When running group counselling, some ethical issues need to be looked at or considered. For instance, a group leader needs to have training and learn about ethical decision-making so that they can reflect and be good examples for effective group work. Counsellors need to undergo training on certain issues to become effective group facilitators. The training will enable them to gain skills such as self-exploration, whereby they will learn the importance of being good examples to their group members (Hansen, 2015). In most cases, the group members will do what their leader is demonstrating; therefore, it is important for the leaders to take precautions in their actions. The group leaders must learn personal psychotherapy to understand themselves and their group members. Understanding themselves means that the group leaders can know their role in the clients’ lives and needs so that they can help them effectively. Group leaders or counsellors need to understand the importance of group supervision. They need to learn the process and development of a group. Group leaders must learn the importance of gaining consent or informed consent when dealing with clients and the benefits each member will gain during participation and making it known or communicating it to the clients (Hansen, 2015).
The group leaders need to understand the benefits of fair and equitable treatment of the group members and the importance of equitable sharing of resources and information, or what is referred to as social justice. Every member of the groups should be treated equally as they all come for a specific purpose, to get assistance. For social justice to be effective, some strategies need to be incorporated. The strategies include value clarification, raising the consciousness of the benefits of social justice, analyzing gender roles, encouraging group cohesion and empowering the members on gender roles and ethics within the society. Group leaders and counsellors also need to undergo training to learn not only to teach but implement and practice what they are teaching. The group leaders need to be patient and understand the group members (Hansen, 2015).
Group leaders and counsellors have an obligation to make, like selecting the members who will participate in the group. The leaders need to select members based on whether they align with the group’s goals. The group members selected should have compatible goals with the group’s objectives and not jeopardize the group’s activities and aims. People with damaged brains, antisocial personalities, and acutely paranoid are poor candidates and cannot be selected for the groups. Drug users should not be selected to join the group also, as they may interrupt the progress of the other group members (Hansen, 2015). The group members will need to understand the roles they play in the group for successful group management and running. Group members also need to join and participate in the group voluntarily in order for the group to succeed. In a mandatory group, the clients will need to understand their rights and responsibilities, nature and goals, confidentiality limits, and the right to decline activities. Group members will also have to understand the procedure for leaving the group. The group members will need to explain their reasons for leaving or wanting to leave the group (Woods & Ruzek, 2017).
Group leaders need to meet with the clients before the sessions start. The client and the counsellor will be able to discuss the goals of the counselling, ask and get answers to any misunderstandings and concerns, and clarify how members should behave; the leader must explain the process of counselling, and the members can explore the fears and resources to be used during the counselling process (Woods & Ruzek, 2017). The group leaders also have an obligation to clients. These obligations include telling the clients the limit of confidentiality, explaining each member’s responsibility and the absence of legal privileges concerning the information that is shared.
Group leaders are responsible for explaining to the clients some of the psychological risks. Some of the risks involved in the group include disrupting the client’s life due to group activities. These disruptions may include having to leave work to attend meetings and activities of the group. The clients’ privacy may be invaded, and thus, they need to be honest with the leader. There may also be group pressure; thus, they need to avoid answering questions or giving uncomfortable information. Moreover, they should understand that they might be accused of doing things they did not do and thus be careful. The group members may also exploit other members and misuse their confrontation (Rostyslaw et al., 2020). Clients must be prepared for all these risks to maintain effective communication and process. The group leader needs to set group laws and ensure that every member’s information is protected and confidential to only those who heard it.
Therefore, A group leader needs to be ethical and responsible in ensuring that group members are taken care of properly and ethically. The group leader needs to set rules to govern the group and protect the information the clients have given out. The leader needs to ensure that there is informed consent when sharing a client’s information and also be able to supervise and solve cases that may arise among the group members. An effective group leader also needs to understand the group members and ensure they are aware of their roles and responsibilities within the group. The smooth running of a group requires effective ethical considerations, behaviour management, and respect between the leader and the members.
