lifelong learning activities, meaning also supervision for educational work and staff. One of the problems raised by Blatner (2002) regarding the most wide-spread technique related to the Morenian tradition, role playing, “comes from the common tendency to assume that interpersonal skills are easier than technical skills – though in fact they are even more difficult – and so people tend to think they can engage in directing role playing before they've really achieved a level of bare competence (much less mastery). (...) Sometimes teachers fail to appreciate the complexity of a skill they're learning, and it's important to emphasize that directing role playing is about as complex as learning how to deliver a baby”. The ability to educate and teach is first of all an interpersonal skill, and this is where psychodrama can largely contribute, since it is essentially a way to develop interpersonal skills, to deepen the professional selfknowledge and to better understand the learners' needs. Changing attitudes and developing skills requires an accommodative type of learning. We agree with Adam Blatner's point of view regarding the common needs of all learners involved in education, related to what the well-known psychologist and 5
epistemologist Piaget called assimilation and accommodation in the learning process. “Unfortunately, so much of education is oriented to the kinds of learning that can be more easily tested, which is assimilative, memorization type learning. Yet what the world really needs is people who have skills, and skills go beyond mere knowledge of facts. Skills, though, require a more complex performance-oriented testing which requires more teacher attention, covers more subtle variables. And skills reflect an accommodative type of learning. (…) These skills cannot be learned by reading any number of books, although a little didactic material can be helpful in creating an intellectual framework for the accommodative learning. Rather, the kinds of skills needed for flexible, creative, rational thinking must be exercised, practised, and learned in a process of interaction, risk-taking, self-expression, feedback, encouragement, and, in short, a process which is closer to learning to swim than learning the capital cities of the various states” (Blatner, 2002). Psychodrama offers valuable approaches to reestablish the equilibrium of assimilative and accommodative learning modes with its large possibilities to foster accommodative learning through its active methods developing spontaneity and creativity. The learning atmosphere created by psychodrama is another basic resource of psychodrama in favour of education. Being a group method, psychodrama can produce a proper learning environment through creating group cohesion, atmosphere of confidence and safety, in which the learner can effectively handle her/his anxieties related to the learning situation, teacher/educator or group members. Much of the problems reported by the adult educators they are confronting with in their work (e.g. drop outs, lack of motivation) can be handled more efficiently if more attention is paid to the development of group cohesion and creation of an adequate learning environment. Usually too short time is devoted to creation of group cohesion and security issues. Many times classes are not treated like a group going through different phases from birth to coming to an end, but rather like a mass without taking into account basic group dynamic phenomena. The capacity to handle group dynamic phenomena requires a wider and deeper training, especially for such major themes of group dynamics like conflict resolution and handling of resistances. Psychodrama techniques used in education are laying on the foundation of the manner psychodrama leader/adult educator understands the application of psychodramatic tools. This depends on: The way psychodrama directors/adult educators perceive their professional role boundaries, attributions and responsibilities (professional self-knowledge) 6
The professional relationships (the encounter, than the contracts) between different role partners involved in the educational process How the participants'/learners' roles, needs, motivations and other characteristics really are and how the adult educators understand them The objectives of the psychodramatic intervention in the specific educational (and organizational) setting, according to the specific educational contract, etc.
All psychodrama techniques are suitable to contribute to the goals set in PaTiE project, but the success of psychodrama use in education depends on the grounding of the educator’s competencies by a comprehensive psychodrama training. The pilot workshop directors, trained as psychodrama experts, exploited a very large array of psychodrama applications. The VET adult educators, participants of PaTiE pilot courses, who were mostly at their first steps in psychodrama, as expected, explored mainly the use of warm up and sociometric exercises, some collective games and subgroup role-playing activities, as well as several self expression modalities, like body movement and the use of symbolic objects. Warm-up exercises or ice-breaker activities were used by the VET adult educators in order to motivate their learners/participants, to allow them to know each other and to develop the learning environment.
