Overview
Crosstalk, in the context of group therapy or recovery meetings, means directly commenting on the experiences someone shares.
Some groups openly allow crosstalk or indicate that a speaker who shares can individually grant permission for others to provide input, while others ban it entirely. Many of these groups are generally intended to be safe spaces to share how one feels without judgment, and crosstalk, even if it’s just positive affirmations, still means that a speaker will undergo judgment. In AA, in my experience, crosstalk is generally discouraged and exceptions come from members who have known each other for a long time and can confidently read each other’s body language and mannerisms to judge when a comment is likely be received well. On the other hand, SMART Recovery actively encourages crosstalk as an interactive problem-solving forum to critically examine each other’s issues. I’ve seen this go really well before with members appreciating the advice to use CBT tools and even being called out on excuses or rationalizations, and I’ve seen this go really poorly where a facilitator feels uncomfortable stepping in to cool a heated discussion. And I mean REALLY poorly, as in threats of violence. I have yet to see hands actually be thrown but I don’t doubt that the day will come where I do.