The Group Work Method Summary

Chapter one
The Bases of Social Group work method

The definition of group work

The definition of trecker:
Group work as a method used to help the individuals in different kinds of the
groups in the institution by the social worker who directs interaction through the
programs activities to relate them selves with others and practice the experiences,
change for development which relate with their abilities and needs to develop the
individuals group and local community to the maximum degree.

The definition of Mohamed shams E Din Ahmed:

Group work method involved process, the group worker uses this method to help
the individuals through their practicing of the programs activities in different group
in the different institution to develop as individuals group and community change
through the from of goals and culture of the community.

social group work philosophy:

In fact all of us learn better and faster in groups. We remember more of what we
have learned and we solve problems better in groups, than we do when we work
alone.
Social group work believes that individuals can be helped to grow and change in
personality and attitudes because of their experience with other people in the
setting of social agencies.

Social group work as a method in social work depends on many facts such as:
(VERY IMPORTANT)
1. The individual is born and gown in a family group.
2. Group have ability to influence the individual personality through its habits
behaviors, values, attitudes and experiences.
3. The individual has ability to grow and change.
4. Need for belongingness to groups is a natural attitude for everyone.
5. The democratic behavior can not be learned only by speaking but also by actual
practice.
6. Groups accept individual behavior which agree with values and norms.
 The philosophy of social group work depends on three values:
1. justice: means the basic acceptance of dignity of each human being regardless
any specific attributes, such as race, sex, economic status intellectual
endowment.
2. Responsibility: includes the awareness of the interdependence of human beings,
of the acceptance of the rights of others as well as of, own and the concept of
brotherhood of all the people, the concept that each one is his brother's protector.
3. Mental health: signifies the understanding that the human being must have a
sense of inner satisfaction and inner strength to be able to give to others.

The Principles of Social Group Work Method:

What is the meaning the principle?

The principle is a basic fact or law. And the principle is generalizations based upon
special cases.
The most helpful; group worker is the one who can use basic principles in a creative
and disciplined way,

these principles are:

1. The Principle of Planned Group Formation
2. The Principle of Specific Objectives
3. The Principle of Purposeful Worker Group Relationship
4. the Principle of Continuous Individualization
5. the Principle of Guided Group Interaction
6. The Principle of democratic Group Self Determination
7. The Principle of Flexible Functional Organization
8. The Principle of Progressive Program Experiences
9. The Principle of Resourced Utilization
10. The Principle of Evaluation
 Chapter two
Basic Elements of social group work method

Basic Elements of Social Group Work Method

1. Group Member
2. The small group
3. group worker
4. Program
5. Agency
6. Local Community
7. Supervision
 Chapter three
Group in social group work method

the Influence of the Group on the Individual Behavior:

1. the group influences the way in which individuals learns, the speed of their learning
the relation of learned material, and the way in which they solve problems.
2. The group influences the individuals formation of attitudes and tends to be decisive
in the development of norms of response to situations.
3. Group experience operates to modify the individual's habits of living working and
otherwise carrying on life's pursuits.
4. Group experience has a powerful influence upon the individual's perception of
himself and his role in a given situation.
5. Groups tend to provide psychological support for individuals and help them to
express themselves both positively and negatively.
6. Group always tend to influence the choices that individuals make when they are in
situation where alternatives are presented.
7. Group affect an individual's speed, accuracy, and productivity in the work situation.
8. Group tend to place limits on the individual's drive for power and his need to be
controlling.
9. Group provide individuals by the knowledge and the information of general life.
10. Group help individuals to meet their human needs.

Kind of Groups
1. formal and informal groups
2. The activity group and task group (Note: they are the same kind of group)
3. The residential groups and the free group
4. Group counseling and problem solving group
5. Small group and bigger group

Stages of group development:

First: Regroup stage
Second: Transitory stage
Third: Maturity Stage
 Fourth: After Maturity Stage

What happens to the members who belongs? (VERY IMPORTANT)

1. The person who belongs accepts the purpose of the group, interprets it and works
for it.
2. He accepts and carries responsibility in behalf of the group according to his abilities
and strength.
3. He becomes a part of the propelling force and does not go along.
4. He accepts the ways of work of the group and accept group rules Values and group
norms.
5. He becomes more and more a part of the group.
6. He tends to help others to experience a similar relationship.
7. He wants to help others to belong because of what belonging means to him.
8. He may adopt a critically evaluative attitude toward his group and what it does.
9. He a quires the language of the group and a shift from my and mine to we and ours
in his conversation is observable.

Factors that faster belonging:

1. Social and group atmosphere or climate: it is an important factors. When there is
warmth friendliness intimacy, and size, then the seeds of belonging can be sown.
2. Group purposes: when purposed are states with clarity and directness, many
persons will be helped to determine whether on not they want to belong.
3. The time: when time is given to a new member relatively early in his experience, a
sense of belonging will develop more rapidly.
4. The intake, or reception process. It is an important factor that fosters belonging.
5. Group size: the small group seems to more quickly and more frequently faster the
feeling of belonging.
6. When persons participate responsibly in the affairs of their group, then they belong.
7. When person are involved in the important decisions of the group, then they belong.
8. When person find justice in the group, they belong.
9. When persons meet their human needs in the groups then they belong.
 Chapter four
Social group work

The role of the group worker with the group:

1. The group worker helps the group to determine its objectives and helps the
members to achieve it.
2. The group worker helps the group gain an understanding of the agency purpose and
what it can contribute to the attainment of these goals.
3. He helps the group develop group felling and consciousness of it self.
4. He helps the group to understand it is own capacities and limitation so that it will
make decisions in keeping with its level of development.
5. He helps the group to recognize internal problems and helps it to solve these
problems.
6. He helps the group to perfect its form of organization and then helps chosen leaders
to understand and perform their duties.
7. He helps the group develop standard of performance and various means of social
control.
8. He helps the group to utilize the resources in the agency or in the community to
achieve the group goals.
9. He helps the group understand other groups, which differ from it, then proceed to
aid in developing cooperative inter group relationship.
10. He helps the group to discuss its affairs.
11. He helps the group by brining his deep interest in people and his ability. He brings all
his past experience and his willingness to help the group.