7
3. Introduction on PaTiE training materials This chapter provides, on the one hand, guidelines to VET adult educators participating in PaTiE course and explains how to use the exercise book and theory and where to find the material to be taught. On the other hand, PaTiE workshop directors will also find guidelines for structuring each workshop with regard to time and content, and identifying the objectives of each activity. In the section dealing with evaluation, the criteria with which the workshop director should evaluate the completed workshop activities are identified, as are the corresponding recommended evaluation sheets and questionnaires.
2.1
Recommendations and key points Participants: the participants in
director is thinking about imparting
these
VET
any module, he/she should first
educators who work in lifelong
review the main aims and practices
vocational education and training. It
offered by each of them. This
is recommended that there be
information can be found in the
between 10 and 16 members in the
introduction of the subjects and it is
group.
useful in order to decide which kind
Content level: Given that the
of module will be the best for the
modules
group’s interests.
workshops
are
are
independent,
however, it is possible that the
Objective:
participants have not attended the
introduce exercises to teachers of
other sessions. In such case, they
adult vocational training and life-
can
to
long education that will allow them
consider whether a more thorough
to improve certain multidisciplinary
examination of the basic concepts
competences, identified as being
is required. VET adult educators
essential by members of the adult
may
introductory
education sector itself. Some of
Module 1, in order to understand
these competences may be such
some key concepts.
as improving communication with
ask
the
consult
Purpose: course
to
is
techniques
instructor
the
the
purpose
to
present
that
could
of
the objective
is
to
this
the course participants, contending
certain
with diverse groups, creating an
be
for
atmosphere
carrying out Psychodramatic work
motivating
among diverse activities in the
encouraging
of
greater
course
trust,
participants, understanding
classroom. When the workshop 8
2.2
between classmates, or fostering
structure is always dependent on
creativity and spontaneity.
the classroom and group needs or
Duration: each module, 8 in total,
demands.
is intended for a workshop of
Exercises: The Psychodramatic
around 8-10 hours duration (during
exercises that are set out in each
the pilots it has been seen that 64
module
hours may not be enough to gain
introduce educators to the specific
enough confidence in the director
processes in Psychodrama,
role, therefore it is recommended
they may understand how to apply
that the duration is increased to 80
them
hours). The actual time required
though each exercise can contain
will depend on the needs of the
elements from diverse modules
group. It is recommended each
(sociometry in a exercise with
module to be held on a single day
symbols,
or, if this is not possible, on two
exercises that best represent the
consecutive days.
main topic of what is being worked
Structure: the workshop will follow
have been chosen, what has to be
the
psychodramatic
taken into account to organize the
structure. Warming up, action and
workshop according to the needs
sharing.
of the group.
normal
The
psychodramatic
have
in
the
the
for
objective
classroom.
example)
to
so
Even
those
Requirements, materials and tools Workshop director: the workshop
to move around and act as they
director should be a professional
carry
psychodramatist. These techniques
exercises.
are very powerful and must be
Theory: in order to integrate the
given by an expert. The rule of
theoretical
“expect more than you bargained
Psychodramatic
for� is important in Psychodrama,
recommended that the workshop
and
trainer
director outlines the key concepts
these
to be introduced in the main
it
experienced
requires in
a
handling
out
the
recommended
concepts
into
action,
the it
is
techniques.
exercise
Space: a large room is needed for
according to the needs of the
running these workshops, one with
participants and as will be specified
enough space for the participants
later.
of
the
workshop,
9
Tools and materials: the tools for
defined in each module, so you will
planning
need
and
evaluating
the
the
training
materials
exercises during the workshops,
developed for this course to set up
and the materials required to carry
and impart the PaTiE workshops.
out the dramatic action, are both
2.3
Specifications for each workshop
Below are exposed the main theories per each modules, with the specific concepts that should be exposed in each workshop, as well as some tips and techniques that can be imparted. However, note that, depending on the experience of the workshop director, he or she can change the exercises and readapt the theories.
