Q & A with Dr. Birren Series #1

Question for Dr. Birren: What do you think is the single most important thing that we need to do as group facilitators for the writing group?

Dr. Birren’s Answer: One thing is the sharing of both positive and negative events. The facilitator needs to move things along so that the exchanges open up on an ever-deeper level. The group usually needs to meet 3 to 4 times before they truly open up to one another. The leader is the key person to facilitate this opening up and the increased trust that builds.

Question for Dr. Birren: Do you have any Birren best practices for teaching GAB apart from what we have learned from [class]?

Dr. Birren’s Answer: You will learn many things as you teach GAB classes. You will learn things beyond what your teachers have taught you because each GAB class is different and the challenges and rewards will be different for each [class]. For instance, I learned from the Vets group I led that many [vets] have surprisingly sensitive areas of their lives. Some older vets may begin to cry and have a difficult time turning it off. You will learn as you teach.

Question for Dr. Birren: What is the best venue to lead a GAB group?

Dr. Birren’s Answer: They are all the good. I have taught GAB in retirement communities, synagogues, churches, senior centers, universities. I think I have taught GAB in most all venues. I think it works best if the students have some small group experience even though that is not necessary. A diverse geographical area brings out an increased richness in backgrounds. I find heterogeneity stimulating.

Question for Dr. Birren: I sometimes feel it is a shame that the GAB facilitators do not share their story in the group. Do you have any thoughts about this?

Dr. Birren’s Answer: The role of the GAB facilitator is to prime the group memories. This is like [the role of] an obstetrician or midwife and the task is to give birth to the life stories of the group, not their [the facilitators’] own [stories]. The GAB facilitator is not an equal member of the group. Their role is to ask elaborating questions, to listen, and to make only personal comments that add to the overall goal of the GAB group.

Question for Dr. Birren: In how many countries have you trained GAB instructors?

Dr. Birren’s Answer: I have lectured in 27 countries and 40 states. I have done a 10-day GAB workshop in Singapore and training in both Japan and Brazil. In addition, Cheryl Svensson and I have teamed up with the MetLife Mind Alert award to offer one-day trainings to many sites, including the Okanagan Valley in British Columbia, Detroit, Atlanta, central Michigan, North Carolina, [and other locations]. GAB is spreading and now, even more so, with the GAB online instructor training classes that are offered.

Professor Emeritus James E. “Jim” Birren, the founding dean of the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology and an aging-research pioneer considered by many to be the father of modern gerontology, passed away on January 15, 2016, at the age of 97. Remembering James E. Birren