ABSTRACT:

Many leadership development methods involve a degree of role-playing, including basket-case scenarios, business simulations, serious games, educational live-action role-playing games, coaching interventions, etc.

In this presentation, I outline my PhD research that attempts to contextualize the role that Moreno-rooted dramatic methods like sociodrama can take in leadership development interventions.

After this session participants will be able to compare sociodrama to other methods in leadership development, and define their similarities and differences. Participants will also be able to report on the current state of sociodrama research.

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ABSTRACT:

This is a presentation of the experience of an online supervision group (and some face-to-face ones) in which we used the group dispositive of Dramatic Multiplication as a methodology to decentralize the figure of the supervisor, in the direction of a more collective and co-vision stance. In this presentation we will talk about Dramatic Multiplication, its effects in a supervision group and a reflection on the songs sung in the sessions, as a commentary on the experience. After this session participants will be able to explore more possibilities of decentralised supervision.

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ABSTRACT:

This presentation describes the way sociodrama was used in the context of an innovative transdisciplinary project entitled “Transition to 8: Bridging social issues, tech and contemporary art”, that applied multimodal methods for studying the impact of social issues on citizens and bridging them with technology and contemporary art.
Along with other participatory arts-based approaches, such as the use of social theatre (Saldaña, 2011), sociodrama has developed in recent years from an innovative method of qualitative analysis for social issues into a major transformative intervention for community development (Conrad & Sinner, 2015). In this study, we used sociodrama as an approach that is both inherently embodied and socially minded. Data generation took place in the context of six sociodrama sessions that is, two sessions per subject (environment, labour, migration), in which Eleusis residents were called upon to enact their perspectives, concerns and experiences regarding living in Eleusis on topics that were identified as central concerns for the local community. Each session lasted approximately one-and-a-half hours. The sessions were facilitated by two experienced sociodramatists, members of the research team, who introduced the rationale, the process and the activities of the sessions. In line with the researchers’ interest in multimodal research, the sessions were video- and audio-recorded. Biometric data via wearable sensor, resembling that of smart watches, measuring physiological signals affiliated with emotional arousal were obtained from the participants who felt comfortable wearing the devices.
Data from the sessions were provided to artists, in the form of sound, visual, biometric and verbal elements, which constitute sources of inspiration for their artistic productions. Examples from the research findings will be presented in a multimodal way.

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ABSTRACT:

This presentation highlights the intersection of historical research on ancient performance-oriented healing rituals and the contemporary practices of psychodrama and sociodrama, showcasing the mutual interest shared by historians and therapists.

My work delves into the evolution of ancient therapeutic rituals. One notable example is the practice within the cult of Asklepios, the Greek god of medicine. Its rituals centered around therapeutic incubation, or ritual dreaming, where devotees sought divine intervention and healing through dream visions. This ritual’s evolution is intricately linked to theater, as sacred performances in theaters were employed to make divine experiences accessible to worshippers even before they engaged in ritual dreaming. These practices not only nurtured individual imagery but also formed therapeutic communities. Devotees, all seeking divine visions for healing, found themselves restored to meaningful social roles due to their intimate connection with the divine and the invisible realm.

The prospect of engaging in dialogue with therapists and researchers immersed in psychodrama and sociodrama methods holds great promise for mutual enrichment. Historical insights can contribute to innovative approaches in modern therapy, while therapists can offer valuable perspectives to deepen our understanding of ancient therapeutic rituals’ dynamics. This synergy offers the potential for a more profound comprehension of the intricate interplay between performance and therapy across time.

1. Participants will develop the ability to discern meaningful correlations between ancient performance-based traditions and contemporary psychodrama and sociodrama therapeutic methods.
2. Participants will enhance their existing skill sets by integrating well-researched insights from the historical utilization of performance as a therapeutic modality.

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ABSTRACT:

This presentation will look into the metatheatrical aspects of Anton Chekhov’s “The Seagull,” with a special focus on the play that Treplev, one of the characters, stages. We use Jacob L. Moreno’s sociodrama theory to understand how personal problems and social rules are connected in the play. A key part of this is the new kind of play Treplev creates, which is very different from the traditional theater that his mother, Arkadina, represents. We analyze how Treplev is trying to find his own artistic voice and identity, showing the big conflicts between different generations and ideas at that time.

