Diversity in the United States
analytical Essay
1638 words
Part One
The United States population continues to increase in racial and ethnic diversity, therefore, it is pertinent that mental health professionals tailor their services to the needs of various cultural populations (Constantine, Kindaichi, Arorash, Donnelly, & Jung, 2002). The awareness that ethnic minorities experience negative consequences from being oppressed, resulted in the multicultural competence pedagogy and has helped counselors identify effective strategies to generate social change (Hage, 2003; Vera & Speight, 2003). Social norms that cause these injustices are identified, allowing for ethnic minorities to constitute and embrace empowerment. Moreover, this consciousness helps prevent therapists own bias’ from playing potentially oppressive roles stemming from their own worldview and builds on an understanding of their diverse clients life experiences (Sue & Sue, 2012). Counselors who commit themselves to social justice, value the fairness and equity in treatment and rights for marginalized individuals. According to Sue & Sue (2012), “an enlightened approach that acknowledges potential oppression in the manifestation, diagnosis, etiology, and treatment is best accomplished by taking a social justice approach,” which may be by challenging traditional models of therapy (Kindle Location 2919).
Cultural perspectives, sociopolitical influences, and externality may determine how individuals formulate their locus of control/local responsibility, which in turn, constructs their worldview. Mental health professionals who are not multiculturally competent may interpret socially devalued groups who display very strong external control beliefs “as being inherently apathetic, procrastinating, lazy, depressed, or anxious about ...
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...ustice Framework: Implications for School Counselors and Educators. Journal for Social Action in Counseling and Psychology, 1(2), 14-30.
Hage, S. M. (2003). Reaffirming the unique identity of counseling psychology: Opting for the "Road less traveled by." The Counseling Psychologist, 31, 555-563.
Hassouneh, D. M., & Kulwicki, A. (2007). Mental health, discrimination, and trauma in Arab Muslim women living in the U.S.: A pilot study. Mental Health, Religion, and Culture, 10, 257-262.http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13694670600630556.
Lewis, Arnold, House & Toporek (2003). Advocacy Competencies. ACA Governing Council. Retrieved on November 21, 2013 from http://www.counseling.org/Resources/Competencies/Advocacy_Competencies.pdf
Sue, Derald Wing; Sue, David (2012-07-10). Counseling the Culturally Diverse: Theory and Practice (Wiley Desktop Editions). Wiley. Kindle Edition.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that muslims began their immigration to the u.s. in the late 1800’s for various reasons including persecution based on ethnicity, religious beliefs and practices, and civil war and international conflict.
- Analyzes how the negative portrayal of muslims and islam in the media has exacerbated this discrimination and racial profiling.
- Explains that institutional racism is alive and well in western society and continues to impose discriminatory and bias statutes on ethnic minorities. counselors' competency for social justice advocacy is derived from awareness of the issue at hand, knowledge and understanding of core issues.
- Explains that the multi-phase model of psychotherapy, social justice and human rights (mpm) provides mental health professionals with strategies to better serve the muslim immigrant population.
- Explains that the implementation of the mpm would benefit the depicted muslim parents who were suspected of child abuse.
- Argues that mental health professionals tailor their services to the needs of diverse cultural populations. the multicultural competence pedagogy helps counselors identify effective strategies to generate social change.
- Explains abu-ras, suarez, and reddy, l. a. understanding the mental health needs of american muslims: recommendations and considerations for practice.
- Cites cair's policy bulletin on integration and disenfranchisement of western muslim minorities.
Related
- opinion
- explanatory
- analytical
- Cultural Competence Assessment and Case Studyopinion essay“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.
In this essay, the author
- Explains cultural competence is the ability to engage in actions or create conditions that maximize the optimal development of client and client systems. multicultural competence includes a counselor to be aware of his or her biases and knowledge of the culture they are evaluating.
- Explains problems with acceptance from father, church faith rejection, occupational issues, and other problems (daughter diagnosed with a severe heart condition).
- Narrates the story of a 37-year-old haitian woman who lived with her paternal grandmother until she was seven.
- Recommends using layman's terms when counseling a client whose first language is not english. using the addressing framework helps organize the information pertaining to the client’s influences culturally.
- Explains the client's ethnic and racial identity. mother and father are of haitian, although english is her first language.
