1. -          listening occurs in a cultural context
2. -          identify the client’s strengths
3. -          communicate understanding and hopefulness about the future
4. -          warm and empathic listening (chapter subheads 166-196
5. -          understand the clients & their worldview
6. -          overcome any barriers to understanding
7. -          understand contextual factors
8. -          respect clients & see their strength
9. -          see hope in clients and their situation
10. -          communicate understanding

1. spend extra time listening and validating their viewpoints
2. occurs on an individual and cultural contex
3. non-verbals can be difficult to distinguish

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

African Americans

African Americans

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Asian Americans

1. -          often view smiling as a sign of weakness and not necessarily happiness (shyness, embarrassment, discomfort)
2. -          silence = respect (esp. around those perceived as in power)
3. -          don’t demonstrate affection in public
4. -          quiet and reserved tones of voice
5. -          touching is not acceptable (1/2 as often as Euro-Ams) esp. strangers
6. -          indirect communication to avoid shame of self, family, or others (no loss of face, non-verbals are suppressed)

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Euro Americans

Euro Americans

1. -          consider eye contact as normal and expected (no eye contact is implied to be indicative of shame, guilt, dishonesty, poor self esteem
2. -          expect others (even children) to enter conversations freely; state their opinions clearly, and ask questions
3. -          often speak in loud and frequent boisterous ways
4. -          expect handshakes to be firm (sign of power, interest)
5. -          touch less frequently in formal than informal situations (when touch occurs, person in power initiates)

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Latin Americans

Latin Americans

1. -          frequently engage in long and vigorous handshaking
2. -          smaller personal space
3. -          touch each other when talking
4. -          speak in rapid and often boisterous ways

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Native Americans

Native Americans

1. -          good listening = careful and silent observation of the listener (much of the message is non-verbally communicated)
2. -          sees eye contact as disrespectful, esp. with elders and people in power
3. -          speak in slower and quieter tones (with long pauses between speakers)
4. -          handshakes expected to be light (firm=aggressive)
5. -          view asking direct questions or challenging another as disrespectful

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Arab Americans

Arab Americans

1. -          often use indirect eye contact, esp. with those of opposite sex
2. -          little same sex personal space
3. -          use metaphors, euphemisms, and extended introductions to communicate (indirect)
4. -          rarely share emotional issues with anyone outside family (only if trusted and/or deeper relationships)

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Hawaiians

Cultural patterns of listening/disclosure

Samoans, Tongans & Chamorro

Samoans, Tongans & Chamorro

1. -          family is considered the first place to go for emotional support, extended family included
2. -          soft, quiet tones of voice are used
3. -          stigma exists against psychotherapy, considered only if you are “crazy”
4. -          shame in being identified as one who receives counseling

1. -          having a good empathic understanding of clients including willingness to set aside one’s own worldview and values and to accept client’s understanding of their problems and their world
2. -          structuring sessions
3. -          respecting individual and cultural differences
4. -          listening (culturally appropriate)
5. -          recognizing and respecting clients’ humanity
6. -          creating respectful boundaries

1. listening sensitively
2. hear the shame, fear and ambivalence that hides deeper feelings, “barriers to disclosure”
3. break the conceptual frames that blind the client and the therapist
4. a person’s behavior will usually make sense to him
5. we must become aware of context & think critically
6. become aware of the context for the problem
7. lead us to less-pathologizing assumptions, more helpful interventions

1. It’s important to look beyond what they see, are aware of—look for the context for their stories
2. Context may include: time, race, culture, situation, age, family, strengths, weaknesses, culture
3. Once we are aware of the role of context, we must not screen it out.  We cannot see the “square” without the context.

What are characteristics of good therapeutic hypotheses?

·         Should be “parsimonious and comprehensive” explanations that are helpful in therapy

·         Should have solid research support

·         Should be therapeutically productive

·         Avoid blaming clients and pathologizing their behavior

§  When therapists are optimistic and focus on what works families feel optimistic, treatment periods are shorter

How are Western values contributing to therapeutic blame?

·         Blaming the client happens more often when cultural values, group identification, & historical factors are largely ignored because the causes of behavior go underexplained.

§  Western values—independence, autonomous over relationship-oriented, interdependent, contextualized ones maintains blaming

·         Middle & upper class North Americans believe in the individual’s ability to pick themselves up by the bootstrapsàsuccess due to person alone, as is failure.          

o   Focus on individual leads to client’s own behavior change rather than trying to change anyone else’s behavior.

§  What are you doing? What are you doing? à can feel like responsibility/blame

·         Therapists need to avoid blame; help exercise any control the client does have

·         Focus on strength and success vs. weakness and failure

What is the result of therapeutic blame in treatment provisions to client groups?

·         Focusing on problems maintains blaming, & is often a source of problems

How can a social worker help individual clients change their communities?

Helping change their communities p. 330

• Using anger can transform that energy into positive action instead of destructive.
•   Breaking the silence
• Taking over their voice (should be Giving them their voice)
• Empowerment versus validation
• Failing to act

o   The sense of worth drawn from being a member of a particular group.

