Using the Sociodramatic Empty Chair with Children

by Rebecca Walters, LMHC, LCAT, TEP

Abstract: Sociodrama can be used with children who are brought together to address common issues such as classroom conflict, divorce, ill siblings, bullying, racism, social skill development, parents with mental illness, parents who are deployed, family disruption due to war and natural disaster, etc. The Empty Chair is often used as an opportunity to express feelings, develop insight and increase empathy. It can also be used in role training. This article will differentiate between sociodramatic and psychodramatic Empty Chair work with children’s groups. It will address why, when and ways to use the Sociodramatic Empty Chair during the warm-up, action and sharing phases of a psychodrama or sociodrama group session. It will include details of several ways to use the Single Sociodramatic Empty Chair and the Two Sociodramatic Empty Chairs that can be used in counseling/therapy groups, the classroom and community settings.

Keywords Psychodrama · Sociodrama · Children · Group therapy · Empty chair

1 Introduction: psychodrama and sociodrama

Sociodrama, like Psychodrama, is a way for children to tell their story, find commonality, decrease isolation, express their feelings, help find words, find a safe place to contain strong emotion, create a role that provides impact, provide a corrective experience and expand their role repertoire. And let’s not forget, it is a place to Play. This article will describe the use of the Sociodramatic Empty Chair structures that can be used with children’s groups.

Psychodrama is a highly effective way of helping children try on new roles and more spontaneous ways of taking on already developed roles. There are, however, times when working directly with children’s own stories, situations or issues is contraindicated. This is especially true in settings where there is no explicit contract to offer therapy or counseling such as the classroom, community groups, after school programs, religious centers, etc. It is also inadvisable in settings such as residential schools and psychiatric centers where confidentiality and emotional safety cannot be guaranteed, and in short term groups where children do not have time to develop cohesion and safety with one another.
And it is certainly contraindicated in groups where aggressive group members are unable to safely manage their own impulses or with children who become overwhelmingly dysregulated when directly addressing their issues, such as in programs for children with severe emotional problems.
Sociodrama typically focuses on large community and socio-political issues involving oppression, social justice, societal and political issues of a local and global scale. The concept of society is much smaller in the lives of most children, focusing more on their family, school and the playground rather than larger socio-political issues. Sociodrama can thus be used with children who are being brought together to address common issues such as divorce, ill siblings, parents with mental illness, parents who are deployed, family disruption due to war and natural disaster … and to address other community issues where children (or their parents!) might prefer not to reveal so much of their own personal stories. Sociodrama can be used in children’s groups to address group issues of racism, bullying, stealing, etc.
Like Psychodrama, Sociodrama can be a deeply therapeutic modality in psychiatric inpatient and outpatient settings and clinics. It can be used to address traumatic issues in children’s personal lives such as abandonment, physical and sexual abuse, parental absence, removal from the home, etc. It is especially useful in settings when the group does not feel safe or cohesive enough to enter into a psychodramatic exploration of a theme. It is often preferable with younger children who can get very triggered if issues are addressed head on. Sociodrama provides the necessary distance for these children to manage their emotional regulation. It allows them to stay
in their “window of tolerance” (Siegel, MD, Nov., 2021) rather than become hyper- or hypo-aroused even while addressing difficult issues. When out of the window of tolerance, the amygdala continues to be triggered over and over again and the child cannot cognitively process their experience and learn.
Sociodrama, therefore, is often the method of choice when working with younger children. It is, essentially, a form of play therapy in action. Imitation and imaginary play are the natural ways for children to learn about the world. Moreno teaches us that we develop roles by role taking, playing and creating (Moreno 1980). This is the way children master the skills needed in life. Role taking, playing and creating are a child’s natural forms of exploring their world.
Sociodramas usually involve a great deal of spontaneous role play. With some children’s groups this sort of unstructured sociodrama easily dissolves into emotional and physical chaos, especially when groups are large. In my years of working with children’s groups (eight to fifteen children) in an inpatient psychiatric hospital, I have developed contained structures that support sociodramatic explorations. With deeply traumatized children clear rules and expectations create the safe container.
Only if and when the group members seem ready by showing that they can take turns, regulate emotions, handle conflict without hitting, do we loosen the boundaries enough to invite child-initiated unstructured action.
The single Sociodramatic Empty Chair can be simple or more elaborate. It can be a warmup for a more involved piece of work, it can be the entire group session and it can be used for closure.

