The Learning Group: Dynamics, Concepts and Issues A Post-Foulkesian Group-Analytic ...

421 Pages·2011·3.91 MB·English

The Learning Group: Dynamics, Concepts and Issues
A Post-Foulkesian Group-Analytic Ethnography
of Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy Training
William Farrell
A thesis submitted to
Auckland University of Technology
in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
2011
Discipline of Psychotherapy
Primary Supervisor: Stephen Appel
i
Contents
Table of Contents i -viii
Attestation of authorship ix
Acknowledgements x
Ethics approval xi
Abstract xii
Preface XIII
Two important features of the thesis –focus and metonymy xiii
Position, person and tense xviii
Conclusion xxi

PART ONE – INTRODUCTION, METHODOLOGY AND METHODS
Chapter One – An Introduction to the study 1
Introduction 1
Why is this study important to me? 1
The gaps that the thesis aims to fill 5
A gap in the understanding of professional learning that results
from the use of the group context of that learning. 5
Existing practice 5
The Semester 6
Components of the course 8
The process of the Semester 11
What the Semester is aimed to accomplish 11
Figure 1.1 - Trajectories of student performance 12
Selection, composition and exclusions 13
Adult education – therapeutic modelling and dynamic administration 15
Vicissitudes of this practice 17
So where is the gap in the understanding of professional learning? 19
Table 1.1 The gap in knowledge in relation to the learning group 19
A second gap, in ways of investigating 20
Figure 1.2 - Predominant chronotopes of qualitative enquiry 21
Table 1.2- The gap in ways of investigating 23
Conclusion 24
Chapter Two Part One – Literature review 25
Introduction 25
Why is this study important to others? 25
What has been understood previously?
(A review of previous literature and research) 27
Infant Observation 40
The debate between Green and Stern 42
The work of Ogden, Norman and Salomonsson, Thorndeycroft and McCabe,
and Balint 43
The contribution of Meltzer 45
Conclusion 47
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Chapter Two Part Two – Methodology 48
Refining the theoretical and philosophical orientation of the study 48
Psychoanalysis 52
Group Analysis 57
Table 2(ii).1 Hopper’s reasons why groups are helpful to difficult patients 60
Ethnography 61
Inter-weavings between psychoanalysis and ethnography 64
Group-Analytic Ethnography 67
Some concepts that are part of the philosophical underpinnings 71
Matte-Blanco’s Strata 71
A return to Foulkes’ Levels 74
Bi-Logical Depth 74
Sticky Moments 75
Linking Matte-Blanco’s work with that of Foulkes 75
How are the students perceived by the staff, (and indeed by each other,
and vice-versa), as individuals, as a group of individuals
or of sub-groups of individuals, or as a group as a whole? 77
The importance of good internal objects in stressful situations
(Under fire) 78
A group analytic approach to understanding learning 79
Conclusion to consideration of the theoretical and philosophical framework 80
Theoretical and philosophical framing of the study 81
An heuristic for considering social situations 85
Sampling, analysis and interpretation 86
Chapter Three – Research methods and their use 88
Introduction 88
Some background to the study - how ethics committee approval
and participant consent were established 89
Research methods – the contribution of Alex Stewart’s model 92
Table 3.1 Stewart’s characteristics of an ethnographic study 93
The application of Post-Foulkesian Group-Analytic Ethnography 95
The design of the study 95
The data 96
Transformation of the data 98
The choice and treatment of ‘Sticky Moments’ for synchronic analysis 99
Table 3.2 Methods of group-analytic ethnographic data analysis 101
The extraction of patterns of content or themes 101
Psychoanalytic free-association to elements of the data
(leading to metonymy and metaphor) 102
The noting of countertransference 103
The noting of transference 103
The induction of figurations 104
The articulation of chains of interaction,
and their possible meanings, through translation 104
An heuristic for considering interaction 104
Procedure 105
Example 3.1 - An example for the purpose of illustration 106
Description of the example 106
Analysis and interpretation 107
Summary and conclusion – challenges and responses 108
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PART TWO – DATA AND ANALYSES
Chapter Four - The diachronic analysis
– who, what and when? 112
Introduction 112
Setting the scene 112
Table 4.1 For each person, hopes at the start
and outcomes at the finish of the semester 114
Dramatis Personae – the students 115
The setting trope 116
The fieldwork 117
The story so far for the group 119
Table 4.2 Attendances throughout the semester 121
And now in a different form … 121
Back to the narrative 123
Summary of ‘Dramatis Personae and the setting’ 124
A narrative account of the semester 124
Session One 125
Questions and learning edges from Session One 125
Questions and learning edges that come in Session Two 126
Questions and learning edges that come in Session Three 126
Session two 126
Session three 127
Session four 127
