Journal articles

Using keyword Psychodrama

Author Title Issue Keywords Abstract Sequence
McVea, Charmaine How using psychodramatic production in supervision strengthens the emerging professional identity (PDF, 63.6 KB) Journal 32 December 2023 concretisation, insight, professional identity, Psychodrama, role reversal, supervisee, supervision In my experience of supervising new practitioners, I have noticed that simple psychodramatic interventions often have a profound impact on their spontaneity and confidence. One area of impact that I want to consider more fully, is how producing the supervisee’s presenting issue can bring into awareness some things that they already know and assist them to articulate their understanding and principles of practice. This has the effect of further integrating what they have learnt into their practice and strengthens their emerging professional identity. 9 2023-12
Synnot, Elizabeth Praxis: Using psychodrama methodology to respond to the existential threat of climate change (PDF, 109.5 KB) Journal 32 December 2023 climate change, creativity, environment, modelling, Moreno, Psychodrama, research, sociodrama, systems theory What follows is the backdrop of climate change that affects all life on planet Earth. As a sociodramatist, at times, I work directly with this existential threat. I have found that research is needed to be able to direct a sociodrama on a general topic of ‘What matters today?’ or more directly on ‘Responding to climate change with hope and agency’. The content presented here is correct in 2023. As you’d expect the science refines each year. 2 2023-12
Levack, Glenis Creating a New Warm Up to Learning (PDF, 114.6 KB) Journal 31 December 2022 as if, coaching, doubling, encounter, J L Moreno, learning style, mirroring, parents, Psychodrama, relationship, role, role training, warm up Teenagers who are pregnant or who have a young child face many challenges in returning to school, especially when they have had a number of earlier learning experiences that have been discouraging. In this article, factors resulting in students feeling that they lack the capacity to learn are acknowledged and interventions that assist them to have a new experience of learning are described. 20 2022-12
Whisker, Craig Tauhara Encounter: Reflections on a Residential Psychodrama Group Session (PDF, 129.8 KB) Journal 31 December 2022 audience, auxiliary, auxiliary ego, creativity, director, doubling, encounter, mirroring, Moreno, production, protagonist, Psychodrama, psychotherapy, reflections, relationship, role, role reversal, sharing, spontaneity, tele, warm up Since 2013 I have co-led with either Marian Hammond or Selina Reid, and have twice led by myself, an annual winter residential psychodrama retreat at the Tauhara Retreat Centre located above Acacia Bay on Taupō-nui-a-Tia, Lake Taupō near the centre of Te Ika-o-Māui, the North Island of Aotearoa, New Zealand. On each occasion I write copious notes describing workshop sessions and my initial analyses and reflections on them and I jot down insights from between-session or end-of-day discussions with my co-leader. The process of writing while memories and impressions are still fresh captures what in days, even hours, may be unrecoverable. When I warm up to re-entering the stream of consciousness I had during the session I often perceive more than I did when in the group. These are unpolished perceptions. They include wonderings or conflicts that I form into questions or pose as contrasting points of view and they sometimes cause fragments of associative thought to surface from deep within my psyche, or a new perspective to suddenly appear like the bright green tip of a spring bud. 8 2022-12
Bennet, Trisha Gifts of Encounter at Death’s Door (PDF, 167.1 KB) Journal 30 December 2021 auxiliary, death, doubling, encounter, flow, healing, J L Moreno, nursing, patient, Psychodrama, relationship, spontaneity-creativity, tele, vulnerability, Zerka Moreno Acute vulnerability, rawness, honesty, courage and depth all coexist and surface in the journey towards death. “I don’t want to die!” “It’s not fair, I’ve done everything right.” “I was not expecting this!” “I’m not ready!” “How can I leave them?” “I’m really afraid!” “I can’t even think about it!” “It’s too much!” “You wouldn’t treat a dog like this.” “This is their fault.” “Go away.” Embedded in each of these statements are offerings that communicate ‘what is’ for the person, each of which may lead to encounter. 7 2021-12