- Opines that a counselor should understand mrs. hudson's cultural background and acknowledge some of the haitian’s beliefs as these may be what is affecting the client’
- Cites hays, p. a. (2008), sue, d. w., & sue.
599 wordsRead More - Mrs. Hudson Case Studyopinion essayWhen working with clients of diverse background and cultures, it is important for counselors to be conscious of this fact during assessment and subsequent counseling. Due to fact that much of Western psychology and counseling theories and approaches stem from a White, European viewpoint, experiences and symptoms of marginalized groups are also evaluated by this same perspective (Sue & Sue, 2016). Furthermore, Hays (2015) stated, “psychological assessment involves standardized procedures that have been developed and shaped by dominant culture, which largely ignores or dismisses cultural influences. As a result, cultural questions and consideration are commonly left out,” (p. 128).
In this essay, the author
- Explains that mrs. hudson, a 37-year-old haitian-american, immigrated to america in 1973, leaving her in the care of her paternal grandmother. haitians saw 4 major waves of migration to the u.s.
- Explains that mrs. hudson's family relationships have experienced some trauma in her life. she reports a "tense" relationship with her father, who was diagnosed with and ultimately died from cancer.
- Opines that mrs. hudson's religious beliefs and history would be important in her assessment.
- Explains that mrs. hudson has reported heart racing, shortness of breath, sweating palm, and tightness in the chest. she went to medical school and her profession as a doctor would allow her to be aware of the symptoms she is facing.
- Analyzes how assessing mrs. hudson's symptoms from a non-culturally competent framework could lead to her being diagnosed with anxiety, depression, anti-social behavior, or paranoia.
- Opines that it would be beneficial to explore areas of trauma within mrs. hudson's life, as well as cultural and political oppression within her family.
- Explains that in order to competently assess and counsel clients, we must be willing to examine the various cultures from which they come, and continue to educate ourselves as counselors.
- Opines that counselors must take into account the culture and customs of all of their clients, not just their own, when assessing and treating them.
- Explains that having a working knowledge of cultural symptoms as they relate to the haitian population would be extremely important in assessing and treating mrs. hudson.
1395 wordsRead More - Multicultural Reflectionopinion essayHowever, understanding our own feelings and reactions to this cultural diversity is likewise important to our development as counselors. As stated by Sue & Sue (2012), the way we react to our own feelings, and possible biases, can either enhance or negate a deeper understanding of ourselves as racial/cultural beings within this multicultural society (p.46). As a counselor, the importance of recognizing our clients’ values and cultural background, as well as being aware of our own worldview, will allow me to develop stronger therapeutic relationships and culturally appropriate
In this essay, the author
- Describes how they became an active member of the community after taking english classes and becoming a certified elementary teacher.
- Opines that society's perception is the main issue in every multicultural environment. the pressure society puts on us has a direct influence on who we turn out to be.
- Opines that as an active member of multicultural society, they've been able to reaffirm their core values in relation to people who have different ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation or from different countries of origin.
- Opines that dominant cultural groups should assume a more understanding position toward the different values and traditions maintained by minority groups instead of enforcing values from the mainstream culture.
- Explains that they have had the opportunity to interact with many different families from a variety of cultural backgrounds. this has been an excellent way of exploring how their own prejudices could directly affect the development of healthy and productive interpersonal relationships.
- Explains that they were able to model, guide, and nurture positive racial, ethnic and cultural attitudes and perspectives by having stakeholders, parents and students become involved within the community.
- Opines that minority groups should not be embarrassed of their traditions, and should work toward a better sociocultural development of this multicultural civilization.
- Opines that understanding the different worldviews of culturally diverse clients is essential to effective multicultural intervention. understanding our own feelings and reactions to this cultural diversity is also important to counselors' development.
- Opines that their own cultural/ethical background explains who they are, and will definitely impact their work as a counselor. respecting their clients’ cultural background and becoming actively aware of any possible biases and prejudices will help maintain an ethical and effective counseling relationship with clients, families and society
1058 wordsRead More - Racism And White Racial Identity Theory And Researchexplanatory essayCounseling diverse clients ethically involves knowledge of one’s own cultural group, values, and awareness of one’s current stage of racial identity development as well as an understanding of minority clients’ stage of racial and cultural identity (Sue, & Sue, 2013). As a White student counselor I read the article titled, “Racism and White Counselor Training: Influence of White Racial Identity Theory and Research,” by Sherlon Pack-Brown (1999) and reviewed Sue and Sue’s (2013) stages of racial and cultural identity in order to gain personal knowledge and insight.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that counseling diverse clients ethically involves knowing one's own cultural group, values, and awareness of one’s current stage of racial identity development as well as an understanding of minority clients’ stage
- Explains that pack-brown's article investigated the relationship between racism, white racial identity, and white counselor training.