3.1.
Module 1: The experiential method of psychodrama Category
Instructions
Time
Presentation of the
References
Pages 3-19
module content and its aims followed by introduction to the theories: 1-2 hours Practical demonstrations of the theories and specific approaches/technique s through exercises and discussion with learners: 5-6 hours Evaluation: 1 hour (possibly followed by e-mail survey) Materials
Colorful scarves
Pages 20-32
Sheets of paper (smaller and larger) Pieces of cardboard,
10
glue, scissors, string for making masks Illustrated magazines or newspapers Markers, pencils, crayons – different colours Flipchart or whiteboard Projector (optional)
Learning outcomes
On completion of the
Page 3
module, the learners will be able to: outline the main concepts and principles of psychodrama give examples of application of the method in education identify possible threats resulting from the use of psychodrama outside of psychotherapeutic context point out opportunities of enriching VET adult education with psychodramatic techniques and exercises
Theories presentation
J.L. Moreno and the
Pages 5-19
origins of psychodrama
11
Creativity and spontaneity – the cornerstones of psychodrama The primacy of the encounter On the psychodrama stage Repertoire of roles Sharing experience
Exercises and activities
Greetings
Pages 20-32
Names Trust Social atom Complementary Masks Yes-No Path
3.2.
Module 2: Warm up Category
Time
Instructions
Short
presentation
References
of Pages 4-7
module, aims, method and trainers. 15 minutes Warm-up exercise 15-30 minutes Introduction for learners (module
presentation,
aims/ scope etc, theory presentation): 1-2 hours Activities/exercises/ discussion: 3 -5 hours 12
Evaluation: 1 hour Materials
Colorful scarves
Page 26
Paper and pens/pencils for writing/drawing Colored remnant (scrap of cloth) Masks Hats Colored paint (tempera) Music and music player Various magazines on sport, hunting, society, entertainment,
nature,
etc Scissors, glue, pens and crayons Learning outcomes
Learners are expected to be Pages 22-24 able to: To explain the principles of warming-up and its possible
benefits
for
educational practice in VET To
list
techniques
warming-up and
argue
why and how they can (cannot) be applied in the
participants’
own
practice To propose and run an appropriate warming-up exercise to respond to a particular problem/challenge in a group of adult learners To discuss with group
13
about the experience Theories presentation
Definition of Warm Up
Pages 5-22
Concept of Tele Tele and meeting Concept of spontaneity Concept of creativity Game and Psycodrama
Exercises and activities
Activities to facilitate the Pages 24-34 presentations Team building activities Activities to do on the move
3.3.
Module 3: The power of the group Category
Time
Instructions
References
Short presentation of Pages 3- 4 module,
aims,
method and trainers: 30 minutes Warm-up
exercises
and discussion about group dynamics: 1 hour Theory presentation, group
theories
dynamics: 1-2 hours Activities/exercises/ discussion:
5
-6
hours Evaluation: 1 hour
14
Materials
Colorful scarves
Pages 26- 33
Mats/ Rugs Various animals,
toys: dolls
of
different sex, dolls of different
kind-
like
fairies, mermaids Sheets of paper and colorful
markers,
pencils, oil pastels Playmobil Learning outcomes
Explain the principles
Page 3
of group and group dynamic possible
and
their
benefits
from
their
implementation
in
VET. Identify the benefits of psychodrama in educational process, as being a group member. List three exercises that refer to group work and how these can be applied in class. Propose and run a certain
exercise
which corresponds to a particular challenge in a group of adult learners. Theories presentation
Historical
detection Pages 4- 20
of the scientific study
15
of Group Defining Groups Describing Groups Group Dynamic Stages of Group Groups
&
Group
dynamic
in
Psychodrama The value of groups and Group Dynamics in Education Exercises and activities
Count until 20
Introduction
to
the
Change of Position
exercises. Pages: 21- 22
Who will transfer me across?
