ABSTRACT
The median group is a term coined by Patrick de Maré in the 1990s to differentiate between the small group and the large group. The median group uses as its currency the levelling of a free-floating dialogue as distinct from the process of free association in psychoanalysis and group association. The median group represents a significant development towards introducing an operational method of exploring our cultural dimensions; it is large enough to offer a micro-cultural springboard whereby the surrounding macro-cultures can be explored and assessed. The essence of the median group is to help people learn how to talk to each other consistently and comprehensively, and Plato called dialogue the Supreme Art. The application of the median group in high-security prisons, in the Navy, and other institutions is proving more productive than that of the small group, since it addresses socio-cultural issues as opposed to stirring up the familo-tribal past.
