Time perspective and intimacy. Their effect on patient behavior in occupational therapy.

Introduction In recent years, with the development of an active milieu program at the Institute of Psychosomatic and Psychiatric Research of Michael Reese Hospital, the use of the Department of Occupational Therapy gradually changed: Larger numbers of patients were treated at one time; the staff became involved in more activities on the unit, and there were more planned patient activities away from the hospital. To facilitate this extended program, it was necessary to concentrate on groups, as well as individual patients. In order to understand these new needs, a series of seminars was begun concerned with the theory and practice of intragroup relationships. It was hoped that the seminars could be useful to the development of occupational therapy for three reasons: 1. Collective activity being necessary to the functioning of occupational therapy, an understanding of the conditions favorable to integrating groups and to handling groups