Group work Proposal.
Surname and initials: Mavhutha RF
Student number: 202149915
Department of Social Work
Module code: HSKP021
Name of the supervisor: Dr Dimo
Date of the report : 29 February
2024
Table of contents pages
Cover page 1
Table of contents 2
Introduction & Type of the group and target population 3
The purpose of the group 4
Recruitment methods 5
Group composition. 6
Orientation 7
Contracting 8
Planning& risk factors 9
Conclusion 10
Bibliography 11
1.
Cover page
Introduction
1.Introduction
group work can be defined as goal-directed activity with small, treatment and task
groups. This is aimed at meeting socio-emotional needs and accomplishing tasks. This
activity is directed to individual members of a group and to the group within a system of
service delivery and a larger community and societal
environment. Groups are classified into different categories where the facilitator and members of
the group work together. For achieving the goal of the group this will be
referred to an educational group because the aim is to accomplish a certain goal. In agroup
setting different group members get to share feelings and exchange ideas for the effectiveness of the
group with the help of the facilitator as this
is discussed by Weyers (2011:35) that group leader uses small group dynamics and resources to
assist members to achieve individual and shared goals. This is a groupwork proposal for
an educational group for males and females ranging between the age of 14 and 18.
Substance Abuse refers to the harmful use of psychoactive and substances, including alcohol and
drugs. According to Skhosana and Morake (2019:32-34) a community can
be defined in a variety of ways, namely, by identifying culture, placing in space, making
boundaries and sites of conflict, by citizenship and governance or
by shared needs/aspirations. Adolescent substance abuse has several adverse
consequences for both the individual and society. Anecdotal evidence suggested the
existence of serious substance abuse among the youth Like most of the
township areas across South Africa. SA faces many intersecting health and social
challenges, among which is the perception of the widespread presence and broad-
ranging adverse effects of substance abuse. The main goal of this group is to educate
members about the effects of substance abuse on high school learners and their educators.
The group will help the learners and educators to know about the effects of substance
abuse on the youth and the community. The group will be conducted by Ms Rilwele
Felicia Mavhutha, a student social worker, under the supervision of Dr Dimo.
2.The purpose of the group
The group’s purpose seeks to identify the reasons for members to come together in a
group. It also helps guide the group’s selection of goal-directed activities and define the
broad parameters of the services to be
provided. In the proposed group, the overall purpose is “to educate members about the
effects of substance abuse on youth and society” through discussion and experience.
To help members of the group understand the behavior of a person with substance
abuse disorder in a way that allows them to support the individual in recovery and learn
about their own needs for change.
3. Recruiting the group members
The methods of recruiting members will be within a social service agency. potential
members will be identified from the caseloads of colleagues, from records or
from mailing lists. In the proposed group, the group worker intends to use caseloads for
recruitment purposes. She will visit a school, where she will have meetings with the
principal, qualified social worker, peer educators and eventually the clients themselves
with the aim of recruiting them for this group.
4. Composing the group
Since this educational group will be about the effects of substance abuse on the
teenagers and society, group members will be high school boys and girls. The size of
the group will be consisted of 10 members. This group size will allow the group worker
to attend to members individually, have closer face-to-face interaction, minimize the
formation of subgroups and manage the members. It will be a closed group whereby the
group will begin and end with the same membership and frequently meet for a
predetermined number of sessions. This will allow for the development of trust among
members – a necessary ingredient for sharing concerns openly. In terms of
heterogeneity, the worker wants members to be of different age groups between 14
years and 18 years. They will come from different sociocultural and educational
backgrounds. In terms of homogeneity, the following will apply members will be from the
same school, both males and females
5. orientating the group members
After potential members have been recruited the group worker will screen them for
appropriateness and orient them to the group. The primary orientation method for
education groups will be the intake interview. The members who indicate an interest in
this group will be screened in face-to-face interviews to determine if they will benefit
from the group and if the group’s purpose matches their needs. Subsequently
They will be orientated on how the group will conduct its work and what will be expected
of them in this regard. Only members who meet the following criteria will be considered:
(i) members with a demonstrated interest in the group(ii) members who join the group of
their own volition (without being influenced or coerced by anyone) (iii) members who
can speak English and Sepedi. Generally, intake interviews are conducted individually.
Intake interviews are important because they offer facilitator and members their first
impressions of each other. Therefore, the specific procedure that will be used is
individual intake interviews. It is suitable for the context of education about the effects
of substance abuse on youth and community which are recommended as useful
procedure to use to orientate prospective group members. The group facilitator will also
explain the purpose of the group and enable members to familiarize themselves with the
group processes. These include, among others, the entire process of the group, the
practical and logistical issues such as the venue for the group, who to contact for the
key to the venue, where the toilets are located, and the relevant people who will assist
in case the caretaker of the venue is not available.
