With our growing minority population, the concept of diversity is receiving a lot of attention in the Counselor Education literature. Increasingly, academic programs are including education on the diverse needs of minority groups as part of counseling education programs. A growing body of research suggests that understanding differing cultural backgrounds and how this might affect the therapeutic process is essential for counseling effectiveness. Furthermore, the ACA (American Counseling Association) code of ethics dictates that curriculum be infused with multicultural information.
In that vein, I’d like to share some knowledge about different minority groups. In this series of blog entries, we will look at some counseling considerations for African Americans, Latinos, Asian Americans and Native Americans. Please note that these blog entries are not meant to be a complete description of cultural factors, but rather to provide some useful information to give you a “head start” in your counseling career. Also, another important thing to remember is that minority groups are heterogeneous. There is a lot of variety within each minority group. Meaning, these are things that are likely be true, but don’t make assumptions.
This week we will look at counseling considerations for African Americans.
Most African Americans believe they have been discriminated against; only nine percent believe otherwise (Sue & Sue, 2008). Even higher-income African Americans experience discrimination: six in ten of those earning $75,000 or higher reported being victims of racism (Sue & Sue, 2008). Because African Americans feel so strongly that they have been discriminated against, it is important to consider discrimination as an external factor that can contribute to their mental health issues.
But, there are things African Americans can do to cope with the situation. African Americans with the greatest sense of racial identity also had higher self-esteem. To wit, “Ignoring racial issues in socialization left children vulnerable to anxiety when Black peers accused them of “acting White” (Sue & Sue, 2008, p. 339). Taken together, this means that racial identity is paramount to the mental health of this group. Therefore, race is a salient factor in counseling for African American clients. And, when there is racial disparity between the counselor and client, it may be advisable to initiate a discussion with the client on this topic.
How the African American client feels about the race of the counselor will depend on his or her stage of racial identity development. So, it would also be a good idea for the counselor to assess the client’s racial identity stage.
Now, some strengths…
African Americans tend to have flexibile family roles. Many African American families are single families headed by females. Bonds are strong, especially between mother and daughter. Furthermore, African American families seem to rearrange themselves well to meet the challenges of existing in a Eurocentric world.
Another strength is that African American females manage to cope well. They believe they have to be strong in order to overcome obstacles. In fact, “they display higher self-confidence, lower levels of substance abuse, and more positive body images than do White female adolescents” (Sue & Sue, 2008, p. 338).
It is important to consider that as with other minority groups, there are both strengths and weaknesses. In my next post, I will write more about counseling considerations for Asian Americans.
Yours in the Joy of Knowledge,
Barb LoFrisco
References:
Sue, W. G., & Sue, D. (2008). Counseling the Culturally Diverse.
Hoboken, New Jersey: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Also check:
• https://mastersincounseling.org/education/essential-websites-and-links-for-counseling/
• https://mastersincounseling.org/counseling/multicultural-considerations-for-latino-clients-part-2/
• https://mastersincounseling.org/psychology/18-beautiful-infographics-about-the-human-brain/
