Introduction to Group Work Practice, An (4th Edition)

This text provides the most comprehensive information available about group dynamics and working with people in a variety of treatment and task-oriented groups.

The student receives a thorough grounding in how to work with either treatment (ongoing) or task (special focus) groups, in settings that vary from treatment to organizational and community settings. Chapters on the history of groups, group dynamics, group leadership, and diversity help the reader build a solid knowledge base about groups.

Later chapters follow a problem-solving model, taking the student through the phases of group work (planning, beginning, assessing, working, evaluating, and ending), and provide the student with useful practice skills for working with groups in each phase of his or her development.

This edition includes the most up-to-date research on groups and new developments in the field of group work. The bibliography and references have also been updated. New case studies in Chapters 6-14 illustrate the six stages of the social group work process to help students apply the theory to actual social work practice.

An Introduction to Group Work Practice, 6/e

By: Ronald W. Toseland of the University at Albany, State University of New York

& Robert F. Rivas of Siena College

Basic Approach

The perfect text for preparing students to work with either treatment (ongoing) or task (special focus) groups, this newly revised edition offers the most up-to-date research available in the social work field.

An Introduction to Group Work Practice, Sixth Edition, continues to stress the importance of developing skills in group work and provides the most comprehensive information available on the market today. Students receive thorough preparation in areas that vary from treatment to organizational and community settings. The addition of new case studies, practice examples, and guiding principles adds to the ease and readability of this popular text.

Highlights of the New Edition 

• MyHelpingKit: A multimedia tool that containsVideo Clips, Learning Objectives, Chapter Summaries, Flashcards, Research Navigator access, Cases, and more! (Available at no additional charge for students when value-packaged with a new textbook.  Please contact your local sales representative for details:www.ablongman.com/replocator ).
• New section on working with self-help groups.

• Expanded and updated research-based literature throughout that exposes students to more evidence-based practice and includes many examples from the authors' real life cases
• Contains many more short case examples throughout the text allowing students to see how content can be applied in practice settings, helping to reinforce chapter content.
• Greater focus on short-term psycho-educational groups.
• New techniques such as visualization and deep breathing have been added to the working stage of treatment groups.
• A new section on working with involuntary group members prepares students for leadership roles in groups with mandated clients in the beginning as well as the middle stages of group work.

What Your Colleagues are Saying

“I am very comfortable with the approach of this text. It feels very ordered and natural. I particularly like how the chapters move through the various phases of group work, beginning with more general information (group dynamics, leadership) and moving through the progressive stages of group development (planning, beginning, middle, and ending stages).”

 --Matthew T. Theriot, Universityof Tennessee-Knoxville

“This text is an excellent one! There are several strengths including: a very structured approach to leading groups. The text includes both treatment/intervention groups and task groups, which is a plus! I really like the textboxes with bulleted summaries, and the short vignettes. I think that the authors have a very inviting writing style . . . which makes it a useful text to teach content.”

 ― Nancy Kropf, GeorgiaState University