Counseling the Culturally Diverse. Laura Smith L.

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СКАЧАТЬ or couple counseling, parent–child counseling, or work with more than one member of a family. Family systems therapy possesses several important characteristics (Corey, 2013; McGoldrick, Giordano, & Garcia‐Preto, 2005):

       It highlights the importance of the family (versus the individual) as the unit of identity.

       It focuses on resolving concrete issues.

       It is concerned with family structure and dynamics.

       It assumes that these family structures and dynamics are historically passed on from one generation to another.

       It attempts to understand the communication and alliances via reframing.

       It places the therapist in an expert position.

Many of these qualities would be consistent with the worldviews of Persons of Color. The problem arises in how they are translated into concepts of what “the family” is, or what constitutes a “healthy” family. Some of the characteristics of healthy families assumed by therapists may pose obstacles to therapy with various culturally diverse groups. They tend to be connoted with value orientations that are incongruent with the value systems of many culturally diverse clients (McGoldrick et al., 2005). According to conventional family systems theory, healthy families:

       Allow and encourage the free and open expression of emotion.

       View each member as having a right to be his or her own unique self (i.e., to individuate from the emotional field of the family).

       Strive for an equal division of labor among family members.

       Consider egalitarian role relationships between spouses desirable.

       Hold the nuclear family as the standard.

These orientations were first described by Kluckhohn and Strodtbeck (1961) as patterns of “American” values. How can we begin to consider whether (or not) notions like these coincide with the traditional value systems of other cultural groups? Table 3.2 summarizes five general dimensions of European American culture and contrasts them with those of four groups of color as part of an examination of culture within the family therapy process (Ho, 1987).

      PEOPLE–NATURE DIMENSION

      Traditional Western thinking assumes the value of mastery of and control over nature. Accordingly, most therapists are trained to operate from a framework that subscribes to the belief that problems are solvable and that both therapist and client must take an active part in solving problems via manipulation and control. Active intervention is stressed in controlling or changing the environment. The four other ethnic groups listed in Table 3.2 come from traditions that view people in harmonious co‐existence with nature.

Confucian philosophy, for example, stresses a set of rules aimed at promoting loyalty, respect, and harmony among family members (Moodley & West, 2005). Harmony within the family and the environment leads to harmony within the self. Integration within the family unit and acceptance of the environment guide the solving of problems; while Western culture advocates defining and attacking problems directly, traditional Asian cultures tend to accommodate or deal with problems through indirection. In raising their children, many Asian people believe that it is better to avoid direct confrontation and to use deflection. A White family might deal with a child who has watched too many hours of TV by saying, “It's time to turn off the TV off and study.” To be more emphatic, the parent might say, “You'll be grounded unless the TV goes off!” An Asian parent might instead respond by saying, “That looks like a boring program; I think your friend John must be doing his homework by now,” or, “I think Father wants to watch his favorite program.” Such an approach stems from the wish to avoid conflict and to achieve balance and harmony among members of the family and the wider environment—values that continue to be associated with emotional well‐being among Chinese people (Wang, Wong, & Yeh, 2016).

       Table 3.2 Cultural Value Preferences of Middle‐Class White European Americans and People of Color: A Comparative Summary

      Source: Ho, M. K. (1987). Family therapy with ethnic minorities (p. 232). Newbury Park, CA: Sage. Copyright 1987 by Sage Publications. Reprinted by permission.

Area of relationship	Middle‐class White Americans	Asian Americans	American Indians	Black Americans	Hispanic Americans
People to nature/environment	Mastery over	Harmony with	Harmony with	Harmony with	Harmony With
Time orientation	Future	Past–present	Present	Present	Past–present
People relations	Individual	Collateral	Collateral	Collateral	Collateral
Preferred mode of activity	Doing	Doing	Being‐in‐becoming	Doing	Being‐in‐becoming
Nature of people	Good and bad	Good	Good	Good and bad	Good

      In this way, the U.S. values that portray the domination of nature (i.e., conquering space, taming the wilderness, or harnessing nuclear energy) through control and manipulation of the universe can find reflection in family counseling perspectives. Family systems counseling theories attempt to describe, explain, predict, and control family dynamics. The therapist actively attempts to understand what is going on in the family system (structural alliances and communication patterns), identify the problems (dysfunctional aspects of the dynamics), and work on changing them directly or indirectly through manipulation and control (therapeutic interventions). Ethnic minorities or subgroups that view people as harmonious with nature or expect that nature may appropriately overwhelm people (“acts of God”) may find the therapist's mastery‐over‐nature approach inconsistent with or antagonistic to their worldview. Indeed, attempts to intervene actively in family patterns and relationships may themselves be perceived as a problem, because they might unbalance the existing harmony.

      TIME DIMENSION

      How different societies, cultures, and people view time exerts a pervasive influence on their lives. U.S. society has been characterized as preoccupied with the future (Katz, 1985; Kluckhohn & Strodtbeck, 1961). Our society lives according to precise increments of time, in that we have divided it into seconds, minutes, hours, days, weeks, months, and years. Time is frequently viewed and discussed as a commodity that constitutes fixed, static СКАЧАТЬ