2 Warmup

In general, children do not need extended warmups, as they are usually ready to play. As a  warmup, the Sociodramatic Empty Chair can be used as one might in any group. In this Empty Chair is someone who … is angry, is sad, got into a fight today, has to move to another city, wants to make friends, etc. The children can either each say something to the Empty Chair or they can  double the Empty Chair. This can lead into a sociodrama or a personal psychodrama depending upon the needs and readiness of the child and the group.

3 Action

In the Empty Chair is someone (or something) including real and imaginary people, animals, creatures. The director can name the role and issue or can get the group to name the role. The role is described in terms of who they are (do not use the name of someone known by group members), how old they are, what the situation or issue is and any other pertinent facts. The more children who can be included in developing the character the better, as they become more invested in the sociodrama. Group members can double and/or speak to whoever is the Empty Chair.

4 Sharing

The Sociodramatic Empty Chair can also be used for sharing and closure, depending on the age of the children:

1. In this Empty Chair is the character the group created.
1.1 What is the last thing you want to say to them for today?
1.2 Give them a final piece of advice?
1.3 What’s one way you relate to their struggles/feelings?
We will describe two forms: Single Empty Chair and Two Empty Chairs.

5 Single empty chair

5.1 Danny the dinosaur

This structure was used for teaching pro-social behaviors in clinical groups of 6–9 year-olds. Danny the Dinosaur got into a fight with another dinosaur on the playground this morning. The group created the story. They described what he looked like (green with big claws and sharp teeth), what had happened (the other dinosaur was teasing Danny about being bad at sports). Danny jumped on the other dinosaur and scratched him and bit him. Danny got into a lot of trouble. The group was warmed up by asking how many of the members remember a time when they got into trouble for fighting or for breaking rules. Each child was invited to come stand behind the Empty Chair and double Danny. What was he feeling: Angry, embarrassed, hopeless that it would ever get better, scared he was in trouble …?
Each child then gave Danny some advice about what to do with his/her feelings now and what to do in the future when he/she gets angry. Some of them were able to validate Danny’s angry feelings but guided him to alternative, new and more adequate (spontaneous) responses. Some groups were able to play out sociodramatic scenes where they practiced these responses to conflict on the playground.

5.2 The new kid in the class
At midyear an already formed first grade class (5–6 year-olds) will be receiving Tim, a new child, the next day. The teacher invited the children to imagine Tim. He asked the children to stand behind the Empty Chair and double all the possible feelings that Tim might have coming into their class the next day. The children were able to double Tim’s excitement at meeting new friends, nervousness about the new teacher, missing old friends, worry that no one would be their friend, that they would get lost in the school, get on the wrong school bus and sad about having to move
away from his old home. Then the teacher invited the children to sit in the Empty Chair and say, as Tim, what they needed their own self to do to help them be more comfortable. Tommy said, as Tim: “Tommy can share his crayons” Maya said, as Tim: “Maya can sit next to me at lunch.” Jonas said as Tim: “Jonas can invite me to play at recess.” Rosie said, as Tim: “Rosie can tell me where the toilet is!” The teacher reported that it was the easiest transition the class had ever experienced.

5.3 Addressing the thief in the group

Someone had been stealing items in a residential unit of 10–12 year-olds in a psychiatric hospital. An Empty Chair was put in front of a semi-circle of chairs. The children were asked to create the character of the child who steals. What was their name (not the name of anyone on the unit, of course)? How old were they? What had they stolen? The children were invited to express their own feeling towards the made-up thief in the Empty Chair. They were then asked to raise their hands if they had ever taken something that didn’t belong to them. Now they were warmed up to
double ‘the thief’ and answer the question, “What were you feeling that made you take something that wasn’t yours?” They were able to express many feelings and thoughts from the double position: I just wanted it, my parents are poor and can’t afford to buy it for me, I was angry at the person from whom I stole. The next step was for each of them to direct to the Empty Chair what they felt they needed to tell him/her. By this point much of their anger had dissipated and they were able to speak of how disappointed they were, how their trust had been broken, sadness for their friend, and a willingness to share. They were able to express empathy for the thief, state clear boundaries and suggest other options. The stealing on the unit stopped. At least for a while!