In this presentation, we will use sociodrama to look at important themes like being true to art, problems within families, and the pressure to follow social norms. We also think about how the audience is involved in this metatheatrical setting. This shows how Chekhov mixes acting and real life, making people think about their own roles and identities in society.

To end, we will see “The Seagull” as a strong tool for sociodrama. It shows complicated relationships between people and social expectations, and it makes us think deeply about art, who we are, and how people interact with each other. This deep look at Chekhov’s play gives us a new way to see its lasting importance and artistic beauty.

Learning Objectives:
1. Attendees will learn to find and understand the metatheatrical parts in “The Seagull,” and see why they are important for showing social and personal issues.
2. Participants will learn more about how drama can be used to study society and psychology, and see how dramatic literature affects how the audience sees and interacts with the play.

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ABSTRACT:

Moreno viewed sociodrama as the ultimate tool for social research, an idea dramatists resonate with due to its broad applicability across diverse social groups. Despite historical hesitations, academia is increasingly embracing dramatic tools as a qualitative research method. The Drama as Academic Research (DAR) Research Group, an international group of researchers from various scientific fields and drama practitioners themselves, invites academic researchers and dramatists to explore criteria and methods for generating knowledge through drama. The workshop aims to chart a path for leveraging drama’s potential in producing academically valuable insights.

At the workshop, after a short introduction of findings and experiences of the Research Group so far, we place our topic on a sociodramatic stage, representing key „actors” – such as reality (whatever that means); dramatic methods; other, traditionally established data collection methods; people form the Academia not familiar with dramatic methods; the “subject” of the research; and anyone and anything the participants bring in – and see how the scene unfolds itself in the process of co-creation. We hope to gain insights into epistemological questions surrounding knowledge derived from drama, addressing issues and dilemmas tied to the dramatic modality, ethical considerations, and the researcher’s role.

Learning objectives: Participants develop an understanding of needs and requirements of academic research related to dramatic methods, and an insight into challenges and opportunities of dramatic methods as a research tool in terms of data validity, research ethics, transferability, and so on

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ABSTRACT:

A large-group sociodramatic multiverse constellation AI, climate catastrophe, wars, diseases, capitalism – countless crises and transformations are pulling and tugging at our society, our institutions, organizations, communities and at us as individuals. Parallel worlds are emerging and colliding. This is also changing Sociodrama and the sociodrama community.

In this session, we will take a look at the dynamics and interplay within and between these crises and transformations. What does all this do to Sociodrama? We will explore this in action. Based on a bricolage of Sociodrama, Social Presencing Theater (SPT) and Constellations, we will explore how these issues affect Sociodrama simultaneously.

After warm-ups based on SPT, we will explore these five issues. Small groups will define a sociodramatic research question and roles for their issue. Like in a multiverse constellation, an in-group on the main stage then does a piece of action that will inform all the small groups simultaneously. But instead of constellations, we will work with a SPT form called The Village. Sounds crazy? It sure is. We will walk, stand, sit, lay down and make turns. We will laugh and enjoy ourselves – despite the grim issues.

Small groups will explore these topics via roles

• AI, climate, war, diseases, capitalism and sociodrama
• Artificial intelligence and sociodrama
• Climate catastrophe and sociodrama
• Wars/armed conflicts and sociodrama
• New diseases and sociodrama
• Capitalism and sociodrama

The session works best with a minimum of 30 people.

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ABSTRACT:

In this workshop, we’ll demonstrate how sociodrama can be used in a foreign language class context.
Participants in a language class are human beings and have to be considered and approached as such.
Our method Psychodramaturgy for Language Acquisition (PDL) is based principally on Morenos conceptions of development and well-being. The concept of the creative circle is key.
“Spontaneity can be trained”, said Moreno. And this is what we do.
PDL is a pedagogical method based on the encounter, on being in the here-and-now. Participants do not study language; they use it as a means for encounter. It is about being, doing and living in the foreign language. The trainer provides the framework and the safe place, and assists the participants in their need to express themselves.

