Cultural Considerations in Counseling

Cultural competence and ethical responsibility of counselors is an issue that holds increasing importance. To be both multicultural and ethical is increasingly challenging. The population of the United States is changing quickly from a predominately white Caucasian society to an ethnically diverse society`. The Hispanic population, which represented only 9% of the population in 1990, is projected to increase to about 25% of the population by 2050. The number of African Americans, Asian Americans/Pacific Islanders, and American Indians/Eskimos/Aleuts will continue to increase as well (Aponte & Wohl, 2000). It has been predicted that Whites, who made up three fourths of the U.S. population in 1990, will no longer be in the majority by the

This led to “occasional dangerous physical assaults on one another or even staff at the school” (United States, National). When reintegrated into normal society without treatment, the child soldiers reverted back to their only way of living, which was in the brain-washed state of constant warfare. Even when medically checked over, the Gulu Regional Referral Hospital wrote them off as “possessed demons”, failing to recognize the implications of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Outdated and ineffective programs brush aside the traumas of war and write them off as mentally deranged, which would further isolate the once child soldiers from society and cause them to deal with the repercussions of PTSD, depression, anxiety, etc. alone. This is why the United States should set up rehabilitation centers, allowing the large percentage of child soldiers to find solace and return to normalcy, preventing from slipping back into the travesties of war and to not pose a threat to society.

The development of an education system in the refugee camps is an impressive yet intimidating task. For that reason, the three things that I would like to understand before obligating me to this project are: 1) How long are the refugee camps offered as a necessary placement for the Chechens to be located in, 2) How and when can I start compiling data on the education levels of all the refugees within the camp on the different subjects of reading, writing and math, 3) How would I start to find out the mental health problems of those due to the traumatic change in environment and lose of identity, 4) I would have to find suitable teachers, buildings, and who will be funding the program. Hopefully, there are suitable buildings because this will be another expense we would have to look at for funding purposes. Having a psychologist within the school would also help tremendously because many students need the counseling. All of these items are needed in order to get things in order for the start of the project. Of course, there will be other things that I would like to better understand, but those will come up in the progress of the work.

“For child soldiers, everyday is a living nightmare” (Chatterjee, 2012). Child soldiers are children under the age of 18 who are used in the military for any source of benefit. Child soldiers worldwide have become a huge issue, leading to many unnecessary deaths as well as lifelong mental trauma. According to “For Child Soldiers, Every Day is a Living Nightmare” 90% of the child soldiers in Liberia show post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), as well as 65% showing depression post-war. Developing these mental illnesses makes the rest of a child’s life a living hell, not to mention their inability to get a job or provide for themselves or their family. Mental illness is probably the best thing you can come out of the war with. An article written in SOS Children’s Villages charity called “Children in Conflict: Child Soldiers” states that over the last 10 years: over 2 million children have been killed, over 1 million children have been orphaned, and over 6 million children have been injured or even disabled, and over 10 million children have struggled with psychological trauma due to war.

Starting this course in August, I didn’t realize the power that multicultural counseling had instilled in it. The fact that its central focus is around social justice and equality is a characteristic our society much needs today. Throughout the duration of this class, I learned about multicultural counseling as a whole, new theories that can be applied specifically to different racial/ethnic minorities, the ACA code of ethics, and who I want to be as a future counselor.

Culturally appropriate counseling is important when forming the counselor-client relationship. Also, it is key that the counselor understands the client’s cultural characteristics, and is always in a continual process of self-reflection of their own socio-cultural beliefs and biases. This paper will discuss how generic counseling through the lens of culture, class and language and the how Native Americans/First Nations differ when using these same markers. This paper will also discuss the implications of Native Americans/First Nations cultural characteristics on counseling methods and advocacy.

