Discussion Skills in Groups
Discussion skills in groups
To be human is to interact with other people, to relate to others, often in groups. In groups a whole series of dynamics occur. People will have different reasons for being in a group, will want differing things out of it, may not get on equally well with everyone in that group.
Many of the groups we are in have a social purpose, meeting friends, going on holiday, working on a task. Whilst we may not think about it consciously we need a range of personal/social skills to relate well with others, to come to agreements, to achieve group goals.
This is particularly the case when we have to co-operate with others in order to achieve a specific work goal. In particular this occurs when working in small discussion groups, when having to make a presentation or when involved in social, political or environmental action.
This document is about what you need to know and the skills that you need to develop in order to do that well.
1. FEELING SAFE
What comes up
I wonder what comes up for you when you find yourself in a group? Some of the feelings will probably be: Who are these people? Will I like them?
Will they like me? What if someone criticises me? Or it could be: This should be fun. I’m looking forward to this. I might learn something new here. I might make new friends. Probably it will be a mix of the two.
But notice that in each case what comes up are quite strong feelings. This is normal - for everyone. The important thing is to pay attention to them, to listen to them, to see what they tell you about yourself. The affective
(feeling) domain is equally as important as the cognitive (thinking) domain in social experience.
Some of the feelings you will have when first in a group will be to do with safety. Does it feel OK to be here? Are these people I want to be with? If you have chosen who you are with this may partly be on the basis of how safe you feel with them, supported and respected by them. Remember
To be human is to interact with other people, to relate to others, often in groups. In groups a whole series of dynamics occur. People will have different reasons for being in a group, will want differing things out of it, may not get on equally well with everyone in that group.
Many of the groups we are in have a social purpose, meeting friends, going on holiday, working on a task. Whilst we may not think about it consciously we need a range of personal/social skills to relate well with others, to come to agreements, to achieve group goals.
This is particularly the case when we have to co-operate with others in order to achieve a specific work goal. In particular this occurs when working in small discussion groups, when having to make a presentation or when involved in social, political or environmental action.
This document is about what you need to know and the skills that you need to develop in order to do that well.
1. FEELING SAFE
What comes up
I wonder what comes up for you when you find yourself in a group? Some of the feelings will probably be: Who are these people? Will I like them?
Will they like me? What if someone criticises me? Or it could be: This should be fun. I’m looking forward to this. I might learn something new here. I might make new friends. Probably it will be a mix of the two.
But notice that in each case what comes up are quite strong feelings. This is normal - for everyone. The important thing is to pay attention to them, to listen to them, to see what they tell you about yourself. The affective
(feeling) domain is equally as important as the cognitive (thinking) domain in social experience.
Some of the feelings you will have when first in a group will be to do with safety. Does it feel OK to be here? Are these people I want to be with? If you have chosen who you are with this may partly be on the basis of how safe you feel with them, supported and respected by them. Remember