Therapeutic Factors of Large Group Psychodrama for Psychiatric Inpatients

Yoon, Sung Chul; Lee, Hoo Kyeong; Kim, Sun Jae; Lee, Kyu Hang; Hahm, Woong; Hong, Hyang Hee

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: This study was performed to make a model of large group psychodrama suitable for Korean inpatients and easy for psychiatrists trained in the individual psychotherapy and the group psychotherapy to use, to investigate the therapeutic factors after applying this model to inpatients, and then to contribute to the treatment of inpatients.
METHODS
The study subjects were all the inpatients and the therapists(the auxiliary ego's) who participated in psychodrama from March 1998 to September 1998. The subjects were composed of 346 inpatients(152 males, 194 females) and 60 therapists. To the inpatients 13-Therapeutic Factors Scale, Scale of General Attitude to Psychodrama, and the Questionnaire describing helpful things in psychodrama were administered. To the therapists 13-Therapeutic Factors Scale and the Questionnaire describing helpful things in psychodrama were administered. The inpatient group were divided into 4 groups(the audience, the auxiliary ego's, the participants in sharing, the protagonists). The therapeutic factors among 4 groups were compared.
RESULTS
First, the therapeutic factors described by the inpatient group were as follows: 1) Most inpatients made great account of 'existential factor' and 'the corrective recapitulation of the primary family group' regardless of their roles in psychodrama. 2) The inpatients who participated in psychodrama directly as the protagonists, the auxiliary ego's, or the participants in sharing made much account of 'development of socializing techniques'. The inpatients who participated in psychodrama more directly as the protagonists or the auxiliary ego's made much account of 'catharsis'. 3) All the inpatients except the protagonists made much account of 'instillation of hope'. 4) The audience made much account of 'identification' and 'universality'. Especially, 'identification with members' was much accounted of by the participants in sharing. 'Universality' also was much accounted of by the auxiliary ego's. Next, when we compared the therapeutic factors in the inpatient group with those in the therapist group, the therapist group made much account of 'group cohesiveness' which the inpatient group made little account of. And the therapist group made no account of 'development of socializing techniques' which the inpatient group made much account of.
CONCLUSION
By dividing the inpatient group according to their roles, we found the characteristics of the inpatient large group psychodrama and of the therapeutic factors according to the roles of the inpatients. This model could be applied to the treatment for the inpatients easily and was helpful to many inpatients on the whole.