An introduction to group therapy

The present volume deals with a method of psychotherapy employed at the Jewish Board of Guardians of New York since 1934, known as Group Therapy. The Jewish Board of Guardians is a social service agency rendering a child guidance service to children presenting problems of personality. These problems may manifest themselves in the form of delinquent or neurotic behavior and may result in either individual or social maladjustment. Service is rendered to boys and girls up to the age of eighteen. Along with psychiatric, case work, and psychological services, Group Therapy is employed as one of the treatment methods, particularly where interpersonal experience is essential to children. According to their needs, Group Therapy is employed either as supplementary to individual psychotherapy or as an exclusive treatment method, although in the agency at the present time the latter represents a much smaller proportion of the cases treated than the former. The present volume is intended to formulate some of the basic principles of interpersonal therapy and to outline the practice of Group Therapy. It is hoped at a future date to make available record and theoretical material on Group Therapy in terms of individual problems and social dynamics with greater detail than is possible in a general discussion. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2005 APA, all rights reserved).