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Reflection Essay
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Reflection Essay
In the anger management therapy video, the leaders, Ed Jacobs and Christine Schimmel,
focus on making the group understand that anger results from personal factors rather than
external influence. During the session, the leaders begin by asking the group members about
people or situations that have influenced their participation. From the answers, Ed and Christine
clarify that having expectations is the cause of all anger since all group members state that
another person "should" perform a certain task to avoid confrontation. Instead, Christine advises
the group that instead of focusing on what someone else should or should not do, it is better to
understand that people are different. The leaders then explain that accepting the differences
among people leads to a sense of acceptance, which eliminates the feeling that a person ought to
perform a certain task in a specific manner. Ed and Christine also explain that having
expectations leads to anger, which affects other people, like shaking a bottle of soda then
opening it. For a better understanding, the leaders use props, such as a grey chair, fuses, a
wooden chair, a bottle of soda, and an empty wine bottle. Among these props, the most effective
was the wooden chair due to its efficient use. Here, Christine asked Adrian, one of the group
members, to hug her with the chair held against his chest, which was impossible. Therefore, the
prop was effective since the activity was a good visual representation of the effect of
expectations on relationships (Jacobs & Schimmel, n.d, 22:00-22:30). With the chair
representing the issues between Adrian and his wife, seeing Adrian struggle to hug Christine led
to a better understanding of how expectations and anger lead to closedness rather than unity.
The leadership style used by Ed and Christine was interpersonal. During the group
meeting, the leaders focused on creating a good communicative environment and inspired the
members to improve various habits through interactions (Forsyth, 2018). Ed and Christine also
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demonstrated various leadership skills, with the most common being co-leadership, clarification
and questioning, and mini-lecturing and information giving (Jacobs et al., 2015). Regarding co-
leadership, the leaders assist each other in clarifying points, making assertions, and picking up
cues not seen by the other to enhance the group dynamics. An example of co-leading is when
Christine adds to Ed's question about factors that make each member angry. On this matter,
Christine clarifies by stating that the question can also entail stating "or at least who you think
does that, who you think caused you to be angry;” thus, expanding the scope of the question to
allow every member to contribute (Jacobs & Schimmel, n.d, 00:30-00:43). Another commonly
demonstrated leadership skill is clarification and questioning. During the discussion, the leaders
ask many questions to clarify or understand the group members’ thoughts about the discussion.
For instance, Ed asks Jen to clarify why her ex-husband is the cause of her anger (Jacobs &
Schimmel, n.d, 01:30-01:40). Another instance is when Ed asks Fran what she thinks about
Matt’s explanation that the chairs symbolize that a person has a choice of whether to think or
have a short fuse. Fran explains that explanation makes her think of ways she could avoid
exploding by accepting the habits of co-workers rather than having expectations (Jacobs &
Schimmel, n.d, 23:00-25:09). Through clarification and questioning, the group members have a
better understanding of each other and can reflect on the discussion and personal life aspects.
Lastly, the other most effective leadership skill employed was mini-lecturing and information
giving (Jacobs et al., 2015). Concerning this skill, both leaders educate the group members about
the impact of thoughts on feelings. For example, Ed uses Luke’s situation to explain the need for
a person to get expectations in line with reality (Jacobs & Schimmel, n.d, 16:50-17:30). From the
example, the group members understood the importance of having a different perspective rather
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than expecting people to perform in a particular way. Therefore, mini-lecturing and information
giving educated the group members about the best way of handling situations that lead to anger.
According to Forsyth, group dynamics are influential interpersonal activities happening
in groups (Forsyth, 2018). While watching the video, group dynamics are evident due to changes
in the group members’ interactions and participation. At the beginning of the discussion, the
group was in its forming stage due to introductions and explanations that link the members.
Moreover, all members were quiet initially, apart from when asked to speak; thus, showing signs
of uncertainty and anxiousness. After the initial discussion, the group's dynamics shifted due to a
conflict between the group members and the leaders. On this note, all members held that anger
was caused by external factors, whereas the leaders asserted that anger is a result of internal
expectations. At this point, Fran and Adrian believe that other people need to change to avoid
anger, whereas Jen holds that her actions are solely a reaction to her ex-husband’s arguments.
After several discussions around the issue, the group members begin to understand the effect of
expectations on anger and each person's contribution to personal anger. The group then begins to
agree that having expectations affects the reaction one has to another person, which causes anger
and bad relationships. The members also appear to be more comfortable and contribute willingly
to the discussion (Jacobs & Schimmel, n.d). Finally, the group members understand the lesson,
grasp the group's purpose, and are more involved in the discussion.
Apart from sitting in a circle, the leaders could have improved on the session by using
more props and asking every member to relate every aspect to their issues. Instead of only using
one person as an example, Ed and Christine could have asked each member to explain how
various concepts could apply to their specific case. A lost opportunity for the leaders was
creating a platform that would allow the members to follow up on each other's progress since
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Christine stated that subsequent sessions would be individual since the aim is to focus on the
specific issue affecting each member. I would have led the group differently by using role-
playing to increase the members' participation. I would also focus more on exploring the group
members’ understanding of the message addressed in the group by asking every person to
comment or reflect on how a particular idea could apply to personal situations (Jacobs &
Schimmel, n.d). On another matter, the session supports a biblical view of persons by conveying
solutions that correlate to teachings such as “wise people think before they act” (New Living
Translation Bible, 2015, Prov. 13:16). An effective way of integrating a biblical perspective into
a group like this is by quoting the bible since referring to a supernatural being profoundly affects
believers. Lastly, I have gained new insights about myself as an emerging group leader. One of
these insights is that I need to improve my ability to create a friendly environment that supports
collaboration and communication by balancing informal and formal discussions. Another insight
gained is the need to be an active listener and a collaborative leader since the activities influence
group members to participate in discussions willingly. The other insight gained is that I possess
most leadership skills such as questioning, information giving, active listening, self-disclosure,
and the use of voice and eyes.
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References
Forsyth, D. R. (2018). Group dynamics. Cengage Learning.
Jacobs, E. E., Schimmel, C. J., Masson, R. L., & Harvill, R. L. (2015). Group counseling:
Strategies and skills. Cengage learning.
Jacobs, E., & Schimmel, C. Anger Management Therapy [Video]. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
New Living Translation Bible. (2015). BibleGateaway Online.
https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-Living-Translation-NLT-Bible/#vinfo