- Explains that racial identity theory consists of five assumptions: every member of society belongs to one or more groups of people; belonging to a group influences one’s worldview; a racist social environment influences the process of racial identity development.
- Explains the six stages of helm's racial identity development that white counselors are motivated to educate themselves on what it means to be white.
- Explains that effective training is influenced by gender, the trainer's stage of identity development, and the accurate identification of the student' s identity stage.
- Opines that as a white woman counseling student, they agree with most of the points made in this article. they have seen racism first hand while living near atlanta, georgia.
- Opines that being racially centered with a hierarchal displacement of power and privilege is wrong and celebrating racial diversity, equality, and understanding would be another matter.
825 wordsRead More - Racial Identity Development Model Essayanalytical essayOne 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,
In this essay, the author
- Compares and contrasts models of identity development in people of color with racial identity models for whites, and discusses how it may impact clients of colour. they point out that while the racial/ cultural identity development model proves beneficial, more attention should be devoted to the white therapist's
- Explains that white racial identity development models describe the salience of identity for establishing relationships between the white therapist and the culturally different client. the racial/ cultural identity development model for minority groups alerts clinicians working with clients of color to certain likely challenges associated with each stage.
- Argues that the white racial identity development models are weak in giving guidance about how to develop a nonracist white identity.
- Argues that the r/cid framework reminds therapists of several important clinical imperatives like how within-group differences are important to acknowledge in clients of color.
486 wordsRead More - Race, Ethnicity and Gender in Therapyopinion essayRace 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.
In this essay, the author
- Opines that before the course, there were many rumors about how it progressed and what would be taught. they hope by the end of the quarter this set of rumor is put to rest.
- Explains how client experiences with religion and legal structures influence the construction of self and others through morals and values instilled by a client's individual religious experience, and through the impact of legal experiences on the client.
- Explains that a 35-year-old white christian male with corporate job, bachelors degree, and no disabilities will have the most power.
- Explains that a client's personal race and ethnicity can influence his or her experience of self and others in at least three ways.
- Opines that the client's needs should be the focus of attention in therapy from the postmodern approach.
- Reviews almeida, dolan-del, and parker's transformative family therapy: just families in a just society.
913 wordsRead More - Theory Paper: Family Case Applicationanalytical essay..., M., Giordano, J., Garcia-Preto, N. (Eds.). (2005). Ethnicity and family therapy 3rd ed. New York, NY. The Guildford Press.
In this essay, the author
- Explains that structural family therapy is a collectivist approach and this student comes from an individualistic society, which affects his values.
- Explains that structure family therapy is the theory applied to the family. boundaries, hierarchies, and subsystems are the main concepts within this theory.
- Explains the structural family therapy model's fundamental concepts: boundaries, hierarchies, and subsystems.
- Analyzes how eric and samantha have similar collectivist cultures and struggle between acculturating to individualist society.
- Analyzes how eric and samantha have enmeshed boundaries with each other and their children. melito (2006) says family subsystems are necessary part of a family.
- Analyzes how the student thinks structural family therapies techniques are a valuable resource to have. by improving the family's boundaries, hierarchies, and subsystems, they could improve their quality of life.
- Explains how the integration of solution-focused therapy and structural family therapy helps low-conflict divorced parents establish appropriate boundaries.
1994 wordsRead More - Nugent, F. A. An Introduction to the Profession of Counseling (2nd ed.). New Jersey: Prentice-Hall,
In this essay, the author
- Explains that resolving human emotional and behavioral problems is a major force in the field of psychology.
- Explains that freud's system is a relatively recent phenomenon, and the concept itself is at least as old as
- Opines that despite trying to limit his analysis to six to twelve months, he had hoped that in time it would be done.
- Opines that freud first sought a quick cure.
- Opines that freud would have preferred a brief therapy over an open-ended therapy.
- Explains that social changes brought on by the pressures of world war ii led to a great demand for shorts.
- Opines that war creates large market niches and economic boon at the expense of war.