5.4 The steps for the single sociodramatic empty chair

1. Define role and situation.
2. Children double the feelings from the role in the Empty Chair.
3. Children express feelings towards the role in the Empty Chair.
3.1 Sometimes group members may need to initially express their own strong feelings of anger or longing towards the Empty Chair before we ask them to double. Also, there is no need to double if the children are addressing an abuser. In that case they often just need to just express feelings.
4. Expansions:
4.1 Group members offer advice to the character in the Empty Chair.
4.2 Group members Role Reverse and state what they would want from the role-player.
4.3 Learning how to Role Reverse is a basic building block of developing empathy.
4.4 Group members practice social skills in sociodramatic vignettes.

5.5 A version of the sociodramatic empty chair: inner and outer circle.

This structure came from a time when I walked onto the unit of 9–11 year-old children. One of the children, Greg, had been the protagonist the week before in a psychodrama about his very, very abusive and threatening stepfather. Greg was not in attendance at the group this day because earlier that morning he had put on a suit and tie and had been driven two hours away to a court hearing about his abusive stepfather. It took a great deal of courage on Greg’s part to be willing to tell his story to the judge. When they arrived at the courthouse there was no judge. He had not bothered to let the unit know that he had canceled the hearing. The boy was now on his way back to the hospital.
The unit’s staff and the children were terribly upset at how unfair this was to Greg. We put the judge in the Empty Chair in the middle of the circle. Two of the staff were able to demonstrate from the double position what they would like to say to the judge if there were no consequences, and then, sitting down in their chairs, what they would choose to say to the judge in real life. Most of the children were able to use the doubling position (outer circle) to express their anger and then speak from the chair (inner circle) in a more respectful manner. There were a few who sounded exactly the same from the double position and their own chair. They were unable to differentiate between rude and unfiltered expression and responsible and more carefully chosen words so as not to antagonize the judge. This information was conveyed to their individual therapists for further attention.

5.5.1 The steps for inner/outer circle

1. The group members sit in the circle of chairs surrounding the Empty Chair. In this Empty Chair is someone who is mean, has disappointed you, etc. Most often it is an adult. Someone to whom you want to express your feelings but in a way that will not get you into trouble.
2. One at a time, ask the children to stand behind their chairs and say what they would say if they didn’t have to worry about consequences. Anything goes, you do not need to be polite. Now sit down in your own chair and see if you can tell the person how you feel in an appropriate way.
It is always interesting to see which children cannot differentiate between “I hate you, you are a poopy-head, I want to hit you” from the double position and “I am angry, you shouldn’t have done that, think of how the boy must have felt when you weren’t there.”

6 Two empty chairs

This is particularly useful when we want to give children the opportunity to safely express strong feelings. Many times it offers children an important first chance to put their feelings into language and to express what others might deem ‘unacceptable’ feelings such as anger or helplessness. It also gives less articulate children an opportunity to practice using feeling words.

6.1 Incarcerated parents

It was not unusual that there would be many children in a group who had absent fathers due to the parent being in jail. One day there were a significant number. I invited the group to create a child. I usually give the child what in English is a gender-neutral name: Dana, Terry, Robin or Joey. “In this chair is Dana whose dad is in jail.” The group made up the rest of the character: Age, what s/he was wearing, who s/he lived with, what they liked to do for fun and when was the last time they saw their dad.
With one Empty Chair for Dana and one for Dad we began. Children were invited to stand behind the Empty Chair (Dana) and imagine what Dana might be feeling or what s/he wanted to say to Dad. I have used this same structure for addressing abusive parents, or parents who have abandoned the child. It has also been utilized when a child has been removed from the parent’s custody because the parent has been abusing alcohol or drugs. Some children will have a lot to say and clearly be working through some of their own feelings about their own situation. Others may get up and just repeat what another child has said. Often this is the way some learn the language for what they are feeling. There have been times when there is great hunger to stand behind Dad’s chair and speak from his heart. If he had only known better how his actions would impact Dana, or if he knew then what he knows now, etc.