Logeman, Walter The Value of Sociodrama in Psychodramatic Couple Therapy Training (PDF, 287.9 KB) Journal 30 December 2021 couple therapy, J L Moreno, Psychodrama, psychodrama training, psychodramatic couple therapy, relationship, sociodrama, sociodramatic couple, systems, tele This article focuses on the value of sociodrama in the training of psychodramatic couple therapists. The author describes the way in which a sociodramatic approach is employed to bring to life a ‘sociodramatic couple’, who later become the focus of training sessions in which the trainer and trainees explore the effectiveness of various interventions in couple therapy practice. Drawing on the illustrative material, the author reflects on the value of sociodrama in the development of the trainees, at both conscious and unconscious levels, and raises the possibility of applying a sociodramatic approach to training in related fields, such as individual therapy, family therapy and organisational development. 6
Begg, Ali Psychodrama Theory and Group Work in Reflective Practice Groups for GPs (PDF, 174.4 KB) Journal 29 December 2020 GP, hospital, patient, Psychodrama, role analysis Introduction: On obtaining certification as a psychodramatist I recall Max Clayton saying “Now the real learning begins” — and it certainly did! I got a job as a medical educator and have gradually transformed from being a GP on the treadmill of 15-minute consultations into a medical educator and group leader. When I wrote my AANZPA thesis “Psychodrama for Doctors” (Begg, 2005) I proposed psychodrama as a path to help doctors develop self-awareness and interpersonal relationship skills that would help medicine progress towards a new holistic medical paradigm. I imagined ways of using action methods in medical settings. I then experimented with various aspects of psychodramatic production as opportunity arose in my work for the NZ College of GPs’ education program — concretisation, action sociograms, role play etc. However, group work and psychodrama theory have proved the most useful aspects of my psychodrama training for my current work. This article is about my Reflective Practice Group for first year General Practitioners (GPs) which I have been leading for 13 years. I will introduce you to these groups and share some ways I see psychodrama theory and group leadership skills contributing to this work. Hopefully, this will be of interest and relevant to your work, especially if you run groups in settings where psychodrama is not explicitly practiced. 9 2020-12
van Kuilenburg, Philippa Distortion, Praise and Authenticity - The Power of Mirroring (PDF, 120.6 KB) Journal 29 December 2020 development, J L Moreno, mirroring, modelling, Psychodrama, relationship, role theory, Zerka Moreno Research has proven the need for positive social interactions for a child to survive (Poulton et al., 2020). A parent’s job therefore is to create a nurturing environment in which the child experiences themselves as being safe, loved and valued. For many of my clients their parents failed miserably in this duty of care as their particular way of engaging their child was through control, judgment and criticism. The child had repeated experiences of being victimised, humiliated, shamed, patronised and pathologized until their confidence was eroded, their perception of self skewed and their ability to relate severely impaired. Somehow however those children survived into adulthood and maintained a small kernel of hope for a different future that led them to sign up for an eight week skills based programme for women on anger management, identity, self worth and assertiveness. That’s when my work begins as I lead this self development programme. 7 2020-12
Brown, Hamish Directing Psychodrama on Stage (PDF, 143.4 KB) Journal 29 December 2020 director, encounter, humanity, love, photography, protagonist, Psychodrama, role It is 10 am. I am sitting at the edge of a horse shoe of 8 chairs on the stage of the dilapidated Crystal Palace Theatre in Mt Eden. It is freezing and a vast blackness stretches upwards and beyond the first few rows of chairs that I can make out. I draw my attention down and into the group, I take in the stage lights set up around the group, the lighting technician adjusting things at the edge of the circle, Yvonne looking on with her camera. Now I can see the people in the group I will be working with, some I know well and we exchange easy smiles, others are new to me and new to the psychodrama method, sent along by enthusiastic friends to a free workshop. Briefly, I get anxious as I consider their experience, this must seem crazy to them, to be sitting in this place among all of this. 6 2020-12
Knottenbelt, Hilde A Place to Meet: Reflections on Group Improvisational Processes on Zoom (PDF, 882.1 KB) Journal 29 December 2020 creativity, director, German, J L Moreno, Moreno, poetry, protagonist, Psychodrama, spontaneity, warm-up Introduction It’s been a month since I worked face-to-face. The studio is looking decidedly casual. It’s become a place to hang out rather than a place to work. In the first weeks of Covid-19 lockdown, as I considered what my working life might look like in the next while, the word ersatz came to me. It’s a term borrowed from the German language meaning replacement, substitute, imitation, fake. In WW1 and WW2 ersatzbrot (substitute bread) was made with potato starch and sawdust and fed to prisoners who starved of malnourishment. I don’t want to create ersatz anything. 3 2020-12
