Barriers to Effective Multicultural Counseling (by Derald Wing Sue)

*2 Cultural/Racial Identity Development
*3 Cultural Specific Strategies in Counseling

Principles:
1. Awareness of self value and biases
2. Awareness of others' points of view
3. Culture-specific strategies

* Some generic characteristics of counseling across schools of thoughts can be at odds with ethnic, cultural values.

* Stanley Sue (1970) study in WA - utilization of counseling based on ethnicity; minority underutilize services; > 50% minority who use services drop out after one contact;

* Institutional racism; advertisement, location, policy, etc.

* Natural Helping-Giving Networks

* Cultural-appropriateness of certain characteristics

* Culture-Bound Values; Class-Bound Values; Communication Styles (Verbal vs. Non-Verbal)

* Communication: Send vs Receive; Verbal (content) vs. Non-Verbal; Accurate vs Appropriate (subtlety);

* Talk therapy - the emphasis on verbalization

* Perls ~ Gloria; confrontational; Here & Now, moment, body - mind/soul (shared value in American Indians), but the process will be inappropriate to work with that population

* In some cultures, accurate directness --> rudeness

* Culture-Bound Values:

- Individual Centered: I-Thou; individual as the psychosocial unit;
- Group/Family Centered: the collective society; group/family as the psychosocial unit;
- Guilt vs. Shame/Disgrace (Hispanic, Asian, etc.);
- "Blame the victim;" social-political; internal vs external explanation;
- eg. un- or under - employment

- Verbal, Emotional, and Behavioral Expressiveness
- Express feelings vs. Restrain feelings; "inscrutable Asian"
- Assertiveness training, culture-appropriateness?

- Insight Focus: understand motives and feelings; Not "psychologically-minded" as a put-down
- Insight is NOT equal to behavioral change
- Crisis intervention as focusing on the immediacy
- "Don't think about it. Think about the family."
- Mental health in Asian population ~ avoidance of morbid thinking
- Lazarus, healthy denial as coping; cognitive school of thoughts
- Insight is not valued in other cultures, which does not mean those people cannot do it.
- Insight and its assumption; self-exploration can be a luxury for some people.

- Openness & Intimacy; Self-Disclosure
- Non-binding, contractory relationships
- Trust vs. Mistrust; foot in the door; suspicion;
- Cultural bias in assessment; Cultural specific values
- Survival mechanism
- Paranorma; Test; "What do you care about a Black man?"
- Counselors: no SD, advice, suggestions
- Non-verbals;
- Credibility by expertness & trustworthiness
- Not "Are you a racist?" but "How honest and open are you to deal with the racist beliefs?"

- Cause-Effect; Linear, analytical, symbolic, logical - left hemisphere; American Indians - More holistic and experiential - right hemisphere;

- Distinction between physical and mental functioning
- Packing order etc.
- Father's reactions and puzzlement