Group Analytic Contexts, Issue 77, September 2017

104 Group-Analytic Society International - Contexts
speaking - and then reflect how they all felt in it. Katarina said that
this is usually followed by attempts to connect the new reflections and
experiences with inner cognitive schemes, “such as: when I speak
everyone will see who I am or that I am vulnerable...the person who
interrupts silence first may for example realize that he feels he must
take responsibility for the group and then we talk about that”.
Gaba Langošová from Rogerian PCA spoke mainly about
therapist training groups: “Often group can be silent about societal
taboos such as cheating or moral issues but also about something that
is present in the group – something that group members only speak
about, behind the scenes.” She connected silence with deep empathy
among group members but also with suppressed anger: “Sometimes I
imagine there is a stone in the middle of the group through which
conversation cannot float”. Gaba has also mentioned her experience
with a psychotic group that would always speak but the words were
meaningless: “Silence can raise anxiety and so these psychotic
patients filled the space with words”. She warned against excessive
conductor activity: “You probably know when someone brings up a
difficult experience... and the group is silent, as they suppose that only
the conductor knows the most precious intervention. But the group
needs to learn that they can react competently themselves.” Groups
can, according to Gaba, also be silent because they were traumatized
“by someone´s painful story...but also by a directive or expert
therapist...”
Jiří Jakubů, dynamic group therapist, appreciated the theme,
“What are Groups Silent about?” as an important statement on the fact
that a group is an entity and not a mere collection of individuals.
Similarly to Václav, he stated that “when a group is silent it is always
talking.” In support of Gaba´s words he added: “When you don´t know
what to say, be silent...we have to restrain ourselves from talking in
order to enable group members to be the promoters of the group.”
Last, but not least, an article by the late Marie Hošková,
which distinguished between silence and stillness was mentioned in
the discussion panel: “Silence is object related, but I can be still
alone.”
This year´s lecture was presented by a well-known
investigative journalist Marek Wollner, who spoke about his view of
media and communication, and of the state of democracy in Czech
society 3 decades after the fall of the totalitarian regime. His speech
was followed by dynamic and passionate discussion. We had an
immediate experience of one characteristic issue about which Czech
groups are frequently silent. Although the lecture was seemingly