Trauma Informed Care: Principles & Power Dynamics

• Trauma-informed services acknowledge violence's impact on development and coping mechanisms.
• Trauma recovery is a core goal in trauma-informed practice.
• Empowerment and survivor control are essential in trauma-informed approaches.
• Collaborative relationships and a sense of safety, respect, and acceptance must be established.
• Strengths and resilience should be emphasized, and re-traumatization possibilities must be minimized.
• The role of culture and context in life experiences should be recognized.
• Survivor input should be included in service evaluation and design.
• These principles aid practitioners in being alert to trauma triggers, employing containment strategies, and fostering safe, supportive environments.

Forms of Power

• Power can manifest as reward, coercion, legitimacy, expertise, reference, or information.
• Status hierarchies influence group dynamics among members and facilitators.

Social Work Values

• Social work values include respecting dignity and worth, promoting social justice, pursuing truth and reconciliation.
• Valuing human relationships, preserving integrity, maintaining privacy, and providing competent services are key.

Competent Practice

• Group workers should assist members in developing mutual aid systems.
• Respect for group processes, fostering autonomy, and enabling independent group function are critical.
• Facilitators create conditions for members to apply group experiences beyond the group.

Group Definition

• Groups share an identity, unity, common goals, and norms.
• Communication, standardized roles, and interdependence characterize groups.
• Unlike aggregates or collectivities, groups have a distinct social structure.

Early Influences

• Early group work stemmed from social reform, settlement houses, and therapeutic communities.
• It evolved through community-based interventions and self-help models.

Empowerment Goals

• Empowerment practice supports self-determination and autonomy.
• It encourages mutual aid and strengths-based collaboration.
• Addressing power imbalances and fostering inclusivity are goals.

Diversity

• Diversity is relational, shaped by power dynamics and social context.
• Strengths-based approaches emphasize learning and growth through varied perspectives.

Intersectionality

• Intersectionality highlights the interconnectedness of identity aspects and experiences of oppression or privilege.
• Social location influences interactions within the group.

Group Worker Skills

• Skills include encouraging respect and belonging, addressing tensions and biases, and using inclusive language.
• Self-awareness strategies are also important when working with groups.

Social Work Ethics

• Based on CASW and IASWG standards, it emphasizes respect, autonomy, and social justice.
• Confidentiality, informed consent, and ethical accountability are central.

Professional Use of Self

• Requires self-awareness, emotional regulation, and appropriate self-disclosure.
• Workers balance personal feelings with professional objectivity.

Group Types and Their Characteristics

• Task groups address social conditions or service delivery.
• Intervention groups prioritize personal change, support, or therapy.

Group Planning Steps

• Conduct a needs assessment, define the purpose and structure, and recruit and select members.
• Development of session plans, addressing diversity, and setting evaluation criteria are key.

Ethical Accountability

• Social workers are accountable to professional ethics codes, agency policies, and community needs.

Co-Facilitation

• Benefits include shared responsibility and diverse perspectives.
• Challenges include differing facilitation styles and potential power imbalances.

Group Development Models

• Common models include Tuckman’s (forming, storming, norming, performing, adjourning) and other process-oriented frameworks.

Power Analysis

• Power dynamics influence participation, decision-making, and conflict resolution.

Beginning Stage Ethics

• Focus on establishing trust, confidentiality, ensuring informed consent, and addressing expectations.

Overarching Goals

• Include fostering collaboration, growth, and collective problem-solving.

Leadership

• Leaders facilitate discussion, manage conflict, and empower members.

Middle Stage Skills

• Active listening, conflict mediation, and promoting engagement are key skills.

Contemporary Roles

• Emerging roles include peer mentors, advocates, and facilitators.

Role Plays

• Role plays help members practice new behaviors in a safe environment.

Intervening

• When groups are stagnant, reassess goals and explore underlying issues.

Professional Use of Self

• Maintaining awareness of personal biases and their impact is crucial.

Successful Endings

• Involves reflection, feedback, and closure rituals.

Evaluation Methods

• Include satisfaction surveys, qualitative reflections, and structured assessments.

Evaluating Group Workers

• Peer feedback, supervisor evaluations, and self-assessment are used.

Trauma-informed care recognizes violence's effects on development and coping. It prioritizes trauma recovery, empowerment, and survivor control. Collaborative, safe relationships are key, emphasizing strengths and cultural context to minimize re-traumatization.