The application of relaxation, visualization, and hypnosis in group psychotherapy
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Katolicki Uniwersytet Lubelski Jana Pawła II, Instytut Psychologii, Katedra Psychologii Wychowawczej i Rodziny
Submission date: 2025-09-30
Final revision date: 2026-01-18
Acceptance date: 2026-02-08
Publication date: 2026-10-28
Psychoter 2026;217(2):61-71
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ABSTRACT
The present article aims to expand the understanding of the clinical utility of relaxation, visualization,
and hypnosis in the context of group psychotherapy.
Group psychotherapy emerged as a therapeutic modality in medicine during the 1940s and has since
undergone numerous adaptations in response to the evolving nature of clinical practice. Theoretical
and technical approaches employed within group psychotherapy are diverse, encompassing cognitive-
behavioral, psychoeducational, interpersonal, Gestalt, psychoanalytic, dynamic-interactional,
psychodramatic, and other frameworks.
Relaxation techniques—most notably Schulz’s Autogenic Training and Jacobson’s Progressive
Muscle Relaxation—represent well-established and widely applied methods in group psychotherapy,
frequently described in the relevant literature. Visualization and hypnosis, although less commonly
utilized within group settings, may nonetheless provide substantial benefits for both individual
participants and the group as a whole. Following a literature-based introduction, the author presents
clinical examples illustrating the application of relaxation, visualization, and hypnotic methods.
The clinical material is drawn from a long-term, semi-open, and heterogeneous psychotherapy group
conducted in an outpatient setting, meeting weekly for 180 minutes. The primary aim of the group
is the alleviation of symptoms and the facilitation of personality change in its members. The article
details the use of hypnotic trance with the entire group, as well as individualized interventions conducted
within the group framework, including the affective bridge and ego reintegration techniques.
Each intervention is discussed and justified in relation to the ongoing group process and accompanied
by clinical commentary.