Group Analysis and Business: Creating an Enterprise from a Group Analytic Perspective

Alfonso D'Auria

You can choose to see the original PowerPoint presentation by clicking the link below

Alfonso D’Auria 2 Slides GROUP ANALYSIS AND BUSINESS, SYMPOSIUM BELGRADE 2023 for Contexts

GASI SYMPOSIUM 2023

23th-28th August, Belgrade (Online Paper)

www.psicologodibase.com

Abstract 1/2

The paper will deal with a business project, organized with a group-analytic point of view, for the creation of a national network (in Italy) of Psychologists and Psychotherapists, who offer a private service of basic psychology, psychotherapy and group workshops of personal growth (prevention and psychological well-being).

The Project was already presented at the last GASI Summer School 2022 in Dublin, showing its development after six months from its start and focusing on the concept of responsibility (individual, group and institutional), as a fundamental element for the realization and development of the project.

Abstract 2/2

This time, I analyze the structural development of the organization after one year and a half from its start, focusing on the institutional dynamic matrix and the “interventions” (creating new groups for the participants like Social Dreaming and Large Group) through the withdrawing of the CEO (like a Group Analyst does with his/her group) that promotes the horizontal communications between the participants.

This process would have to increase trust in colleagues and in the institution and improve the awareness of the Mission and the feeling of belonging to the project and to the Brand Identity.

Vision

Our Vision, our dream, is to create a National Community of Freelance Psychologists and Psychotherapists, which bases its foundations on the values of Trust, Solidarity and Cooperation between colleagues and which offers citizens a Private Basic (Primary Care) Psychology Service.

By Basic (Primary Care) Psychology we mean the field of clinical psychology that deals with the reception of the first request for psychological help by the citizen.

Mission

The Mission of our Project is to Select, Train, Coordinate and Promote Psychologists and Psychotherapists, freelancers, who choose to organize themselves in teams, to train together through the Group and who want to operate in the field of:

  • Basic Psychology (Primary Care Psychology), through the reception of the first request for help from the citizen;
  • Prevention, through the promotion of psychological well-being with Personal Growth Groups;
  • Care (Psychological Support and Psychotherapy);
  • Scientific Disclosure of Psychology, through the publication of blog articles, videos and podcasts on our social channels.

Territoriality

Territoriality, i.e. the physical presence of the offices in the area, is a fundamental characteristic of the structure of our project.

By Project Headquarters we do not mean a single physical studio, but a specific territorial area where there are the studios of the psychologists of that specific territory.

Requests for help and psychological advice from citizens are managed by the group of psychologists of the territorial Project Headquarter.

Communication

Communication between colleagues is the main, distinctive and structuring element that characterizes being part of our project.

Communication and interaction is not only in a bidirectional and vertical formbetween the psychologists and the institution that contains the project (Mind The Group Srl), but horizontal communication is stimulated and favored between all project colleagues, in the various containers (groups) at the various levels of the structure.

The group

The Group is the central element of our Project:

  • Headquarter Group, max. 5, face to face and/or online, free;
  • InterVision Group, max. 12, online, monthly, convened by a Supervisor;
  • Large Group, online, every 2 months, convened by Angelo Silvestri and Simona Negro;
  • Social Dreaming, online, every 2 months, convened by Alice Mulasso and Ivan Ambrosiano;
  • Plenary, online, every 3 months, convened by Alfonso D’Auria and Rosanna Nastro (The members of Mind The Group Srl);
  • Facebook Group, online, always active, slow open to the outside.

Supervisors

The Supervisor, Group Analyst or Group Psychoanalyst, has the role of Group Convenerand the function of facilitating the discussion and helping the group to structure itself as an autonomous “working group“ (Foulkes, Bion).

Supervisors are not among the psychologist colleagues who offer services on the web portal.

They are in a more “external” position which does not place them in a condition of conflict of interest and which gives them the possibility of having a broader and more lucid vision of the global process.

They appear to be Institutional Supervisors of the Project as a whole.

Participation

Only through participation it is possible to get to know the other colleagues and enter “fully” into the process that develops from the project structure.

Participation is also an index of the feeling of belonging and the type of bond with the institution as a whole.

Colleagues are only required to participate in the monthly InterVision group, leaving participation in Social Dreaming, Large Group and in Plenary as optional.

Difficulty in the process

  • Strong tendency to dependency
  • Psychologists are focused on the concrete need rather than the potential to be part of a network
  • Need of time to structure a feeling of belonging
  • Conflict between autonomy and cooperation
  • Difficulty in sharing the Vision and in “firing” the desire for achieving the Mission
  • Difficulty in accepting risk and responsibility

Bond with the project and the institution 1/2

  • The bond with the project recalls the group-analytic therapeutic group, and oscillates between the two poles of autonomy-freedom-isolation and interdependence-cooperation-being part of a community
  • Psychologists who decide to join the project are mainly driven by the need to work as freelancers (receive patients, in consultation and psychotherapy) and they pay to be part of the part of the Project
  • Initially the relationship was mainly of the “employee” type despite the contractual bond keeping them in a free professional condition

Bond with the project and the institution 1/2

  • To join the Project, they are required to follow and respect the rules of the SETTING, defined by the guidelines given by the CEO and the rules defined in the contract
  • Just as it happens within an analytic group, responsibility and power are located at the group level
  • For the realization and development of the project, it is essential that a relationship of trust is established with the leadership and with the other members, in all the groups of the structure and that the members have to participate “freely” and “actively”

 Function and responsibility of leadership

  • “Direct” the project and colleagues towards achieving the mission
  • Manage the expectation of reference and primary communication with the leader rather than with the group
  • Activate a process of withdrawing into the background
  • Detect and entrust the individual colleagues and groups with their responsibilities
  • Stimulate an “horizontal” and circular communication between the colleagues of the project
  • Promote “autonomy” of functioning of colleagues and groups

Some data on the development of the project 1/2

Since the portal went online in November 2021, we have received:

  • visits from 50,522 users (Google Analytics data);
  • around 1,800 have actually contacted one of our Project Headquarter (data communicated by adhering colleagues);
  • around 600 have carried out the initial psychological consultation;
  • around 60% decided to continue with a psychological support or psychotherapy, for a total of around 360;

Some date on the development of the project 2/2 

  • Face-to-face, consultation, support and psychotherapy sessions are more than 90% of the requests received and accepted;
  • Currently, after several releases and new entries, we have 21 Local Project Headquarters in 5 Italian Regions and 7 Provinces (Rome, Turin, Milan, Monza-Brianza, Cagliari, Pescara and Chieti), for a total of 38 psychologists and psychotherapists.

Conclusion

As it has been possible to deduce from the previous brief description of the structure and organization, the specific and characteristic aspects of our project are:

  • the professional autonomy of the basic psychologist, specifically from the figure of the general practitioner, establishing direct contact with the citizen’s request for psychological help;
  • the territoriality of our Project Headquarters, favoring the relationship in presence with the patient;
  • the competence of our psychologists through continuous group training, in order to be able to offer citizens a quality service;
  • accessibility to our basic psychology service, applying the formula of the first three sessions at 60 euros (total cost);
  • internal cooperation between project colleagues, through communication and active participation in different training groups.

 

Alfonso D’Auria, Psychologist, Psychoanalytic Psychotherapist, Group Analyst, Full Member GASI

alfonsodauria@gmail.com