Voices from the Inaudible: The Patients Speak by Theodor Reik

Fifty-one inpatients, hospitalized on average for 21 days, were studied by means of discharge debriefing interviews. An unstructured, mandatory, and functionally heterogeneous psychotherapy group was compared with a structured, voluntary, and functionally homogeneous psychotherapy group. Statistical analysis of the patients' valuation of the group psychotherapy experiences and of their rankings of traditional group psychotherapy curative factors were performed. Results demonstrated that group psychotherapy was a highly valued component of the overall inpatient treatment. Structural modifications aimed at increasing the here and now, and interpersonal focus of the group meetings, such as the use of patient agendas and group rehashes, significantly affected the patients' group experiences. A comparison of both types of inpatient groups with an outpatient group psychotherapy sample suggests certain guidelines for the goal setting and conduct of inpatient group psychotherapy, recognizing the specific and heterogeneous needs and capacities of the patients treated.