Professional Counseling Digest

1 Professional Counseling DigestACAPCD-242008 Elements of Culturally Competent CounselingCourtland C. Lee, Counseling has become a major force inthe profession significantly impacting theory and the 21stcentury continues to progress, it is increasinglyevident that counselors must become ever more competentwith respect to issues of multiculturalism and thatare resulting in an increasingly diversesociety. It is important to note that the diversity seen incontemporarysocietyisreflectednotonlya longracial/ethnic dimensions, but is evident in other aspects ofculture such as socioeconomic status, religion/spirituality,sexual orientation, and ability this reality, what are the elements of culture incounseling?What is the nature of culturally competentcounseling in the 21stcentury? This Digest is an attempt tosummarize some significant concepts that are important toconsider when Counseling across the Social and Historical ContextWhat is evident from the outset is that any counselorwho claims to be culturally competent must ground his orher practice witha solid understanding of history and thesocial movements which shape it.

2 In the United States thismeans understanding the history of multicultural counselingas a discipline within the historical and social context of thecountry immediately followingWorld War II and continuingthrough the last half of the 20thcentury. This can becharacterized as a period of great change in Americansociety that was spurred by a fundamental questioning of thenature of social exclusion for many groups of that had been historically marginalized andoppressed began to demand, as never before, social,economic and political inclusion within the mainstream ofAmerican life. These demands manifested themselves inlarge-scale social and political movements that ultimatelyforced significant changes to the country s way of , if counselors are to work with individuals fromdiverseculturalbackgrounds,theymustf amiliarizethemselves with key historical events and social movementsthat have influenced attitudes, values and behaviors ofgroups of the Dynamics of theCross-Cultural ZoneA primary emphasis of culturally competent counselingis to examine the nature of the helping relationship whenthere are significant cultural differences between helper andhelpee.

3 These differences have been conceptualized as thecross-cultural zone(Lee & Diaz, 2009). A counselor entersthis space whenever he or she differs significantly from aclient in terms of cultural background. Thiszone of helping,with its dynamic encounter of helper/helpee cultures can beenvisioned with respect to how counselors conceptualizeclient or student issues, how they promote culturallycompetent consultative relationships, and how supervisingcounselorscan influence the development of culturalcompetency among is extremely important to emphasize is the idea thathelpers who practice in a culturally competent fashion withinthecross-cultural zonemust adopt a broader perspective a culturally pluralistic society they mustunderstand that culture is more than just race and/or that elements of culture are present in all aspects ofcounseling, in their work with clients/students or supervisees,counselorsneed to see the multiple dimensions of culturalidentity presented by those they endeavor to help.

4 Counselinginterventions must be predicated on the realization that clientssimultaneously experience the world on a number of culturaldimensions that include not only race/ethnicity but gender,sexual orientation, religion/spirituality, socioeconomic status,and ability status as well (Robinson & Howard-Hamilton,2000).As our society continues to diversify, many clients orstudents seeking to develop acultural identity based on thesemultiple dimensions are often faced with difficulties in thisprocess. For instance, many immigrants to the United Statesoften confront acculturation amongthese is maintaining a connection to theirculture of originwhile adjusting to their new cultural environment in theUnited attempt to achieve this balance is animportant developmental process for many immigrants andmay need to be considered when helping within thecross-cultural zone(Shin & Mu oz, 2009).Counselors also need to be aware of how issues of socialclass may affect the lives of clients or students.

5 For example,the debilitating effects of classism, a subject often taken forgranted in the Counseling literature, mayaffect how someclients perceive the Counseling process, particularly if thatprocess is perceived by clients as representing the societalvaluesexpressedinmiddleandupper- middleclasssocioeconomic cultural realities (Bienvenue & Ramsey,2006).A counselor who is sensitive to a client s or student sexperience of any form of oppression or discrimination mustrealize that culturally competent Counseling is a vehicle forclient empowerment. Cross-cultural Counseling as a processfor empowerment can help clients combat the negative effectsof marginalization resulting from any number of isms .Empowermentisabouthelpingclientsrefutet heinternalization of an inferiority worldview associated withtheir perceived subordinate status in societal relationshipswith powerful others (Harley, Stebnicki, & Rollins, 2000).

