Group Mandala
James Neill
Description of a Group Dynamics Exercise
Group Mandala
 Allows symbolic
exploration of
group structure
and dynamics,
and revealing of personal
feelings towards others
 Each person is represented by
an object they choose
themselves; objects are then
"caste" like dice
 Each person then shares how
he or she feels about the
position in which his or her
object has landed (uses
psychoanalytic technique of
"projection")
 Through various rounds,
participants get to
modify/adjust the position of
their object until each
individual is satisfied with
where they sit in relation to the
other objects (group members)
 Logistically, a simple activity;
facilitation-wise, a potentially
difficult and challenging
activity; lots of potential for
subtle and deep group work
 Group sizes of approximately 7
to 9 are ideal, but can be done
with as few as 5 or as many as
12.
Last updated:
Equipment: Each
group member to
select one personal
object or an object
from nature, to
represent
themselves
Time: ~30-40
minutes
 Background
information
 Description of
Group
Mandala
 Facilitator
notes
 Links to
other
descriptions
Background Information for Group
Mandala
Acknowledgements: This exercise has been
adapted from an exercise facilitated by Chris
Loynes at the 10th National Outdoor
Education Conference, 1997, in Perth,
Western Australia and subsequent personal
advice (see links). Chris attributes his
learning of the learning to Roger Greenaway
who provided me with some excellent
information about a similar activity he calls
“Stones” and a related activity called
“Human Sculpture” (see links).
Psychodynamics & Personal Objects: My
intention in developing this particular
adaptation was to use it in an outdoor
education graduate seminar class to facilitate
within group communication and
interpersonal understanding, and to stimulate
discussion about psychodynamic theory in
outdoor education settings.
The most obvious psychodynamic principle at
work is the notion of "projection", although
this is a psychologically complex activity that
is likely to elicit several other observable
psychodynamic processes (such as ego states
and interpersonal transactions). The group
had in the previous week been introduced to
background readings about psychodynamic
theory and had been challenged to think
about possible ways this theory might be
seen at applicable to outdoor education.
Students were requested to bring a small,
non-fragile object of personal
significance to the class. Note that the
selection of personal objects of significance
for the exercise is likely to bring into play the
history of psychological association and
meaning that individuals have attached and
invested the object with. Thus the decision to
include these objects immediately heightens
the level of psychological investment. Using
objects of personal significance comes with
associated risks and liabilities of course and
requires an appropriately supportive and
trusting atmosphere, so use this feature
carefully. Using personal objects can make
for a ‘weightier’ and more sobered session
than might be the case when using readily
available objects in the immediate
environment.
Surprisingly little has been written in the
psychological literature about the psychology
of objects. Possibly the key text is still Jung’s
“Man and His Symbols”, along with a
relatively recent book by Csikszentmihalyi and
Rochberg-Halton, “The meaning of things:
Domestic symbols and the self” which states
in the preface:
“To understand what people are and what
they might become, one must understand
what goes on between people and
things. What things are cherished, and why,
should become part of our knowledge of
human beings. Yet it is surprising how little
we know about what things mean to people.
By and large social scientists have neglected
a full investigation of the relationship between
people and objects.”
Roger Greenaway made a useful suggestion
here that
“it may be tricky to move from here to group
dynamics if, say, someone brings a photo of
their boyfriend, another a family photograph,
another a tiny piece of jewellery, another a
goldfish in a jar ... So each person may like to
have the option of choosing a new object
when switching into group dynamics that is
more representative of their image or role
within the group.”
Interesting effects might be obtained by
instead bringing a lot of set of objects from
which participants can select.
Also note that before the activity, give the
group the extra instruction that their object
will be subject to group activity, some of
which will be beyond each of their personal
control, and that they will therefore lose a
certain amount of control over their
object. So if they wish they should select an
alternative object for the activity. Usually
peope do not take up the offer, but usually
someone has forgotten to bring an object. In
this case, they should use something handy,
e.g., something from their bag or wallet, or a
watch or pen.
What is a Mandala?:
Mandala is Sanskrit for circle, polygon,
community, and connection. The The Concise
Macquarie Dictionary defines mandala as
“a mystic symbol of the universe, in the form
of a circle enclosing a square; used chiefly by
the Hindus and Buddhists as an aid to
meditation”.
Mandalas, however, need not be so narrowly
defined. A Google Image Search for Mandala
reveals many traditional and contemporary
mandala designs, several of which go beyond
a circle enclosing a square. What seems to
tie them together is their patterned
interconnectedness.
