Members' perceptions of co-leaders' influence and effectiveness in group psychotherapy

Group Coleadership: A Critical Review

“…What role, if any, does dyad structure play in the development or comfort of the dyad during group sessions? Alfred (1992) examined 18 male and 21 female group members' perceptions of influence and effectiveness within mixed-gender coleadership dyads and found no significant differences between male or female group members' perceptions of either male or female coleaders. In a related study, Gehart, Ratliff, and Lyle (2001) interviewed 15 people who had received therapeutic services from either a male, female, or mixed-gender coleadership dyad at two university clinics and one nonprofit clinic to assess their perceptions of leader functioning.…”

Male Leadership in an Addicted Women's Group: An Empirical Approach

“…Original studies and empirical evidence to validate the use of gender matching and the omission of male leadership in group treatment with addicted women are rare (Alfred, 1992). Although the literature identifies concerns for male therapists providing treatment for addicted women, the empirical data and findings from the present study do not support these concerns.…”

“…For example, Threadcraft and Wilcoxon (1993) noted that there were no negative outcomes in group therapy with sexually victimized women when the group was co-led by a male therapist. In addition, others have noted with skepticism cautions about the likely harm group interventions including male therapists would cause female clients (Alfred, 1992;DuPont & McGovern, 1994;Stanton, 1988). Although the results of the present study have clear limitations in generalizable inferences for wholesale disregard of standmg clinical traditions in treatment for chemically addicted women (e.g., only one male therapist), the lack of significant negative outcomes associated with the dependent measures buttresses ideas supporting inclusion of male therapists.…”

“…They noted that 70% to 90% prefer a cotherapist as compared with leading a group individually. In one study, Alfred (1992) reported no differences between the effectiveness of male cotherapists and female cotherapists in group interventions. However, he suggested that the gender of the group leader might have an effect on the particular group to which group members were assigned.…”

“…A specific example is the fact that substance abuse treatment programs for women have historically used gender-matching for clients and therapists as a standard expectation for group work (Sklare, Keener, & Mas, 1990). This practice is particularly significant because gender-matching for therapists and group members has now become sacred lore among practitioners, even though its basis is not supported uniformly in the empirical literature (Alfred, 1992). Thus, although group intervention in a same-gender format could seem to be more effective than a mixedgender format, comparative studies have not validated this notion.…”