In this workshop, participants will experience language acquisition with the PDL method; a pedagogy on its feet, with content based on the relevance to the participants and the group.
They will be able to apply sociodramatic role-creation and role-playing in a foreign language classroom.
They will be in a better position to reflect on how language is acquired and get practical tools to promote encounter in the foreign language classroom.

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ABSTRACT:

In this workshop, we will utilize sociodrama techniques to delve into the archetypal messages found within fairy tales, examining their resonance within ecopsychological contexts.

We will be working on the Indian tale The Buffalo Girl and her Friend the Crow (William Camus: Firebirds – a collection of stories).The technique used here uses sociodramatic and playback theatre devices by J.L. Moreno and J.Fox. The theory of interpretation of the fairy tale is based on the Treasure Hunting Story Therapy method created by Márta Antalfai, which is strongly based on the analytic theory of C.G. Jung. The above method combines elements of psychodrama and Jungian analytic-based story therapy.

During the workshop, spiritual work takes place in the group, using the fabric of the chosen fairy tale as a base story, and the main interpsychic conflicts and crises in the story are played out. The focus will be on nature settings and characters symbolically present in the fairy tales, and their impact on humans, especially the protagonist and their human relations. 

In the process we personalise important objects, people, and act out the situation. The choice of roles is individual. At the start we will be choosing roles, setting the scene, and afterwards there will be processing and feedback. We will be working with all our senses. This allows us to learn about ourselves, our connections, details we did not know before, which can help us identify our problems. Fairy tales contain special underlying themes, ancient symbols, archetypes, basic conflict patterns, through which we can receive energies from the collective unconscious, beyond the individual consciousness.

This tale explores questions of living together in and with nature, belonging to a group, and the necessary and sufficient use of nature.

We will be focusing on two scenes. In the first one we explore the difficulties of the heroine’s return to the group after growing up in nature. In the other, we will look at two human responses to nature’s eternal bounty – one where greed and insatiability rule, and the other where necessity and moderation dominate.

Through these two examples, we can see the element that is fundamental to the tales, that human changes are closely linked to nature, as if they were an imprint, thus proving symbolically and factually that man and nature are inseparable, and their fate is interdependent.

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ABSTRACT:

In a World of Global Warming, the Frequency of Hurricanes and Earthquakes and Floods and Fire,
Are the Gods to Blame?

Why are we having these natural catastrophes? Was this part of the gods’ plan? What is our collective responsibility for our past and our collective future?

J.L. Moreno had the view that everyone is interconnected with and related to the creator. He thinks that a creator, sometimes referred to as the Godhead, is where creativity originates. We propose staging a mock trial to interrogate the godhead(s) entity about creation and the current state of the world to better understand how we may all work together to reverse what we are currently experiencing. Participants will have the opportunity to choose who or what will address the godheads, such as elements in nature and/or representatives of other cultures. They will choose the venue for the trial, such as a conference, a community center, an open area, or a courtroom.

Learning Objectives:

• To have heightened agency to do things in community outside of our comfort zone;
• To reframe the question of blaming;
• To use Sociodrama to build an ecology of praxis for change.and to build an ecosystem around a praxis for social interrogation and intervention.

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ABSTRACT:

During the trying wartime period, Ukrainian psychologists and psychotherapists encountered many challenges in their work. We found ourselves in a new reality we could neither have predicted nor prepared for in advance.

Just like our clients, we, the professionals providing psychological assistance, felt the need for emotional processing, support and connection as well as for professional communication that would enable us to explore the new issues we faced in our work.

Thus, we formed a sociodrama group led by Ron Wiener and Diane Adderley.

The members of the group found the strength to meet during the long months of war and related the reality of traumatic events – manifested by different roles and voices – to the group. We did our best to examine the terrible occurrences and to understand and analyse the processes taking place within ourselves, within our personal and professional relationships, within society at large and the international community. We also observed how these processes were reproduced in the group.

We had to learn on the go and managed to achieve a lot.

During the workshop we will:

• reveal what lies behind the curtain and invite you to take a look at the work done by a group that met during the interminable war months while abiding by the principle of confidentiality;
• tell you how we moved from the declared goal to the needs that arose during our work;
• share the insights the group received due to their work together;
• affirm the importance and effectiveness of the sociodrama method as demonstrated by our experience;
• invite you to the action and the encounter.

