Free Diversity Presentations

Dear Colleagues,

I wanted to share these exciting upcoming diversity presentations hosted by APA Division 49 (Society of Group Psychology & Group Psychotherapy). Please share with any of your colleagues or students who might be interested even if they are not APA Div. 49 members. All are welcome. Here is the detailed info:

• On 10/29/20 (Thursday), 1-2 p.m. EDT, please join Eric C. Chen, PhD, (Diversity Committee Chair), as he hosts a one-hour presentation by Nathaniel Wade, PhD, entitled “Engaging Religious/Spiritual Diversity in Group Therapy: Opportunities and Challenges.” The presentation will be recorded and uploaded later to Division 49’s YouTube channel here. To register, please click the link here.

Here is a description of the presentation: ”Along with politics and race, religion may be one of the most polarizing topics in U.S. culture today. Furthermore, in process-oriented group therapy issues related to religion and spirituality often emerge in either implicit (e.g., issues of death and dying, meaning) or explicit ways (e.g., religious beliefs, spiritual practices). Due to the polarizing aspects of these topics, when they emerge in the group the potential for a negative impact on individuals and the group as a whole are very real. In this presentation, I will address religious and spiritual diversity in process-oriented groups with mixed membership (as opposed to groups formed for people from specific religious or spiritual backgrounds). I will focus on (a) understanding religious/spiritual diversity among the group members and (b) identifying religiously- or spiritually-laden topics and how to work with them in therapeutic ways. Although I will share findings from research in this area, the focus of this presentation will be applied. I hope the presentation will assist group leaders and trainers in advancing their knowledge and improving their practice. By understanding how religion/spirituality can present opportunities for incredible healing and growth if the challenges inherent in this area are understood and managed, group facilitators will be more prepared to lead groups with members from various religious or spiritual backgrounds.”

• On 11/20/20 (Friday), noon-1 p.m. EST, please join Eric C. Chen, PhD, (Diversity Committee Chair), as he hosts a one-hour presentation by Noelle Lefforge, PhD, MHA, CGP, and Claudia Mejia, PsyD, entitled "Training Group Therapists to Respond to Microaggressions.” The presentation will be recorded and uploaded later to Division 49’s YouTube channel here.  To register, please click the link here.

Here is a description of the presentation: “Culturally responsive psychotherapists have an ethical obligation to respond to microaggressions, particularly as they occur in group psychotherapy; therefore, training in therapeutic approaches to microaggressions are necessary. Many complex factors are present when microaggressions occur in psychotherapy; our training model for responding to microaggressions in group psychotherapy addresses barriers to microaggression responsiveness and facilitates complex skill-building. The training model consists of didactic training, role-play and modeling, and an experiential fishbowl-style group exercise. The training model may provide experiential practice of responding to microaggressions to bolster skills that may generalize across therapeutic contexts. During this presentation, we will 1) review literature establishing that not responding to microaggressions within the context of psychotherapy (particularly group psychotherapy) is harmful, 2) discuss barriers to training psychotherapists to respond to microaggressions, and 3) present our training model with video to illustrate the experiential portion. The model was well received at conferences of the American Group Psychotherapy Association, but more research is needed to establish its effectiveness.“

• On 12/11/20 (Friday), noon-1 p.m. EST, please join Eric C. Chen, PhD, (Diversity Committee Chair), as he hosts a one-hour presentation by Martin Kivlighan, PhD, and Karen Tao, PhD, entitled “How do we address problematic systems and group process in therapy groups? A Multicultural Orientation (MCO) perspective.” The presentation will be recorded and uploaded later to Division 49’s YouTube channel her. To register, please click the link here.

Here is a description of the presentation: “The MCO framework is a relational and process-oriented approach, which focuses on the interpersonal aspects of cross-cultural interactions in therapy – how people are with one another (Owen, Tao, Leach, & Rodolfa, 2011). Recently, this framework has been applied to examine group therapy interactions and how the three dimensions of the MCO framework facilitate productive dialogue among group members or thwart genuine conversations (Kivlighan & Chapman, 2018; Rigg, Kivlighan, & Tao, 2020). In this presentation, the application of the Multicultural Orientation (MCO) Framework to the practice of group therapy will be reviewed, with specific attention to interventions aimed at addressing problematic systems and group processes as they unfold in the group. Presenters will provide several clinical examples of how to engage a multicultural orientation to address systems of oppression and power as they emerge in therapy groups. Attendees will practice utilizing an MCO framework to address cultural processes as they emerge in hypothetical group scenarios. Attendees will gain knowledge of the application of MCO to group therapy and practice interventions informed by an MCO perspective.”