Support Groups

Overview

In his work, Harvey Bertcher defines a group as a dynamic entity that consists of two or more people. He states that group members should have either one or more goals in common or believe that they can achieve their individual goals through participation in the group. As part of the group, members are constantly interacting with and influencing one another in order to achieve their goals. Over time, different statuses and roles develop for each group member. He also states that all groups are eventually regulated by group norms and values that have been accepted by its members.

In addition to the term support group, there are other names used for these groups: mutual help groups, self-help groups, community groups, and clubs. Support groups are organized in various ways: Some groups meet on an ongoing basis, with open enrollment, allowing prospective members to begin at any time and attend when most convenient. Other groups operate with closed enrollment, in which a length of time and a specific number of sessions are prescribed. Closed enrollment requires that all participants start and end their group sessions at the same time, with the expectation that group members should attend every meeting.

Support group content varies among groups. Some support groups are educational in nature with outside speakers brought in for specific content related to the group’s needs. In contrast, other support groups emphasize communication among the members with sharing of ideas, challenges, and potential solutions making up the majority of the support group meeting time. Regardless of their content or structure, all support groups have a set of written or unwritten norms, rules, and schedules that typically evolve over time.

Support groups can meet in a variety of locations within the community. These may include hospitals and medical centers, schools, senior centers, day-care centers, churches, community meeting rooms of local businesses, and rooms in [Page 1882]community agencies. In addition to traditional face-to-face support groups, there are also Internet-based discussion lists, e-mail groups, and chat room groups, as well as support groups that connect with members via telephone.

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