Tapley, Kate The Horse as an Auxiliary for Life - Natural horsemanship, psychodrama and leadership development (PDF, 178.2 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 auxiliary, healing, horse, human development, J L Moreno, leadership, Moreno, natural horsemanship, Psychodrama Natural horsewoman and psychodrama trainee Kate Tapley draws our attention to the horse as an auxiliary for life. Through her work training riders in natural horsemanship from a psychodramatic perspective, she has noticed that horses, unerring sentients that they are, act as auxiliaries for human beings, mirroring their inner often unconscious experience with immediacy and authenticity, and following only those riders who prove themselves willing to enter their here and now world of being-ness and presence, as ‘true leaders’. This article presents the application of this approach during a natural horsemanship workshop and the positive outcomes in terms of leadership development, healing and wholeness. 7 2019-12
O'Rourke, Patricia The Thinking Heart, The Loving Mind - The application of psychodrama in therapeutic reunification work with maltreated and neglected infants and their parents (PDF, 181.0 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 babies, child protection, infant, J L Moreno, Moreno, parents, Psychodrama, therapeutic reunification In this article, Patricia O’Rourke describes the way in which she applies psychodrama in her therapeutic reunification work with parents and babies in the child protection system in Australia. The paper was developed from a keynote address delivered to the Australian and Aotearoa New Zealand Psychodrama Association (AANZPA) Conference in Brisbane in January 2019. 6 2019-12
Clark, Cushla Staging the Therapeutic Experience - Using Moreno’s psychodrama stage in parenting groups for women (PDF, 259.9 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 action space, audience, balcony, enactment, J L Moreno, levels, Moreno, Psychodrama, psychodrama stage, spontaneity, warm up, warm up step Moreno proposed the psychodrama stage as the first instrument of psychodrama. He designed it with four levels, the audience, the warm up step, the action space and the balcony, which mirror the stages of a protagonist’s warming up process. Providing illustrations focused on the use of the warm up level or step and the balcony in parenting groups for women, Cushla Clark proposes that a psychodramatist who maintains consciousness of the structure of the Morenian stage, including improvising the different levels when physical constraints are present, is able to enhance a protagonist’s warm up to spontaneity and produce a full and satisfying dramatic enactment. This article is drawn from Cushla’s AANZPA thesis, Liberation via The Stage. 5 2019-12
Postlethwaite, Jenny From Rational to Relational - Reflections on embracing a psychodramatic approach in academic mentoring (PDF, 202.9 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 academic mentoring, conserved cultures, mentoring, Psychodrama, relational, spontaneity, university mentoring, vulnerability Many practitioners working in organisations will find themselves facing the challenge of heavily conserved systems and cultures. What might be the effect of embracing a psychodramatic approach in such contexts? Through the lens of a long running mentoring programme in two Australian universities, this article identifies the experience for the participating academics as novel and impactful, providing them with a springboard to develop and integrate a new relational capacity into their rational world. The positive effect is felt and seen within individual mentoring relationships and beyond, sparking spontaneity capable of shifting the wider university paradigm. 4 2019-12
Logeman, Walter Encounter - The heart of psychodramatic couple therapy (PDF, 183.1 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 begegnung, couple therapy, doubling, encounter, J L Moreno, love, mirroring, Moreno, natural groups, Psychodrama, relationship, role reversal, spontaneity, synthetic groups, tele This article is concerned with the application of psychodrama principles and practices to couple therapy. In particular, it explores Moreno’s philosophy of encounter, that meeting of two, ‘face to face and eye to eye’, which lies at the heart of psychodramatic couple therapy. Drawing on illustrative material, the author shows the way in which the psychodrama structure of warm up, action and sharing apply in a couple therapy session, with the encounter presenting as the action phase. He also describes the psychodramatic techniques of doubling, mirroring and role reversal as they are used to facilitate the encounter. 3 2019-12
