Evaluating a social and coping skills training group for psychiatric day-hospital patients

Psychoeducational skills training programs are being used with increasing frequency with psychiatric patients, whose basic skills deficits may present a major obstacle to therapeuctic efforts. The present article describes the implementation and evaluation of an eight-session social and coping skills training group in a psychiatric day-hospital setting. Procedures such as functional analysis of problems, modeling of verbal and nonverbal behaviors, role playing, brainstorming, anger control, and feedback from therapists and other participants were employed to enhance the interpersonal and adaptive skills of group membranes. Results are discussed in terms of those specific elements of the structured group experience which therapists and participants judged to be most effective, as well as in terms of suggested improvements to be made and pitfalls to be avoided in implementing such training groups.