DB Week 6 EDCO 711
Performing
The group process is building a collaborative structure among people and the community. The
goal of a group is to bring together individuals who are working towards a unified objective. The
counselor, who is trained in the areas of group stages and development, will guide participants
through the group process: “ forming, storming, norming, performing, and adjourning. Joseph
E. Pratt, a Boston physician (1905), observed that treating patients with tuberculosis in a group
setting helped patients share their common problems, concerns, fears, and experiences with
the disease. He is known as the father of group therapy; others, such as Trigant Burrow, Alfred
Adler, Jacob Moreno, and Paul Schilder, have used this model to address different dynamics of
the human population.
The group stage chosen is:
“Performing”
“The performing stage is not reached by all groups. If group members can evolve to stage four,
their capacity, range, and depth of personal relations expand to true interdependence”
(McCalla,
2024, p. 5).
1. Discuss what occurs during this stage.
During this group stage, there is a strong cohesiveness among the peers. They are
supporting each other, confronting one another, and linking themselves by identifying with
similar experiences. The psychoeducational group has identified the leader of the group, and
can apply skills they are educated on during the previous stages of group development. During
previous group stages of development, the group members are taught conflict resolution during
the storming stage, where they learn how to regulate their emotions, identify cognitive
distortions and thinking errors, recognize the inner critic, understand the process of projecting
feelings, and learn how to be accountable for their thoughts, actions, and behaviors. The
storming stage is where group participants develop an organization, establishing their roles
within the group by indirectly appointing leadership, taking on positions of laypeople, and
allowing those who are the peacekeepers, jokesters, and intellectuals to integrate themselves at
the appropriate times. The group participants can transition into the norming stage, where they
are observed as becoming more relaxed and open to being vulnerable with each other, and
allowing and welcoming new group members without judgment.
2. Identify the group leader skill needed to navigate this stage.
Group leaders’ skills, according to Carl Rogers, a person-centered psychologist who
emphasized the importance of genuineness ( congruence). According to Laoyan (2025), “ A
strong team leader is the backbone of every high-performing team. Without strong leadership,
teams may struggle reaching the performing stage” (p. 2). The group leader needs to know how
to navigate, observe, and address both positive and negative verbal and non-verbal
communication. During the performing stage, the group leader needs to have attending,
listening, and observational skills to address the inner critic and affirm when participants have
gained insight and growth.
3. Discuss the difference between group stages and group process
The dynamic of relationships is communication. All creatures created by God have a form of
communicating with one another. Always wondered about squirrels and what form of sound
they made. One morning, sitting in my backyard meditating, I heard a strange sound, and I
concluded that it was a squirrel. I was amazed to know they were not silent creatures. To
address the group process and content of the psychoeducational group, and the differences.
Patrick Hoffmann (2023), “Two important properties of communication are the frequency of
communication meetings and the size of the group communicating” (p. 5). The group content
addresses a topic that the group will be processing. Group content is activities, subject matter,
spoken words, stories, topics, and emotions displayed. Group process addresses topics being
discussed among the group members. During the performing stage, the group process
addresses emotions, thought patterns, perceptions, and solutions to the content being
processed through group members. Group leaders will be able to identify how group members
are identifying with one another, their emotional tone, non-verbal cues, i.e., eye contact, body
posture, facial expressions, head nods, and being intentionally focused or distracted.
Group content and process is where group members can build an internal foundation of
stability. This is where they can become a homogeneous group, developing similar
characteristics and behaviors that can be carried over into their personal lives. Through the
group process, members can practice learned skills, change thinking and behavioral patterns,
learn emotional regulation, challenge irrational beliefs, and work on changing negative internal
communication (Patrick Hoffmann, 2023).
References
Brown, N. W. (2018). Psychoeducational Groups: Process and Practice, 4th Edition. New York,
NY: Routledge.
Laoyan, S. (2025). What are the stages of group development? Asana, 5.
McCalla, T. (2024). Stages of group development. Academia, 5.
Patrick Hoffmann, *. S.-T. (2023). Analyzing group communication dynamics and content in a
common-pool resource experiment. National Library of Medicine (NLM), 20.
The storming stage is characterized by conflict and competition among group members. Here is
where participants push the envelope with other members and the group leader. What I have
observed during this stage of development is that group members bring certain temperaments
to the environment, such as challenging each other, challenging the leader with information or
knowledge they have gained from past experiences (Maccalla, 2024, p. 4). Such as trying to run
the group because they feel they have more knowledge than the leader.
Group members in the storming stage are finding their place or trying to create a space
for development. “This is also where the more dominant group members emerge, while other
less confrontational members stay in the comfort and security of suppressing their feelings just
as they did in the previous stage of forming” (p. 5). The group leader must have strong
boundaries, as you have mentioned in your thread, confrontational skills, and use an
authoritative leadership style until the group members are accustomed to the structure of the
group dynamic. During the storming stage, the group leader must understand that some group
members are experiencing anxiety, ambivalence, and seeking security within the group and the
group leader. As a leader, an extensive amount of compassion, empathy, and nurturing needs to
be evident among the members. The leader must show their humanness while remaining
professional. The group members in the storming stage are looking for guidance from the leader
and are observing the leader's sincerity and investment into the goals the group members are
seeking to accomplish.
The storming stage is a very sensitive stage for group members, noting that there are
suppressed emotions, group members' defensiveness is high, and group members are facing the
crossroads of continuing to engage with the group or dropping the group altogether. The group
leaders must be very observant of all non-verbal communication, such as how the participant is
sitting, whether they are making eye contact, and whether they are engaged with others in the
group.
I apprecate your insight on the storming stage of group development. I found it
interesting how you were able to incorporate scritpture from the book of Acts 9:26 where Saul
whose name was changed to Paul has been accepted by Barnabas, and his conversion
questioned by the apostles of Jesus Christ. As you shared on the development and transistion of
emotions of group members, it is clear the 12 disciples went through the five stages themselves
as Jesus was their leader, teacher, counselor, and the role model for how they were to behave
among nonbelievers. Counselors are to be like Jesus where we buffer disruptions, encourage
growth, educate, and allow the group members to learn from their mistakes and help them to
discover areas where change is needed. I chose to discuss the preforming stage and as you
mentioned scripture I can aquate this to when Jesus sent out the 12 two by two, Mark 6:7-13. It
is a testament to the group and the group leader to see how humans are able to come together
through accomplishing a common goal. According to McCalla (2024), “ The preforming stage is
when the group is working effectively towards it therapeutic goal. Member are engaged,
supportive, and learning from each other” ( p. 3). The disciples returned to Jesus in excitement,
proclaiming Luke 10:17 “ The seventy-two returned with joy and said, Lord, even the demons
submit to us in your name” (New International Version). As Jesus spoke with the disciples, the
counselor must also help group members understand all that is involved in a new way of living. I
caution my clients to be aware and understand that ‘life is living’ and to remember that every
day holds a blessing, even when it seems there is no blessing to be seen. During the performing
stage, group members need to understand that we are divine beings having a natural
experience.
