Group Environment Scale (GES) ratings by members of 3 self-help groups for families enabled comparisons of social climate in three different types of groups: social-reform, self-reform, and support groups. These were affiliates of Al-Anon Family Groups, the NationalAlliance for the Mentally Ill, and a smaller, locally based support group allied with a state mental health association. Mean ratings for the three were similar on relationship and personal-growth dimensions and different on system-maintenance and system-change dimensions. Profiles resembled those of other self-help and support groups reported in the literature, and like those, differed from psychotherapy groups, with which they are most often compared The author discusses how these findings compare with those of earlier studies and also discusses the significance of characteristics, such as high cohesion, leader suppor4 task orientation, order and organization, and low anger and aggressiom
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