​10 takeaways from psychodrama’s first online conference

By Karen Carnabucci, LCSW, TEP
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It’s 2021, and that means we’re climbing out of the worldwide pandemic and reviving our professional conferences. That’s what’s happening with the American Society of Group Psychotherapy and Psychodrama, which finished its five-day online conference. I presented during the pre-conference – "Shaking Your Family Tree: Who’s In Your DNA?” – and attended the rest of the conference, which ended Sunday.

Here’s my 10 conference takeaways:​

1. This was the first-ever online conference of the organization. “You’re on mute” and “Turn off your video cameras and “Here’s your link” quickly became conversational regularities.
2. Traditional and beloved parts of the conference were present, along with some new forms. Organizers found a way to produce standards such as the Diversity Forum, Playback Theatre, the awards ceremony, the keynote and the plenary.
3. We marked 100 years of psychodrama, celebrating the action method and way of life that was started on April 1, 1921 by Dr. J.L. Moreno in Vienna, Austria. Dr. Moreno’s children, Jonathan Moreno and Regina Moreno, joined a panel to tell their stories of the early years of psychodrama, along with long-time trainers Anath Garber, Marcia Karp and John Nolte.
4. Coronavirus, of course, was the hidden guest. We got to see how trainers from across the United States are using teletherapy and tele-training. That included the use of breaks to make collages, masks and other art, small stages (two stacked cookie boxes to make a stage and then populated with doll-house-sized empty chairs) with Rebecca Walters and qigong with Marianne Shapiro that was integrated into sociometry and sculptures.
5. All of us traded stories on how we are working with the pandemic limitations using the Zoom platform and others, including online games and sand trays, using hand movements for sociometry and signs to reverse roles, and seeing young people on the playground.
6. Saturday’s Social Justice Panel presented the offerings of the new sociatry and social justice committee and the new Sociodrama for Social Action movement that aims to bring sociodrama to address current social justice issues.
7. International flavor always speaks to how many people around the world are interested in psychodrama. Attendees were welcomed from Bulgaria, Canada, China, England, France, Germany, South Korea, the Netherlands, Norway, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and a few counties that I am not remembering. The organization made some changes to help international attendees attend the keynote and plenary, although many countries accommodated to U.S. Eastern time zones.
8. The Journal for Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy has new editors and is looking at changes that make the journal more accessible and affordable. The journal will go fully online for its next issue.
9. The American Board of Examiners in Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy, the body that certifies practitioners and trainers, presented its annual conversation with members and aspiring practitioners, explaining how the pandemic has forced changes in the way online training hours are counted and is continuing to monitor the pandemic situation.
10. Next year – in person – “body to body and face to face” is the plan. The 80th conference is scheduled March 31 to April 2, 2022 in Chicagoland – the Hyatt Regency Schaumberg Hotel, Schaumberg, Ill. Details here.

More people stayed to participate in the closing session of the conference – there was no one slipping out early to catch a taxi or shuttle to hop on a plane. Just lunch in the kitchen and then return to the screen…
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About Karen

Karen Carnabucci, LCSW, TEP, is the founder of the Lancaster School of Psychodrama and Experiential Psychotherapies in Lancaster, Pa., which teaches transformational learning in a variety of experiential methods and practices, including psychodrama, sociometry, Family and Systemic Constellations, sand tray, group skills and more. Subscribe to her e-letter for professionals and get first notice of training events, Early Bird discounts, helpful links and  inspiring and supportive info. You may subscribe here.