Group Action: The Dynamics of Groups in Therapeutic, Educational and Corporate Settings

Citation

Holyoak, L. (2003), "Group Action: The Dynamics of Groups in Therapeutic, Educational and Corporate Settings", Leadership & Organization Development Journal, Vol. 24 No. 3. https://doi.org/10.1108/lodj.2003.02224cae.004

Group Action: The Dynamics of Groups in Therapeutic, Educational and Corporate Settings

Group Action: The Dynamics of Groups in Therapeutic, Educational and Corporate Settings

T. Martin RingerJessica Kingsley Publishers2002304 pp.ISBN 1-84310-028-2 (paperback)£19.95Keywords: Leadership, Group dynamics

In Group Action, Martin Ringer sets out to challenge complacency about leading groups: even if you think you are an effective group leader there may be aspects of groups that you have not even contemplated, let alone dealt with. Books along these lines can often then go on to be very prescriptive about what should be done, but Martin Ringer avoids that, in the main, and instead offers explanations of group processes with examples (both extensive and quite brief) that illustrate both concepts and strategies. Also a rare phenomenon, he positively encourages readers to relax their concentration on the written word and to think, make associations and learn by reflection on their own experiences of being leaders and members of groups.

The book has a useful introduction (including a brief discussion of experiential learning), followed by chapters organised into two parts. The first part deals with "theory" and the second with the application of that theory. Preceding and continuing through the first part is a detailed case study/story (I will not give the plot away here) that aids understanding of the theoretical material. By weaving it through the more academic discussion and by only revealing certain aspects of the story at key points, the reader gains much more than he or she would have done from a one-off presentation of a lengthy piece, the details of which would be hard to remember.

The seven chapters in the first part explore factors that affect people's behaviour in groups. The chapters cover a number of topics (from quite distinct disciplines) in a relatively short time: from memory systems and attachment theory (which I would class as mainstream psychology) to language and communication and on to concepts which I associate which psychoanalysis, such as the unconscious. These chapters on theory (as well as being illustrated by the ongoing case study) are completed by sections dealing with the implications for group leaders of the material they cover. The second part of the book comprises five chapters, four of which pick up the topics again and discuss more extensively their application and implication. The final chapter seeks to illustrate the complexity of groups by drawing comparisons between groups and art.

I took the opportunity to review this book as I had just started teaching a course that involved a lot of group work and I was hoping to pick up some ideas about how to keep the process running smoothly. Fairly soon after I started I realised this was not a book of hints and tips so I did not feel that I benefited immediately. However, in the long run, I have gained a lot from it, particularly enjoying the reflection it encouraged. I admit that I found it hard to put aside my negative opinions of psychoanalysis (honed by years of immersion in psychology) and take the material on these concepts as seriously as I took that which was from my discipline. However, those potential readers without these biases should have no problems with this, and, as I said, overall I did feel that I gained from reading the book. I only felt in the end that I had a particular problem with the final chapter: the comparison of groups with art. It left me thinking more about different views about what art is rather than following the argument Martin Ringer was trying to make. However, considering the introduction's encouragement to the reader to let their mind wander, maybe I should be proud that this happened rather than viewing it as a drawback. Overall, the book may raise more questions than it answers, but, in allowing each reader to find their own answers, this is no bad thing.

Lynda HolyoakUniversity of Central Lancashire