The Inside Out Group Model: Teaching Groups in Mindfulness-Based Programs

Abstract

Objectives Mindfulness-Based Programs (MBPs) were designed to be taught in groups, yet little attention has been paid to how MBP teachers can work with the potential of the group to enhance participant learning. Most extant literature about group processes relates to psychotherapeutic groups or work-based teams. A link is needed from the broader literature to the particular nature of the MBP teaching process. Methods The Inside Out Group (IOG) model arose through many years of engagement with MBP teaching and teacher training. The IOG model is a clarifying framework to support MBP teachers to understand and skillfully work with group processes. Results The inside out embodiment of the teacher is at the center of the IOG model, with three linked capacities that the teacher uses to support and guide the process: (a) reading the group, (b) holding the group, and (c) befriending the group. Conclusions Practice and research implications of the IOG model are discussed. Keywords Mindfulness-Based Programs. Mindfulness-based teacher. Group theory. Inside out. IOG model. Embodiment Mindfulness-Based Programs (MBPs) were originally designed to be delivered in groups, and aim to help participants cultivate awareness through moment-to-moment attention, with the intention of reducing suffering and promoting wellbeing (Kabat-Zinn 2013; Segal et al. 2013). We use the term MBP as it is defined in Crane et al. (2017a, b)-i.e., with a particular focus on the key MBPs designed for delivery in mainstream, secular contexts: Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR), Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT), and group programs which evolved from these. MBPs are mindfulness-based (i.e., the entire pedagogy is embedded within the practice and teachings of mindfulness), as opposed to being mindfulness-informed (i.e., influenced by the practice and teachings of mindfulness) (Germer et al. 2005). MBPs are educational, structured, time-limited, closed groups (Yalom and Leszcz 2005), with a unique program curriculum that involves mindfulness meditation practices, time for inquiry about those practices, and psycho-educational elements. Each MBP course is unique, with a co-creation

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Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy experiences in youth with inflammatory bowel disease and depression: findings from a mixed methods qualitative study

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