References
Hansen, Cindy. (2015). Chapter 12: Ethical Issues in Group Work. In YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ut-cMeNADyo
Rostyslaw, W., Grffin, P., & Ward, A. (2020). Confidentiality in Counsellor Experiential Training Groups: An Exploratory Study. Journal of Counselling Research and Practice Journal of Counseling Research and Practice, 5. https://egrove.olemiss.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1020&context=jcrp
Woods, J., & Ruzek, N. (2017). Ethics in Group Psychotherapy. The College Counselor’s Guide to Group Psychotherapy, 83–100. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315545455-9
Analysis Of Fences Writing Sample
Fences is a literary work by August Wilson. Wilson wrote the play in 1985 but set in 1950 in Pittsburg. Denzel Washington directed the film in 2016. The film details the life of an African-American family living in an era of racism characterized by segregation. Troy, the central character in the play, is a product of racism that has taken a deep grip on his perspective on life. Troy works at a sanitation department, collecting garbage. Troy is disturbed by the division of labor in the department, where only Whites work as track drivers while African Americans work as garbage collectors. Troy complains to his friend Bono about this biasness and hopes everyone can drive the trucks. Troy’s intense experience with racism has molded his way of raising his family such that he declines to sign papers to allow his son to join college and play football. Troy believes in fencing himself and his family from the racial discrimination against Blacks by Whites. Troy develops a strained relationship with his son Cory. When he is caught in a marital affair, the dynamics of his family A central theme of racism emerges as Troy gradually manages to fence himself from White supremacy and confines his family to live by values he adopted to counter the impacts of racism on his life. He segregates himself from the public by erecting a physical fence around his house and from his family by blocking himself from genuinely expressing love and care to them. The film also explores other aspects of life, such as family, by highlighting the family dynamics of the African American community in a segregated world. The movie’s plot, organized into acts, ancient setting, and integration of characters with a perfect understanding of segregation and its impacts on Africa Americans’ life dynamics, play a critical role in explaining the central theme of racism.
Plot
Sholihah defines the plot in a literary work as the sequence of events in the narrative, with each sequence detailing how the previous event influences the next event (58). A plot gives a literary work, like a movie, a direction. A plot is regarded as the most fundamental element of a good story because it guides the audience on how it is delivered. A good plot enhances audibility and visibility, enabling the movie to communicate eloquently to the audience. The organization of a plot is critical to understanding essential elements and aspects of a movie, such as a theme (Mahmoud 8). In Fences, Washington structures the plot into two acts and organizes the events into scenes. Each scene is a masterpiece telling how one event leads to the development of another. The plot is in two acts. The first act has four scenes, while the second has five scenes. At the exp[osition, the plot introduces the characters, setting, and background and sets the story in motion. In Fences, exposition introduces the main character, Troy, and his work environment. Troy, in the company of his White friend and workmate Bono, is introduced while riding behind a garbage truck as Troy complains about blacks not being allowed to take other roles like driving the track besides collecting garbage (Washington). At this point, the introductory part of the plot introduces the element of racism that penetrates through institutions. In the background of the setting, White children play baseball on the road with only a few black children in the vicinity.
The exposition also introduces Alberta, the woman Bono suspects Troy of having an affair with. While Troy rubbishes the claims, Alberta’s character unveils gradually, changing Troy’s relationship with his family. As the action in the movie gains momentum, viewers are introduced to Troy’s implicit fears that gradually become explicit. Troy objects to the idea of his son playing football as the White man would never allow him to play football (Washington). Troy’s wife, Rose, reassures him that black boys can now play football with White boys as times have evolved and White men are opening ways for black men to cross over the fences of segregation to mingle with whites. While it is apparent that racism has lost a part of its grip in society. Troy continues to live off his experiences when racism was at its peak in the country. Racism has blurred his ability to see beyond ancient times. He does not believe in the possibility of change or a future where a black person is handed an opportunity to be part of the dominant system. The plot is also built on internal and external conflict. The internal conflict reflects a character’s struggle with their inner self, while external conflict is the struggle a character has with external forces (Ashford University 4). Troy struggles with his past, mainly defined by struggling to find an identity through a system marred with racism. At the story’s climax, when Troy confesses his affair to Rose, readers meet an internally conflicted individual stuck in one place.