§  The same variables have not affected all culturally different groups in the US

§  it appears that sociocultural influences often define the ways in which groups and member of those groups value themselves

Empowerment: (p.213) providing emotional, informational, or instrumental support, promoting people to feel stronger and more powerful. Giving no more help than is needed.

3 ways people acknowledge their voice: (p.217, table 10.2)

1. Without a “voice”

      2. With a “pseudovoice”

      3. With a “voice”

1. Without a “voice”

1. Without a “voice”

·         Difficulty expressing an opinion

·         Frequently say “I don’t know,” even when they have an opinion. They may express an opinion if given more time and opportunity.

·         Will accept others’ opinions even when decisions go against their own interests or values.

·         May switch decisions easily based upon what they believe will please others.

·         Frequently believe that they cannot disagree with someone and maintain that relationship.

      2. With a “pseudovoice”

2. With a “pseudovoice”

·         Will express a strong opinion about issues even without having a strong opinion.

·         Opinions often seem uninformed or have little data to support them.

·         Have difficulty listening to o accepting others opinions unless they agree with their own.

·         May switch decisions suddenly based on external factors, including the popularity of a stand or others’ opinions.

·         Often believe that they must look out for their own needs first.

     3. With a “voice”

3. With a “voice”

·         Will express strong opinions when thy have strongly formed beliefs, but may reply “I don’t care” when they don’t.

·         Opinions generally seem iformed. If they say they like or don’t like Chinese food, it’s reasonable to assume that they have tried Chinese food in the past.

·         Even when they have an opinion, they will listen to others’ arguments.

·         They may change their decisions, but only after considering any new information received.

Believe that they can disagree with someone and maintain the relationship

By making sure that interventions used supports the entire system, and that the interventions have therapeutic efficacy. The entire system is left in a powerful position believing that they have something to offer.

• Being Helpful (p.225)
• Clients in crisis (p.226)
• Directiveness (p.228)
• Needs-unmet and met (p.230)

Identify ways therapists steal their clients’ power through supervision. Through personal reflection, and consultation with peers and supervisors.

What kinds of supports can one use? (p.295)

1. Active helping
2. Provision of information
3. Emotional attachment

Each one may be accessed to support a person in crisis. Generally, more supports are better than fewer ones.

Distinguish between formal and informal supports. (p.300)

Formal= therapy or social services agencies

Informal=family, friends, neighbors, school, work, church, etc.

How can a therapist assist a client with support systems in the client’s current life? (p. 312)

• What is the difference between negative post-traumatic outcomes and post-traumatic growth?

Negative post-traumatic outcome is the meaning an individual makes following some kind of trauma. This negative meaning they believe is an outcome of the event and how they perceived the event.   Post-Traumatic growth is the improvement that they report as the result of the trauma. This improvement is sometimes not measurable in that they may believe that there was growth after the trauma although there was none. Example of post-traumatic growth is people who stopped smoking after being diagnosed with cancer.

• Why is finding meaning an important aspect of trauma recovery, according to Slattery?

Meaning provides clients with a sense of purpose that directs their future actions. It can help them identify life goals, obtain energy and motivation to reach them or to get through bad times.

• How can a social worker assist clients toward finding productive meaning from their trauma?

Assess meanings carefully and shift them in more adaptive direction that permit realistic coping and produce the ability to enjoy life. Assessments should examine broader belief systems that assist or complicate treatment. Assess and Intervene with the beliefs of the important people in the person’s system such as family, and friends. P.244

• What are some of the “should nots”:

Say, “I understand…”/ Give advice; “you should….”/ Discount the survivor’s experience: “you shouldn’t feel like that..”/ Allow disclosure of trauma story too close to ending of therapy session/ Not believe the survivor’s story- even if it feels like there is exaggeration in the description.  

• How can social workers help clients convert insight into actions? (convert negative meaning to positive meaning?) p. 256

do more than just “fix” current problems but also “heal” patterns that continue to get people into trouble. Healing must combine insight and a different pattern of behaviors than ones used in the past.  Also, some clients need to be reminded to translate their insights into action. Shift in thinking about oneself.

1. Helps explain the person’s symptoms         ex. Baseless anxietyàjustified worry
2. Recognize situations that influence a person = more able to empathize with them and their behavio = assessment becomes more useful
3. Respond more empathicallyàtherapeutic relationship becomes stronger

1. ·        Perspectives on world can be a way of connecting with and understanding others, or can be excuses for blaming.
2. ·         Highlights potential traps that may be faced in therapy.
3. ·         Identify multiple effective strategies for handling concerns.
4. ·         Learn to recognize alternate perspectives and strengths and limitations = respond more empathically to others.

a) Acknowledge and challenge oppression and unearned privilege.

b) Work for social justice

c) Give up power and expertise to be effective

d) Accept and use power when it’s helpful