Lewin's Change Theory Applied to a Geropsych Unit
This paper applies Lewin's Change Theory and Force Field Analysis to the challenge of developing a more dedicated staff within a Geropsychiatric (Geropsych) Unit. Beginning with the "unfreezing" stage, the paper examines how mindfulness, emotional intelligence, and self-awareness can help staff unlearn counterproductive behaviors. Force Field Analysis is then used to identify restraining forces — such as organizational culture, lack of structure, and poor communication — alongside driving forces like education, transparent leadership, and a culture of innovation. The paper also addresses stakeholder engagement, arguing that empowering all affected parties through education and open communication channels is essential to sustaining meaningful organizational change.
- Introduction: Identifying the Goal of Change: Establishes the goal of a more dedicated Geropsych staff
- Lewin's Unfreezing Stage and Mindfulness: Applies unfreezing stage via mindfulness and self-awareness
- Force Field Analysis: Restraining Forces: Identifies barriers like culture, structure, and staff resistance
- Driving Forces for Change: Highlights education, leadership, and innovation as drivers
- Stakeholder and Partner Engagement: Argues for empowering all stakeholders through education
- Communication and Monitoring the Change Process: Stresses regular communication to sustain change momentum
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What makes this paper effective
- Consistently ties theoretical frameworks (Lewin's Change Theory and Force Field Analysis) back to a specific clinical setting, making abstract concepts concrete and applied.
- Balances both sides of the Force Field Analysis — restraining and driving forces — giving the argument structural symmetry and analytical credibility.
- Integrates citations from multiple disciplines (clinical psychology, nursing education, emotional intelligence research) to support a multifaceted argument.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper demonstrates applied theory analysis — taking established organizational change frameworks and systematically mapping them onto a real-world healthcare context. Rather than simply describing the theories, the author uses each framework as a diagnostic and prescriptive tool, identifying specific variables (e.g., mindfulness, communication, culture) that correspond to theoretical components.
Structure breakdown
The paper opens by stating the goal of change, then walks through Lewin's three-stage model before shifting to Force Field Analysis. Restraining forces are addressed first, followed by driving forces, maintaining a logical progression. The final two sections broaden the scope to stakeholder management and communication, situating the unit-level change within a larger organizational and community context. References are formatted in APA style.
Introduction: Identifying the Goal of Change
Using Lewin's Change Theory and Force Field Analysis to produce a more dedicated Geropsych Unit can be accomplished by putting each theory into practice. First, the goal of the change must be identified — here, that goal is to develop a staff that is dedicated to its work and patients. Once this goal is established, the process can begin.
Lewin's Unfreezing Stage and Mindfulness
The first step is to remove workers from their current state of awareness regarding how things are done. According to Lewin's Change Theory, this is the period of "unfreezing" that must occur, wherein the old manner of execution is unfrozen or unfixed in the mind so that a new method can be inserted and learned. In the Geropsych Unit, the key to developing a more dedicated staff is to unfreeze the mind and help workers "unlearn" the behaviors that have allowed them to be less than fully dedicated in their service.
This is accomplished through promoting and teaching mindfulness, which researchers have identified as an effective tool for helping workers cope with stress, remain present with patients, and think more fully about patients' needs (Baer, 2003). Mindfulness can be achieved through emotional intelligence and self-awareness. These two tools help staff members better reflect on the goals of the change management solution, clarify what the new strategy should be, and understand how to implement it effectively.
Force Field Analysis: Restraining Forces
Force Field Analysis is also helpful in producing the change needed in the organization. It allows for systematic analysis of factors that function as restraining forces — resisting change — as well as the pressures that act as driving forces toward change. Educational factors are one example of variables analyzed within Force Field Analysis theory. A lack of education, for instance, could be a restraining force that prevents individuals from embracing change, while having that education could serve as a driving force that propels individuals toward it.
Force Field Analysis is particularly helpful when attempting to implement a new strategy such as Systems Thinking, which "is important to enhance the learner's awareness of the interdependencies in people, processes, and services and to view problems as occurring as part of a chain of events of a larger system, rather than as independent events" (Dolansky & Moore, 2013). As these researchers indicate, awareness is essential in moving an organization from the status quo into the change process — and it begins with understanding a new role.
Other restraining forces include staff resistance, lack of structure, blocked communication channels, lack of trust, and organizational culture. Each of these can act as a barrier to changing the status quo in ways that benefit the Geropsych Unit. Staff members can be suspicious of change, skeptical of leadership's ability to make sound decisions, and resistant to new policies that replace familiar ones. A lack of structure can impede change by allowing for poor communication and inadequate monitoring of the change process. Organizational culture itself can be a significant obstacle when it promotes a status quo mentality even as change is being implemented, undermining the motivational force of workers.
Driving Forces for Change
Driving forces include the awareness needed to recognize the positive impact of change and the necessity of it within the Unit. Education is another driving force, as is a culture that supports innovation and dynamic development. Leadership can also be a powerful driving force, provided it is transparent and capable of instilling trust in workers. Leaders who possess a high degree of emotional intelligence can help workers overcome individual obstacles that may be holding them back — such as fear, stubbornness, or emotional attachment to the old ways of doing things (Mayer & Salovey, 2001).
References
Baer, R. A. (2003). Mindfulness training as a clinical intervention: A conceptual and empirical review. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10(2), 125–143.
Dolansky, M. A., & Moore, S. M. (2013). Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN): The key is systems thinking. OJIN: The Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 18(3), Manuscript 1.
Mayer, J. D., & Salovey, P. (2001). Emotional intelligence as a standard intelligence. Emotion, 1, 232–242.
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