Relate Restore Repair A Therapeutic Process Group Model of Restorative Justice

1. Relate Restore RepairA Therapeutic Process Group Model of Restorative Justice

2. Ryan Knuth, LCSW Stacey MacGlashan, LCSW

3. Restorative Justice Process Group • Restorative Justice Process Group is a therapeutic intervention that promotes relational repair through exploration of concepts including accountability, empathy, insight and amends.

4. Guiding Principles I. The goals of restorative justice include relationship repair, responsibility and choice; as such, restorative justice does not follow a consequence-oriented or punishment model. Reparative action requires ownership and investment by all participants and does not allow for requirements or expectations imposed by external systems. II. Group is an interpersonal process; it is a conversation, not a class, lecture or presentation and thus depends upon active and authentic engagement by all participants. Group members who practice assertive communication by speaking directly and openly about their thoughts, feelings and experiences help move the group process forward.

5. Guiding Principles III. Facilitators provide opportunities for group members to practice the concepts of restorative justice within the relationships of group as a way to enhance understanding. Group members also are encouraged to use group time to share and explore experiences happening outside group, as this affords more opportunities for practice and supports group cohesion. IV. Practicing restorative justice concepts in group empowers members to apply them in other relationships as well and provides space for reflecting on those relationships.

6. Guiding Principles V. All conversations in group provide opportunities for members to practice and understand the restorative justice concepts. The topics that emerge from group conversation may sometimes appear to have nothing to do with these concepts; it is the facilitators’ responsibility to connect the two. The process requires tolerance for conflict, struggle and failure and must allow for exploration and application across the wide range of behaviors, relationships and experiences that impact clients’ lives, even those that may be uncomfortable at times. VI. Experiential activities enhance opportunities for group members to practice applying the restorative justice concepts. We believe in providing opportunities for both success and failure in relationships and behaviors and in using both outcomes to enhance insight, awareness and understanding of self. This requires reflection upon real-time, hands-on experiences in groups, experiential activities, restorative justice processes and elsewhere.

7. Guiding Principles VII. While the concepts build upon one another and are introduced in a linear manner, group process supports ongoing and often simultaneous exploration of multiple steps as the connections between group members and with the concepts build. VIII. Group members engage with the concepts together and are equally responsible for the group’s progress and process. Each group will have a voice in its definition of concepts and standard for success.

8. Restorative Justice Concepts Accountability A personal responsibility statement that clearly and directly names the behavior that caused harm. An accountability statement may address motivations and outcomes; it does not include apologies, alternative behaviors, blame, victim stance, minimization, glorifying or excuses.

9. Restorative Justice Concepts Empathy and Impact Impact is the determination of who was affected by the behaviors and how. Group members are asked to consider various types of impact as well as the difference between direct and indirect impact. Empathy is the interpersonal practice of attempting to put oneself in someone else’s shoes through deepened understanding of the other’s experience. Empathy builds most effectively through conversation with those who were impacted and explores the perspective, thoughts, feelings, attitudes and interpretations of all involved. It requires challenging assumptions and a willingness to consider other explanations.

10. Restorative Justice Concepts Shared Repair/Amends Group members together consider harm caused to communities and/or systems. Participants will attempt to identify commonalities at this level that link their separate, individual actions; they then will coordinate conversations with community members designed to: explore perspectives on negative impact; identify actions that produce the converse, or positive, impact; and provide a foundation for group planning. The group will use input from these conversations to develop a repair project, which members then will complete together. Facilitators will support the group as needed but, in keeping with restorative justice principles, the meaning and ownership must come from group members themselves.

11. Restorative Justice Concepts Insight While empathy asks group members to reflect outside of themselves to gain understanding, insight asks them to turn that reflection inside. This concept supports participants as they more deeply explore their own motivations, influences, circumstances, relationships, emotions, and environments at the time that the harmful behavior occurred. Clients consider patterns, thinking errors and areas of vulnerability. Exploration of this concept allows another opportunity for all group members to practice empathy in a different context.

12. Restorative Justice Concepts Personal Repair Group members will plan for meaningful personal amends with one or more of the people they impacted through their harmful behavior. The project has three phases: 1) planning - presenting the idea to group and receiving feedback and suggestions; 2) executing - carrying out the plan; and 3) reflecting - sharing the outcome with the group. Input from the group may lead to changes, additions or other adjustments to an amends project at any stage in the process. For example, during reflection, other group members may challenge and guide one another to address missing pieces or go more deeply into particular aspects of the process. This may mean that executing and reflecting must be repeated before completion.

13. Relate Restore Repair, LLC Ryan Knuth, LCSW Stacey MacGlashan, LCSW, LAC 7800 S Elati Street Suite 201 Littleton, CO 80120 720.443.3854 relaterestorerepair@gmail.com