Counseling Report
The field of counseling is very complex and multi-dimensional. This report includes a general description of counseling, how cultural insensitivity can occur within the construct of counseling, the impacts of cultural of said insensitivity in counseling as well as the broader workplaces of Australia and the broader world, the types and forms of cultural insensitivity that a counselor can endure and encounter while working and two ways in which cultural insensitivity can be addressed and responded to in a counseling setting. While some people project their insensitivities on others and counselors can be both good and bad in terms of cultural sensitivity, it is always best for counselors and indeed everyone else to be sensitive to the religious, cultural and societal differences that exist between us.
Analysis
To be sure, there are going to be situations in the lives and careers of therapists and counselors where a counselor is addressing a person with a culture or background with which they are not familiar. Indeed, counselors and therapist are charged with helping people address topics and situations such as grief, sadness, mourning and depression (Stuart, 2010). However, if there is a cultural disconnect between practitioner and patient and this matters at all to the patient (and it often does), then the experience for both the patient and the provider can be awkward if not maddening. Throw in a situation with a child or adolescent, and the stakes can get higher a lot more quickly (Lopez, 2011).
Cultural insensitivity is the general practice of actively disregarding or being ignorant of a person's culture and background. The sources and facets of this background can include country of origin, culture, language, geographical region and so forth. Quite often, cultural concerns are not about race and background as region of origin and socioeconomic status can have a demonstrative effect on a counseling or therapy situation. Mental health situations in particular are susceptible to problems as a patient is going to be at least somewhat mentally fragile and vulnerable when they are in need of mental health. To put it more concisely than before, cultural insensitivity is when a counselor cannot or will not properly factor in the mental health needs of a patient relative to culture (Lopez, 2011).
The potential impacts of cultural insensitivity are not hard to figure out. The effects can be rendered and seen quite easily if one pays attention. This can happen in both the workplace and in the general practice of counseling. Even in countries and areas that are part of larger countries and cultures can see this happen. Take Puerto Rico, a territory of the United States, as an example. Much like the contiguous United States, Puerto Rico has seen a shift from an agrarian economy to one of industrialization. The mainland United States has since shifted again to more of a service-based sector, but the overall historical pattern is basically the same. However, while Puerto Rico and the regular states of the United States show some paralells, there are some massive cultural differences. This can be seen in both the workplace as well as the counseling profession. Indeed, Puerto Rico, which is situated in the same general part of the world as Cuba, Haiti and the Dominican Republic in the oceans between the southeastern United States and the northern edge of South America, used to be controlled by Spain but was ceded by Spain to the United States as a consequence of the Spanish-American war. Puerto Rico became a commonwealth in 1947 so that they could govern and regulate themselves, but they still remain an American-controlled territory. Even with the strong parallels between Puerto Rico and the mainland, Puerto Rico is a very different bird from the United States and the implications for the workplace and counseling are no exception. The cultural differential between the two is actually stunning and abrupt. For example, American clinicians are famous for being driven by hard data and the questionnaire. However, there is far more complexity and depth to issues that surround counseling patients in Puerto Rico and this is true in Australia and other corners of the world as well (Rogler, 1999).
Even if it is less than optimal, cultural insensitivity with regard to the workplace and the counseling profession leads to suspicion and is an active hindrance to results when trying to reach someone in a work or medical setting of any sort. People are more comfortable...
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