Combining Psychodrama and Process Group Psychotherapy

Abstract

Psychodrama group work differs from process group psychotherapy in salient ways, one

being the structure of the sessions. Both modalities use group members to support each

other, but in psychodrama, the group focuses on a situation of one of the members that is

then enacted experientially; in process group psychotherapy, the group follows the verbal

interchanges among the members. This article describes each of the two orientations and

presents examples of the addition of a process group session to close a psychodrama

workshop, on one hand, and presents examples of the insertion of sociometry and

psychodrama techniques into process group sessions, on the other. Drawing from both

orientations gives the therapist access to a wider repertoire of techniques than either

orientation offers alone, and the overall effectiveness of the therapist familiar with both

approaches is enhanced by the increased spontaneity and enriched understanding achieved

from working with both modalities.