Considerations & Risks in
Group- body
applying the exercises for
Like a movie
the Educator. Pages: 22-
Story making
25.
Just a Word Wander and Focus
Exercises pages: 25-34
Group Sculpture My
Route
in
the
Group 3.4.
3.5.
Module 4: Sociometric group mapping Category
Instructions
Time
Presentation of the
References
Pages 3-19
module content and its aims followed by introduction to the theories: 1-2 hours Practical demonstrations of the theories and specific 16
approaches/technique s through exercises and discussion with learners: 5-6 hours Evaluation: 1 hour (possibly followed by e-mail survey) Materials
Colorful scarves
Pages 19-30
Sheets of paper (smaller and larger) Markers, pencils, crayons – different colours Flipchart or whiteboard Projector (optional)
Learning outcomes
On completion of the
Page 3
module, the participants will be able to: explain the principles of sociometry and its possible benefits for educational practice in VET list three sociometric techniques and argue why and how they can (cannot) be applied in the participants’ own practice propose and run an appropriate sociometric exercise to respond to a particular problem/challenge in a group of adult learners
17
“map” the structure of a sample group and the patters of its inherent relations
Theories presentation
The foundations of
Pages 5-19
sociometry in J.L. Moreno’s writings Social atom Science of action Sociometric methods and techniques Current issues debated
Exercises and activities
Dividing line
Pages 19-30
Social atom What to choose Synergies Triangle of conflict Map
3.6.
Module 5: Conflict management Category
Time
Instructions
References
Short presentation of Pages 3- 4 module,
aims,
method and trainers: 30 minutes Warm-up and
exercises
discussion:
1
hour Theory presentation, Group
Function, 18
Origin
of
Conflict,
etc: 1-2 hours Activities/exercises/ discussion: 5-6 hour Evaluation: 1 hour Materials
Colorful scarves
Pages 24- 31
Playmobil Various
toys:
animals,
dolls
of
different sex, dolls of different
kind-
like
fairies, mermaids Sheets of paper and colorful
markers,
pencils, oil pastels Learning outcomes
Indicate
the
value
of
extra Page 3 the
psychodramatic intervention
in
conflict management. Identify the benefits of
‘’opening’’
confronting
and an
existing, obvious or underlying, conflict in the group and how this
influences
the
learning procedure. Point
out
the
limitations of such an exploration
in
the
classroom. List three exercises that refer to conflict management
and
how these can be
19
applied in class Propose and run an appropriate psychodramatic exercise
which
corresponds
to
emerged
conflict
situation
in
an
a
classroom of adult learners. Theories presentation
What means Normal Pages 5- 19 function
of
the
means
Non
Group? What
Normal function of the Group? How
a
Confrontational situation expressed
is in
a
Group? How a Group Conflict is Resolved? What
Leading
Weaknesses appear? The Leader’s Attitude in a Conflict situation Social Elements in Groups Conflict Management in Psychodrama Conflict Management in Education Exercises and activities
Dogs and Cats
Introduction
to
the
Conflict
exercises. Pages: 20- 21
20
Enemy Follow
and
be
followed Teacher-
Considerations & Risks in applying the exercises for
Reactive the Educator. Page: 22
Child Exercises pages: 23-31
The Shoe Something that has not been settled Group Sculpture Just a Word Wander and Focus My
Route
in
the
Group
3.7.
