All of us: A Search for the Meaning of the Matrix

Abstract

S.H. Foulkes, who argued that we are all essentially group beings, established a school of analytic belief and practice where the group is central. The group therapy space is a field of imagination and a forum for the creation of meaning through a shared network which Foulkes calls the matrix. Although the matrix lies at the very heart of Foulkesian discourse, it is difficult to make sense of the concept and get a clear understanding of this source of all group energy and activity. Theories lack meaning unless integrated into individual practice and this article reflects an attempt to identify and record the process whereby a matrix or shared network evolved in the early stages of a training group.