Viewers also establish that Rose is not quite contented with her life as she has spent it stuck with Troy in the same place for nearly twenty years. Everything Troy experiences and gives back to the people around him is a construct of his past shaped by racial discrimination. Racism suppressed opportunities for African Americans (Fernandes and Alsaeed 56). Troy worked all his life but wallowed in poverty. Rose is confined to home because there are few opportunities for women of color beyond their kitchen. Black women pretend to be contented with their roles as housewives but are internally conflicted by the limited opportunities that limit their ability to explore beyond their fences. Troy dies while still nurturing unfulfilled dreams. He is resentful and bitter throughout the movies and tries to limit other people’s abilities by imposing his experiences on other’s people’s futures. The theme of racism somewhat dies with Troy as it is shown that his son Cory finally got an opportunity to serve in the army as a marine. Troy also battles an external conflict with the community that thrives on racism. He wishes to protest the poor treatment African Americans receive at the cleaning department as they are only hired as garbage collectors. His fight with the system and community ends with Troy fencing his home to segregate him and his family from these institutions.
Setting
The film was set in Pennsylvania, Pittsburg, in 1950. Pittsburg was one of the cities in the United States that greatly capitalized on slavery between the 17th and 18th centuries (Byrdsong and Yamatani 16). By the Mid 209th century, slavery had long ended in the United States, but the long-term impacts of slavery still penetrated the country and haunted the victims. Slavery created racism which resulted in the segregation of Washington highlights in Fences. Troy might not have been enslaved, but he experienced the wrath of racial discrimination at a time when racism bloomed in the country. Most adults in this period had one or more experiences with racism in their youth. Racism left a debilitating long-term impact on their lives. Some individuals like Troy never addressed their struggles, which severely affected their social and personal lives. The communication style, dressing, and mannerisms are set in ancient times. Fathers are allowed to decide for their children, be violent towards children, and exert extreme authority without the fear of being charged with child abuse.
Troy is notably violent towards his son. Troy’s methods of raising his son, which result in a strained relationship with Cory, are similar to ancient methods used to raise children. When Cory informs his mother that he wishes not to attend his father’s burial, Rose reminds him that his father wanted him to be everything he was and, at the same time, wanted him to be better than him (Washington). This revelation shows that Troy loved his son but did not want to raise him, using soft methods to make a stronger man out of Cory who could face the struggles of an African American man head-on. Cory did not believe in racism as a barrier to one’s dream. He did not understand that racism might not have been manifesting explicitly at the time. In reality, racism was becoming a silent practice that manifested through the country’s systems. Troy wanted his son to have a clear picture of the time, place, and situation they lived in to protect him from having higher expectations than the country could afford him. The role of racism in shaping how black parents raised their sons cannot be overlooked in this movie. Black men raised their sons through hard love to prepare them for reality.
Characters
Gultom asserts that the relationship between the character and the theme is shown through the character’s actions, thoughts, and approach to the plot (1). The characters bring the story to life, connecting the audience to the plot. Characters help push important elements, such as the story’s themes, to the audience. Fences are anchored on the diverse and dynamic talents of renowned African American actors who deeply understand the patterns of racism and its impact. Troy is the main character in the story. He embodies racism. Racism thwarted the dreams of his youth. He continues to wallow in the shadows of what could have been. The pains of the failure and struggles he has had to accommodate still haunt him and have turned him into a bitter and resentful individual. Troy, played by Denzel Washington, perfectly consumes this role, accommodating the struggles, living through them, and turning them into a nightmare for the people around him. Troy is more of a static character in the movie as he does not change his perspective on life or strive to reform his relationship with Cory.
Troy has embraced rigid practicality that drives him to isolate his family from the public by erecting a fence around his house. He has accommodated segregation as a defensive weapon from racism, limited opportunities, and struggles. Rose takes up her role with great confidence and excellence, as seen in her momentous expression of love towards her family, dissatisfaction with the stagnation, and ability to move beyond the pains Troy causes her (Washington). Rose espouses a traditional housewife contented with her roles in the kitchen. However, when Troy informs her of his wish to move beyond one point where he has been forever stuck, the audience learns that Rose also feels stuck in the same place because of her love for her husband and family and the lack of opportunity beyond her kitchen. Unlike Troy, Rose espouses maternal gentleness, understanding, and love. Rose tries to ignite the urge to change in Troy by ensuring that things have changed for black children. She supports her son’s dream. Rose’s role was more to contradict Troy and be a voice of reason to help Troy acknowledge that while racism exists, there is a reason to be positive, experience, and show love to family in a racially tense environment.
