Violence in America ─ Group Therapists Reflect on Causes and Solutions

Violence is a growing problem in American society, and hardly a day goes by that we don’t hear about yet another heart-wrenching episode of mass violence. Such events, unfortunately, are only the most public manifestation of violence in America. The full nature and extent of daily violence, the various and pervasive forms it takes, and the enormous social, emotional, moral, and economic consequences that result, remain largely outside of our awareness. More importantly, our ability to identify the root causes and know how best to effectively intervene remains limited.

Most investigations in this field have focused on the individual psychodynamic characteristics of the perpetrators. The underlying group dynamic factors that include consideration of broader social, cultural, socioeconomic, and historical variables have received less attention. This volume brings together for the first time a collection of distinguished group psychotherapists, all of whom have been trained to recognize both individual psychodynamic characteristics and group dynamic factors, to apply the lessons learned through years of clinical practice to arrive at a deeper understanding of the etiology, treatment, and prevention of violence. This book was originally published as a special issue of the International Journal of Group Psychotherapy.

Robert H. Klein is a clinical faculty member in the School of Medicine at Yale University, USA. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and Diplomate in Group Psychology, as well as Past President and Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Group Psychotherapy Association. A recognized expert in the area of group psychotherapy and group dynamics, he lectures, consults and supervises both nationally and internationally. He is editor/author of six books and maintains a private clinical practice with offices in Westport and Milford, CT.

Victor L. Schermer is a psychologist based in Philadelphia, PA, USA. He is a Life Fellow of the American Group Psychotherapy Association. He is author/editor of eight books and over 50 articles about psychotherapy and group dynamics, and is a frequent presenter of lectures and workshops internationally.