6. Contracting with the group members
A contract is a verbal or written agreement between two or more members of a group.
Contracting normally happens during the planning stage and it involves two forms:
contracting for group procedures and contracting for individual members ‘goals. During
the planning stage, the facilitator begins the contracting process. Contracts usually
result from the dynamic interaction of the facilitator and the members during the
beginning stage of the group, but certain contracting procedures are initiated before the
group begins. The facilitator should make some preliminary decisions about group
procedures before beginning. These decisions include the duration and frequency
of group meetings, attendance requirements, procedures to
ensure confidentiality, and other considerations such as time, place and any fees for
meetings. The facilitator should also begin the process of contracting for individual
member goals, although most of this type of contracting takes place during the
beginning stage of group work. The group will have six sessions in total, one session
per week, every Wednesday. Each session per week will last for forty-five minutes and
the group will meet face to face when the group members are at school. Since the
sessions will take place face to face, the rule that members will be required to adhere
to is that of respecting each other’s views. Respecting sessions starting time and
confidentiality – group members will not under any circumstances be allowed to share
discussions of the group sessions with their friends and relatives. Group sessions
will commence from 13h00 to 13h45.
7. Reviewing literature and the group work models and theories adopted
According to Radebe (2015:4-6), globally substance abuse, which includes alcohol,
prescription and illicit drugs, is reported as a socio-economic problem by the United
Nations Office on Drug and Crime. The World Drug Reports indicate a global problem
that is neither declining nor abating. Statistics from the WDRs indicate a global increase
of addiction from 80 million in 2004 to 200 million in 2010, a further increase between
2012 and 2013 to 324 million. Briefly, substance abuse, recently grouped
under addiction disorders, is defined according to American Psychiatry Association
(APA) Diagnostic and Statistical Manual, fifth version, 2015:481, (DSM-V) as
“a maladaptive pattern of substance use manifested by recurrent significant adverse
consequences related to the repeated use of substances, occurring within six months.
“Substance abuse is characterized by repeated failure to responsibly fulfil the social
roles at home and at work, resulting in job loss and an inability to develop and sustain
close relationships, while continuing to expose self to physically threatening situations
as tolerance results in a need for increased amounts of the substance to avoid
withdrawal. South African researchers Mothiba and Malema (2009) reported that
alcohol use by the youth resulted in poor educational achievements due to physical and
psychological dependence. Studies indicate that social pathologies such as substance
abuse alter the persons ’mind and social functioning leading to poor decision making,
which further limits
future life opportunities resulting in dependence and disrupted social life that maintains
poverty and indirectly increases the burden of psychological instability. Family members
and communities also 0 face socio-economic and health related consequences
supporting the addict, getting help to eliminate or reduce the detrimental behavior or
dealing with the psychosocial implications of that alcohol is the substance most used by
learner. When considering substance use by gender, males in this study generally had
higher prevalence rates than females (Moodley et al. 2012:1). Group work makers make
use of various models, theories and approaches to guide their interventions. The
remedial model for instance aims to remedy psychological, social and cultural
adjustment to problems by means of group work. The social goal model aims to
socialize members to democratic societal values and embraces diverse cultural
practices and exercise of power through the group. Among the theories adopted in
group work is the systems theory, the psychodynamic theory, the learning theory, field
theory, social exchange theory, narrative and constructivist theories, the strength-based
perspective and the social development theory and the ecological model. A
brief discussion of the systems theory and the learning theory will be done because
these are the theories that will guide the proposed group.
8. Conclusion
This proposal served as a negotiating document for permission to compose educational
group about substance abuse in high school. It will further serve as a negotiating tool
for an educational group for men who are substance abusers with the aim of
empowering them to overcome the challenges presented by their addiction. It outlined
the plan regarding the proposed group and explained how each section of the process
is to be implemented. In the proposed group, evaluation will be conducted through
some discussions with members to determine their opinions and experiences regarding
the group process. The facilitator will also make her own observations as the group
develops.
9. Bibliography
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2019. Group work: theories,approaches & methods.Only study guide for BSW
3702.Pretoria:UNISA Moodley,S.V.,Matjila,M.J.,and Moosa, M.Y.H.2012.Epidemiology
of substanceuse among secondary school learners in Atteridgeville,GautengSouth
African Journal of Psychiatry
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Office of Disease Prevention and Health
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practice.Boston: Allyn & Bacon. Toseland, R.W. & Rivas, R.F. 2017. An introduction to
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