Conclusively, Fences is a masterpiece literary work that highlights the long-term impacts of racism on victims’ families and communities. Troy embodies the internal and external struggles of victims of racial discrimination battle, which can become damaging when left unaddressed. The story’s plot employs subelements such as internal and external conflicts, exposition, climax rising action, and falling action to give the story a perfect flow of events that allows the theme of racism to arise and penetrate throughout the story. The movie is set in the mid-twentieth century when the victims of slavery are battling its effects, such as racism. The integration of characters with a perfect understanding of the patterns and impacts of racism helps to sustain the central theme throughout the story.
Works Cited
Ashford University. “Theme, Plot, and Conflict.” (n.d): 1-5. <https://content.bridgepointeducation.com/curriculum/file/4f178332-435c-4c9b-b85a-0f9755578f2a/1/ENG125-Theme,Plot,andConflict.pdf>.
Byrdsong, Rashad and Hide Yamatani. “Historical Overview of Black Suffering in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA: Depth of Contemporary Social Work Challenges.” International Journal of Social Work (2017): 15-26. <https://www.ceapittsburgh.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Historical-Overview-of-Black-Suffering-in-Pittsburgh-Article.pdf>.
Fences. Dir. Denzel Washington. Perf. Denzel Washington. 2016.
Fernandes, Lilly and Nora Hadi Alsaeed. “African Americans and Workplace Discrimination.” European Journal of English Language and Literature Studies (2014): 56-76. <http://www.eajournals.org/wp-content/uploads/African-Americans-and-Workplace-Discrimination.pdf>.
Gultom, Feriyanti Elina. “The Relationship between Theme and Character in Fiction Movie Inside Out.” BAHAS (2022): 1-11. <https://jurnal.unimed.ac.id/2012/index.php/bahas/article/download/35546/18399>.
Mahmoud, Reem Lotfy. “Story Telling and its Relation with Film Script.” International Journal of Creativity and Innovation in Humanities and Education (2018): 1-23. <https://ijcihe.journals.ekb.eg/article_182840_18186c41724fd76bd0f079536d92c0a4.pdf>.
Sholihah, Farkhatus. “An Analysis of Plot in Film: The Theory of Everything by James Marsh.” E-Link Journal (2021): 58-76. <file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/425-1151-1-SM.pdf>.
Anxiety Disorders: Conceptualizations And Approaches To Address The Issue Sample Assignment
Anxiety disorders constitute a significant psychological health issue. This condition affects millions of individuals worldwide. The mental disorder is characterized by excessive and persistent worry, fear, and apprehension. This leads to a significant impairment in daily functioning. Thus, the analysis aims to explore two conceptualizations or frames through which anxiety disorders can be understood and examine how each approach influences the strategies employed to address this mental health issue.
Conceptualization 1: Biological Perspective
The biological perspective conceptualizes anxiety disorders as primarily rooted in physiological factors. As per this framework, genetic predispositions and neurochemical imbalances are primary factors. Research by Sarmiento and Lau (2020) has depicted that family history constitutes a major factor in suffering from this condition. Notably, changes in neurotransmitters like serotonin and gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) have been linked to increased anxiety feelings.
How the Biological Perspective Influences Addressing the Issue
Interventions that focus on the underlying physiological mechanisms are necessary to treat anxiety disorders from a biological standpoint. Pharmacotherapy is frequently used to treat anxiety symptoms. This is by re-establishing the balance of neurotransmitters. Medication like SSRIs and benzodiazepines are two examples (Frank, 2020). Furthermore, non-pharmacological approaches, including neurofeedback, DBS, and TMS, have shown promising success in changing brain activity and lowering anxiety symptoms. This strategy emphasizes the significance of medical and neuroscientific approaches to effectively manage anxiety disorders by concentrating on the biological elements.
