Does Agazarian’s Systems-Centered® Functional Subgrouping Improve Mood, Learning and Goal Achievement? A Study in Large Groups

Abstract

Agazarian’s (1997, 2001) systems-centered therapy and training (SCT)1 extends Foulkes’ (1964) concept of inseparable, interacting personal and group matrices to a three-level hierarchical matrix. SCT presents the group member nesting in a subgroup, in turn nesting in the group-as-a-whole. The SCT group member works by joining other members exploring a similar experience in the here-and-now, thus forming a ‘functional subgroup’ of the group-as-a-whole. In this study, two large groups (ns=76 and 91) used functional subgrouping during experiential SCT training. As hypothesized, more functional subgrouping predicts better member mood, more learning, and more goal achievement post-training. To our knowledge this is the first empirical demonstration of factors predicting outcome in large training groups.