McVea, Charmaine Spontaneity or Emotion as the Catalyst for Change - Corrective experiences in psychodrama (PDF, 320.2 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 action insight, corrective experience, emotion, emotion-focused therapy (EFT), Greenberg, J L Moreno, Moreno, Psychodrama, psychotherapy integration, research, social atom repair, spontaneity, transformation Corrective experiences are a common factor in effective therapies, often having profound transformative effects. While Greenberg proposes that the activation and processing of emotions produces corrective experiences, Moreno emphasises spontaneity as the therapeutic agent or catalyst of change. Drawing on research, Charmaine McVea argues for the greater efficacy of spontaneity. She proposes that spontaneity not only constitutes an outcome of corrective experiences but also contributes to the emergence of those experiences, specifically through the development of action insight and corrective interpersonal experience during psychodrama enactments. 2 2019-12
Oliphant, David Exploring J.L. Moreno’s Spirituality and Theology (PDF, 269.2 KB) Journal 28 December 2019 Psychodrama J.L. Moreno’s theological thoughts are not always taken seriously, even by those devoted to other aspects of his work. Yet clearly, they were foundational for him on any reasonable reading of his life. Creation and history are God’s stage for God’s psychodrama and Moreno got to be part of this in a very big and direct way, or so he believed. He role reversed with God and understood this as part of the unfolding of God’s subjectivity in history. Traditional theology thought of God as ‘object’. Now it was clear through Moreno’s experience that God was to be thought of as ‘subject’. God now no longer needed religion because he had entered the secular world fully, as spontaneity and creativity. This article explores some of the implications of this shift and highlights the centrality of our ‘responsibility’ as co-creators with Moreno’s God, which is the spontaneity-creativity of the universe. 1 2019-12
Farnsworth, John Boundary and Flow: Max Clayton and Psychodrama in Action (PDF, 155.7 KB) Journal 22 December 2013 boundary, containment, flow, Max Clayton, Psychodrama, psychotherapy, Winnicot What has containment to do with the vitality of the psychodramatic method? In this article, John Farnsworth recalls a vivid demonstration by Max Clayton in 2002 of how containment and flow relate to each other. Max also raised important questions about how closely psychodrama and psychotherapy relate through these concepts.The article investigates each of these concerns, illustrating them by investigating how boundary and flow appear in different settings, whether with individuals, groups, face-to-face or online. 13 2013-12
Logeman, Walter Moreno's Scientific Methodology: By, Of and For the People (PDF, 324.3 KB) Journal 24 December 2015 experimental design, Moreno, principles of sociometry, Psychodrama, scientific methodology, social science, spontaneity This paper is an exposition of the scientific methodology developed by Jacob Levy Moreno. It is based on an extensive reading of his writing and the discovery that the heart of his philosophy includes a research paradigm that incorporates human spontaneity and unpredictability. Six principles have been identified and formed into a working description so that research may be by the people, of the people, and for the people. The paper invites a greater consciousness of this research methodology. The author hopes that practitioners of psychodramatic methods will be encouraged to apply it in their work. 12 2015-12
Reekie, Don Creative Genius: A Spark in a Cloud of Unknowing (PDF, 111.9 KB) Journal 22 December 2013 creative genius, creativity, creator, director, genius, protagonist surplus reality, Psychodrama, spontaneity, tele and telic This article presents the author's conviction and work showing that a psychodrama director learns to follow the protagonist/client and trust a wide range of interactive communications. Their full nature may be hidden from the director. The protagonist can be unconscious of specifics or relevance. The writer accepts many cognitive functions of the central nervous system happen at a speed making conscious consideration impossible. Learning is not only an intentional act but is built into our mind-body functioning. This paper posits that the instances described involve dynamic inter-play of S factor (spontaneity) and C factor (creativity) within the Morenean universe of discourse, and considers creative genius as an integrative quality common in human functioning 13 2013-12
Boreman, Cinnamon; Turner, Sandra The Moving Forward Project: Reflecting on the Efficacy of Sociodrama and Playback Theatre in Addressing Family Violence (PDF, 184.6 KB) Journal 21 December 2012 domestic violence, family violence, playback theatre, Psychodrama, sociodrama The Moving Forward Project is a collective endeavour established in Dunedin, Aotearoa New Zealand to address family violence. It aims to raise awareness of the subtleties, complexities and systemic nature of domestic violence, reduce isolation for those affected by it, promote healing and strengthen moves towards change. In this article, facilitators Sandra Turner and Cinnamon Boreham describe the project's pilot programme. They discuss the way that, in designing the programme, they matched the systemic nature of family violence with the systemic perspectives of sociodrama and playback theatre. The authors also present the programme's participants and evaluation research undertaken with them at the programme's close. 12 2012-12