Conceptualization 2: Cognitive-Behavioral Perspective
The cognitive-behavioural viewpoint, which emphasizes the significance of dysfunctional thinking processes, false beliefs, and acquired behavioural reactions, offers a thorough knowledge of anxiety disorders. From this aspect of thinking, individuals suffering from anxiety disorders tend to overestimate the actual threat they face. People with social anxiety may imagine undesirable things leading them to fear social rejection.
These false beliefs and unfavourable self-perceptions create a greater sensation of vulnerability and danger. So, as a coping strategy to lessen worry and shield oneself from possible humiliation or bad judgment, people with social anxiety employ avoidance behaviours. They momentarily reduce their anxiety by avoiding social settings or restricting their contacts, which perpetuates the idea that social interactions are intrinsically dangerous.
Likewise, cognitive biases that maintain anxiety symptoms include selective attention to perceived risks and overestimating probable adverse effects. These biases shape individuals’ interpretation of ambiguous or neutral situations, leading to an automatic and exaggerated focus on potential dangers. The cognitive-behavioural perspective proposes that by targeting these maladaptive thought patterns and learned behaviours, individuals can experience significant improvement in their anxiety symptoms (Sarmiento & Lau, 2020). Cognitive restructuring techniques aim to identify and challenge negative automatic thoughts and replace them with more realistic and adaptive alternatives (Keepers et al., 2020). Individuals may get a more fair and logical view of themselves and the world by questioning the veracity of unfavourable self-beliefs and looking into facts that refute them.
A cognitive-behavioural approach to treating anxiety disorders emphasizes behavioural treatments and cognitive restructuring. For instance, exposure therapy progressively exposes patients to circumstances that cause anxiety in a safe and encouraging setting (King et al., 2020). Through repeated and prolonged exposure, individuals can experience the absence of the feared consequences, which helps to weaken the association between the situation and anxiety. This process facilitates the development of new, more adaptive behavioural responses and reduces avoidance behaviours.
How the Cognitive-Behavioral Perspective Influences Addressing the Issue:
The cognitive-behavioural perspective guides interventions focusing on restructuring cognitive processes and modifying maladaptive behaviours associated with anxiety disorders. Techniques for cognitive restructurings, such as cognitive reframing and confronting illogical notions, aid in the identification of negative thinking patterns and their replacement with more realistic and adaptive ones (Sarmiento & Lau, 2020). Reducing avoidance tendencies and progressively exposing people to anxiety-provoking circumstances are the goals of behavioural therapies like exposure therapy and systematic desensitization (Bandelow, Michaelis, & Wedekind, 2022).
In summation, while the viewpoint of cognitive behavioural psychology points out the role of cognitive processes and learned behaviours, which leads to interventions that concentrate on cognitive restructuring and behavioural modifications, the biological perspective highlights the significance of physiological factors and suggests medical and neuroscientific interventions. Both methods provide insightful understandings of anxiety disorders’ characteristics and guide various treatment options. It is crucial to consider a multifaceted and integrated strategy incorporating different viewpoints to provide complete treatment for those with anxiety disorders.
References
Bandelow, B., Michaelis, S., & Wedekind, D. (2022). Treatment of anxiety disorders. Dialogues in clinical neuroscience. https://doi.org/10.31887/DCNS.2017.19.2/bbandelow
Frank, G. K. (2020). Pharmacotherapeutic strategies for the treatment of anorexia nervosa–too much for one drug? Expert opinion on pharmacotherapy, 21(9), 1045–1058. https://doi.org/10.1080/14656566.2020.1748600
Keepers, G. A., Fochtmann, L. J., Anzia, J. M., Benjamin, S., Lyness, J. M., Mojtabai, R., … & (Systematic Review). (2020). The American Psychiatric Association practice guideline for the treatment of patients with schizophrenia. American Journal of Psychiatry, 177(9), 868-872. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2020.177901
King, R. M., Grenyer, B. F., Gurtman, C. G., & Younan, R. (2020). A clinician’s quick guide to evidence‐based approaches: Narcissistic personality disorder. Clinical Psychologist, 24(1), 91-95. https://doi.org/10.1111/cp.12214
Sarmiento, C., & Lau, C. (2020). Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders: DSM‐5. The Wiley Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences: Personality Processes and Individual Differences, 125-129. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119547174.ch198