Meeting abstract

https://doi.org/10.24869/spsih.2026.346

Parenting With the Support of a Group (Three Years of Experience With Group Psychotherapeutic Support for Parents)

Paula Jovanović ; Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia *
Sanja Brozan ; Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia; Faculty of Medicine in Rijeka, University of Rijeka, Braće Branchetta b.b., 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
Daniela Petrić ; Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia
Ana Kaštelan ; Clinical Hospital Centre Rijeka, Krešimirova 42, 51000 Rijeka, Croatia; Faculty of Medicine in Rijeka, University of Rijeka, Braće Branchetta b.b., 51000 Rijeka, Croatia

* Corresponding author.

Abstract

Over the past three years, two parent groups have
been running continuously at the Department of
Child and Adolescent Psychiatry in Rijeka, involving
around forty parents. The groups were attended
predominantly by mothers, with a few couples
who alternated in coming. The groups were held
once a week in the afternoon for 90 minutes. Five
female members acquired three years of group experience,
as they repeatedly expressed the wish to
continue. They experienced the group as helpful
in the complex and dynamic process of parenting.
A wide range of topics was opened in the groups,
from the parents’ own emotional needs and states
to the need for a better understanding of the children’s
emotional needs. The discussions addressed
recognizing the child’s difficulties and cooperating
with the child during treatment and recovery. A
constant topic was how to distinguish problems and symptoms from adolescent manipulation.
The group also discussed good communication
skills, crisis situations, and strengthening and developing
parenting skills. Some group members
brought up difficult personal experiences from
their own childhood and growing up. Participants
spoke about the changes that were needed and
that began to occur over the course of the group.
They created a new, better relationship with their
children, now adolescents. The importance of the
parent’s active listening, encouraging the expression
of emotions, and modeling conflict‑resolution
strategies was emphasized. The work and support
received in the group made parents more emotionally
available to their children. Parenting is a
demanding process that involves nurturing the
child’s physical, emotional, cognitive, and social
potential, while shaping the child’s behavior, value
system, and beliefs. It is important that parents do
not lose themselves from view, and that they strive
to get to know themselves in new life situations.
One group member states that she has a sense of
her own growth, in that she feels more mature and
more aware of herself and her reactions in relationships
within the family and toward her adolescent
and his problems. Other group members point out
that the treatment and recovery process of their
adolescents is long and demanding. During the
course of the group, we observed that most crisis
situations are resolved “on the move”, and therefore
the number and duration of hospitalizations
have been significantly reduced. We believe that
continuous work in parent groups has contributed
to this, alongside other factors.

Keywords

group psychotherapy; adolescents; parenting

Hrčak ID:

353113

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/353113

Publication date:

15.6.2026.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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