GROUP DYNAMICS
Group Dynamics is a standalone two-day module and also part of the five-day Foundations in Facilitation Skills Programme .
Work at depth within groups
Group Dynamics is a short course that will immerse you in the ebb and flow of human relations, raising awareness of the deeper issues that influence group behaviour, and developing facilitator skills that access the group dynamic and maximise learning from experience.
This course is designed for those who want to work at depth with groups, and for those who wish to enhance their skill when managing difficult situations, raising awareness, and leading change.
About the Course
In this two-day module, you will explore your personal process as a group member and the direct impact that this has on your facilitator style in the full range of groups, clients, and situations that you might work with. You will become aware of the effect that prevailing group and system dynamics have on you, including; your attitudes, assumptions, personal triggers, and defences. Time is given to explore the nature of projection and transference, and to developing personal strategies for handling them. You will become more comfortable in handling situations as they emerge, and more aware of the subtle influence that you have on a group, and vice versa.
Course Content
We will explore your role as group facilitator using a range of theoretical models and our group environment to learn about typical group stages, depth, focus, relationships, mood and energy, and to explore issues of power, difference, confluence, dysfunction, trust and conflict. Core concepts of organisation and systems theory will be introduced. Practical facilitation skills will include:
- Understanding and raising awareness of group dynamics
- Contracting and managing expectations, allowing your role to flex and have impact
- Skilfully confronting negative dynamics that hinder productivity and helping groups to navigate conflict
- Recognising defences and triggers that arise for you and others, and choosing healthy and skilled interventions
- Balancing the human dimension of the workplace with the shared tasks and desired outcomes
- Seeing the group as a system with relationships to other systems (organisation, culture, society)
- Creative approaches to engender a positive form of the group dynamic
Work at depth within groups
Group Dynamics is a short course that will immerse you in the ebb and flow of human relations, raising awareness of the deeper issues that influence group behaviour, and developing facilitator skills that access the group dynamic and maximise learning from experience. It is designed for those who want to work at depth with groups, and for those wish to enhance their skill when managing difficult situations, raising awareness, and leading change.
About the Course
In this two-day workshop, you will explore your personal process as a group member and the direct impact that this has on your facilitator style in the full range of groups, clients, and situations that you might work with. You will become aware of the effect that prevailing group and system dynamics have on you, including; your attitudes, assumptions, personal triggers, and defences. Time is given to explore the nature of projection and transference, and to developing personal strategies for handling them. You will become more comfortable in handling situations as they emerge, and more aware of the subtle influence that you have on a group, and vice versa.
Course Content
We will explore your role as group facilitator using a range of theoretical models such as Basic and Sophisticated Workgroups (Bion), Power, Hierarchy and Interventions (Heron), Team Dysfunction (Lencioni), Organisational Gestalt (Nevis et al), FIRO-B (Schultz) as well as more traditional models such as Stages of Group Development (Tuckman and Jensen) and core concepts of organisational and systems theory. Practical facilitation skills will include:
- Understanding and raising awareness of group dynamics
- Understanding your role and impact on groups – contracting and managing expectations
- Skilfully confronting negative dynamics that hinder productivity
- Facilitative and Authoritative Interventions
- Working relationally with all stages of group development
- Seeing the group as a system with relationships to other systems (systemics, constellations)
- Creative approaches including sculpting, movement, image-work, etc.
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Group Dynamics is a 2-day training course. It can be undertaken as a stand-alone module or as part of the Foundations in Facilitation Skills programme (5 days) leading to Accreditation at Level 1.
Participants can attend an open course at Highfield Park or this module can be run at your venue for an in-house group.
Who is this for?
This is for all facilitators who wish to work explicitly with Group Dynamics whether the purpose is developmental, business-related, educational, community-building, problem solving or restorative. Typically, people who attend are:
- Working within an organisation as a change agent, group/team leader, manager, director or project manager.
- In chairing roles at meetings with developmental, strategic or operational purpose (be that business, charity or education).
- Occasionally called upon to facilitate groups, meetings and teams.
- Working as a consultant, change agent, trainer to a client organisation.
- Embarking upon a career in facilitation or leadership
Participants are usually facilitating already (or about to be) and may:
- wish to learn about themselves in a group from high-quality input and feedback
- be feeling unequipped or deskilled by previous training/ experiences
- have become aware of the absence of theories and models related to group facilitation in their toolkit
Course Information – How to Apply
The cost of this two day open course is £1,435. This price includes VAT, lunch and all course materials but does not include an overnight stay (approximately £80-100pn at our regular venue, Highfield Park). This module can be taken with the Facilitation Skills and Strategies module as part of the Foundations programme leading to accreditation. Discounts are available for not-for-profit and self-funded individuals.
If you are interested in attending please read the information for participants and complete the application form.