Group Reflection Paper

The group that I participated in was the parents without partners group that provides support for women who are raising children on their own as well as providing resources to encourage empowerment. The group consisted of women from middle to high income socioeconomic backgrounds and appeared to be independent and educated women. Zoe and Kayla facilitated the group while Vanina, Abby, Michelle, Karen, Stephanie, and I were the participants. There were many issues that were brought up in the group, but not discussed. The main issue that was addressed was the confidentiality issue that arose between Karen and Stephanie the week prior. There were several issues that ascended during the group session such as internal conflicts between members,

The norms were brought up overtly, as a reminder of the rules that were created when the group was first created. As the session continued, covert norms began to surface and overpower the session. Toseland and Rivas (2017) describe how covert norms employ important influences on the way members behave and interact without ever being discussed or addressed. A covert norm that began to appear was the bold attitude of the group members. Some members would respond to one another with an attitude, and I noticed as the session continued, I began to respond similarly. Unintentionally, I had adopted the impudent attitude and behavior. I noticed that at the beginning of the group, each member felt more comfortable to talk. As the group progressed, it became more uncomfortable to talk and some members stayed quiet and withdrawn. The other members who felt comfortable enough to talk and respond, became the dominant personalities of the group, and played the overpowering roles. It appeared that Karen, Abby, and I were the members who voiced and expressed freely how we felt, while Vanina, Michelle, and Stephanie were quieter and reserved. The dominant personalities were given too much freedom and attention while the others were not, except when Stephanie redirected the focus on Michelle. The facilitators tried to guide the development of the norms and roles but did not continue to reinforce them, which led to an unbalance of power in the group. The members appeared to be in control, while the facilitators seemed uneasy and