The role of the group worker with individuals:

1. the group worker helps the individual to know about various groups to which he
might belong.
2. the group worker helps the individual to become a part of a group by accepting him
and by introducing him to others in group.
3. He helps the individual to know how he can participate with other members of the
group to put plans for the group and take decision.
4. He helps individual to gain acceptance and establish responsible relations with the
members of the group.
 5. the group worker helps the group leaders to understand their responsibilities and to
play their roles.
6. the group worker may help individuals to with drawn from group that are not suited
to their needs.
7. the group worker helps the individual who face problems and they need helping from
other specialists or other agencies.
8. the group worker helps the individuals who have high standard of abilities and skills
to use it in a good way for enhancing the group life.
Dr. Mohamed shams eldin determined the following skills of social group work
1- skill in using the agency function
The function of the group work agency is to give help to people through group experience
the agency function include the following elements.
• the agency objective a purpose.
• The agency program.
• The agency policy.
• The method of working with groups and clients
the group worker must be skillful in using and holding the agency function in all situations
of the group.
2- skill in using the feelings
The group worker must be skillful in helping group and its members to release their own
feeling, both positive and negative.
3- Skills in using the reality of the present
The group worker must be skillful in knowing and collecting the data and information
about group and its members from the group meetings.
4- skill in using group relationships
The group worker must be skillful in relating himself to the group, in helping individuals in
the group to accept him and to accept one another and to join with the group in common
pursuits.
 Chapter Five
Program in Social Group Work
Definition of program
Program means anything and everything that the group does to satisfy its interests.
The objectives of program (VERY IMPORTANT)
1. participation of every member in the group life through program activities.
2. Utilization the abilities of the members and group by good ways.
3. Developing the member's hope and help every one to make new hopes.
4. developing the social responsibility of everyone in the group.
5. Developing the group responsibility.
6. training on the participation in group life.
7. providing the members by new information in various fields.
8. Developing the social values of every one in the group.
9. helping the group and its members to spend recreation and happy time together.
10. helping the group members to gain social cultural, and art skills.
The elements of program design
group members
the group depends upon the members from the sides of ages, norms, hopes, abilities, their
relationship, and others.
group worker
the group worker as a helper who helps the group to select the areas of content and the
media of expression.
program content
the content of program (program area) means all activities relations and acts. It refers to
a segment of life experience that has general meaning for individuals at their specific
point of development.
*All program elements in the case of interaction together, but may give one of them
attention relating to the situation.

The role of group worker in program process

1. Discovering interests and needs of group members by the following methods:
• Helping group members express themselves.
• During the informal reception process.
• Observation.
• Listening.
• Organized study.
• Meetings of individuals.
• Measures.
• Study the community.
2. Helping the group to put and design the program.
3. Helping the group members to make relation between the purpose of program and
the purpose of program and the purpose of agency and community.
4. Helping the group to select the areas of content and the media of expression.
5. Helping the group to develop a functional organization of their members to can make
responsible decisions around the program.
6. Helping the group discover and use its own resources and those of the agency and
the community.
7. Discussing the group members about the limitations of the materials of the program
and helping them respect these limitations.
8. Guiding the processes of interaction among group members around program and
utilizing the interaction of members for the individuals and the group development.
9. Helping the group to acquire different skills through their participation in the
program activities.
10. learning and training the leaders and followers through group situations.
 11. the group worker must put in his mind that the program is meant any activity which
the group does in the presence of the group worker during the course of group
meetings.
* These activities must not be planned according to the particular needs or interest of the
group worker himself but only with reference to the group members, so the group worker
should recognize individual and group needs and their assessment in relation to group
and agency purpose as well as to professional values and ethics of human relationships.
Chapter Six
The Basic Skills of Social Group Work
Definition of the skills
The skills are the uses of the abilities of every professional in the social work profession
in another way the skills is the ability of using the abilities of the social worker by
successful way in the practice.
The importance of the professional skills in social group work
1. the skills of the practice guide the professional practice to make relation between
the theories & the practice through filed work.
2. the using of the skills can make sure that we can use our abilities in the practice and
show us what the abilities of everyone through the practice.
3. the skills help the social group worker to practice in the right way, do his working in
a correct line.
4. the skills of the method of group work can not use more time or more effort, and by
skills the social group worker can do more acts through his working.
5. the skills of social group worker can show us the experience of the professional
practitioner which he used in his working.
6. the skills make assertion of the group worker upon his understanding to the content
of the principle, basis objectives, and processes of group work.
7. the importance of the skills very important.
8. the skills can prevent the group worker from his mistakes through his working
because he know how to practice and how to face any obstacles in his working with
the group.
9. the skills as a result of the knowledge and the information of the social worker, also
the skills presents as a combination of the theories and practice situation through
the professional working.
10. the skills mean that there are difference between the group workers related to the
abilities and experiences which we call skills.