Abstract
This paper presents an analysis of group formation and adaptation in a multidisciplinary psychiatric team, working in the Child Psychiatry Out-patient Services of Sainte-Justine Hospital, Montreal.
The team is examined within the framework of small group theory. Emphasis is placed on the double orientation of work groups — goal achievement and adaptation to external demands (adaptive-instrumental problems), and internal integration and the expression of emotional tensions (integrative - expressive problems). There follows a description of the team, the community it serves and the political superstructure, as well as a statement of team policy for Community Psychiatry. The team's experiences, leading to its maturation as a cohesive unit, are reported in terms of its oscillation between community-oriented activity and team-oriented activity, the differentiation of roles and the delineation of a power struggle. The sequence of team integration, important aspects of the team leader's role, and a consideration of team equilibrium are presented in the discussion.
It is postulated that flexibility of informal role behaviour results in a continuing dialogue which is essential for the resolution of conflicts and the working through of the many paradoxes inherent in multidisciplinary teams.