- Explains that president kennedy and the congress passed a service bill in 1963, due to an increasing need for services.
- Opines that brief therapy became more popular and necessary in the ‘80s and ‘90s.
- Opines that the question of who is or isn’t an appropriate client for brief therapy seems to point to this.
- Opines that those who can afford the unlimited-time frame and expense involved are not in the average, mainstream.
- Explains that reviews of studies have shown that there are essentially no differences in outcome between short and long-term studies.
- Describes the benefits of career counseling and outreach to students.
- Refers to a study by gage and gyorky (1990).
- Describes the approaches to brief therapy and counseling that they would integrate.
- Opines that this is very directive. the main reason i like this approach is because it clearly demonstrates living.
- Opines that academic issues are not a panacea, and may not be as effective in dealing with more intrapsychic issues.
- Opines that it will probably help most of the client populations (college students) presenting problems most.
- Explains the role of unconscious factors and neglecting feelings.
- Describes the context and values of the client's before attempting to confront or change their way of thinking.
- Describes some gestalt techniques to help bring past issues into the “here and now.”
- Recommends using gestalt techniques (such as role-reversal, etc.) instead of being symptom-oriented.
- Opines that americans may not be comfortable with this focus and prefer a more structured approach.
- Opines that approaches are short (by default, not by design), when you consider the actual number of sessions.
- Concludes that with the pressures of an ever-fast-paced society such as ours, the summary:
- Opines that intervention is truly needed, but in the face of the evidence, it's great to know we have them.
- Evaluates the merits of open-ended therapeutic practices at the expense of the best interests of their clients.
- Cites butcher, j. n., and koss, m. p. on brief and crisis oriented psychotherapies.
- Explains garfield, s. l., and kurtz, e. clinical psychologists: a survey of selected attitudes and views.
- Explains nugent, f. a., an introduction to the profession of counseling.
- Describes stone, g. l., and archer, j.
- Cites butcher, j. n., and koss, m. p. on brief and crisis oriented psychotherapies.
- Explains garfield, s. l., and kurtz, e. clinical psychologists: a survey of selected attitudes and views.
- Explains nugent, f. a., an introduction to the profession of counseling.
- Describes stone, g. l., and archer, j.
- Quotes wells (1982) and nugent (1994) for a working definition of short-term therapy/counseling.
- Explains that brief therapy approaches help clients develop coping skills that will enable them to anticipate and manage.
- Explains that due to budget constraints, the rising cost of mental-health care, and a growing demand for services over the last decade, counselors have been using brief.
- Explains the importance of managed health care and the ever-increasing need for it.
- Explains that short-term or brief therapy refers to more than just the length or duration of counselor-client contact. it also incorporates the use of sophisticated directive skills.
- Explains that the specificity of brief therapy, the active role of the therapist, and the expectations concerning the length of therapy all help to facilitate the process and avoid some pitfalls that occur in long-term
- Explains the four types of patients best suited for brief techniques, according to butcher and koss (1978). garfield (1989) states that brief therapy can be considered for most patients who are in touch with reality
- Explains that the concept of long-term psychotherapy may be a myth based on the actual number of cases. studies have consistently shown that clients drop out before ten sessions over half the time.
- Opines that some patients drop out of therapy dissatisfied, because of a mismatch of values and expectations with their therapists, but those who leave therapy early seldom go for therapy elsewhere.
- Explains that a study by butcher and koss (1978) stated that improvement was reported in about 70% of cases in various modalities of short-term therapies.
- Opines that if not for time-limited intervention, they wonder where and how they would get the help that they need.
- Concludes that college campuses are a perfect setting for brief therapy/counseling approaches. with older students returning to college, the diversity of presenting problems among the college client pool should be large.
- Describes their long-term goals of becoming a clinical psychologist and author, but they have chosen college counseling as an interim step to gain valuable counseling experience.
- Explains that they chose college counseling because they have direct experience in this arena and feel they can relate to many of the problems they will be presented with by students.
- Opines that empathy and insight is hard to learn from less than first-hand experience and can be a most valuable asset when working with someone who is suffering.
- Argues that cognitive therapy has been criticized as focusing too much on the power of positive thinking, as being too superficial and simplistic.
- Explains that interactions can be generalized to interactions with others outside of therapy. the past may be explored, but only in the context of the client’s present circumstances.