Module 6: Working with symbols Category
Time
Instructions
Pre-session
References
Structure pages 3-4
preparation for learners (module presentation: aims/ scope etc, theory presentation: brief introduction to the theories): 1-2 hours Session: exercises/ discussion with learners: 5-6 hours Evaluation: 1 hour (this should be done by director and participants after the workshop, and send by email). Materials
Theoretical outline of
For more information about 21
the adult educator.
the module pages: 3-4
Various magazines on sport, hunting, society, entertainment, nature, etc. are placed in the centre of the room. Scissors, glue and poster boards for making a collage. White paper sheets, pens and crayons. A bag to hold the sheets of paper. The materials that the trainer will need to perform the exercises are specified in each exercise. Learning outcomes
Explain the
Aims
and
importance of the use
outcomes page: 3
learning
of symbology in education practice. Suggest diverse symbols and identify their possible function. Choose exercises that are appropriate to the objectives set out. Understand the importance of protecting and maintaining the integrity of both the group and the individual.
22
Integrate the use of symbols with active Psychodramatic techniques. Appreciate the importance of sharing in Psychodrama. Develop a simple Psychodramatic exercise, orientated towards adult education, in which symbols for a real life classroom situation are used. Theories presentation
The introduction to theory
Theory Pages 5-22.
on the symbol will be given
Exercise example to work
throughout the
with the theory, page 22.
Psychodramatic action. To that end, it is recommended that the director prepare and use an outline in order to link together the relevant theoretical aspects throughout the workshop, based on the information that appears in the exercises. The inclusion of theoretical aspects during the workshop is left in the hands of the director. It is not necessary to explain all of the content, just review the following key concepts:
23
The difference between sign and symbol. The rule of ‘free association’. Explicit and implicit content in symbols. Spontaneity and creativity. Role-playing. Functions of intermediary objects in the Psychodrama session. Participants can also find deeper information in the training materials and in the specific bibliography utilised to complete the theory of this module.
Exercises and activities
The trainer of this module Introduction
to
the
can find an introduction to exercises page: 23-24 the exercises and also a Pre-exercise ‘identify your simple
pre-exercise
to objectives. Page: 24.
explain to the participants Considerations
for
the
how they can choose the educator and risks, pages: best exercise to perform in 25-26. the classroom according to Exercises pages: 23-45 their
needs
and
goals.
Index exercises: Puppets Cards and postcards Masks Painting-Drawing Sculptures 24
Acting Objects Imaginative exercises Exercises with music and movement 3.8.
3.9.
Module 7: Role playing Category
Time
Instructions
References
Short presentation of Structure and time pages: module,
aims, 22-23
method and trainers. 15 minutes Warm-up
exercise
15-30 minutes Introduction learners
for (module
presentation, scope
aims/
etc,
theory
presentation):
1-2
hours Activities/exercises/ discussion:
3
-5
hours Evaluation: 1 hour Materials
Colorful scarves Paper
Materials pages: 24-29 and
paint/pencils
for
writing/drawing Colored
remnant
(scamp of cloth) Masks Hats Colored
paint
(tempera) 25
Music
and
music
player Various on
magazines
sport,
hunting,
society, entertainment, nature, etc Scissors, glue Learning outcomes
Learners are expected to Learning outcomes page be able to:
23
To
explain
principles
of
playing
the role-
and
its
possible benefits for educational practice in VET To list three roleplaying
techniques
and argue why and how
they
can
(cannot) be applied in
the
participants’
own practice To propose and run an appropriate roleplaying exercise to respond
to
a
particular problem/challenge in a
group
of
adult
discuss
with
learners To group
about
the
experience Theories presentation
Theoretical background:
Theory pages: 3-13
Role definition
26
Group definition Among
role
and
group
in
psychodrama Distinction
between
role-playing
an
psychodrama Methods
and
applicative contexts Application of these key
theories
in
education Educational
role-
playing The director’s role Construction
of
a
role-playing session
Exercises and activities
List of exercises/ activities:
Exercises pages: 24-27
The first day An ordinary day How others see me My future My doubts The beautiful and the ugly What will be What I wanted to say I say it to myself Non- structured Role playing
27
3.10.