First of all, I would like to appreciate you for all the help you have been offering to refugees here in Charlotte. Being one of your clients help me notice that all you say and do is dominated on work and income, but I think you should try to encouraging the young ones to attend school to have a better future which they came for. I would be good if you would start practicing it. It is not something difficult or time consuming, all you have to do is tell them the importance of education and letting them know that they can’t live their whole life working under a minimum wage.

This book is one hundred and twenty-nine pages long. This book provides abroad overview of some of the major issues in psychological research on the impact of war on children. This book is divided into many sections such as: gender, age, adolescence, trauma and many other topics. The writing style is intended for professionals in psychology but can be understood by average readers. This book is intended for use by psychology majors and others interested in in helping children.

Some of these children immigrated to the United States for political or religious reasons, while others – like Ushab – were granted asylum so they could escape the refugee camps. Though they were only eight years old, these children have faced more change and tragedy than I hope to encounter in my entire lifetime. Each day that I spent with these kids, I was able to contribute something that improved their lives, and each day, they contributed something that improved mine.

A multicultural competent counselor refers to, someone who’s able to work efficiently with groups of students from culturally distinct groups (Thomas & Vines, 2008). Furthermore, culture competency plays a key role in how counselors diagnose and treat their patients from any background or culture. Surgeon General (2001) largely defines culture as a common heritage or set beliefs, norms and values. Culture can be applied to all groups of people but unfortunately; there are major mental health disparities amongst minority individuals compared to white individuals. According to the Surgeon General (2001), ethnic minorities have less access to mental health services than their white counterparts. Additionally, minorities

For starters, when it comes to Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), the children of war-torn countries, such as Sierra Leone, suffer more mental challenges before they are sixteen than most people in America will ever experience. The adolescent child soldiers in particular battle the struggles of PTSD the hardest:

Migrants in Australia include refugees. 13,178 visas were granted under the Australia’s Humanitarian Program in 2005, and 64% of them were under 25 years of age (Brown, 2008, pp 110-111). Formal Resettlement Program is operated by Australia for the refugees accepted into the country providing housing assistance, welfare payments and access to free English language courses (Brown, 2008, pp 110- 111). Some of the difficulties faced by the children include transition from home country fleeing war and living in refugee camps, difficulties in learning English and mainstream subjects due to language barrier and to adjust to a new educational system (Brown, 2008, p111). They also need to adjust to social conditions, physical disability, missing family

Culture may be defined in a broad and narrow context. The broad definition includes demographic variables ( age, gender), status variables ( social, educational, economic) and affiliations ( formal and informal), as well as ethnographic variables, such as ethnicity, nationality, language. Narrow definition of culture is limited to the terms of ethnicity and nationality, which are important for individual and familial identity, but the concept of culture in Counselling usually goes beyond national and ethnic boundaries. It interprets culture in a broader aspect, it aims to go beyond its more obvious and verifiable symbols toward the more subjective perspectives its members hold. Counselling deals

As a counselors, we must assess a family’s culture by observing the interactions the family members. It is amazing how our family’s culture impacts our lives. Family culture is the way that a family establishes and defines their rules, roles, traditions, happenings, and beliefs. Cultural background is a significant part of the family’s culture. Cultural differences can cause stress within the family when parents have different values and backgrounds. In addition, the family’s values and attitudes can consist of education, attitudes to employment and employment status, the importance of loyalty, and time spent together. It can difficult for a young person who wants to break with their family’s tradition and live differently, or when a young

People behave accordingly to their culture which makes them to behavior in a certain direction. Thus, it is important for to a counselor to treat a client according to his or her culture. Some peoples' culture consists of religious beliefs, certain customs, rituals, which involves social, morals and values. Likewise, the part of a researcher is to deliver knowledge about the participant’s background and lifestyle which is essential for cultural competence (Sue & Sue, 2013, p. 9745). Also, (Code # A.2.c.) a researcher must respect their client’s culture and be culturally sensitive. Thus, it is important that researchers are culture competence when participants partake in a research study (ACA, 2014, p. 3). For this reason, the researcher most