Group members' assessment of their conductor in small analytic group

In this pilot study the authors present the group members' assessment of their conductor in group analysis--the treatment conducted in accordance with concept >>group-as-a-whole<< of S. H. Foulkes. There will be presented the results obtained by scale for evaluation of characteristics of the group therapist. In the scale, developed by the authors of the study, there were 30 items and by factorial analysis it gave three interpretable factors: authenticity, empathy and distrust. By self-evaluation the members of three small groups, i.e. 20 patients, ranked characteristics of their conductor. The patients, assessing the degree of their accordance with 30 items of the evaluation scale, expressed whether and how much they experienced their conductor as an authentic, empathic and trustworthy person. While in the beginning of the group analytic process the conductor's role was important, his importance decreased as the group-as-a-whole developed. Group experience became more important than the conductor. In other words, the group itself became the therapist, what is one more the proof of the Foulkes' concept of >>the group-as-a-whole<<.