Brown, M., Downie, A., Howard, N. and Buckingham Shum, S. (2010). Compendium: A computerised programme for the tracking and measurement of group process. 23rd Meeting of the Society for Psychotherapy Research, Ravenscar UK [www.psychotherapyresearch.org/cde.cfm?event=273111]
Group analysis is a form of psychodynamic psychotherapy, and as such tends to lag behind cognitive behavioural therapy and other similar treatment approaches in terms of evidence based practice. In these therapies we believe that it is the process that enables change to take place. This is harder to measure or describe and usually relies on therapists hand written notes and memory. Small wonder, then that most research focuses on outcomes alone rather seeking to identify the processes by which change came about.
We are working with a computer based programme called Compendium developed by the Open University as a means of recording and analysing dialogue; its uses include web diagrams and critical pathways at work. We anticipate it will identify more clearly the process whereby individual and group change comes about, complementing measures such as CORE.
We hope to demonstrate that compendium provides an effective means of extrapolating relevant data in terms of group process in a visual form enabling easier recognition of significant patterns of discourse and points of change in individual members and the group as a whole.
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How do we evidence that group analytic process is an effective medium of change?
Group analysts believe that group process is a vital factor in helping individual members change pathological patterns of relating to themselves and others?
This is complex to record and measure: notes alone rarely do it justice
Cognitive science and information design give us ways to visualize complex phenomena
A good visualization relieves memory load, and draws analysts’ attention to significant aspects
Any map filters out noise in order to support specific kinds of interpretation
“Compendium” is a way to map group process, with the addition of a database, in order to build a searchable evidence base
A closed 24 session homogeneous analytic group comprising 8 individuals, 4 male, 4 female and one group conductor
Group members were within the moderate to severe level of mental health difficulty
All had complex personal and mental health histories leading to significant difficulty in intrapersonal and interpersonal relationships in their adult lives
The theme that emerged most clearly at assessment was repressed and/or suppressed anger correlating with severe anxiety/panic and depressive symptomatology