R% also (implicitly) took a RB stance, saying’ Of the client is not different from me immediately, they would turn out to be different in some other way” R@ emphasized individual difference by saying ‘I start with the individual’ and relating identity to race, while R3 took a celebratory posture, seeing differences as essential to understanding who we are”.
Question 4: How do you feel about your own cultural identity? What aspect of your own cultural identity are you conscious of while working with culturally different client.
Two main them emerged in response to this question.(I) an implicit naturalization of ‘whiteness’ as the norm and an (II) explicit assertion of ‘race’ or class. (i) R4 said,’ I never thought of myself as having cultural identity but I am sure I must have one’ “Indicating that ‘whiteness’ was taken for granted as the norm to which others were to be compared; and R$ “sometimes I feel I am
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The two main themes that emerged in response to this question were in reference to (a) the need of the culturally different; (b) The reactions of the culturally dominant sector of society.
Needs of the cultural minority were stressed by R1 who said, I think it is the client who demanded of their rights,”R2, speaking as a black woman, said ‘I think there is a need to separate in order to integrate and I think that the way I am going to be able to understand myself better is to clearly understand what the issues are and the cultural aspects… “A wider-ranging discussion of this issues came from r3 who located the cause of minority dissatisfaction in the nature of counseling/psychotherapy as currently practiced arguing that ‘ it is very dominated by masculine thought, and dominated by …male theory.. I think it is not just discontent by ethnic minorities but also by women too… in some ways the client is blamed for being
It is pertinent to study the history of racial oppression when preparing to counsel a client from an ethnic minority if the counselor is from the majority culture. The problem is it would be difficult to examine the complete history and would be highly impossible especially in a short time. However, a therapist can gain knowledge of some of the essentials of history such as, religion, family structure, and background information. If the therapist or counselor is uncomfortable counseling these individuals he/or she can refer the client to someone who has more knowledge or has the same cultural background as the client. For instance, a therapist must become aware of the sociopolitical dynamics that form not only their clients’ views, but their own as well. Racial and cultural dynamics may interfere into the helping process and cause misdiagnosis, confusion, pain and reinforcement of biases and prejudices towards their client.
Whiteness is a conceived ideology that has existed and been maintained since early history. This ideology has negatively influenced individuals of colour, causing them to receive many unfair benefits and disadvantages. In this essay, I will argue that the three most important overall features of whiteness are; that it is perceived as a normalized and dominant culture, that society considers white individuals as the most superior race and lastly that these individuals are easily granted countless of opportunities and privileges other races simply cannot have or afford. I will also show that through these features, whiteness essentially becomes a form of identity, shaping and maintaining the social institutions. Moreover, I have chosen these
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.
Cook, D. & Helms, J. (1999). Using race and culture in counseling and psychotherapy. Needham Heights, Massachusetts: A Viacom Company.
Race and ethnicity can influence a client’s experience of self and others in a variety of ways. A client’s personal race and ethnicity can influence his or her experience within the context of therapy through the set of beliefs he or she brings into the room. This set of beliefs and customs influences how he or she views therapy and whether there is motivation to be there. If the client’s culture does not usually seek therapy for their problems, or even believe in mental illness, it is likely the client will have apprehensions about trusting or speaking to the clinician. If the clinician is not aware of this possibility, the clinician may wonder why the client is in therapy if he or she will not speak or allow rapport to be built. A responsible clinician will take this into consideration.
One important aspect relatively untouched in our main textbook is the racial identity development of helping professionals, especially the level of racial consciousness of the minority therapist and how it may impact that of the client of color. But it is equally important for counselors of color to consider their own racial consciousness and how it may interact with a client from their own group. A culturally competent counselor needs to be cognizant of and to understand how sociopolitical factors influence and shape identity. Identity development is not solely due to cultural differences but to how the differences are perceived in our society. The R/ CID framework reminds therapists of several important clinical imperatives like how within-group differences are very important to acknowledge in clients of color because not all members of a racial/ cultural group are the same. Depending on their levels of racial consciousness, the attitudes, beliefs, and orientations of clients of color may be quite different from one another. (Gone,
To begin with, culture is something that may change evolve within time but culture is something that come with your heritage or your ethnicity the traditions and things that happen that make up your culture like how your parents raised you are culture. In the informational text “ What is cultural identity” by Elise Trumbull and Maria Pacheco, and in the personal essay “Ethnic Hash” by Patricia Williams, there are similarities and differences in how each writer conveys their message about cultural identity. Based upon their research, Trumbull and Pacheco present the idea that culture changes and that it will never stay the same, while Williams uses her personal experience to develop the idea that many things influence cultural inheritage but
Involved in social interaction is the concept of a social self. A social self, as explained by George Herbert Mead, is a symbiotic interaction; the individual self is a process of interaction as opposed to a “thing.” In terms of multiracial individuals, this means that they’re social self is developed through communication with themselves and with others. As explained by Shih and Sanchez, multiracial individuals have developed their sense of self by being misunderstood by “white” and non multiracial communities. In terms of the article, if multiracial individuals are feeling like their full self isn’t being accepted, they will view themselves as outcasted and unaccepted by their community. Unfortunately, it is difficult enough for a monoracial individual to feel accepted, let alone a multiracial individual.
Experiencing a society of multi-cultures is beneficial through a variety of concepts to epitomize each individual identity. A person may vary in the degree to which he or she identifies with, morals, or...
There are different perspectives, however, which put stress on various aspects of culture and try to identify its boundaries and its substitutes. Some regard culture as separate entity from demographic factors, some point out acculturation as one of the obstacles, which makes culture difficult to identify, some show how an intimate and meaningful relationship between a counsellor and a culturally different client to be established. In this essay I will be discussing what the different concepts of understanding of culture in Counselling are, by examining different authors and perspectives and evaluating their strengths and weaknesses.
Who am I; my beliefs, values, morals, and views on society have assisted in molding me into the person that I am considered to be today. I was raced with specifics values, traditions, and norms. Being raised in a small town made being socially aware very easy. I was raised under the southern Baptist Christian religion. Church was always the same and it had a majority of women in attendance although the men and elderly people ran the church overall. It was always the same, repetitive habits and events that occurred in my town but after a while I became accustomed to always being near or known by others.
My culture identity, as I know it as is African American. My culture can be seen in food, literature, religion, language, the community, family structure, the individual, music, dance, art, and could be summed up as the symbolic level. Symbolic, because faith plays a major role in our daily lives through song, prayer, praise and worship. When I’m happy I rely on my faith, same as when I’m sad, for I know things will get better as they have before.
No human being is culture free. We are a product of the many different cultures which surround us. Our values, worldview and experiences are structured by the society and culture that exert influences on our lives each day.
Culture has a big impact on how we all fit in as individuals in today’s society, and since this assignment is about that I decided to include some of my own experiences to illustrate my point of view and compare it with those of my classmates and some of the readings.
How many times have people asked themselves, who am I? What defines me? Culture plays a very important role in the identity of people. People are born in a culture, their family's culture, but not with an already established culture. The term culture refers to the values, beliefs, customs, style of dress, food, songs and stories that are shared and learned in a characteristic group. On the other hand, identity is a set of features, attributes and characteristics that define a person. Identity is constructed by language, social structure, gender orientation and cultural patterns. Although many do not relate these two themes, there is a complex relationship between culture and identity.