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According to the American Association of Christian Counselors (2014); in ES1-500: Cultural Regard in Christian Counseling- A Call to Dignity Cultural, ethnic and racial diversity are important factors for consideration in the delivery of counseling related services (p. 25). Counselors need to have some level of knowledge and awareness when it comes to religious and spiritual beliefs. In ES1-510, it discusses how Christian counselors will need to recognize and acknowledge that all people have been created in the image of the Holy God and all clients have the right to be valued and respected, receive ethical care, and to be treated with dignity. “In 1-520: Cultural Competency Christian counselors earnestly strive to develop and maintain culturally
In some countries, seeking medical help for mental health issues is the reasonable thing to do, where other cultures may view it as taboo and believe those matters should be left to religion or the family. Another vital aspect of multicultural counseling is the relationship between the therapist and counselee. It is essential that both parties are aware of the existing cultural differences. As a professional counselor, I will continue to educate myself properly, so as to give the best counsel by building trust and rapport. A few other aspects to keep in mind is learning to become culturally sensitive to communication and steering clear of trigger words or speech that the client may find offensive. Also, being aware of spatial distance is necessary. Some cultures prefer close contact and others may find too close of a distance
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.
Although, even if the therapist is from the same cultural background this can still be hard to counsel these clients because of different traditions, language dialects, family values, and ancestry. This does not mean that the therapist cannot help these clients, but this could hinder the therapist and client relationship if brought up in an entire different environment. For instance, you can have two individuals from the same cultural background and family values, but these individuals live in an entirely different environment or learned different family values and belief system. When working with a diverse client, it is very important to monitor your own culturally beliefs and be willing to work with the client no matter if you have any biases or prejudice towards them. Some of the strategies that could be helpful in these situations include, (a) treat the client the same way you would like to be treated, (b) research some information about the clients background and, (c) beware of your own cultural biases and prejudices when counseling minorities if your unaware of their backgrounds.
Kim, B. S. K., Ng, G. S., & Ahn, A. J. (2005). Effects of client expectation for counseling success, client-counselor worldview match, and client adherence to asian and european american cultural values on counseling process with asian americans. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52, 67-76.
In the first chapter of Psychology in Christian Perspective by Harold W. Faw the author talks about psychology as a subject, the different aspects of the subject and how psychology fits into the Christian world. Faw begins the chapter by describing what others think psychology and his views on psychology as well. He describes that “psychology can be described as a systematic attempt to understand human behavior and conscious experience” (Faw, 1995, p. 12). He then goes on to describe the many different types of specialties of psychology which include, neurobiological, behavioral, cognitive, humanistic, and psychoanalytic. These specialties are then integrated into the Christian worldview. They are all different so they all fit into
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.
According to the text, Competent Christian Counseling, some of the key psychosocial issues for African Americans who work with counselors of another culture include: feelings of powerlessness in the face of the dominant white culture;
Integration: The Allies Model The integration of psychology and Christianity is a very complicated subject that has sprung a heated debate over how best to integrate the two disciplines. Integration is a simple subject with many different definitions. However, according to Entwistle (2015), “The integration of psychology and Christianity is a multifaceted attempt to discern the underlying truths about the nature and functioning of human beings from the unique vantage points of psychology (in its various sub-disciplines, utilizing diverse methodologies) and Christianity (in theology, faith, and practice)” (p. 260).
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
In this meta-analysis of integration of spirituality and religion in the counseling field, the authors seek to understand the skills and attitudes needed to integrate these variables into counseling. Among those that were studied are awareness of one’s own culture and heritage, respect for the diversity found in people concerning spirituality and religion and recognition of one’s helping style and how it may be perceived by clients (Walker, Gorsuch, & Tan, 2004).
Confidentiality. Confidentiality is just as important in Christian counseling as it is in secular counseling. According to the American Association of Christian Counselors (2014), “confidentiality recognizes that every client has a fundamental, moral and legal right to privacy and to have a wide range of personal thoughts, opinions, beliefs, and behaviors that are protected from public knowledge” (p. 22). It is crucial for counselors to maintain client confidentiality unless what a client discloses brings harm to themselves or other people. Confidentiality should be kept at all
Culture 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).
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”
Counselors need to be aware that they are able to work with particular issues and certain cultural groups. This is because conscious and unconscious meanings and assumptions, such as strongly held religious or political beliefs, will be communicated to the client. “It is desirable up to a point to know about a particulars clients background and therefore not to ask questions about it” due to the clients may be frustrated and impatient with this use of their time. (Bayne, Jinks, Collard, Horton, 2008). This is where cross-cultural training, supervision and personal development are
Watson, Z. E. P., Herlihy, B. R., Pierce, L. A. (2006). Forging the link between multicultural competence and ethical counseling practice: A historical perspective. In Counseling and Values, 50, 99-107.