The basic concepts and purposes of multicultural counseling include the following answers. The main purpose of multicultural counseling is creating a positive and friendly environment, when counseling clients from an ethical or racial background or minority group. The main goal for counselors is to recognize issues of multicultural diversity in today’s society. These potential clients can include people in business, medical, or manufacturing as well as, students, and immigrants. The culture centered approach to counseling in a positive way but these behaviors can have no meaning, until both the client and the therapist understand the cultural context. The basic concepts and approaches include (a) establish an accurate awareness of how the therapist is culturally similar and culturally...
“Cultural competence is the ability to engage in actions or create conditions that maximize the optimal development of client and client systems” (Sue & Sue, 2013, p. 49). Multicultural competence includes a counselor to be aware of his or her biases, knowledge of the culture they are evaluating, and skills to evaluate a client with various backgrounds (Sue & Sue, 2013). Client assessment involves gathering information pertaining to the client’s condition. Making a culturally responsive diagnosis involves using the DSM-IV-TR axis (Hays, 2008). Following the axis backwards is ideal to discovering the client’s diagnosis, understanding the client’s ADDRESSING outline will help to come to a closer resolution for a diagnosis.
Counselors today face the task of how to appropriately counsel multicultural clients. Being sensitive to cultural variables can be conceptualized as holding a cultural lens to human behavior and making allowances for the possibility of cultural influence. However, to avoid stereotyping, it is important that the clinician recognize the existence of within-group differences as well as the influence of the client’s own personal culture and values (Furman, Negi, Iwamoto, Shukraft, & Gragg, 2009). One’s background is not always black or white and a counselor needs to be able to discern and adjust one’s treatment plan according to their client.
Acculturation, worldview and perceived discrimination as cultural variables influence career behaviors of racial/ethnic minorities. Multicultural education and diversity appreciation training are thought to decrease counselor prejudice. Theme four looks at multicultural issues that require counselors to incorporate cultural data into their thinking and actions. Multicultural competence incorporates learning how to include cultural data into decision making process of complicated problems and interventions posed by culturally different clients. Theme five posits that people have multiple identities that affect the ways they experience and view the world. Multiple identities are used to refer to variables such as sex, age, socioeconomic status, nationality and ethnicity which impact an individual’s behavior, perception and
It was an effective film to show that clarifying goals of therapy are another way to provide effective counseling rather than giving advice and solving the clients’ problems. Specially working with a minority group client, I always try to be prepared, learn about my client culture, background, values, beliefs, create a plan, make sure my client doesn’t not feel overwhelmed or discouraged by any of my statements, frame the issue in a personal context, and allow a moment of silence for the emotions to come out. In general, the counseling profession must develop multicultural competencies in order to successfully work with clients from diverse
A therapist will face problems, issues and client troubles everyday. The professional must understand how their client relates to the world around them. These feelings and ideas affect how the client sees the problem and how they respond to their situation. Their actions, in turn, have bearing on individual thoughts, needs, and emotions. The therapist must be aware of the client's history, values, and culture in order to provide effective therapy. This paper will outline and provide information as to the importance of cultural competence and diversity in family therapy.
Remember, self-reflection is vital to becoming a culturally-competent counselor. The counselor should consistently re-examine their worldview and personal beliefs about diverse individuals and other cultures. The idea is for the counselor to explore their own prejudices, emotions, and preconceived notions of those that differ from themselves. Remaining curious and willing to learn about culturally distinct groups is a practical way of working effectively with varied clients in counseling and understanding what barriers and prejudices are typical in their
The diversity among clients and the counselor is an issue that has recently come to the forefront. The counselor must be very cautious and sensitive to the cultural values of their clients, gender and gender preference, age, language preference, ethnicity, and spirituality and religious beliefs.
In conclusion, working with multicultural clients can be challenging and rewarding. From this essay, I’ve established that prior to a counselor entering the field to counsel multicultural clients. It’s imperative to apply the two rules that have been discussed in this essay.
In order to effect social justice changes within counseling, counselors will have to re conceptualize the traditional perception of counseling. Conversely, acquiring multicultural competence is necessary to addressing social justice and ethical issues encountered within the counseling process as according to the ACA code of ethics, “counselors have an ethical obligation to be multiculturally competent” (Lee, 2007, p. 182). Multicultural competence requires counselors to be aware of their own values, attitudes, beliefs and behaviors and how they might impact the way they relate to their clients. Also, counselors will need to acquire knowledge and understanding of the worldviews of the diverse clients they serve. “Culturally competent counselors acting from a virtue ethics perspective recognize that the counseling relationship is situated in a shared community that includes clients, their social support systems, and a variety of resources that might be enlisted in removing systematic barriers to client growth” (Lee, 2007, p.
broad range of clients. Awareness and respect for diversity and multicultural values facilitates good communication and therapeutic relationship.
Understanding race, ethnicity, and culture is an extremely important aspect of being a counselor. If an individual does not have cultural identity of their own or understand his or herself as a cultural, ethnic, or racial individual, it may be difficult to help your clients. Understanding and being aware of your cultural identity will help the counselor be conscious of their own prejudice. Being aware of your own prejudice towards any culture, race, or ethnic group may help you redirect your negative thinking into a positive active role as a counselor. Having awareness will make an individual an improved counselor able to empathize and understand any individual who seeks therapy.
(Hays & Erford, 2014 p 59). In the counseling world in order to effectively work with clients from diverse background and cultures, it is important to provide a culturally safe environment and promote equality to all persons. Our main focus should be those that have already experienced discrimination due to their race/ethnicity, gender, age or economic status. Our efforts and “Beliefs that all people should have the right to equitable treatment and fair allocation of societal resources, the goal of social justice counseling is to establish an equal distribution of power and resources through advocacy to ensure that all people have the tools and resources for a “good life.” (Hays & Erford, 2014 p 59). The Multicultural and social justice counseling competencies (MSJCC) has implemented and created several competencies useful for the counseling profession. These competencies work as the foundation for something positive if properly implemented. It allows the counselor to address issues of power, privilege, and oppression and how each day the client is faced with a variety of worries that require the counselor to intervene and recommend the proper interventions needed in order for the client to move
SUE, D. W., ARREDONDO, P., & McDavis, R. J. (1992). Multicultural Counseling Competencies and Standards: A Call to the Profession. JOURNAL OF COUNSELING & DEVELOPMENT, 70, 477-486.
According to delval.edu “multicultural counseling is defined as what occurs when the professional counselor works with a client from a different cultural group and how that might affect interactions that take place within the counseling relationship. This definition is expanded to include dissimilarities in religion and spirituality, sexual orientation, gender, age and maturity, socioeconomic class, family history, and even geographic location. The first step in effective multicultural counseling is to identify and acknowledge these differences between the counselor and client”
5. Ponteroto J. et al.( 1995) (ed.) Handbook of Multicultural Counselling, Sage Publications Inc.: USA