Session five 128
Session six 129
Session seven 130
Session eight 131
Session nine 135
Session ten 135
Session eleven 136
Session twelve 137
Session thirteen 137
Session fourteen 138
Session fifteen 139
Summary and conclusion 140
Introduction to Chapters Five to Nine 141
Introduction 141
A word about research method 141
Chapter Five – A Beginning
(Up-Bringing - Session 10) 144
Introduction 144
The aims of this chapter 144
DESCRIPTION 145
The beginning of the session – a verbatim transcript with commentary 145
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Transcript of the beginning of Session 10 149
The beginning of the session – a researcher summary account 163
Considering an extract from the transcript as a Sticky Moment 165
Table 5.1 Extract from the beginning part of Session 10 167
The beginning of the session – a researcher summary account resumes 168
The section of discussion up to the break 169
The break 170
The section after the break 170
ANALYSIS 172
A sequence 172
One student presents herself as a mother 172
Table 5.2 A fragment of interaction from the transcript on Page 147 173
There is a style of talk
which reflects the group getting into an associative mode 174
Table 5.3 – A fragment of interaction from the transcript on Page 148 175
Sadistic pleasure is expressed at the thought of disrupting creativity 175
A series of pairs of people get alongside and face each other 176
The group try to tell of their struggle
and try to bring it into the here-and-now 176
There is a sense of an impulse
(which the group seems to find it difficult to express) 177
One staff member subtly attacks the group,
but then in turn is attacked in the break by the other staff member 177
After the break, the group work well at their core task 178
INTERPRETATION 179
Conclusion – findings, both methodological and substantive 182
Table 5.4 A summary of description, analysis and interpretation
of data in Chapter Five 184
Chapter Six – Part of a Session
(The Eruption - Session 8) 185
INTRODUCTION 185
Theoretical and philosophical framing of the study 185
The aims of this chapter 186
The session and the moment 187
Table 6.1 Transcript of an extract from Session 8 188
DESCRIPTION An outline of the whole session 189
ANALYSIS – THEMES AND ISSUES IN THE DISCUSSION 192
To be at the gym with my mates … 193
Managing counter-transference 194
Managing distance in therapeutic relationships 195
The break 196
The culture of the group 197
Rivalry 197
Keeping up spirits in chaos 198
Abandonment 199
INTERPRETATION – MEANING AROUND THE MOMENT 200
INTERPRETATION – THEMES APPARENT IN THE SESSION 202
Conclusion – findings, both methodological and substantive 204
Table 6.2 A summary of description, analysis and interpretation
of data in Chapter Six 206
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Chapter Seven – A Discussion
(The Fishhook - Session 14) 207
Introduction 207
The aims of this chapter 208
DESCRIPTION 209
The episode in the context of the session 209
Events of the session prior to the extract 209
Table 7.1 Transcript of an extract from Session 14 212
The part of the session after the extract and leading up to the break 214
ANALYSIS 215
More general points 215
The to-and-fro between levels or sites of experience 218
Table 7.2 The Reference Locator 219
Example 7.1 220
Example 7.2 221
INTERPRETATION 222
Developmental issues 222
Group manifestations of these issues 223
Images in the work 223
A commentary 224
The impossibility of the task 227
Enactment 228
What does consideration of the reference locator reveal? 229
Underlying stories: 229
Bait and fishhook 230
The teaching couple and their role
in resolution of developmental tasks 230
Condensed roles 230
Punctuation of a developmental shift 231
The question about mirroring 231
Cueing and eruption 231
The case in a session as a play-within-a-play 232
Summary of INTERPRETATION 233
Conclusion – findings, both methodological and substantive 233
Table 7.3 A summary of description, analysis and interpretation
of data in Chapter Seven 236
Chapter Eight – A Consulting Break
(The Scrap - Session 11) 237
Important note 237
Introduction 237
Theoretical and philosophical framing of the thesis 238
The aims of this chapter 239
DESCRIPTION AND SOME ANALYSIS 239
A summary of the session before the break 239
The break – a verbatim transcript with commentary 242
A summary of the session after the break 251
A summary of the events of the break from the transcript 252
MORE ANALYSIS 260
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The use of breaks 260
Displacement and projection 261
Figure 8.1 Projection to-and-fro in the Learning Group 261
Figure 8.2 Projection to-and-fro in the Learning Group
linked to the Reference Locator 262
This is a kind of fight 263
The theme of turmoil about coming back 263
Extract 8.1 264
Layered attention –a contribution of psychoanalytic
(particularly group-analytic) theory 265
The matrix that can contain polarisation 265
Summary of ANALYSIS 266
INTERPRETATION 266
Conclusion – findings, both methodological and substantive 268
Table 8.3 A summary of description, analysis and interpretation
of data in Chapter Eight 272
