Leadership skills are essential to building group leadership. A leader must hold certain leadership abilities and qualities to shape the activities. Real leadership capabilities can be learned through training in order to communicate effectively. These competencies would enable the leaders to instil a sense of enthusiasm in the members. As a result, each member of the group will be able to put full effort with full capacity. Team members must follow the proper plan and design in order to start the work. Leaders must focus on the capabilities of the group members and the areas in which they need improvements. Certain methods are available to enhance and boost leadership in groups. Proper training and workshops can be arranged to teach the members of the group. Members of the group can be learned through experienced coaches and mentors. Support groups, as well as leaning networks, can provide extra assistance to build leadership in groups.
In daily routine, different groups interact with each other at home, work and school. There are four categories of groups. This includes assigning, relationship, task-oriented and emergent groups.Task-oriented is designed to finish short time jobs.Relationship-oriented groups where an individual is associated with people for a long time.Assigned groups are designed where the individuals have been selected or appointed to contribute to them. The emergent group is basically organized as a result of environmental conditions that form a cohesive group.Autocratic, democratic and laissez-faire are three patterns of style to motivate members to take part in decisions.
Autocratic leaders take part in making decisions and distribute all tasks. They strictly hold and control the group.On the other hand, there are also contingency theories where different leadership styles are executed according to different situations. It describes leadership style alters at what time the situation changes. Then it would be great to follow the approach of communication competencies. Interpersonal communication of leaders would be effective to accomplish and achieve goals of a group.A lot of people involved in a number of activities on a daily basis. In a workplace environment, the power of leadership exists at the hand of the president, CEO or manager.In order to run the organization, there is need to distribute duties and responsibilities among a group.Being ahead of the group, these leaders should have proper info to get work done. Such group will be effective to achieve actual tasks, aid to make decisions and deliver feedback.
Psycho educational groups are formed to educate and train clients. This type of group follows group specific as well as structured content. Lectures, audio cassettes and videotapes can be used to teach this outline. An experienced and professional facilitator will assist in discussing the information.These groups are organized to deliver information to direct the clients so that client can get aware of the resources as well as the process of recovery. The objective of designing these groups is to encourage the clients to go through the recovery process.
Major tasks of these groups are to provide awareness and solid information about medical, behavioural and emotional aspects of substance abuse. These psychological groups are so effective to help clients to seek change for internal need.It will assist a client to get aware in early stages of their conditions. There are many tactics to conduct these groups. This matters that how these groups will present information. And how much this information is useful to assist clients that will lead to desired behaviour, emotional change and improved thinking.
Skills development groups are the strength of this agency because they have certain characteristics on the basis of clients characteristics and needs.Because clients differ on the basis of different characteristics, background and abilities. In this case, leaders have therapy skills and knowledge and that skills foster the collaboration among members.
Facilitating agency techniques and groups create a safe, empower and goal oriented environment with good communication and supportive structures (Cranton, 2006, p.163). And education helps out the individual for problem-solving and to attain power that critically perceives how they are effective in transforming beliefs and assumptions which motivates them to examine those assumptions (Cranton, 2002, p.3).
Cranston has explained the effective mode of thinking that helps out the group to accomplish various forms of learning. According to Cranston, group learning is of three types. But each type is related to three types of knowledge suggested by Habermas. It includes instrumental, emancipatory and communicative. Cranton proposed that kind of learning that happens in groups changes according to goals and tasks.Asking Socratic questions as well as collaborating can improve the individual frame of reference that happens in cognitive group therapy. The facilitator can check hypothesis, challenge and authorize the irrational beliefs of individuals and influence collaborative empiricism concepts (Overholster, 2011, p.62).
Shared dialogue promotes self-questioning assisting instability of the experience of distance and emotions from thoughts. In collaboration processes, the facilitator group observes genuine, meaningful and authentic relationship that makes a change in perspective Facilitator build trusting, genuine and authentic relationship with the group as a result of self-reflection (Cranton, 2006, p.7). Interpersonal group therapy can assist to separate individuals from substances who utilize them to compensate emotional deficiency, environmental and attachment disorders. This will be helpful in regulating emotions. The facilitator is cautious of giving up control and power in transformative learning methods (Cranton, 1994, p.147). This will make autonomous learning and exercise the disciplinary power to encourage, challenge and build a relationship (Cranton, 2006, p.110).
Existential group therapy is different from psychotherapy due to the frame of reference that permits exploration as well as comprehend problems of an individual with a specific approach (May, Yalom, 2000, p. 19). It is essential to develop an authentic relationship as a therapist with the individual in working relationship. Therapist group helps to transform person’ beliefs through reflection, emotional communication, discourse and feedback. Therefore, it aids to gain emancipatory that is self-knowledge to transform previous ways of understanding into new perspectives (Mezirow, 1990, p.20). The facilitator provides a platform to a group to discuss to create the link to the personal meaning of realities, experience and emotional state that can stimulate unconscious and conscious emotional reactions with the expression of sensations (Dirkx, 2006, p.17).
- B) John Heron was mainly concerned with group interactions and he explained two aspects of facilitator’s role. According to this, a facilitator helps to improve group learning process but these interventions are basically accepting and receptive.On another side, assertive and active interventions also exist. He described six dimensions related to facilitation. These dimensions are distinctly recognized but do overlap by supporting and integrating of each other (Heron, 1999, p.7). Experiential learning enables the students to transform the character structure, knowledge and skills.
