This learning session was at PMI Global Congress - North America. 11-13 October 2015. Orlando, FL, USA

1. 1
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The Aid for Overcoming Transition
State: Psychodrama in
Organizational Context
Session Code: NA15SIM02
Alexander Lesnevsky
Association of Psychoanalytic Coaches

2. 2
Learning objectives
• Construct an understanding of what are psychodrama
and sociodrama
• Develop the skills on how to stage sociodrama
• Adopt as a project leader how to improve climate in a
project team using sociodrama

3. 3
Questions for discussion
• Applicability of sociodrama in your organization/team
• When to use sociodrama: Conditions, limitations
• What an outcome to expect
• When not to use sociodrama

4. 4
What we are going to do
• Why sociodrama
• What is sociodrama
• Bits of history: origins and parents of
psychodrama/sociodrama
• How to stage it
• Sociodrama conducted by me
• Sociodrama conducted by one of you
• Discussion

5. 5
Tribes and their languages
• Companies with good culture outperform
companies with mediocre culture.The same applies
to project teams.
• One of the possible metrics for “goodness” of a
culture are stages (e.g. “Tribal leadership”)
• You have representatives of different tribes in your
project team. They speak different languages.
• You need a tool or technique to make them speak
with each other

6. 6
Tribes and their languages
(Notes: you need to speak their language)
The theory of “Tribal leadership”. I was lucky to come to
the seminar of John King in Moscow in July this year.
“Birds flock, fish school, people - tribe”. Tribe is a group of
20-150 people. Tribes are building blocks of any large
human effort. Each tribe is at a certain stage. There are 5
stages: 1- “life sucks”, 2- “my life sucks”, 3- “I’m great”, 4-
”we’re great”, 5 -”life is great”.
Suppose you haven't eat for 3 days. I’m passing by and
have some bread. How would you ask me to give you
bread? Ok.
Now, suppose I’m deaf. Please do the same.

7. 7
Psychodrama/Sociodrama
It’s a play which is performed
with creativity, spontaneity,
“here and now” moment;
Objective: gain an insight on
particular personal issue
and gradually change
behaviour

8. 8
Psychodrama/Sociodrama
(Notes)
In essence psychodrama is a play directed by trained
psychodramatist, it is also desirable that some of the
actors in a play are trained in psychodrama. The
psychodramatic client comes up with an issue manifesting
any internal conflict, suggests the scene to play and
selects actors for the roles. He also selects the role for
himself. Then the scene is played and followed up by
reflection on what have happened. As a result in most
cases the client has some insights on his internal conflict
and gradually the behaviour of a client changes.

9. 9
Aristotle
“Tragedy, then, is an imitation of an action that is
serious, complete, and of a certain magnitude; in
language embellished with each kind of artistic
ornament, the several kinds being found in separate
parts of the play; in the form of action, not of
narrative; through pity and fear effecting the proper
purgation of these emotions..” (VI, Poetics
translated by S.H. Butcher, retrieved from
http://www.gutenberg.org/ )

10. 10
Aristotle
(Notes)
The idea of psychodrama actually originates from Aristotle
- see citation. The key words here are: “serious action”,
“pity and fear” and “purgation” which is often referred as
catharsis (intellectual and emotional clarification).
Catharsis in turn is always accompanied by insight.

11. 11
Jacob L. Moreno
1879 -1974
Jacob Levy Moreno is the founder of psychodrama.
1917 - first experiences with groups in Vienna
1921 - systematic use of psychodrama in practice, the
first sociodrama staged at Vienna Comedy theater on
Fools Day (April, 1)
1925 - Moreno moves to U.S. and continues
experiments with psychodrama
1932 - Hudson project

12. 12
Jacob L. Moreno (notes)
Upon immigrating to US in 1925. Moreno takes his father’s name - Moreno ( ‫-מורה‬is
a teacher in Hebrew, “no” is typical Romanian suffix for family name) as his family
name.
The legend on how psychodrama was born is as follows: once upon a time Jacob
playing with kids from neighborhood got into the basement. Jacob suggested to play
God: “I will be the God and you will be my angels”. The kids agreed and they erected
a pyramid from tables and chairs. Jacob sat on top of the “heavens”, other kids
running around the pyramid, waving hands, singing - imitating the angels.One of the
kids asked Jacob why is he not flying. Jacob tried to “fly”, fell down and broke his
arm. Moreno regards this even as a first experience in psychodrama. And often
defines his method as a “psychotherapy of fallen gods”.
Moreno used to say that true psychotherapy is psychotherapy of the whole mankind.
Moreno uses psychodrama in Vienna for treatment of the men with suicidal
inclination. The first sociodrama in Vienna was complete failure.
In 1932 Moreno successfully uses all of his methods in Hudson School for Girls in
US.

13. 13
Sociodrama setting (1/2)
• Number of participants: 5-20 from whom about 5
are actors;
• Staging is conducted in mid sized hall with
movable chairs;
• Time frame is about one-and-a-half hour;
• Short warm up. Participants get acquainted with
each other.
• One of the participants - “the client” - comes up
with a personal issue related to work.

14. 14
Sociodrama setting (2/2)
• Sociodrama has 3 acts: 1- today's situation, 2-
association with childhood, 3 - “to be”.
• Socidramatist discusses with the client the scenario
for Act 1 to be staged;
• The client selects actors for the roles in scenario
and the role for himself in Act 1.
• We play Act 1. The actors play spontaneously
according to their roles. 5-10 minutes.
• Reflection and sharing. 5-10 minutes.
• Steps starting from bullet 2 are repeated for Act 2

15. 15
Sociodrama (notes)
We used the following approach with the setting
comprising three acts of the stage:
Act 1 - “as is” – how the client thinks and feels about his
issue in the beginning.
Act 2 - “resemblance”. The idea behind this act is to play
something from client's childhood, for instance
relationships in his family. This association possibly
produces an insight about the current issue.
The roles could be: people, emotions, any real or virtual
objects, such as schedule, risk, workaround, etc.
Act 3 - “to be”
Refrain from touching each other

16. 16
Activity I
Sociodrama
staging

17. 17
Activity II
Acting as
a Stage Director
of a Sociodrama

18. 18
Discussion
• Applicability of sociodrama in your organization/team
• When to use sociodrama: assumptions, preconditions,
limitations
• What an outcome to expect
• When not to use sociodrama

19. 19
• Name: Alexander Lesnevsky
• Email: alex.lesnevsky@gmail.com
• LinkedIn: Alexander Lesnevsky
• Facebook: Alexander Lesnevsky
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