Intercultural counseling is the phenomenon in which one’s cultural background is recognized during assistance provision. As a helper, the concept that I can effectively employ in my practice is cultural competence. Namely, I believe it is important to be aware of differences in perceptions, overviews, and backgrounds when interacting with individuals. Cultural competence allows for a personal approach to be applied, which is similar to the patient-centered care framework. In this case, the counselor embraces individual differences and approaches an issue with the understanding of where the individual is coming from experience and perception-wise (Monk et al., 2020). As a result, each individual will be able to benefit from customized assistance, and I, as the helper, will not facilitate discomfort or cause misunderstandings and dissatisfaction.
An idea that can be applied to my friend is multiculturalism. Namely, L is my Venezuelan friend who moved to the US when she was a teenager. Despite L’s family’s efforts, she refuses to speak Spanish at home and tries to escape her heritage by avoiding actions and things that would be deemed non-American. Multiculturalism, however, highlights how multiple cultures either blend together or coexist (Monk et al., 2020). L’s actions may be associated with experiencing discrimination and prejudice, which affects her in regard to her choices. Instead of employing a multiculturalism approach, L chooses to dismiss her culture due to the bad experiences associated with her openly showcasing it. Moreover, the phenomenon may be associated with colonialist influences and the idea that once an individual becomes a citizen of a foreign country, they are to give up on their heritage and culture to adopt a new one.
The idea of intercultural counseling and cultural competency in therapy specifically has been researched through peer-reviewed studies. An example is research performed by Jones et al. (2018) examining cultural competencies exemplified by therapists working with African Americans. The authors highlight that the community does, indeed, encounter particular obstacles and barriers that are based on their experiences and impact how they can access high-quality psychological care. The study has determined how interventions that take culture into consideration affect the therapy outcomes. As a result, the researchers came to the conclusion that cultural competency is an effective tool counselors can apply as it correlates with positive well-being outcomes and overall satisfaction with the assistance. Thus, the findings correlate with the concept highlighted in the textbook. Namely, cultural competency facilitates a patient-centered approach considering individual experiences and barriers (Jones et al., 2018). As a result, it is certain that the concept is not only an element of social justice but also an evidence-based framework that can be practically employed.
Each section is the material has generated a reaction of interest. For example, the initial mention of the assimilation of immigrants correlates with the experiences I have witnessed with people wanting to adapt and, as a result, losing a big portion of their culture. Another subject that has facilitated a sense of intrigue is affirmative action. Namely, the voluntary nature that companies can employ was of interest for me to examine. Cultural pluralism and its minor differences from multiculturalism was another element that I associated with an adequate approach to diversity and the understanding of differences in all individuals.
The section on affirmative action, in particular, generated a personal question that I thought about. Namely, how do companies ensure that affirmative action measures correlate with the concept of equality? For example, a business that aims to employ a diverse team can dismiss applicants because they are not a part of a minority. In this case, how can the company ensure that the affirmative action measures do not infringe on the principle of equal opportunities?
References
Jones, E., Huey, S. J., & Rubenson, M. (2018). Cultural competence in therapy with African Americans. Cultural Competence in Applied Psychology, 557–573. Web.
Monk, G., Winslade, J., Sinclair, S., & Polanco, M. (2020). Intercultural Counseling Bridging the Us and Them Divide (1st ed.). Cognella.