Reminiscence with groups

Abstract

Running a reminiscence group is an exciting and and immensely rewarding challenge; however, it can feel daunting, and in order to be successful it needs to be tackled in a systematic way. Before looking in detail at how to undertake reminiscence work with groups and developing a matrix which can be used to plan and monitor reminiscence group work, it is helpful to spend a little time looking at groups and group work in general. This will help with understanding what kinds of groups lend themselves to reminiscence work and something about group dynamics. The academic study of the sociology and social psychology of groups is extensive, but less has been written about group work practice. The approach to practice advocated in this chapter uses Heap’s Group Theory for Social Workers (1977), a well-researched book that examines group work in a wide variety of settings and links it to theory and experimental work. Heap’s book, Finlay’s Groupwork in Occupational Therapy (1993) and Douglas’s Groupwork Practice (1977) would be useful further reading.