Effective multiculturally competent treatment of economically disadvantaged clients requires an awareness of the stereotypes and biases that these clients and their families face in contemporary culture--stereotypes that are so pervasive that they can subtly influence counselors' thinking about poor and working-class individuals. In this article,…

Counselors from school and community practice, counseling students, and counselor educators (N = 468) participated in this study of competence to serve lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) clients. Participants reported high LGB-affirmative attitudes but lower knowledge and skills. School counselors reported significantly lower LGB competence than did…

This study used consensual qualitative research methodology to examine the phenomenon of international immersion on counselor education students' (N = 10) development and growth. Seven domains emerged from the data (cultural knowledge, empathy, personal and professional impact, process/reflection, relationships, personal characteristics, and…

The authors used a factorial multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) to determine whether counselor trainees' group differences on measures of multicultural competence, empathy, and multicultural counseling self-efficacy (CSE) when working with Middle Eastern American (MEA) clients were moderated by trainee race. Two hundred and fifty-six…

The development of multicultural and advocacy competencies evolved out of the multicultural and social justice movements. To help readers more fully understand the complementary nature between these 2 sets of competencies and to connect both movements, this article introduces the Multicultural and Advocacy Dimensions model. Implications are also…

A more accessible approach to using multicultural counseling competence is presented to bridge the researcher-practitioner gap and increase the likelihood of quality clinical services. The focus of the approach is on counselor awareness, knowledge, and skills as they relate to the most important contextualizing factors: ethnic culture and the…

Fifty-one clients were surveyed to examine the effect of counselor discussion of racial and ethnic differences in counseling. Analyses revealed that White counselors who discussed these differences with their clients of color were rated as more credible and as having stronger working alliances than those who did not discuss such differences.…

An immersion training model is described that incorporates culturally focused community-centered service in South Africa as an experiential learning approach. Recommendations for developing international cultural immersion training with a goal of developing cultural competencies are suggested.

This study examined the effects of counselor language switching and counselor ethnicity on bilingual Mexican American participants' emotional self-disclosure. Counselor language (English only and Spanish with English) was crossed with counselor ethnicity (Mexican American and European American) to produce 4 treatment conditions. Judges'…

Agencies providing mental health and counseling services to Black males must: use a seeking mode of service delivery; have staff diversity; destigmatize the counseling process; make use of Black psychology; develop relationships with community, agencies, and organizations; distinguish between presence and programing; and develop innovative ways of…

Asian American undergraduates received career counseling from European American female counselors using either a collectivist or an individualist orientation. Counselors using the collectivist approach were perceived as more cross-culturally competent but equally credible as counselors using the individualist approach. Implications for culturally…

Describes communication process in counseling as an intervention for client change, in and of itself, and not just the medium by which a counselor applies his or her specific counseling approaches. Provides a culturally embedded model of communication to illustrate how effective communication alters the framework and depths of understanding of…

In a study of 20 female and 21 male Korean clients with three group counseling approaches (individualistic, collective, and combination of both), no treatment effects were found for social commitment or perceptions of counselor effectiveness. Significant changes were seen in individualism-collectivism congruent with different treatments. (Author)

Questionnaire responses from 73 Asian and 255 Caucasian clients at a university counseling center compared rating of counseling helpfulness, counselor characteristics, and other reactions to counseling. The Asians rated counseling as less helpful for personal-emotional concerns, and rated their counselors as less competent than did the Caucasians.…

States there has been a lack of attention directed towards the spiritual beliefs and traditions that play an important role in the psychological development of people from diverse backgrounds. Describes competencies that will allow counselors to address these traditions. Examines the ways beliefs and traditions associated with Filipino culture…