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Reviews of the history and literature of group psychotherapy in general (McLennan & Levy, 1969; Lubin, Lubin & Sargent, 1972; Skynner, 1974; and ) make it clear that there is a wide range of techniques and that the conceptual bases for such work are sometimes consistent, sometimes diverse and controversial. In 1950 Ackerman discussed the difficulties inherent in formulating a theoretical frame that would allow for an integration of the processes of individual psychoanalytic and group psychology. This issue was to some extent addressed in 1959 when Bion described group processes as incorporating the paranoid schizoid and depressive positions as conceptualized by Klein (1952). He inferred that group interpretations facilitated the shift from the predominance of basic assumption functioning to a predominance of work group functioning. He did not clearly describe a group developmental process, rather he described fluctuating group states, or modes of group functioning.
Subsequently there have been some descriptions of adult group developmental processes, relating them to the concepts of Bion, Freud, Klein and others (Skynner, 1974; La Coursiere, 1980). In a 1974 review of group therapy, Skynner (p. 235) states, “My own belief is that (there is required to be) more recognition of the natural history of growth and developmental processes in groups …”. He also briefly outlined some future trends which I feel are manifested in the processes discussed in this paper. One trend he referred to is the increasing emphasis and interest in the value of the experiential relative to the intellectual; the non-verbal relative to the verbal. This issue, also discussed by Rosenbluth (1968), is highlighted by the group processes described in the present paper. The other relevant trend Skynner discusses (1974) is the increase in interest in the developmental theories within psychoanalytic theory. He suggests that a group might be expected to work through a sequence of stages cor