Identity-Based Faultlines in Taiwanese Counseling Groups and Group Members' Motivations for Self-Disclosing

Objective: According to I. Yalom and Leszcz (2020), self-disclosure is an important group process in effective therapy groups. However, presently there is a paucity of research on group factors that lead group members to approach or avoid self-disclose. One such factor that may negatively impact the group's tasks and goals, such as self-disclosure, are subgroups. Despite little empirical research on the effect of subgroups on the functioning of counseling groups, team and organizational researchers have developed empirical methods for identifying subgroups to examine the effects of these subgroups on team performance. Method: Drawing from this literature, this study examined how identity-based faultlines, or hypothetical dividing lines based on member attributes that divide a group into one or more relatively homogeneous subgroups, were related to group members' motivations for self-disclosing in group therapy. Data for this study consisted of 329 clients across 49 therapy groups in Taiwan. Results: As hypothesized, for women, increasing faultline strength was related to stronger approach motives for self-disclosing and weaker avoid motives for self-disclosing at Session 4 (early group development), but not Session 8 (late group development). Contrary to our hypothesis, for younger group members, increasing faultline strength was related to weaker approach motives for self-disclosing at Session 4. Conclusions: Findings of this study suggest that faultline strength is more salient for group members in early group development and individual differences based on sociocultural factors influence faultline salience. Group therapists can be cognizant of the potential negative influence of subgroups, particularly in early group development.