Group
Dynamics of Creative V Destructive Cycles from www.lacanianattachmentanalysts.com
© John Southgate and Elizabeth London 04.04.04
Notes
about this picture
After a conversation with Eric Hobsbawm
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Notes
(1)
These dynamics
are present in all organisations and societies, ancient and modern, large
or small, secular or religious and not excepting therapy organisations!
(2)
Derived from
Bion, "Experiences in groups" See also Southgate and Randall
1976, Co-operative and Community Group Dynamics, still in print - Gale
Centre Publications, Loughton, Essex.
(3)
Derived from
classic Marxist Economics. We have added "Emotional Value" .
For example someone you have loved who has died may have left some artifact
which reminds you of her or him, for example, and old pipe or lipstick
holder. They would have no Exchange value or Use Value but very high.
Emotional Value for you.
(4)
General influences
are Marx, Freud, Lacan, Reich, Alice Miller, John Bowlby and their successors.
(5)
Plus ecological
systems thinkers e.g. Margalef and George Monbiot.
The above is based upon Hegeis dialectic of the Unity, Opposition, and
interpenetration of opposites.
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Creative Fighting in everyday life.
Creative Fighting has as its goal disarming the Other(s), in contrast with Destructive fighting where the goal is dismembering the Other(s).
A prime example is sports of all kinds. Historical examples are early members of different villages fighting each other and then using a huge ball in competition. Football evolved as a sport from this. A war time example, is combatant troops playing football as a respite from war. Of course, actual violence can take place in the form of fans fightng each other i.e. Hooliganism.
Democracy itself evolved from Fuedalism where the goal is to use voting and speeching rather than actual violence.
Family life has transcended
earlier historical developments where harsh punishments were sometimes
prevalent.
At an international level,
the United Nations forum's is an attempt to replace war and violence with
discussions and agreements. George Bush and his supporters argue that
without American and other allied trroops peace and democracy would not
be possible in Iraq.
Time will only tell whether this will be the case. One could site the
2nd
World war as creative fighting to save democracy from Fascism. Were the
millions who died in this and earlier wars worth the costs?
On a smaller scale, organisations can be gripped by power struggles not excepting therapy organisations! (I have had more hassles in therapy organisations than I had as a national serviceman in the RAF 1952-54!)
We have drawn upon the work of Wilfred Bion's short but amazing book "Experiences in groups" He posits a Creative Work Group (w-group) that he contrasts with a destructive basic assumption group (Ba-group), that moves between three contrasting modes of being: the Basic Assumption of Dependency (baD) where the group seeks a leader on whom to depend. The second mode is the Basic Assumption of Pairing where the goup seeks a couple to seek salvation, Archetype being a Royal Pair whose progeny will protect the future, Finally there is the Basic Assumption of Fight-Flight where the most "Psychiarically sick member" is unconciously chosen to lead. Forms of Fascism could be described in this basic assumption.
These dynamics have been observed in many groups, large and small.
Psychoanalytic and Psychotherapy organisations who know of Bion's work are no better at keeping to the creative dynamic than other kinds of organisations!
It is , at this point in time, not yet clear whether the situation in Iraq will end with broadly creative or destructive events.
Millions died in the last two World Wars, 1914- 18, and 1939-45. Was it worth it? Such carnage and loss of millions of lives beggars belief. A slogan might be:
NEVER AGAIN !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
John Southgate and Elizabeth London.
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After a conversation with Eric Hobsbawm
(1)
This structure (pictured above) repeats itself at many levels e.g.
-small groups
-organisations of all kinds
- larger scale national organisations
-international organisations
-continental organisations and societies.
(2) The dynamics derive from
our evolutionary history especially the tribal dynamic of our ancestors
(without whom we would'nt be here!)
(3) It is ubiquitous - from the smallest family level to international
politics.
(4) In all examples the question is how can we move from destructive fighting
to creative fighting?
(5) None of us are exempt from
this dynamic.
(6) The worlds great philosophers and states persons have grappled with
this dynamic throughout history.
(7) To quote Marx, "Philosophers have sought to understand the world
- the point is to change it!".
(8) Freud's extraordinary contribution was to elucidate the degree by
which we are governed by forces that are literally UNCONSCIOUS.
(9) Lacan helps us to understand the extraordinary effect of "the
language which speaks us".
(10) Bowlby helps us to understand our dependency on attachment to others
and the devastation we feel when faced with loss of important relationships
and the necessity of the mourning process.
(11) The colour scheme (painted by Elizabeth London) uses the brighter
orange and yellow colours for the creative cycles and darker blues and
browns to highlight the destructive cycles.
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