Our cohort is in favor of proposing a group for individuals who have experienced higher rates of divorce, anxiety, depression, relationship conflicts, and domestic violence due to the Covid-19 pandemic.  One study shows an increase in the rate of depression by 15% in the two years since the pandemic began (Giuntella et al, 2021).  This group, based on increasing emotional awareness through Positive Psychology Interventions (PPI) and Emotional Intelligence can alleviate some negative outcomes felt by the pandemic. 

For this discussion, you should continue to locate research that supports your rationale and begin to narrow down and determine how to measure the group outcome (i.e., what changes are the members expected to experience as a result of attending your group?).

To prepare:

• Continue to search the Walden Library databases for peer-reviewed articles that support the rationale for your Group Proposal.
• Refer to the Walden Library resources on literature reviews in this week’s Learning Resources to assist with your article summaries.

By Day 3

Be prepared to post in your assigned cohort Discussion board for Week 4. You will each post to your specific Discussion board as you develop your concepts. Your faculty will respond to your group, answer questions, and provide guidance. The two Discussions (Weeks 3 and  4) are dedicated to the development of your group proposal and are considered a collaborative platform to assist you in your planning. Discussion participation will be graded according to the rubric specific to the Cohort Group Proposal. You may view the other cohort Discussion boards, but you are only responsible for posting in your assigned cohort link. 

• Each cohort member should post at least one recent (published in the past 5–10 years) peer-reviewed journal article in APA format that supports the rationale for the group. Provide a brief summary (one to three sentences) for your article(s), explaining why it supports your rationale. Be sure to include the Walden Library permalink or DOI so your colleagues and faculty may review the article.
• In conjunction with your cohort members, select the resources that best support your rationale.
• Refine and clearly state your group objectives in measurable terms. (What can group members expect to change as a result of participating in your group?)
• Outline the practical considerations for your group. This should include group size, screening procedure, location of meetings, and necessary informed consent. Determine if the group is to be an open or closed group, how you plan to recruit members, the number of expected sessions, and the group structure.
• Consider potential inclusion and diversity themes, such as how diversity may impact early group process or how you might address bias.  
• Consider any proposed curriculum or theoretical underpinning that would be appropriate for your group. You will explore strategies for the termination of the group. You also examine ways to measure both the subjective experience and the level of goal attainment by the members of the group.

Continue to refine your ideas with your cohort members throughout the week. This is your opportunity to have a dialog with your faculty in developing your group proposal.

By Day 5

Share your ideas with your cohort member on the goal and measurable objectives. Your responses may be written in a conversational style as you are using the discussion board to engage in a collaborative small group process to complete an assigned task. (Refer to the School of Counseling Key Professional Student Dispositions listed in the resources).