Purpose: Support groups are a place for people to give and receive both emotional and practical support as well as to exchange information. The purpose of this assignment is to
help the student understand and evaluate group dynamics, group facilitation, and group
processing.
Assignment: The student will evaluate a Support Group Experience. Choose a Support Group that meets the course objectives, (i.e., Caregiver group, NAMI-National Alliance for the Mentally Ill support groups, Compassionate Friends-Grief support groups, Family Survivors of Suicide support groups, cancer support groups).
Follow the following criteria:
Subheadings
Discuss the purpose of the support group attended.
Describe the demographics of the group (e.g.,
number of members in attendance, gender, ages)
Discuss the roles of the support group leader in
relation to the group members.
Identify the therapeutic factors that can be observed in the group. Give an example of each factor identified.
Discuss possible observations about the needs of the group.
Describe feelings about this experience and how it can personally enrich you.