Chapter Nine – An Ending
(Missing Time - Session 15) 273
Introduction 273
Theoretical and philosophical framing of the study 273
The aims of this chapter 274
DESCRIPTION 274
An associative journey 274
The case of the missing twenty minutes 277
A summary of the session 278
Another summary - themes in the transcript of Session 15 279
ANALYSIS 280
Consideration by level 280
Winnicott’s ‘good enough’ mother/teachers/group 280
INTERPRETATION 282
Phantasy in the group, and at the level of the group 282
My own inner world at the time 283
A developmental metaphor 284
Scapegoating 285
Conclusion – findings, both methodological and substantive 286
Table 9.1 A summary of description, analysis and interpretation
of data in Chapter Nine 289
PART THREE - CONCLUSIONS
Chapter Ten – Summary and Conclusions 290
Introduction 290
A SUMMARY OF FINDINGS IN THE THESIS 291
The methodological findings 291
How, using the examples present in the thesis, has the methodology
been shown to be capable of valuing and privileging the philosophical
world-view underlying psychoanalytic and group-analytic
psychotherapy, and of fruitfully yet critically investigating aspects
vii
of those practices? 291
Chapter 4 – Diachronic analysis 292
Chapters Five to Nine – The synchronic analyses 292
Substantive findings from the analysis of data 293
How, using the examples present in the thesis, has the group been
shown to be helpful (and not), to the learning of psychotherapy,
and specifically, in applying theory to practice? 293
Diachronic analysis (Chapter Four) 293
Synchronic analyses (Chapters Five to Nine) 293
Chapter 5 295
Chapter 6 295
Chapter 7 296
Chapter 8 298
Chapter 9 299
SYNTHESISING THE FINDINGS FROM THE THESIS 301
Introduction to a series of concepts 301
The matrix of the learning group 302
Dynamic administration 303
The group as a reflective self 304
Allusion, metonymy and metaphor 305
Sticky moments 307
Transfer of form 308
Identity in transition 309
Towards a potential form of teaching model 310
Details of the proposed teaching model 311
The question of co-facilitation 314
CONCLUSION 315
Chapter Eleven – A Critical Reflection on the Study 318
Introduction 318
Preamble - the research is just what you do anyway 318
Veracity 319
Prolonged fieldwork 319
Seeking out reorienting or disconfirming observations 320
Good participative role-relationships 320
Attentiveness to speech and interactional contexts 321
Multiple modes of data collection 321
Objectivity 322
The trail of the ethnographers path 322
Respondent validation 322
Feedback from outsiders 323
Inter-rater checks on indexing and coding 324
Comprehensive data archive 324
Perspicacity 324
Intense consideration of the data 324
Exploration 326
Critiques of the design, the execution of the proposal, the analysis
and the conclusions 326
The design 326
The execution of the design 328
The analysis 329
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The conclusions 329
An overall critique 329
Chapter Twelve – Implications
For Theory, Practice and Research 331
Introduction 331
Implications for theory 331
Implications for practice 332
Implications for research 333
References 334 – 347
Appendices:

Appendix 1 – Papers relating to ethics committee approval
and consent to participation
Information for participants, July 2000 A1-1
Form of consent to participate, July 2000 A1-2
Application for ethics approval from AUTEC A1-3
Memorandum of ethics approval from AUTEC, November 2002 A1-19
Information for participants, November 2002 A1- 20
Research Project Progress Report, December 2004 A1 - 23
Memorandum of extension of ethics approval from AUTEC,
January 2005 A1- 25
Appendix 2 - The Methodology in action
Introduction A2-1
Investigation of cultural phenomena – methodology used to theorise A2-1
Identicide – methodology used to theorise A2-3
Treating disturbances in communication as symptoms (diagnostic use) A2-4
Understanding group processes in order to foster group-analytic capacity
(developmental use) A2-5
Observations and themes A2-7
Table A2.1 Observations and themes from a ‘joint’ meeting
of a local professional group A2-8
Analysis of the observations and themes A2-8
Conclusion to consideration of developmental use A2-13
Analysis of a dream – model used to dialogue in professional development A2-14
Table A2.2 A dream, together with some associations and comments A2-15
Analysis of the dream A2-16
Table A2.3 Dream elements considered in relation to both
personal context and current professional context A2-17
The personal context A2-18
The current professional context A2-19
Conclusion to consideration of a dream A2-21
Conclusion to Appendix 2 A2-21
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Attestation of Authorship
I hereby declare that this submission is my own work and that, to the best of my
knowledge and belief, it contains no material previously published or written by another
person (except where explicitly defined in the acknowledgements), nor material which
to a substantial extent has been submitted for the award of any other degree or diploma
of a university or other institution of higher learning
Signed:
William Bernard Fahie Farrell.
Date: