¶ … Participant in a Community-Based Group for Troubled Youth Literature has shown group psychotherapy to be an effective way of improving the mental health outcomes of multiple populations, including adolescents and young children. Today, community-based psychotherapy groups are among the most common platforms for dealing with troubled youth, and helping them avert the risk of falling into delinquency, substance abuse, and other antisocial tendencies. I happened to participate in one such group in my local community. The group served as both an intervention and a preventive measure to help local youth lead responsible lives, free of delinquency and antisocial tendencies. The subsequent sections seek to evaluate the effectiveness of these programs based on what I experienced as a participant in the above program. The paper provides insight to therapists seeking to design community-based groups for young people. It outlines the dos and don'ts as well as the best practices for designing effective group programs for troubled youth in the community.

Composition

The group comprised of 12 members (all of whom were self-referred) aged between 15 and 18, from low to middle-income families. Of the 12 members, four were black, three were white, and the rest were Chinese, Japanese, Indonesian and Russian. The rich cultural diversity was one of the strongest aspects of the group -- I personally felt that it exposed participants to a broader array of views and perspectives, and presented ample opportunities for participants to learn about other cultures and cultural values. This knowledge helped participants test the validity of some common stereotypes, and provided a valuable basis for understanding why people do the things they do (Corey, Corey & Corey, 2010). The group basically served as a support framework, assisting families with the task of raising young people who may be at risk for antisocial tendencies owing to social and environmental factors. Participants engaged each other on among other things, issues of diversity, gangs, drug and substance use, and dating. The sessions were geared mainly at instilling positive behaviors, improving interpersonal communication skills, instilling pride and self-esteem, promoting dialogue, and establishing a sense of belonging.

Group Organization

The group met twice a week -- on Thursday and Saturday afternoon - and the sessions took between two and two-and-a-half hours, for six straight weeks. The setting was an abandoned room in a quiet area of town, which originally served as the local gym. We had to do some cleaning around the room to make it suitable for use before the therapeutic sessions could begin. This is perhaps because such groups were not a common phenomenon in the area then. The group facilitator made several adjustments to the room, including bringing in a temporary writing board, to make it appropriate for the group's activities. Given the nature of the group's operations, the setting served the purpose effectively; however, the same would not be the case if the group was meant for another kind of population, say young children who have been victims of abuse or teens dealing with anger-management issues; then, additional equipment such as therapeutic toys and punching bags would be required to make it easier for participants to vent out their anger and frustration.

Through its motto, 'There's Always a Better alternative to Hood Life', the group strived to make participants responsible and more productive members of the family, school, and community. The facilitator was keen to ensure that the group stuck to its timeline and always met when required. Provisions were, however, made to make up for weekends when some participants were attending weekend vacations with their families. This went a long way in instilling the concept of self-discipline, which is also a fundamental aspect of productivity and citizen responsibility.

Together, the group members agreed on the rules and norms that would govern the group throughout its operations. The rule of the game was to always do/say to others what you would want done/said to you. Participants were to abide by this, and other principles for the safety, cohesion and effective operation of the group. This helped to instill in participants the concept of abiding in the law and living by institutional norms be it in the family or in the organizational setting. The group sessions mainly involved open discussions, outdoor activities, role-playing, watching of videotapes and open forums with guest speakers who included local community leaders, local businesses and local politicians serving as positive role models to participants.

I enjoyed most of the activities in the group; however, those that I found most beneficial included:

The situation is made worse by the changing family dynamics, which have increased the role of women in the workplace and made the traditional concept of stay-at-home mothers less common (Yalom & Leszcz, 2008). With both parents working away from the home, young people have fewer options when it comes to someone to talk to. I realized that forums such as these are beneficial to young people, allowing them the opportunity to openly express their concerns in the areas of fashion, music, gangs, careers, family relations, sex, drug use, dating, and so on in the company of a person who is willing and able to listen. Open discussion forums give participants an opportunity to identify with their age mates, who share the same problems, concerns and social issues, and this essentially allows them to form an identity.
Outings and Community Activities: hikes, community cleaning activities, and outdoor trips were an integral part of group activity. Outdoor activities allow young people to actualize their opportunities. They make real to participants the idea that there are numerous useful activities in the outdoor setting that they could take part in for their own benefit as well as that of the community. In the group setting, it became apparent that the main reason young people engage in self-destructing activities is because they lack positive and constructive platforms for venting out their energy.

Interactions with Community Role Models: young people require role models that they look up to and identify with. The group provided role models to assist with the topics of career choices, dating, self-esteem, drug and substance abuse, and so on; and this served as a source of motivation for participants that they were doing the right thing. A milestone activity in this regard was when the group marched with political figures in the neighborhood in protest of the violence and criminal activity in the area.

Group Outcomes

The group was based on a number of outcomes that it expected to realize upon completion of its term. The most significant outcome for me as an individual included an increased ability to communicate effectively with others. The thought that other people shared the same thoughts and issues as me helped me build an identity and self-esteem, and gave me confidence to communicate without fear of being judged or stereotyped. Another significant outcome was gaining an understanding of the history of gangs and their operational techniques and strategies. This information is crucial in helping young people correctly identify gangs as it is only through identifying gang activity that members can know how to change gangs so that they promote a positive image. The third major outcome was being aware of the positive alternatives to gang activity that exist at my disposal as an individual.

Critique

The group process, including the strategies employed and the outcomes achieved can generally be described as effective. Effective leadership was one of the group's strongest points, helping to keep the group activities in line with the expected outcomes, and ensuring that the environment was safe for the effective participation of all members. The effectiveness of the group's leadership was evident from the strength of the norms set, and the group's ability to realize its expected outcomes. The group was, however, not 100% effective. I, for instance, felt that the group was having a hard time keeping the participants on topic. The fact that the whole activity was being facilitated by a single member exacerbated the situation. For this reason, I reckon that perhaps greater order could be realized if groups are kept small, say between 6 and 8 participants. I also felt that the group did not make use of a sufficient number of real life examples and cases in trying to justify the value of lessons learnt. Making sufficient use of real life cases minimizes the risk of relapse by presenting a strong demonstration of the value inherent in the lessons and skills learnt in the program.

Conclusion

Group psychotherapy is increasingly being taken as an effective alternative to individual therapy. Community-based groups for dealing with troubled youth have become increasingly common in community settings. Generally, they serve to equip young people with information on how to rid themselves of delinquent behavior and antisocial tendencies, and how to consequently become productive and responsible members of the family and the community. Literature has shown such groups to be effective in achieving their intended outcomes, especially if they make effective use of secondary stakeholders including local politicians and…