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ABSTRACT:

Using key action techniques such as the “revealing chairs”, metaphors, writing texts, objects or picture cards, the workshop will explore in a sociodramatic way the obstacles and levers to facilitate change and new visions for a collective future in communities, groups and/or working teams. The workshop is articulated in the book “Facilitating Collective Intelligence, a Handbook for Trainers, Coaches, Consultants and Leaders” (Routledge 2029). In addition to the action techniques, an attention will focus on :

• Key inner attitudes to facilitate a sociodramatic work
• Key questions to activate collective intelligence in a sociodramatic work

After this session, participants will be able to :

•  Internalize an inner attitude to facilitate a sociodramatic work
• Identify a key question to activate collective intelligence in a sociodramatic work
• Explore the use of an action technique to foster a sociodramatic work

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ABSTRACT:

Ideally, J.L. Moreno connects the identity of the individual with that of humanity by underlining how the salvation of the individual cannot be achieved without a simultaneous active focus on the “other”. To articulate the attention on the individual AND on the collective is not always easy.

The workshop will be organize in three phases, as a “socio-psycho-sociodrama” :
1) Sociodramatic approach
2) Psychodramatic phase
3) Returning to the sociodramatic approach.

This will develop an understanding of how the two methodological forms can be integrated without the risk of mixing and confusing them.

After this session participants will be able to
• Outline some constituent elements of sociodrama
• Outline some constituent elements of psychodrama
• distinguish the difference between sociodrama and psychodrama

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ABSTRACT:

Using action methods, sociometry and sociodrama, we will address anything that comes up with regard to the economy, be it personal or more systemic, and we will give all aspects a place and voice. This approach creates awareness around how our attitude shapes our decisions around money and helps us create strategies for a purposeful Economy. 

After this workshop, participants are (more) aware of their own beliefs & behaviours around economic issues and can take home various options to implement change within their circle of influence.

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ABSTRACT:

Salutogenesis – means the origin of health, and pathogenesis is the origin of disease.

How can we help the helpers living under the same circumstances as their clients?
How can they keep their strength and confidence in the role of a therapist during the war, when bombing and missiles are falling around their homes or when they are overwhelmed and stressed by not feeling able to help their clients?
How can the professional helpers care for themselves and not get secondary traumatisation through being too empathetic with their client’s traumatic experiences? What kind of survival strategies do they use? How did the ancestors survive the war they have been through?
How can we come out of the state of hypo and hyper arousal? When the nervous system is overloaded and cannot tolerate the pressure anymore, the system shuts down, and we get paralysed, helpless and numbed. These reactions are the body’s defence mechanisms and are life-saving for the moment, but in the long run, if we stay in these states, these can endanger our lives.
This workshop is a psycho-sociodramatic exploration of how to regain balance, integrate rational and emotional functioning, and tolerate stressful situations (broaden the window of tolerance) by focusing on the resources, thus developing resilience.
Bring your cases or yourself as a case of traumatisation, and let’s learn from each other.

Learning objectives:

• Learn to identify how the body reacts to hypo and hyperarousal
• Learn what the window of tolerance is
• Learn the importance of a support system

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ABSTRACT:

In this workshop, helping professionals and educators will gain insight and firsthand experience into how sociodramatic techniques can enhance their skills, especially in intercultural settings. Participants will explore their helper role and function as we gain insight into working with clients from diverse backgrounds. The workshop will also provide an opportunity to explore the sensitivities associated with disadvantaged group affiliations and stigmas, and their impact on the helper-client relationship.

The workshop’s methodology was conceived and refined in the unique setting of training volunteers for a suicide prevention line. The preparation, planning, and supervision of the approach were conducted within the context of the inaugural sociodrama training in Hungary.

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ABSTRACT:

Aims
1) to promote psychosocial development as the ability to be self-aware, regarding the inner world, and respect one’s own emotional experience within a care context.
2) to improve their relational ability and communicative skills, developing deep communication and creative solutions in difficult and extreme situations.
3) to establish a safe relational field in which to think and process the theme of lack, loss and death.

