This is the third and final special issue in facilitating encounter, at least for the time being. We have been delighted by the level of interest in this subject and hope that the scholarship these issues have presented inspire more research and writing.
This issue comprises seven papers. In the first, Rachel Yates and Julie Hayley present their personal experiences of setting up an encounter group as students who were trying to be organizers, but being put in the role of facilitators. They reflect on their positions and report from research they conducted into the experiences of participants of encounter groups, arguing for the ongoing value of such experiences as person centered counselors.
The paper of Magda Draskóczy also reports from the organizer’s position. It was one of the first accepted papers from an overwhelming response to our call. She unfolds her theoretical and practical reflections on facilitating encounter from a long term encounter group in Hungary that is still in progress. What is special about this group is that there are no ratified facilitators. On the contrary, Draskóczy describes that they want ‘to have an arrangement in which every member of the group is in an equal power position’, where they ‘share the responsibility to the group’ and ‘mutually help one another and … cover the cost of … [their] participation’. Thus she hits one of the crucial points of facilitating encounter in a group namely that of holding and sharing responsibility.
Next, Colin Lago, John Wilson and Dot Clark give insights into the way they train facilitating skills by oscillating between experience and reflection mainly in group situations and thus present their model of training.
Susanna Markowitsch, Leonore Langner and Michaela Zolles take a rather theoretical position compared to the previous outlined papers. They start with a definition of ‘encounter’, which serves as a basis for reflecting, among other issues, on the role of encounter facilitators; on the importance of interpersonal relationship; on trust in the potential of the group; and on the processes of encounter groups as well as of facilitated teams. They conclude with exploding some myths around person-centered encounter groups.
Mark T. Harrison continues this theoretical approach on the subject of the special issue. He puts congruence in the heart of his considerations of encounter taking the context of therapy and encounter group into account. In an example of his own group experience, he brings his theoretical considerations into life.
The contribution of Takashi Oshie sheds light on a field that is rarely in focus when it comes to encounter: children. The first section informs the reader about community play therapy in Japan. We are then taken deep into the case of Riky, which is used as a basis for reflecting on facilitating encounter in play therapy and within the context of diversity.
Finally, Divine Charura follows his interest in what therapists experience when they co-facilitate large group encounters within the frame of an empirical study. In the semi-structured interviews he conducted, mainly with very experienced therapists, he gathers rich material. Charura’s work allows not only a deep insight into these experiences; he also interprets the material carefully using the method Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. The paper comprises the results of this analysis as well as a very personal discussion of the latter.
We hope you enjoy and are inspired by these broad and deep contributions to the field of encounter and want to thank each other, all our contributors and reviewers as well as the marvelous team of PCEP for the fabulous cooperation.
Additional information
Notes on contributors
Aglaja Przyborski
Aglaja Przyborski, Ph.D. is full Professor of Psychotherapy at the Bertha von Suttner Privat University, St. Pölten, Austria. She is also teaching Psychotherapy at APG•IPS, Institute for Personcentred Studies, is an active researcher in the field psychotherapy, counseling, communication, and media, has contributed to the development of Qualitative Methods and published a number of respective books and papers.
Gillian Proctor
Gillian Proctor, D. Clin. Psych. is a lecturer in counseling and psychotherapy at the University of Leeds, UK. Her particular interests and field of publication are in the area of ethics, politics and power. She is also an independent clinical psychologist and research supervisor.
Renata Fuchs
Renata Fuchs is managing director of zb-zentrum für beratung, training & entwicklung, Lower Austria and she is teaching Psychotherapy at APG•IPS, Institute for Personcentred Studies, Sigmund Freud Private University Vienna and Bertha von Suttner University Sankt Pölten