66th Annual Conference

Thursday, February 19

Morning Workshops

10:00 A.M. – 12:30 P.M.

Workshop 19

Metaphor and Narrative in Groups

Chair:                

Scott Conkright, Psy.D., CGP, Private Practice, Atlanta, Georgia

This workshop includes a didactic and experiential component as a means of understanding and utilizing metaphor and narrative in creating change in groups. An emphasis will be placed on how metaphors and narrative styles influence the growth and resistance in groups.

didactic-demonstration-experiential-sharing of work experiences

Learning Objectives:

The attendee will be able to:

1. Have a fuller understanding of metaphors and narrative styles and how they shape therapeutic discourse in groups.

2. Attend to group metaphors and how these can be used to formulate hypotheses about group functioning.

3. Differentiate a variety of "love stories" used by group members, and how these can be used defensively or creatively.

Course References:

1. Lacan, J. (1973) The Four Fundamental Concepts of Psychoanalysis – The seminar of Jacques Lacan, Book XI, New York: Norton.

2. Sternberg, Robert J. (1998). Love is a Story: A new theory of relationships, New York: Oxford University Press.

3. Target, M & Fonagy, P. (1996). Playing with Reality II: The Development of Psychic Reality From a Theoretical Perspective. International Journal of Psycho-Analysis. 77. 459.