Jung spoke of the archetype of the wounded healer, who holds within himself two opposite poles: the healer and the wounded. More relevant than ever in the care professions.

Developing their own experiences will allow everyone to learn from relationships with patients and families, to learn from experience. Creative ability to perceive and improve the characteristics of families at home will be stimulated, focusing on the positive resources of environmental contexts.

Method:
Communication, Active listening, Narrative Medicine, Socio-Psycho-drama, Art Therapy will be presented both in terms: patient and family care, group team work.

To create a space in which participants can reflect critically on interpersonal relationships within the care relationship with users and families. We can meet the myth of the omnipotence of medicine with the ancient myths of Chiron and the transience of life, and process mourning experiences together.

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ABSTRACT:

Learning Objectives:

After the session participants will:

• Assess their conflict resolution styles;
• Gain increased understanding about the dynamics of conflict and dissent, understanding its potential benefits;
• Shape their own unique approach towards handling it productively.

Methodology:
• Warm-up prepares participants to come together & develop the enactment;
• scenic imagery; constellations, sculptures;
• Presentation by director; thematic work in small groups; group discussions, etc.

Theory and basis:
There are three types of Sociodrama: Topic centered sociodrama ; Group centered sociodrama; Sociocultural sociodrama. (Ameln and Becker-Ebel).
This workshop demonstrates Topic Centered Sociodrama.
The framework used is Thomas Kilmann’s Model of Different Styles of Handling Conflict

Bibliography:
Ameln F., Becker-Ebel J (2020). Fundamentals of Psychodrama. Springer Singapore.
Sternburg, P. & Garcia, A. (1989). Sociodrama: Who’s in Your Shoes? Praeger Publishers, New York.
Dayton, T. (2005) The Living Stage; a step-by-step guide to psychodrama, sociometry and experiental group therapy. Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc.
Galgoczi K, Adderley D, Balsko A, Belchior M, et al (2021) Sociodrama: The Art and Science of Social Change. L’Harmattan.
Wiener R, Adderley D, Kirk K. Sociodrama in a Changing World .Lulu.com
Wiener R. Creative Training. Sociodrama and Team Building.

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ABSTRACT:

WORKSHOP:
The workshop offers a view on sociodrama techniques applied in the context of social work with migrant communities. This method is used to foster social learning, mental health and interven-tions to provide young migrants an opportunity to gain insight into the obstacles and widen the repertoire of strategies when building their future in their new home country.
Theoretical background: Youth immigrants and their poorly structured families suffer a kind of personality disorder with a lack of mentalization abilities, lack of mental health attention and severe difficulties to become integrated into social and work structures. The best way to address this situation is through Specific Social Structures for them, that includes social learning and education, group sociodramatic interventions, support in work training and work searching and psychodramatic mental health assistance.

Methodology: Sociodrama , Psychodrama, Mentalization, Group for Social Active Learning
Learning objectives:

• Participants gain an understanding of the psycho-social background of working with migrant youth entering the labor market
• Participants try different sociodramatic and mentalization techniques they can use in their practices with migrant groups

PRESENTATION
The proposal contains presentations of projects from Spain and Hungary on how sociodrama and action methods can be effective tools in supporting marginalized youth when they enter the labor market. These share similar target groups (young migrants), and involve professionals in supporting roles (social workers, educators, psychologists). These groups’ social, economic or cultural backgrounds mean that they face multiple obstacles when aiming to get jobs and reach independence. The application of sociodramatic techniques fosters the identifying of such obstacles and experimenting with new strategies in work-related and family environments, supporting them to reach a higher level of independence, allowing them to create a new future for themselves.
Theoretical background: Youth immigrants and their poorly structured families suffer a kind of personality disorder with a lack of mentalization abilities, lack of mental health attention and severe difficulties to become integrated into social and work structures. Best way to address this situation is through Specific Social Structures for them, that includes social learning and education, group sociodramatic interventions, support in work training and work searching and psychodramatic mental health assistance.

Learning objectives: Giving examples of application of sociodrama techniques with migrant youth
Demonstrating modalities of sociodramatic techniques with youth and their supporters

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