Cultural Awareness
Cultural Awareness in Counselling & Therapy
What is Cultural Awareness in Therapy?
Cultural awareness in counselling means the therapist can see, hear, and honour the client’s cultural background, values, beliefs, and lived experience in therapeutic work together. It means being aware of cultural norms, traditions, and the challenges clients face and how these impact their mental health and world view. By having cultural awareness, therapists can create a safe and inclusive space where clients feel seen, heard, and understood which enhances the therapy relationship and outcomes.
What is Cultural Humility Framework?
Cultural humility framework is a way of practice that encourages respect, trust and being anti-oppressive. It means being open to learning about others’ experiences and being aware of your own biases and how they might affect your interactions.
Why does it matter?
From the therapist’s perspective, cultural awareness matters because it means the counselling is client-centered and tailored to their unique situation. Without this awareness, therapists may make assumptions or offer interventions that don’t align with the client’s cultural values or lived experience. By having cultural awareness therapists can build trust, break down barriers to communication and empower clients to get more involved in their healing journey, and have a stronger and more effective therapy relationship.
How cultural awareness impacts your therapy with Jennifer?
Growing up in a Chinese household, Jennifer was raised in a culture where emotions and feelings are often not openly discussed and are sometimes seen as weaknesses or inconveniences. In many cases, elders and parents are unable to provide emotional support or create space for emotional expression. Love is typically shown through acts of service rather than verbal or physical affection. As emotional beings, we thrive on connection and the need to feel seen and understood. When parents don’t provide that emotional comfort, it creates a disconnect that can have lasting effects. This disconnection often carries over into adulthood, affecting personal relationships and emotional well-being.
Research consistently shows that a strong therapeutic alliance and rapport are the most significant predictors of success in therapy. By working with a therapist who had similar personal challenges growing up with immigrant parents in the Asian community, clients can feel seen in their struggles and experiences. To learn more about Jennifer Leong’s background, refer to the “About Me” section on our website.
How does Jennifer provide therapy within a cultural humility framework?
Jennifer’s work is grounded in cultural humility framework where she continues to work on recognizing her own biases and better understand the diverse cultural backgrounds of others. Jennifer aims to build respectful, trusting and safe relationships through:
- Self-reflection: Reflecting on one’s own values, beliefs, and biases
- Lifelong learning: Being open to learning from others’ experiences and perspectives
- Acknowledging differences: Respecting and accepting others’ diverse and cultural beliefs, customs, and values
- Being aware of power imbalances: Understanding how power and privilege affect relationships.
Remaining impartial while culturally aware
As a Chinese therapist, Jennifer Leong consistently reflects on her own cultural background, biases, experiences, judgments, and beliefs to ensure she does not impose them on clients simply because there is a shared similar cultural heritage. Jennifer is committed to learning about the various cultural differences, even within the Asian community itself. While she recognizes that there may be common challenges or experiences shared by individuals within the Asian community that she can relate to, she also understands that imposing her own values and beliefs would minimize and harm the therapeutic process.
The bottom line with cultural awareness in counselling with Jennifer Leong
Cultural competence enables Jennifer to remain open and empathetic toward a client’s personal cultural experience, seeing the world through their unique lens, lived experiences, and history. Understanding the diverse cultural norms within the Asian community, and how these influence perceptions of mental health and the decision to seek therapy, is essential. In many Asian cultures, psychotherapy may be seen as a sign of weakness or failure, which makes it important to approach these issues with sensitivity.
Above all, building strong rapport and trust is the key to successful therapy. By prioritizing clients’ values and worldviews, and showing respect for their lived experiences and cultural context, Jennifer aims to create an environment where clients feel comfortable, open up more freely, and are willing to confront difficult issues.
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Connection now to start your journey of self-discovery, reconnection and recovery.
Jennifer Leong, MSW, RSW
Registered Social Worker
(416) 709-5727
jennifer@jenniferleong.ca