Group, Vol. 24, No. 1, 2000 Dialogue Groups in the 21st Century: An Extension of Practice Pamela Pomerance Steiner 1,2,3 and Stephanie Beukema 1,2 Experts in group dynamics are needed to work with societal-level identity groups to facilitate productive dialogue in lieu of destructive action or stalemate. Group therapists can promote dialogue about feelings and thoughts regarding societal- level identity issues that contribute to stuck destructive intra and intergroup re- lationships. After an introduction to the politics of identity and the importance of societal-level groups, the theory and practice of “dialogue groups” will be introduced and our own dialogue group described. KEY WORDS: de Mare; dialogue; identity groups; isomorphic; societal-level. A NEW APPROACH TO OLD PROBLEMS Identity or Societal-Level Groups It is infinitely preferable, if enormously difficult, to resolve conflicts through talking rather than fighting. “Societal-level” groups refer to the large communi- ties of which we all are formal or informal members and share defining parts of our identities. These often overlapping identities may be inherent or acquired, 1 Pamela Pomerance Steiner, Ed.D., and Stephanie Beukema, Ed.D., are in private practice and Instruc- tors in Psychology, Dept. of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School. Steiner is a founding member and associate of PICAR, the Program on International Conflict Analysis and Resolution at the Weather- head Center for International Affairs, Harvard University. Both occasionally work as members of mediation teams. 2 Steiner and Beukema convened a Median Dialogue Group from 1995–1999. They launched the group after participating in the 1994 workshop, “Dialogue in the Median Group” led by Patrick de Mare, the British psychiatrist who created this modality. Steiner has been mentored by Patrick de Mare for the last two decades.The workshop was sponsored by the Northeastern Society for Group Psychotherapy. In 1997 Steiner and Beukema convened a Median Dialogue Group Workshop in Prague with Czech colleagues. 3 Correspondence should be directed to Pamela Steiner, Ed.D., 11 Garden Terrace, Cambridge, MA 02138. 75 0362-4021/00/0300-0075$18.00/1 C  2000 Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society