self-help group
a group composed of individuals who meet on a regular basis to help one another cope with a life problem. Unlike therapy groups, self-help groups are not led by professionals, do not charge a fee for service, and do not place a limit on the number of members. They provide many benefits that professionals cannot provide, including friendship, mutual support, experiential knowledge, identity, a sense of belonging, and other by-products of a positive group process. Each group also develops its own ideology or set of beliefs about the cause of and best means to address the problem that brings members together; the ideology is unique to that group and serves as an aid or “antidote” to its particular type of problem. For instance, the ideology of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) includes the belief that alcoholism is a lifelong problem and that the first step in addressing it (see twelve-step program) is for group members to admit that
they do not have control over their drinking. Of the various types of self-help groups, AA represents only one; it falls into a broader category of groups whose focal problem is addiction or compulsive behavior (e.g., Gamblers Anonymous). Other types of self-help groups include those focused on a life stress or transition (e.g., Compassionate Friends), those focused on mental health concerns (e.g., National Alliance on Mental Illness), and those focused on a particular physical disease or disorder (e.g., the National Multiple Sclerosis Society). See also mutual support group; support group.