encounter group

American  

noun

Psychology.

1. a group of people who meet, usually with a trained leader, to increase self-awareness and social sensitivity, and to change behavior through interpersonal confrontation, self-disclosure, and strong emotional expression.

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encounter group British  

noun

1. a group of people who meet in order to develop self-awareness and mutual understanding by openly expressing their feelings, by confrontation, physical contact, etc

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encounter group Cultural  

1. A method of psychotherapy developed in the 1960s, in which a small group of people engages in intensive interactions to increase self-awareness and improve interpersonal relations. Group members are encouraged to be completely honest and open, reacting to one another with their immediate feelings, while exploring the entire range of emotions.

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Often associated with the radical social upheaval of the 1960s, encounter groups have been criticized for their potentially damaging effects, because many groups are led by people not professionally trained in psychotherapy.

Etymology

Origin of encounter group

First recorded in 1965–70

Example Sentences

The scene he was working on that day portrayed some sort of encounter group.

From The New Yorker • Jan. 14, 2019

Participating in an encounter group, they get deeply, deeply in touch with their feelings.

From Salon • Jun. 19, 2015

With television now functioning as much national encounter group as entertainment, any act of violence or misfortune befalling a major character is immediately followed by a cacophony of anguish and/or rage on social media.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 12, 2015

The members of the titular quartet, who met in an encounter group, use doo-wop songs to preach radical nonattachment.

From New York Times • May 7, 2015

The encounter group, a general descriptive term, is intended to include many variants.

From Marriage Enrichment Retreats Story of a Quaker Project by Mace, D. R. (David Robert)