The Advantages And Cons And Disadvantages Of Group Therapy

Therapy is part of the healing and treating process that people suffering from any type problems may need. To attain total recovery, some individuals require certain types of therapy. One of the most common therapies is through group therapy, also called group psychotherapy. Group therapy or counseling has become a popular method working with offenders. One of the most fundamental values to group therapy is that an individual is affected by the system in which he or she functions (Brabender, Smoler, and Fallon, 2004). Group therapy is an approach that involves a small group of members and one or more therapists with specialized training in group therapy. This group approach to therapy is designed to promote psychological growth and improve problems through cognitive and emotional explorations of the interactions among members, between members, and the therapist (Brabender et al, 2004). Furthermore, group therapy has shown to be effective with offenders involved in domestic violence, substance abuse, anger, trauma, and sex offenders (Hanser and Mire, 2011).

The first disadvantage to group therapy is the lack of one-on-one attention (Hanser et al, 2011). Correctional counselors or therapist should fully understand the problems of the offenders before assigning them to group therapy. Yakom noted that it is not a good idea to conduct individual psychotherapy in a group environment (Hanser et al, 2011). In certain cases, offenders who have difficulty talking within a group setting, group setting can be overwhelming, or intimidating; group therapy is not the proper course of action. In addition, some offenders require the one-on-one attention in order to examine the distress he or she is experiencing. At times, utilizing one-on-one therapy can eventually be supplemented with group therapy (Hanser et al,