CGAS Quarterly Lecture on Zoom by Dr Regan Berry

This presentation will explore how containment and reflective group spaces can restore thinking, feeling, and connection in trauma-saturated school communities. Drawing on a constructivist grounded theory doctoral study of the systemic transformation process of an Alexandra township primary school, we will examine how unprocessed trauma circulates through institutional life, manifesting in fragmentation, withdrawal, and social defences embedded in school processes and culture to contain the high levels of anxiety present in the school community. I will share examples that illustrate characteristics of Hopper’s basic assumption states of Incohesion. Through the introduction of leadership coaching and creation of containing, reflective group spaces, the school began to reclaim its capacity for emotional holding and collective thought. The presentation traces this movement from a state of incohesion towards Bion’s work-group mentality, offering insights into how group-analytic processes and insights can foster psychic repair, relational resilience, and learning within traumatised educational systems.

Dr Regan Berry is a member of the Ububele Working with Groups Faculty, an Executive Coach, Researcher, and Social Worker in private practice. Her work is informed by group analytic and systems psychodynamic thinking, with a focus on how containment, relationship, and systemic awareness support transformation in groups and organisations. Across corporate and non-profit contexts, Regan designs and facilitates experiential learning spaces that cultivate self- and group-awareness, making unconscious dynamics within systems more visible and thinkable. She brings a reflective, relational approach to her work, fostering spaces where learning and change can emerge through the group process.