Planning dimension
In this dimension, facilitation aims to act as s goal-oriented way. It explains the aims and objectives of the group. And what plans and procedures are required to fulfil it.The task of facilitative here is to explain how it will be possible for a group to meet its purposes as well as its programmes. Here the facilitator can be helpful to design plan for substance misuse. In addition to, how they can facilitate the client provided with education and self-awareness.
Meaning dimension
This dimension focuses on cognitive as well as rational aspects.It will explore the different aspect of members of the group how they understand and get an experience of things. How they react and respond to things. In this case, facilitator tries to find out the meanings regarding actions and experiences of group members. In this process, a facilitator will logically determine the courses of action of members within the group.
Confronting dimension
This dimension explains the challenge aspect. It will help to explore the avoidances and resistances of a group of things. And how will group get aware and know how about these difficulties? For instance, a client is misusing a substance but does not admit it. A leader should take the step to educate as well as inform the issue in a sympathetic manner. The facilitator can force the client to share solid info with them as it will be useful to accomplish the process. In this case, a client will confront the difficult situations and other aggressive realities. But this is not a productive way to treat a client. This dimension is not effective for generating significant desired results. But facilitator shows empathy towards client in this process.
Feeling dimension
This effective aspect of dimension helps out to manage emotions and feelings within the group. It elaborates how will emotions be managed and handled within the group. The leader should take care of the sensitive part information. And member will only reveal that data and material with which client will feel comfortable. Because everyone has right to keep their feelings and emotions confidential. It is the responsibility of the client to manage the emotions and sentiments in front of the group. On the basis of this client will decide that they should share this information or not. The leader should not try to expose that material that client does not want to share.
Structuring dimension
This formal aspect will be helpful for learning different methods and how these experiences can be managed in the structured form. A facilitator must provide structured and organized information with proper strategies to facilitate the group members like in substance misuse agency. A facilitator should design such methods that are effective for clients as they will do physical contact. Even communication and body language facilitator does count a lot that will help to engage facilitator with client effectively.
Valuing dimension
This dimension is about integrity aspect. The main aim is to provide a supportive environment in which members of the group can realize actual climate with true interests and needs. The main question here is how we can create a climate of integrity, respect and personal value.If every member of the group will feel free to share info and solid material then each person will do trust on one another. The facilitator should execute and implement the process of empathy to support the client.
My workplace has organized these dimensions starting from planning dimension to structuring dimension and confronting dimension then meaning to feel dimension ending with valuing dimension. During the workshop, the agency gives importance to valuing dimension in order to enhance the level of integrity among members of the group. In this way, group members will be able to recognize real needs and requirements. Agency also gives stress on implementing feeling dimension so that members could learn to manage as well as handle emotions. These emotions will help out to members to express and communicate with the group without any hesitation.Other than these dimensions, planning dimension has more importance. Because this first step elaborates all the objectives of the group that results in further plans and strategies executed by a group to accomplish it. It would not be likely for group members to consider something until the tasks and objective of members are not definite.
Power of facilitation enables the organization to support facilitated sessions to develop learning as well as development. It also enhances employee engagement. Performance of company also improves due to facilitation skills. Due to facilitation skills, interpersonal interactions also improve and enhance. Each participant involves and contributes to the meeting. This also facilitates team dynamics as well as how to aid various forms of group members. It also improves commitment and dedication to ongoing specialized development.
The strength of agency is meaning dimension where facilitation helps group members to make sense of the idea and experience. Feeling dimension makes the agency to manage and develop interpersonal group relationships in group facilitation.The facilitator shows acceptance as well as approval responding empathically to guide group cohesiveness.
Agency needs to develop cooperative mode where facilitator should behave significant supportive through sharing power.And facilitator should listen to ideas and views of the group. The facilitator should provide such sound climate where the members of the group can feel freedom and autonomy to explore thoughts. The facilitator should emphasis on training and education to make developments.
Because education can help individuals to identify discrepancies through increased self-awareness, leading to making individuals better life choices.According to John Heron, learning and transformative learning permits such insights to facilitate various groups that members can learn in relation to group and facilitator. Now I have learnt deep insights about this assignment and able to recognize with and reflect on presentation skills of facilitator as well as group structures.
References
Cranton, P., (1994). Understanding and Promoting Transformative Learning: A Guide for Educators of Adults.
Dirkx J.M, (2006). Engaging Emotions in Adult Learning: A Jungian Perspective on Emotion and Transformative Learning
Cranton, P., 2016. Understanding and promoting transformative learning: A guide to theory and practice. Stylus Publishing, LLC.
Cranton, P., 2002. Teaching for transformation. New directions for adult and continuing education, 2002(93), pp.63-72.
Overholser, J.C., 2011. Collaborative empiricism, guided discovery, and the Socratic method: Core processes for effective cognitive therapy. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 18(1), pp.62-66.
Heron, J., 1999. The complete facilitator’s handbook. Kogan Page.
Mezirow, J., 1990. How critical reflection triggers transformative learning. Fostering critical reflection in adulthood, 1, p.20.
