Divided into three sections, this edited volume offers a comprehensive view of the foundational issues, cultural communities, and practical approaches involved in working with a diverse clientele. Contributions to this book include a wide overview of the issues that arise when working with a culturally diverse clientele and a consideration of a broad range of issues with diversity, including vulnerable populations. Chapters address issues of cultural identity development and specific populations, discussing relevant historical contexts as well as practical points that inform best practices. This book is both informative and practical, serving as both a primer and as a succinct source of information. The specific focus on cross-cultural competency versus the more commonly used term of cultural competency highlights the importance of continued development of competency for practitioners.
Given the divide between research and practice, there has been an increased focus on evidence-based practice (EBP) in psychology. EBP has been defined as the integration of three main components during clinical decision-making: (a) best available research evidence, (b) clinical expertise, and (c) client characteristics, cultures, and treatment preferences. However, little is known about the self-ratings of implementing EBP or its components among psychotherapy providers. Secondary data analyses of a survey of Canadian psychotherapy providers (Middleton et al., 2020) investigated differences in providers’ self-ratings of implementing EBP according to five psychotherapist variables. These psychotherapist variables included the primary therapeutic approach, the number of years of professional experience, the primary setting of practice, the level of education, and the professional capacity of practice. Results indicated significant results for many psychotherapist variables. Among other findings, while psychotherapy providers who were oriented primarily toward cognitive and/or behavioural approaches had significantly higher self-ratings of implementing EBP than did those with a psychoanalytic/psychodynamic approach, providers with a master’s degree had significantly lower self-ratings than did those with a Ph.D. or with postdoctoral training. Findings are discussed in relation to educational, research, and training initiatives in EBP.
The inherent ambiguity of therapy is a significant source of stress for novice counsellors-in-training. As such, the development of their ability to tolerate ambiguity is an important task within their clinical development. The authors sought to examine the effects of a novel 6-week mindfulness and compassion program on ambiguity tolerance and well-being measures in counsellors-in-training working with clients for the first time. Twenty-three counsellors-in-training from across Canada completed measures of ambiguity tolerance, mindfulness, self-compassion, psychological distress, and life and work satisfaction at baseline, post-training, and 3-month follow-up. Participants also provided brief written feedback on the program to assess its feasibility and acceptability. Non-parametric analyses revealed significant increases in the epistemic dimension of ambiguity tolerance, overall meditative mindfulness, self-warmth, and life satisfaction at post-training and follow-up. All participants recommended this training to other students and reported increased knowledge of mindfulness, compassion, and ambiguity tolerance. Future studies should assess this program using a controlled design.
In this paper, the authors explore the challenges and the opportunities for therapists to help their clients bridge the divide between their religious and spiritual beliefs and their sexual practices and identities. The therapeutic work experiences of both authors are primarily with clients who identify with some expression of the Christian faith, hence the focus of this article. The article emphasizes the importance of therapists collaborating holistically with clients who identify as spiritual/religious, and while therapists having prior knowledge of spirituality/religion is helpful, it is not necessary. The article concludes that, in order to work effectively with clients who identify as spiritual or religious, therapists must include spirituality/religion in the healing process.
A great deal of concern exists over the impact of COVID-19 on people’s mental health, with many employees experiencing anxiety over their health and safety and that of their loved ones. The viability of short-term counselling to treat mental health cases related to COVID-19 was explored. Two hypotheses were tested: 1) the short-term counselling component of employee and family assistance programs is equally effective in the treatment of cases related to COVID-19 as it is in the treatment of cases unrelated to COVID-19; 2) after a certain number of counselling sessions, the improvement in outcomes greatly diminishes for short-term counselling cases. Results showed positive outcomes for both case types, related or not to COVID-19. In addition, a diminishing return was found as the number of treatment sessions increased. From a clinical perspective, the results supported the viability of short-term counselling as a treatment option for cases related to COVID-19, thus suggesting short-term counselling is an effective approach for mental health issues stemming from mass traumatic events.