O'Rourke, Patricia; Warne, Heather Psychodrama and Infant Mental Health: An Essay and a Conversation (PDF, 154.1 KB) Journal 24 December 2015 infant mental health, Psychodrama The context for the work is an Infant Therapeutic Reunification Service. It is a joint health and child protection initiative in South Australia that works with 0-3 year-old infants who have been abused or neglected and their parent/s. Abusive parents come to the Service with minimal relational capacity and often actively work against being in relationship as their whole experience of relationship has been frightening. The focus of the work is learning to be in relationship. The client in the story has generously given permission for the work to be published and presented. Patricia O'Rourke: The reason for putting this piece of writing about this work into the psychodrama world is its eloquence. This work, and how we do it, is a synthesis or integration of psychodrama and infant mental health principles that enlarges both areas. 10 2015-12
Farnsworth, John Psychodrama at Distance: Effective Supervision Using Communication Technologies (PDF, 83.8 KB) Journal 20 December 2011 coaching, communication, distance supervision, doubling, email, internet, media, mirroring, new technologies, phone, Psychodrama, relationship, role reversal, social and cultural atom Psychodrama and electronic technologies seem unlikely bedfellows. As this paper demonstrates, they are, in fact, made for each other though surprisingly little has been written about their combined potential. Drawing on vignettes and case examples as illustration, John Farnsworth demonstrates how effective supervision can take place in the absence of a physical psychodrama stage. He describes the way in which he uses all aspects of the psychodrama method via email, phone, digital and online communications, to create warm, functional working relationships. Psychodramatists are invited to reflect on the way that psychodrama can and will be used in the emerging vibrant electronic worlds of the future. 11 2011-12
Selected Abstracts: The German Psychodrama Journal (PDF, 52.4 KB) Journal 15 December 2006 German, Journal, Psychodrama No abstract available 11 2006-12
Mapel, Tim Through a Glass Darkly: Coming Face to Face With Mirroring in Psychodrama (PDF, 122.0 KB) Journal 21 December 2012 Max Clayton, stages of human development, mirror technique, mirroring, Moreno, Psychodrama, Zerka Moreno Mirroring is a central element in psychodrama but the term is used in variable ways in different contexts. In this article, Tim Mapel investigates these various meanings. He focuses first on the historical development of the mirror concept in the writings of J.L. and Zerka Moreno, both as a therapeutic technique and as a stage of human development. Later writings, particularly contributions by Dr. Max Clayton, are then considered followed by a discussion of the contemporary uses of mirroring in psychodramatic production. What emerges is greater clarity regarding the concept and technique of mirroring. 12 2012-12
Howard, Katherine The Dance of Relationship: Using Moreno in Workplace Injury Rehabilitation (PDF, 90.2 KB) Journal 20 December 2011 coaching, creativity, cultural conserve, doubling, injury, mirroring, modelling, Moreno, Psychodrama, rehabilitation, role, role relationship, role reversal, role training, spontaneity, warm up, workplace Katherine Howard explores the use of Moreno's methods in what has become, in Morenian terms, a robotic workplace injury rehabilitation system. Presenting two case studies as illustration, she employs the metaphor of the dance of relationship to capture the way in which psychodramatic techniques transform difference and conflict into mutuality and cooperation, habitual coping roles into fluid and progressive functioning. This article is adapted from the author's 2010 Australian and New Zealand Psychodrama Association (ANZPA) accreditation thesis, Spontaneity and Creativity at Work: The Application of Morenian Methods in Workplace Injury Management. 11 2011-12
Seligman, Katerina Responses to the Threat of Climate Change: A Sociodramatic Exploration (PDF, 82.8 KB) Journal 20 December 2011 climate change, environment, global warming, Moreno, Psychodrama, role reversal, sociodrama, subgroups Katerina Seligman describes a sociodrama undertaken during a residential psycho- drama workshop, whereby sociodramatic questions regarding the global threat of climate change were posed, and a range of subgroup responses were explored. She begins with her personal story of exploration regarding climate change to warm the reader up to the sociodramatic enactment that follows. The author describes the way in which the enactment facilitated role reversal and a deepening of the understanding of conflicting values in relation to climate change. 11 2011-12