6.2 Sibling rivalry

The Two Chair Sociodrama can be expanded in an effort to develop empathy and problem solving. With issues around sibling conflict being prevalent in one particular group of 8–11 year-olds we took a look at what was really going on and what to do about it. Using two Empty Chairs helped in developing empathy and problem solving.
The group created Terry as the child who was having a hard time coping with a younger sibling. The two children were getting into fights and Terry, as the older child, was being held responsible and being punished. The group decided Terry was eleven and his/her younger sibling, Robin was nine. The fighting was about Robin taking things from Terry’s room without asking. When Terry confronted Robin, Robin lied and said the items belong to him/her and then mimicked Terry.
Two Empty Chairs were brought out, one for each sibling. The group members were invited to double Terry’s Empty Chair. Then they were invited to double Robin’s. The children were easily able to double Terry, the aggrieved older sibling. It took a bit longer for them to understand what it felt like to be Robin but quickly warmed up to what it is like to always be smaller, less competent, etc. The chairs were moved to face one another, and the group was invited to problem solve from either of the Empty Chairs. The children came up with novel and practical solutions that ranged from Terry spending more time playing with Robin to both of them speaking to their parents. Terry and Robin were also encouraged to find ways to manage their own anger when it got triggered.

6.3 Discrimination issues

This same structure can be used to explore issues of discrimination around race, ethnicity and social/financial standing. There were a lot of disparaging comments heard on the unit of 9–12 year-olds. We began by warming up the children by doing a sociometric exercise around being teased or bullied because of what they looked like, what they wore, where their families were from or their family’s perceived economic status. The next sociometric exercise was about their own culpability in teasing others because of what they looked like, what they wore, where their families were from or their family’s perceived economic status. The kids were brutally honest. An Empty Chair was put out and the group made up the character. This chair represented the person  who was being teased or bullied. The childrenwere able to double the many feelings such as hurt, fear, anger, rejection. A second Empty Chair was put out. The children fleshed out the character of the child who had been doing the teasing. They were then asked to double this bully. With the help of one another they were able to better understand something about what goes on
inside the person who is teasing or bullying. With that in mind, the group was now able to move into a sociodramatic enactment of how to handle a variety of situations. Their solutions included naming what was happening, confronting the bully if it felt safe to do so and seeking adult intervention if things felt scary.

6.4 The steps for the two sociodramatic empty chairs

1. Have group create both characters using two Empty Chairs.
2. Group doubles each role.
3. Expansions:
3.1 Two Empty Chairs can face one another and there can be a dialogue with a focus on problem solving.
3.2 Move into a sociodramatic enactment of the issue with different children trying to find spontaneous ways of dealing with the situation.

7 Conclusion

The Sociodramatic Empty Chair provides a powerful and simple tool to add to our toolbox when working with children’s groups in action, in a safe, creative and meaningful way. By utilizing the Sociodramatic Empty Chair, we can expand the use of action methods into settings where psychodrama would not be appropriate or welcomed.

Acknowledgements Published with the support of the Federation of European and Mediterranean Psychodrama Training Organizations (FEPTO).

Rebecca Walters, MS, LMHC, LCAT, TEP is the founder (1989) and co-director of the Hudson Valley  Psychodrama Institute in Highland, NY. She has utilize action methods with individuals and groups of children, adolescence and adults for over 40 years. She was the director of psychodrama services at Four Winds Hospital in Katona NY where she worked for 25 years. In addition to HVPI, Rebecca has trained throughout United States. She is also an internationaly respected trainer at confereces and institutes in the UK, Europe, Asia and Central America.

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Published by Springer Nature oder sein Lizenzgeber, Zeitschrift für Psychodrama und Soziometrie

1 December 2023