6 Another aspect of empowerment often overlooked inculturally competent Counseling is the promotion of thepsycho-spiritual realm of and/orreligion are critical components to the well-being andholistic health of many people. In many cultural contexts, itis important to remember that there is little distinctionbetween religious/spiritual and secular life. Culturallycompetent counselors, therefore, must be open to exploringand including spiritual/religious dimensions within thecounseling process (Maglio, 2009).In a culturally diverse society, counselors must alsounderstand that there is a multitude of helping sourcesavailable to many people long-standingindigenous models of helping often have more credibilitythan Professional appropriate, aculturallycompetentcounselorwillseektof ormconsultative relationships with helping sources valued by theclient. By acknowledging the psycho-spiritual realm evidentin other models of helping, the counselor demonstratesrespect to the client as a multidimensional cultural being(Lee & Armstrong, 1995).

7 Ethical Cross-Cultural Counseling PracticeUnderlying all of the elements inthe cross cultural zoneis the concept of ethical practice. The most recent Code ofEthics from the American Counseling Association (ACA,2005) features a major emphasis on cultural diversity. Inorder to be culturally competent counselors, individualsmust be open-minded and recognize that valuing andrespecting cultural differences requires a commitment tolife-long learning and being able to make sound ethicaldecisions within diverse cultural Counseling Research: The Foundation of Best Practice Culturally competent Counseling practice should evolvefrom a solid foundation of empirical a multicultural Counseling research agenda,consideration should be given to the following: developingresearchquestions where culture is operationally definedas more than just race/ethnicity; exploring intra-groupdifferences as well as inter-group differences; using cautionin examining majority/minority comparisons in research;exploring questions of multiculturalism and diversity incounselingwith qualitativeaswell as quantitativemethodology.

8 And ensuring that implications of crosscultural Counseling research for improving counselingpractice are clearly articulated (Sheu & Sedlacek 2009).Cross-Cultural Counseling Competency: The Journey ofa LifetimeThe development of cultural competency is a life-longpersonal and Professional developmentalprocess will be enhanced if counselors understand the uniqueand ever changing dynamics of theconcepts which underlieculture and commit themselves to understanding their clientsas complex, multidimensional, cultural beings. It is hopedthat the elements of culture presented here will serve asimportant Professional markers on this challenging andexciting Counseling Association. (2005).ACA Code ofEthics. Alexandria, VA: , C. & Ramsey, C. J. (2006). The culture ofsocioeconomic disadvantage: practical approaches tocounseling. In C. , (Ed.).Multicultural issues incounseling: New approaches to diversity (Third Edition).

9 Alexandria, VA: American Counseling , D. A., Stebnicki, M., & Rollins, C. W. (2000).Applying empowerment evaluation as a tool for self-improvement and community development with Society, 31, , C. C., & Armstrong, K. L. (1995). Indigenous models ofmental health interventions. In J. C. Ponterroto, J. , L. A. Suzuki, &C. M. Alexander (Eds.),Handbook of multicultural Counseling (pp. 441-456).Thousand Oaks, CA: , C. C. & Diaz, J. M. (2009). Thecross-cultural zoneincounseling. In C. C. Lee, D. A. Burnhill, A. L. Butler, Hipolito-Delgado, M. Humphrey,O. Mu oz, and (Eds.).The elements of culture in Counseling ,( ) Columbus, OH: , A-S. T. (2009). Religion and spirituality as diversityconsiderations: Implications for multicultural Lee, Burnhill, Butler, Hipolito-Delgado, M. Humphrey, O. Mu oz, and H. Shin (Eds.).The elements of culture in Counseling ,(pp. 148 162)Columbus, OH: , T.

10 L., & Howard-Hamilton, M. F. (2000).Theconvergence of race, ethnicity, and gender: Multipleidentities in Counseling . Upper Saddle River, NJ: , H-B. & Sedlacek, W. E. (2009). Cross-cultural issues incounseling research. In Lee, D. A. Burnhill, , C. P. Hipolito-Delgado, M. Humphrey, O. Mu oz,and H. Shin (Eds.).The elements of culture in Counseling ,(pp. 226-241) Columbus, OH: , H. & Mu oz, O. (2009) acculturation : Context,dynamics, and conceptualization. In C. C. Lee, D. , A. L. Butler, C. P. Hipolito-Delgado, , O. Mu oz,and H. Shin (Eds.).The elementsof culture in Counseling ,(pp. 57-76 ) Columbus, C. Lee, , is a professor in the Counselor Education Program at the University of Maryland at College Professional Counseling Digestsare produced by Counseling Outfitters, LLC, in collaboration with the American Counseling 2008 American Counseling APA style reference:Lee, C. C. (2008).Elements of culturally competent Counseling (ACAPCD-24).