Use of reminiscence groups to facilitate the telling of life stories by elderly Russian Jewish immigrants

Small groups of elders are studied in a joint exploratory research project between the Life Transitions Group of the School of Family Studies at the University of Connecticut in Storrs and the Hebrew Home and Hospital Day Center in West Hartford, Connecticut. The study is based on the premise that groups can provide a unique setting for the co‐facilitation of the telling of life stories among elderly Russian Jewish immigrants. One aspect of this exploratory research is to discern how elders make use of the group structure towards integrating disparate aspects of their lives and striving to consolidate a sense of personal identity. The group setting, conducted as a meeting of peers rather than as group therapy per se, can confer therapeutic benefits on participants. Learning that others have shared common experience makes it possible to address familiar feelings of isolation and alienation. In this way, a member might feel less alone. A sense of hope can be conferred in striving towards resolution of life conflicts and losses. Dissemination of information can be an important benefit in assisting members to form new perspectives of their experience. This is a rare opportunity for elders to formulate their stories for peers sharing similar harrowing experiences and to re‐examine and integrate those experiences into the fabric of their lives. There is significant focus on group process itself both within the group and as conceptualized by the author who led the meetings as a member of the Life Transitions Group. Inter pretation and intervention are predicated on creating the