Online Sociometry for Therapy Groups: A Shared Spectrogram Line

About the technique

A spectrogram is an action sociometry exercise from psychodrama: group members place themselves along an imagined line between two poles, such as “not at all” and “very much”, to show where they stand on a question. It grows from J. L. Moreno’s sociometry, the practice of making a group’s choices and connections visible, and is one of several experiential sociometry structures, alongside locograms and floor checks, used to warm up and connect groups (Giacomucci, 2021).

The mechanism is visual and quick. Members see at a glance who shares their position, which builds connection, while the spread of positions shows the group’s range of experience before anyone has to speak. The facilitator then invites a few people from different points to say what put them there. Psychodramatic techniques as a family have some meta-analytic support, from small and older studies (Kipper & Ritchie, 2003), but the spectrogram itself has little controlled research and is best described as practice-based, valued as a warm-up and a way to read the room.

It works with teen, adult and family groups, in person or on video, at most stages of a group if the questions match the group’s safety. Giacomucci (2021) pairs these exercises with explicit safety structures. In the same spirit, start with low-stakes prompts, allow anyone to opt out, and keep individual positions out of any summary. Avoid privilege-walk style questions about trauma, identity or other sensitive histories, which can expose members in front of peers.