McIntosh, Wendy Walking with Moreno Take Two: Integrating Theory with Practice (PDF, 100.7 KB) Journal 20 December 2011 Moreno, nurse, nursing, patient, professional boundaries, professional identity, Psychodrama, role reversal, role training, supervision, systems theory In an article published in the 2010 ANZPA Journal, Wendy McIntosh explored the significant impact of Moreno's work on the nursing profession. In this follow up paper she presents her utilisation of role theory in work with one nursing client who has transgressed professional boundaries. Mindful of Moreno's dictum for nurses to establish and maintain a reciprocal relationship, she demonstrates the client's progress as he develops insights and roles that will assist him to maintain adequate professional boundaries in the future. 11 2011-12
Howard, Katherine Psychodrama: Descendant of the Shamans (PDF, 676.3 KB) Journal 24 December 2015 Psychodrama, shamanism I have come to view shamanism as a predecessor of psychodrama: an ancestor. Perhaps shamanism lives in psychodrama, and psychodrama in shamanism. Perhaps they are siblings. Psychodrama and shamanism live inside me, intertwined and side by side, intimately connected. This is my world, my world view. This article is an exploration of the links between psychodrama and shamanism. As a beginning, I invite you to journey with me on a vision quest. This will serve as a grounding for later discussions. 11 2015-12
McVea, Charmaine A Discussion on Science and Research in Psychodrama (PDF, 302.7 KB) Journal 23 December 2014 Psychodrama, research My motivation for writing the article was to demonstrate that research can be done with integrity and can produce encouraging results that illuminate our practice and give us a vehicle to communicate the benefits of our method to others. By integrity, I mean that we can investigate psychodrama without compromising its form or philosophy. Elliott's approach is practice-based and, I believe, a good fit with psychodrama. I have a vision of creating a series of efficacy studies based on the work of AANZPA practitioners, which would combine to form a substantial research project. From my experience to date, I am confident that this research would demonstrate that psychodrama interventions can have positive therapeutic impacts that are maintained over time. Hopefully, it would also lead us into new discoveries about the therapeutically helpful aspects of psychodrama. 7 2014-12
Reekie, Don Heart of Humanity: Thinking it Through with Moreno Again and Again (PDF, 106.2 KB) Journal 22 December 2013 canon of creativity, health, humanity, Moreno, Psychodrama Don argues each concept in Moreno's vision for humanity is appreciated best when viewed in the light of all the others. He suggests that taking them one by one often leads to misinterpretation. Worse, the psychodrama community may become distanced from Moreno's core philosophies. Embracing Moreno's thinking as a whole enhances and refines the comprehension and application of his work. The central thrust of Moreno's thinking attends to a range of factors that together powerfully assist us to work effectively with the heart of humanity. Within this article, Don asks you to think of social systems, individual systems, each individual person, personality and relationships, as well as their physical and mental well-being and family health. 13 2013-12
Wilson, Jenny Dancing in the Sun: The Creative Combination of Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Psychodrama (PDF, 189.2 KB) Journal 21 December 2012 action methods, CBT, cognitive behavioural therapy, essay writing, Psychodrama, specific phobia, spontaneity training Clinical psychologist and psychodramatist Jenny Wilson values many different approaches in her work as a psychotherapist, particularly the modalities of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and psychodrama. Following an earlier article comparing their origins and philosophies (Wilson, 2011), she focuses here on practical application. Working with a client who has an essay writing phobia and involving a clinical psychology trainee as observer and psychodramatic auxiliary, she demonstrates that CBT and psychodrama can be creatively combined to facilitate both effective therapy and student learning. 12 2012-12
Postlethwaite, Jenny Reflections of a First Time Producer (PDF, 108.5 KB) Journal 21 December 2012 producer, Psychodrama Anyone who has trained in the psychodrama method has experienced first time production. Many have a story or two to tell in this regard. In this short informal article, Jenny Postlethwaite tells her story of producing a psychodrama for the first time. 12 2012-12