Group Facilitation: A Research and Applications Journal
Issue 7, 2006
Difficult Conversations:
Authentic Communication Leads to Greater Understanding and Teamwork
This issue is available in hardcopy from Virtual Bookworm and Amazon.com for US$ 14.95.
Martha Lasley
ABSTRACT:
This article offers a practical approach to facilitating difficult conversations. The Authentic Communication module is more than a tool; it is a state of consciousness that helps people communicate honestly and openly. This approach expands emotional intelligence by developing awareness of the connection between feelings and universal human needs. Distinctions between observations and judgments, feelings and thoughts, needs and positions, and demands and requests are clarified. Authentic Communication provides a method of resolving difficult conflicts so that people feel heard. By deepening awareness of needs, we contribute to trust, safety, and improved communication. When people are understood at a deep level, they're able to release their attachment to their positions, explore options and make requests that meet everyone's needs.
KEY WORDS:
Authentic communication, authenticity, nonviolent communication, needs, awareness, emotional literacy, difficult, conversations, language of compassion, real conversations, challenging conversations, understanding, conflict, harmony, teamwork
Facilitator education: Learning from group counselor education
Glyn Thomas
ABSTRACT:
This paper reviews the group counselor education literature and considers implications for the practice of facilitator education. In contrast to the facilitation literature, the literature from the field of group counseling, group psychotherapy, and group work is more explicit about the strategies that can be used to train, develop and educate practitioners in these fields. The use of didactic teaching, observation, experiential participation, and experiential leadership are discussed and implications for facilitator education practice and future research are identified. These include the need to: help emerging facilitators to establish an explicit theoretical orientation; encourage explicit discussion about facilitator education strategies; close the researcher-practitioner gap.
KEY WORDS:
Facilitation, Facilitator Education, Group Counselor Education
Exploring the language of facilitation
Andrew Rixon, Viv McWaters, Sascha Rixon
ABSTRACT:
Whilst language is the means by which facilitation is realised, there has been little research to date investigating language use in facilitation. Through the design of an online reflective practice survey, this paper explores facilitators' perceptions of language use in facilitation. The paper presents results from the online reflective practice survey involving 140 facilitators from around the world. The paper establishes that like the language of business, or the language of politics, there may be an emerging language of facilitation, with facilitators implicitly understanding what it means to "speak facilitatively". Indeed, speaking facilitatively appears to be based on respect and can be characterised by the use of linguistic politeness devices. While spoken language plays an important part in facilitation, our survey participants strongly indicated that body language is as important as spoken language, and that spoken language is only a part of the 'complete facilitation package'. Finally, the use of metaphor for investigating facilitator styles is found to be a useful tool for revealing core facilitator values.
KEY WORDS:
Speaking facilitatively, politeness, metaphor, spoken language, body language
Facilitation: Catalyst for Group Problem Solving
John (Sam) Keltner
ABSTRACT:
This article defines groups and their function in society and points out the need for training in group processes. It distinguishes between task, therapy, growth, and training groups, defines a group process facilitator as a catalyst to the processes through which a group performs its task, separates the process-facilitation role from other facilitative roles dealing wi the content of a discussion, and looks at the history of group process laboratories and the training of facilitators. Also discussed are the role and requirements of the leader-trainer-facilitator, the function of power in the facilitator role, the nature of intervention, the preparation of facilitators-intervenors, and the paradox of facilitation and facilitator intervention strategy. It points to the variations in the concepts of the role of the facilitator and to the weaknesses in the preparation of facilitators at the present time [1989], and calls for further research in the facilitator role.
Book Review
The 9 Disciplines of a Facilitator: Leading Groups by Transforming Yourself
By Jon C. Jenkins and Maureen R. Jenkins
Jossey-Bass, San Francisco, 2006, 310 pages, ISBN-13: 978-0-7879-8068-9
Reviewed by Glyn Thomas