Module 8: Sharing with the group Category
Time
Instructions
References
Pre-session
Structure pages: 4-5
preparation
for
learners
(module
presentation: scope
aims/
etc,
theory
presentation:
brief
introduction
to
the
theories): 1-2 hours Session:
exercises/
discussion
with
learners: 7 hours Evaluation:
1
hour
(this should be done by
trainer
participant
and
after
the
workshop, and send by email). Materials
Specific materials, if any, Exercises pages: 23-35 are indicated in the training materials exercises. Sheets Colored pencils Pillows
Learning outcomes
Aims Explain the
and
learning
outcomes page: 4
importance of the use of sharing in education practice. Suggest diverse sharing techniques and identify their possible function. Choose exercises 28
that are appropriate to the objectives set out. Understand the importance of protecting and maintaining the integrity of both the group and the individual. Integrate the use of sharing with active Psychodramatic techniques. Develop a simple Psychodramatic exercise, orientated towards adult education, in which sharing exercises for a real life classroom situation are used.
Theories presentation
The trainer can decide how Guidelines for the sharing to
explain
the
main session page: 12
concepts of this module. The role of the leader Anyway,
is
especially pages: 14-18
important to explain some points
to
participants Ethical
during the workshop as: Guidelines
for
concerns
pages:
19-22 the
sharing session The role of the leader Ethical concerns Participants can also find
29
deeper information in the training materials and in the specific bibliography utilised to complete the theory of this module.
Exercises and activities
Index exercises: What
you
Introduction say
is
the
exercises page: 23 Exercises pages: 23-35
important Learning
of
about
sharing Sharing action Not listening The nosy ball Reasons to be here Exchange
of
problems Who am I? A
name,
letters,
words and sentence Yes or no Presentation Money Sharing statements Take for a dance Write a story Positive pyramid Bullseye Stand up together Once upon a time Drawing names to let go Affirmation circle Allowing departure Wrap up hug
30
4. Evaluation 3.1
Evaluation Form for Workshop Director in Psychodramatic
exercises This template is an orientation for the trainer in order to facilitate his/ her evaluation of the psychodramatic exercise performed during the workshop. It can be applied to every module. Indicator
Description 1
Understandi ng the importance of protecting and maintaining the integrity of both the group and the individual.
Evaluation scale 2 3 When carrying out the exercises, the participant's proposals demonstrate that they have understood the importance of this responsibility but they do not apply it effectively.
4 The participant understands the importance of this responsibility, and is able to demonstrate so by applying it in the exercises and generating an appropriate atmosphere of respect.
Evaluating whether the participant has understood this concept, and whether they apply it correctly when doing the exercises Ability to propose symbols and techniques that have relevant content, conducive to the education process
The participant has not understood the concept and does not apply it in the exercises.
The symbols and techniques proposed are not relevant to the education process because they are not fully understood.
The symbols and techniques presented are well identified but they are not relevant to the classroom.
The symbols and techniques proposed are correct and facilitate the education process in the classroom.
Ability to apply the techniques for working with symbols /sharing / sociometry, etc. in the classroom in order to improve the education process. Identifying To situations in determine
They are not able to apply any of the proposed techniques.
They carry out the propose d exercise s, as taught and without difficulty.
They are able to perform the exercises as taught and to create new ones that are adapted to their specific needs in the classroom.
Using and understandin g symbols /sociometry, sharing, warm up, etc. techniques in the workshop
Applying symbols /sociometry, sharing, warm up, etc. techniques in their own classroom
They apply the techniqu es, as taught, and introduce variation s when required.
Does not Recognises the Identifies the recognise the situations but does situations in which 31
which symbols / sociometry / warm up, etc. are useful
Understandi ng latent dynamics
Learning to share the experience of the Psychodram atic action.
whether working with symbols /sharing / warm up / sociometry,e tc. can revitalise a typical classroom situation, according to the needs of that situation. Ability to observe and recognise underlying processes that may block the education process. Ability to give space to the participants so they may share their experience of the dramatic action.
situations not propose working with where working appropriate symbols / with symbols / exercises. sociometry / warm warm up / up / sharing, etc. is useful, and proposes sociometry / sharing, etc. exercises that are can be of use. adapted to each case.