By the way, I don't share the title for the
activity with the students until afterwards, or
possibly at all. By leaving it nameless, it can
help emphasize the discovery of meaning via
intricate patterns and interconnectedness,
both conscious and unconscious, that seems
to form even in the most rudimentary of
group structures.
Description of Group Mandala
Each of these steps should be revealed one
by one. This helps to enhance the
unknowness of the activity (and therefore,
any experienced meaning is largely socially
constructed by participants themselves).
Also note, the facilitator should consider
whether or not participate in the group either way can be appropriate or not,
depending on the nature of the group and
the facilitator.
1. Participants in a group select a small
object. The object can be anything,
from anywhere: e.g., an object of
personal significance or collected from
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
the outdoors
Standing in a circle, ask a participant
for their hat (or use some other
container).
Place your object in the hat, and pass
the hat on to the next person who does
the same.
Caste the objects, with some care,
some randomness (like rolling dice)
(may use casting mat, e.g., a sarong or
coat, particularly if using personally
significant objects). Try to use the floor
rather than a table.
Ask people to look at the objects and
then take turns sharing how they feel
about the place of their object in
relation to the other objects in the
group.
One-by-one then go around in a circle
and have each person move his/her
object to a new position, explaining to
the group why it feels more comfortable
for their object to be in this different
place.
Ask the group to discuss and collective
create (move/shift) their objects into an
ideal arrangement.
Debrief: What do you think of this
activity? Why?
What happened in this group during this
activity from a Psychodynamic
perspective?
Facilitator Notes
Participants could bring a surprising variety
of objects, for example an engagement ring,
a pocket knife, a stone bearing the
inscription “inspiration”, a teddy bear,
necklaces and rings, trinkets, and so
on. Initially I did not ask students to initially
describe the significance of their objects –
not asking this obvious question can
heighten the sense of mystery and suspense
in the activity. By the end of the activity,
the students responded favourably and more
richly to an earlier hint that we might close
the activity by sharing with others the
personal significance associated with the
object. This provided a deep, satisfying
sense of closing to the activity.
Overall, the exercise works well, but it can be
a challenge initially to process as there is
often some resistance and anxiety associated
with the apparent open-endedness of the
activity.
At a critical point when a student challenged
me on the seeming pointlessness of the
activity I explained that from a
psychodynamic point of view the ultimate
activity is give someone a blank piece of
paper and ask them what they see. Whatever
the person replies with would be an indicator
of their inner psychological state, because
there is relatively little external stimuli. When
we give people complex activities, it becomes
difficult to distinguish what parts are to do
with the person and what parts are due to the
nature and structure of the activity
itself. Thus, I suggested, it is the very openendedness of the activity which is the point of
the exercise from a psychodynamic point of
view. This comment appeared to serve as a
catalyst to help guide the student discussions
behind the immediate details of the activity
and more or less from this point they were
able to make many interesting connections
and insights to psychology and outdoor
education.
Links to other descriptions
From Chris Loynes
1. Place the objects in the hat - or
whatever- and scatter them. What's
going on in this group?
2. Can repeat - how position changes felt
sense of experience.
3. Throw - What is the personality of your
object?
4. Throw - what would it be like to be your
object in this group?
5. Can be a repeat of 4.
6. Arrange the objects to represent the
ideal group.
7. If they don't move to this in 6 anyways
- what, given the characters you have
developed - is an arrangement that
represents the best this group can be?
8. You could go on to - or introduce earlier
- objects that represent their own
characters explicitly.
It'll work well for the purposes you describe!
I'd be cautious abut it being a fix for your
group's particular dynamics but it could be a
step in the right direction. If you can I'd
recommend moving it into their own story
rather than the fiction/projection they
develop especially if their comments give
you an opening in this direction.
From Roger Greenaway
There's many dimensions to this - starting
with where the exercise came from and how
different people have developed it. There is
no correct way of doing this exercise. What I
can tell you about is some of my own
experiences of using it, and then I'll respond
to your specific questions about using it with
your group.
I remember trying out this exercise when I
was at Brathay on hearing someone suggest
arranging objects to represent group
dynamics. I usually call it ''stones''. The most
basic version is described on my website as
part of my reviewing cycle tutorial (start at
Facts and go round clockwise). A more
detailed description is in the 'stones' file on
the website:
http://www.reviewing.co.uk/learningcycle/stones-group-dynamics.htm