Leading groups can be challenging and difficult. Leading groups in which members are involuntary and negative increases the level of difficulty and creates new dynamics in the group leading process. This article proposes specific skills and strategies for dealing with three specific issues related to involuntary members in groups: groups where all…

The mirror is often used as a metaphor in the therapeutic literature to explain how we see and experience ourselves through others. An examination of therapeutic mirrors, real and figurative, precedes a discussion of mirroring in group process. The reflections of self encountered by a group member in the group as a whole, in a fellow group member,…

Complicated issues arise when a group leader resumes practice after suffering a disability. The author, a nurse psychotherapist/researcher with a doctoral degree, director of nursing research at a veterans' hospital, and a psychodynamic practitioner in private practice, suffered a major stroke. The author felt extremely vulnerable and struggled as…

Group co-leaders' descriptions of their experiences and perceptions of each other as they led groups together illuminated competency concerns as a factor that strongly influenced their relationships and performance. Based on their narratives, group co-leaders' perceptions of their ability to form intimate relationships and beliefs regarding their…