Does not recognise the underlying processes that are giving rise to the educational blockage.
Intuitively knows some underlying processes but is not able to identify them clearly.
Recognises underlying processes that are taking place in the classroom and causing an obstacle to learning.
Does not respect others' opinions and does not open the space up for their classmates to share freely.
Respect s the turns of the others but when participat ing themselv es they make judgeme nts and comment s on the others' experien ces.
Respects the turns of the others, expresses their own experiences, and does not judge nor analyse the experiences recounted by their classmates.
Respect s the turns of the others and shares their own experien ce but they analyse their classmat es' experien ces.
32
3.2
Evaluation Reports Template for Workshop Director
Module __: “__________________________________� Name of workshop director: _____________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
This template is an orientation for the workshop director in order to facilitate his/ her evaluation of training materials representing each module of PaTiE Training Programme. It can be applied to every module.
Please, answer the following questions:
A1.
Have I achieved the learning outcomes proposed in training material for this module? Please, explain below:
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
33
A2.
Have I noticed a change in the participants’ perception of group work? Please, explain below:
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
A3.
Please present briefly how you performed this module in the class; refer any obstacles or problems that you might confronted during the workshop.
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
Signature 34
3.3
Evaluation Forms for Course Participants (1 form per Module)
Module 1: “The Experiential Method of Psychodrama”
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015 Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Do you believe that psychodrama can influence your perception of group work and educational practice? Please, explain your answer: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________
A2.
Can you see feasible ways of integrating the specific psychodrama approaches and techniques in the process of VET adult education?
□ Yes
□
No
Please, explain your answer: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ______
A3.
Do you see possible threats on using Psychodrama outside the therapeutic context?
35
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________
A4. Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1.
Entirely disagree
2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
36
Module 2: “Warm Up” Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions:
A1.
Please identify the benefits of warm-up techniques and their relevance for education: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________
A2.
Do you feel able to present a set of warm-up techniques in your adult classes?
□
Yes
□
No
If yes, please list below which of them and explain: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________
37
A3.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
38
Module 3: “The Power of the Group”
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Are you able to explain the principles of group and group dynamic and their possible benefits from their implementation in VET?
□
Yes
□
No
Please, explain the benefits: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ A2.
Do you have a clear idea on the further steps you would need to take to plan/modify your curricula in order to better focus on group dynamics?
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
39
A3.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
40
Module 4: “Sociometric Group Mapping”
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Are you able to explain the principles of sociometry and its possible application in educational practice in VET?
□
Yes
□
No
Please, explain the applicability of sociometric techniques in adult VET classes: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
A2.
What benefits do you identify of sociometric techniques in giving insight into group structure and facilitating team
building and conflict
management?
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ 41
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
A3.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
42
Module 5: “Conflict Management”
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Do you consider that conflict management techniques could be applied in VET adult classes?
□ A2.
Yes
□
No
If yes, could you list two or three exercises that refer to conflict management and explain how these can be applied in class? _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ______________________
A3.
What could be the differences between your current way of dealing with conflict and psychodramatic ones? _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
43
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _________
A4.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
44
Module 6: “Working with Symbols�
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Please, explain the importance of the use of symbology in education practice:
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ____________________________________
A2.
Could you describe a simple Psychodramatic exercise, orientated towards adult education, in which symbols for a real life classroom situation are used? _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________
45
A3.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
46
Module 7: “Role Playing”
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Do you consider that role-playing techniques could benefit the educational practice in VET?
□
Yes
□
No
If yes, please explain why: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________
A2.
Which “Role Playing” exercises would you apply in your own VET classes and why?
_______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
47
A3.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
48
Module 8: “Sharing with the Group”
Name of participant: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____/____/2015
Please, answer the following questions: A1.
Please, explain the importance of the use of sharing in education practice: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________
A2.
