The essential activity of group therapy consists of members taking an interest in each other by asking questions, showing concern, and conveying understanding. When members have not done this it has often been taken as a sign of"resistance." A review of the research on helping suggests that there are four social factors that affect assistance giving in groups: 1) ambiguity-often people fail to give help because they are uncertain about who should give it, what should be done, and how it should be done; 2) often help is not given because of the way in which problems are presented; 3) the social comparisons that individuals make affect help-giving; and 4) there are costs associated with providing assistance. This discussion suggests that leaders can facilitate interaction among group members as teachers who clarify and as indirect helpers who redirect concerns back to group members.
From the dramaturgical perspective of Erving Goffman, there are specific actions in groups that promote self-disclosure, group cohesiveness, and the resolution of conflicts. This article discusses the supportive and remedial interchanges as seemingly trivial, but critical, interactional tools. The supportive interchange is presented as a way of facilitating mutual access among group members. The remedial interchange is discussed as an interactional device by which members confront each other without damaging their relationship to each other:
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