- Opines that bringing the health of the physical body and spirit into play is an essential aspect to overall health and well-being as emphasized by holistic practitioners.
- Opines that brief therapy/counseling is a great therapeutic tool for the majority of the more normal developmental life issues or problems that present themselves in the lives of people.
- Opines that the concept of brief therapy is well rooted in historical foundation. freud was looking for a quick cure for neurosis and did not intend on the long-drawn-out process that psychoanalysis eventually became.
- Opines that brief counseling/therapy is an approach that suits most of the major therapy/counseling theories. it seems inhumane to treat people for long periods at huge expense if they can be effectively.
- Opines that approaches, need to be more honest with themselves about who is really being served in the majority of time-unlimited interventions. old habits and attitudes often die hard.
- Explains gurman, a. s., and kniskern, d. p. research on marital and family therapy: progress, perspective and prospect.
- Explains gurman, a. s., and kniskern, d. p. research on marital and family therapy: progress, perspective and prospect.
3043 wordsRead More - Diversity and Cultural Competence in Family Therapyexplanatory essayCulture can be defined as behaviors exhibited by certain racial, religious, social or ethnic groups. Some factors in which culture may vary include: family structure, education, and socioeconomic status (Kodjo, 2009). Some may think cultural competence is something that has an end point, however, when the big picture is seen, it is a learning process and journey. From the writer’s perspective, the client-therapist relationship can be challenging. Culturally competent therapists must realize that behaviors are shaped by an individual’s culture. Many changes are taking place within the United States cultural makeup. Therapists and healthcare professionals are being challenged to provide effective and sensitive care for patients and their families. This type of culturally sensitive care requires the professional to be open and seek understanding in the patients diverse belief systems (Kodjo, 2009).
In this essay, the author
- Explains that a therapist must understand how their client relates to the world around them. these feelings affect how the client sees the problem and how they respond to their situation.
- Explains cultural competency aids in closing the "disparities gap" in health care. being respectful of and sensitive to the client's health beliefs, culture, values, and diverse needs can bring positive outcomes within treatment and patient care
- Explains that american culture varies widely in its social norms. in japan, group membership fosters intimacy, and hierarchical organization creates distance among members of society.
- Explains critical thinking in family therapy is an indispensable and vital component of learning. a culturally competent therapist must learn self-awareness and gain an understanding of their individual likes, dislikes and biases.
- Explains that a culturally competent therapist must understand the importance of social and cultural influences on patients’ beliefs and behaviors and devise appropriate interventions to meet their individual needs.
- Explains that a therapist must understand how their client relates to the world around them. these feelings affect how the client sees the problem and how they respond to their situation.
- Explains cultural competency aids in closing the "disparities gap" in health care. being respectful of and sensitive to the client's health beliefs, culture, values, and diverse needs can bring positive outcomes within treatment and patient care
- Explains that american culture varies widely in its social norms. in japan, group membership fosters intimacy, and hierarchical organization creates distance among members of society.
- Explains critical thinking in family therapy is an indispensable and vital component of learning. a culturally competent therapist must learn self-awareness and gain an understanding of their individual likes, dislikes and biases.
- Explains that a culturally competent therapist must understand the importance of social and cultural influences on patients’ beliefs and behaviors and devise appropriate interventions to meet their individual needs.
- Explains that cultural competence is a learning process and journey. therapists must be aware of individual values and beliefs in order to understand why the client responds to certain life-stressors.
- Explains that cultural competence is a learning process and journey. therapists must be aware of individual values and beliefs in order to understand why the client responds to certain life-stressors.
- Explains hastings, c., kodjo, and shiraev. cross-cultural psychology: critical thinking and contemporary applications.
1048 wordsRead More - Addressing Clients Prejudice In Counseling Analysisanalytical essayHow should counselors handle prejudices that clients express in counseling? Do these prejudices need to be addressed if they are not related to the client’s presenting issue? The counseling profession has established values of awareness, knowledge and skills in multicultural counseling and social justice as a way to
In this essay, the author
- Analyzes how the article addressing clients prejudices in counseling may present a challenge to the counseling relationship.
- Explains that the counseling profession has established values of awareness, knowledge and skills in multicultural counseling and social justice as a way to address power, privilege and oppression.
- Explains that counselors have a responsibility to respect the client's worldview by maintaining an accepting and nonjudgmental stance, while working within an understanding of social justice and advocacy.
302 wordsRead More