Are you able to present a set of “Sharing” techniques in your adult VET classes?
□
Yes
□
No
If yes, please list below which of them you would apply in which situation and why: _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________
49
_______________________________________________________________ ____________________________________
A3.
Give your responses to the following table according to your level of agreement with the given statements and using the following key. Mark your answers with a circle:
1. Entirely disagree 2.
Mostly disagree
3.
Somewhat disagree
4.
Neither agree nor disagree
5.
Somewhat agree
6.
Mostly agree
7.
Entirely agree
I view the situation in the group differently now.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I think using this type of technique has been helpful for my own development.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Following the exercise, I feel that the whole team is more integrated.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have been able to express my opinions and participate in front of the other group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I felt part of the group and I have participated keenly in the course.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
In general, I feel more motivated after taking part in the exercise.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I trust my fellows more.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand and appreciate the differences that exist between the group members.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I understand my fellows better and have more respect for them.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have more confidence in my own abilities.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
50
4.1.
3.4 Evaluation of the results As can be seen, the Evaluation Form for Workshop Director proposes a 1, 2, 3, 4 grading, with 4 being the highest grade and corresponding to a more complete learning. Each row of these templates corresponds to a competence or ability that the adult participants should obtain thanks to the workshop training. The letters indicate the level to which each competence has been understood. It is the workshop director's responsibility, therefore, to check the results they have obtained; whether the students do not understand certain competences because the latter are at too advanced a level, or because the exercises are not really orientated towards acquiring them, etc. These are the elements the director should consider in their final evaluation of the workshop. It is also very important that the workshop director, apart from giving a numeric/quantitative evaluation to the workshop, also writes a report gathering the more qualitative insights from the session. Psychodrama interventions have an important emotional component that emerges through gleams of diverse types of expression that cannot be expressed by numeric evaluation but are often more important to the functioning of the group and the activity. That is why the workshop director should write the Evaluation Report Template to be able to track the progress of the group throughout the time. The Evaluation Forms for Course Participants are a combination of open questions and Likert scales. Both the workshop director and the participant can add new statements to all the suggested questionnaires, provided they think it necessary for carrying out a full evaluation. The results obtained from a Likert scale are calculated by summing all the numbers indicated in each Likert item. Minimum and maximum results are then established. These are calculated by summing the lowest number on the scale – 1 – as many times as the number of statements. So, in the case of item 1 suggested here; 1+1+1. For the maximum result, 7 is summed as many times as the number of statements, in this case; 7+7+7. So, the minimum in this case is 3, and the maximum is 21. When evaluating the result of a questionnaire, we can say that if it is close to 5 then the attitude of that teacher with regard to their exercise is somewhat unfavourable. A score of 17 indicates a highly favourable attitude. In order to obtain the average result of a questionnaire, the PT/NT formula is applied, where PT is the total number of points on the scale, obtained by summing all the responses, and NT is the total number of statements. 51
I have achieved the objectives set out
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have noticed a change in the classroom
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
I have protected the integrity and wellbeing of the students during 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
the exercise
In this example, PT would be: 11 / NT: 3= 3.6, which is a medium-low evaluation in the 1-to-7 scale suggested. In any case, analysing the answers separately is useful for seeing the details and gaining a better understanding of the attitude of the respondent.
52
5. BIBLIOGRAPHY Bielskie Stowarzyszenie Artystyczne Teatr Grodzki (2009) GUIDELINES ON PSYCHODRAMA USE IN ADULT EDUCATION. POTENS multilateral Grundtvig project. Blatner,
A.
(2002)
Role
Playing
in
Education,
http://www.blatner.com/adam/pdntbk/rlplayedu.htm Serafin, E. (2004) Psychodrama in der Erwachsenenbildung. (Psychodrama in the adult education) in F. von Ameln, R. Gerstmann, J. Kramer (eds) Psychodrama, Berlin, Heidelberg, New York: Springer
53