Couples and family counseling often involves understanding and integrating diverse influences on the system’s presenting issues, as well as ongoing wellness and development of the system. Counselors must be aware not only of these influences, but also the manner in which they may impact the system members—differing degrees, perceptions, and meaning. In addition, the intersection of multiple diversity issues can create another layer of challenges for couples and families.
Familiarizing yourself with multicultural standards of practice is a first step in developing cultural competencies, as is exploring your own thoughts and beliefs regarding diversity. For this Assignment, you consider a point in your life when your family was touched by diversity, discuss how it affected your family, and how such an issue might be handled in a counseling session.
• What impact did this time have on your family?
• Hypothetically, if you addressed the issue in a family counseling session, what do you think the counselor should know and explore with your family to fully address the issue?
• How will you be sensitive to the impact diversity has on families and couples in your own professional practice?
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