Sheldon D. Rose

The Coping Skills Training Program for Parents of Children With Developmental Disabilities: An Experimental Evaluation:

This pretest-posttest no-treatment control group study was undertaken to examine the effectiveness of a social work intervention called the Coping Skills Training Program (CSTP) in helping parents deal with the problems they face raising children with developmental disabilities. The CSTP involved training in problem solving, achieving personal goals, interpersonal skills training, and cognitive restructuring-all presented in a group treatment format. The positive results demonstrate the value of teaching parents to set realistic, behaviorally measurable goals and argue for increased attention to the development of support networks. Finally, they demonstrate that a behavioral approach to skills acquisition can make a significant contribution to parents who daily face situations for which they may be ill prepared.

Damaging experiences in therapeutic groups: How vulnerable consumers become group casualties

Many consumers who are seeking support and affiliation are treated in a variety of group settings. Yet, even with sustained popularity, groups are not always helpful and can be dangerous. This article uses clinical case studies to delineate the transactional dynamics of damaging group experiences. Interviews with 33 individuals who met the criteria for being considered group casualties were analyzed to understand what factors precipitated dangerous group events. Three interrelated domains are discussed: individual attributes and actions that place group members at risk of becoming group casualties, group attributes and actions that create a toxic atmosphere, and leader attributes and actions that cause damaging group experiences. Damaging leader behavior, characterized by what the leader does or does not do, was the most destructive of the three domains. Implications for practitioners and guidelines for preventing damaging group experiences are suggested.

Parents in Groups: Problem Solving Versus Behavioral Skills Training

This study sought to determine which of two forms of group parent training was more effective for parents of children having problems with aggressive or noncompliant behavior. Fifty-six parents recruited from the community were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions: group training in behavioral skills, group training in problem solving, or a waiting-list control group. Outcomes were evaluated using a pretest/posttest experimental design with an added 3-month follow-up. The results indicated that there were statistically significant differences between the two experimental conditions and the control condition in parents perceptions of child behavior. Individualized measures of change, using goal attainment scaling, indicated that most trained subjects made progress toward goals. Group process measures demonstrated that parents in the problem-solving groups completed significantly less homework and had significantly worse attendance when compared to parents in the behavioral skills training groups. Although both training conditions were more effective than the control condition, post hoc analyses suggest that the skills training group was more effective.

Postgroup-Casualty Status, Group Events, and Leader Behavior: An Early Look Into the Dynamics of Damaging Group Experiences:

Objective: The purpose of this investigation was to obtain information about factors that lead to damaging experiences in social work groups. This study examined specific effects that damaging group experiences have on group participants and characteristics shared by group participants who were psychologically damaged. Method: Eighty-three clients from various group settings were interviewed. Logistic regression analyses were used to delineate a model predicting group-casualty status. Results: Thirty-three clients (40%) met the study’s definition of group casualty. Significant differences arose between casualty and noncasualty groups on types of damaging group events that occurred, reactions to the event, and postevent variables. Being in the casualty group was associated with perceiving the group leader as the perpetrator of a stressful event, having an intense emotional reaction, and being discouraged from pursuing further help. Conclusion: Implications for social workers are discussed and recommendations are given.

Group Training in Marital Communication: A Comparative Study.

Two communication training programs-the Communication Skills Workshop (CS W) and the Couples Communication Program (CCP)-and a waiting-list control group were compared on measures of communication effectiveness, problem solving, and relationship satisfaction. Subjects were 54 volunteer couples randomly assigned to conditions. Highly distressed couples or those seeking marital therapy were excluded from the study. One relationship satisfaction questionnaire was administered prior to training; all questionnaires and performance measures were given one and seven weeks following training. Results indicated that couples completing the CCP training revealed significant increases in nonverbal positive messages relative to the CSW and no training. Both training conditions significantly reduced verbal negative messages. Self-report measures revealed no significant differences at follow-up testing. Although trainer differences may have partially accounted for the results, the CCP appears to be a promising alternative to behavioral programs such as CS W.

New Evidence for the Effectiveness of Stress Management Training in Groups

This study evaluates the effectiveness of a stress management treatment based upon transactional stress and group treatment theory. Treatment components included teaching the cognitive-be- havioral skills of relaxation, cognitive restructuring, and assertiveness within a structured small-group setting. Thirty-two symptomatic volunteers were assigned to either a treatment group or a wait-list condition. Treatment consisted of eight, two-hour weekly group sessions. On all dependent measures of stress, the treatment subjects evidenced significant pre- to posttest reductions. Futhermore, on three of the four measures, the treatment subjects evidenced significant pre- to posttest reductions in stress compared to the wait-list subjects.

Coping Skill Training in Groups

Though similar to traditional group psychotherapy in many respects, a coping skill training approach differs principally in several areas and technically in many more. Coping skill training group therapy tends to employ many concrete intervention strategies to enhance various aspects of process, drawing on ongoing data to evaluate group interaction and individual responses. The approach draws more heavily on cognitive, modeling, reinforcement, and problem-solving procedures to achieve specifically determined goals, and it depends less on interpretive and confrontative methods. The author discusses a wide range of techniques to show the benefits of this approach.

Group training in communication skills for couples: A preliminary report

Abstract This article reports on the initial development and evaluation of a group skill-training program for couples. The program, entitled the Communication Skills Workshop (CSW), aims at improving communication and problem-solving skills within the context of relationships. The orientation of the CSW is preventive and educational in that it (a) serves couples prior to the onset of serious relationship discord, and (b) focuses on the learning of general communication skills and problem-solving strategies rather than the amelioration of specific relationship conflicts.

Group Therapy: A Cognitive-Behavioral Approach

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses group therapy a cognitive-behavioral approach. A Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy (CBGT) refers to a group approach that makes use of behavioral, cognitive, relational, and group procedures to enhance the coping skills of the participants, and ameliorate relational and intrapersonal problems that patients may be experiencing. Coping skills refer to that set of behaviors and cognitions that facilitate adaptation to stressful or problematic day-to-day situations, or private internal events. This chapter refers briefly to research that compares various models of CBGT to individual Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) and control group, as well as a comparison of CBGT to other types of group therapy. In CBGT, the group provides a rich source of ideas in brainstorming, suggestions for alternative strategies, and models for role-playing. Another advantage of using the group in CBGT is the frequent and varied opportunity for mutual reinforcement that, for patients, is often far more powerful than reinforcement by a therapist.

Practice Experiments for Doctoral Dissertations: Research Training and Knowledge Building

Abstract This article describes the evolution of a research program across 18 PhD dissertations over a period of eleven years. Included in this paper is a discussion of the advantages and disadvantages of student and field participation in thematic experimental research. The essential steps in the development of a set of related dissertations also are described. The guidelines for constructing the true experiment as dissertation are outlined. Attention is paid to the resources required to carry out thematic research and the specific ways in which such dissertations have been funded. Characteristics of those students who can best avoid such an approach to a dissertation are examined. Finally the author looks at the product of these dissertations and dissertators in terms of contribution to knowledge, the creation of practitioner manuals for practice interventions, the formation of practice-research faculty, research productivity of these faculty, and the development of the dissertators clinical skills.