Group Leader: As a group leader it is important for one to learn certain techniques so that the group can develop and grow as a healthy unit. Some of these techniques are as simply as being able to engage in therapeutic alliance with the group members. Without building a genuine rapport with the group members and them knowing that the leaders genuinely care and are concerned about their situation a group can deteriorate quickly. As a member of the mock group of sex offenders; it was emotional to express these stories, and the group leaders were genuinely invested in meeting the needs of each member and hearing their story. The leader and the co-leader both did such a great job at cuing each other; guiding interactions between group members, …show more content…
Plus; this therapy can usually be done in a short amount of time, in some cases six months or less. As a group we met and prepared for this psychoeducational group several times. We talked it over and even laughed about some of the stories that were on the internet. We had a bias against sex offenders for sure; but after reading these stories some of them at the time sounded as if they were fantasies, they certainly did not sound true. Even the punishment was a moot point; they were getting a slap on the wrist, it was nothing compared to what would happen to a male offender. Somehow as we sat down for the group to start the entire tone of the group changed. It was as if the stories became our own and these events had actually happened in our lives. Several people have shared personal stories in class and I have my own personal history, all that combined made this a very emotional and gut wrenching group. I honestly do not believe that anyone in our group felt better about the bias. I personally; felt that it was like a slap in the face to just sentence the offender to six months in jail and make them register as a sex offender just because they were a female offender instead of a male