Addressing Cultural Complexities in Practice: A Framework for Clinicians and Counselors

Addressing Cultural Complexities in Practice: A Framework for Clinicians and Counselors moves beyond unidimensional concepts of identity to an understanding of the multiplicity of cultural influences that work to form each of us. The true experience of identity is complex and contextual. A person is not simply Latino or gay, Asian American or a person with a disability, an older American or a refugee. Rather, one or any combination of these identities may be salient for a particular individual in a given context. Pamela A. Hays offers the ADDRESSING framework for recognizing and working with cultural influences -- helping readers understand identity as a multidimensional combination of age, developmental and acquired disabilities, religion, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation, indigenous heritage, national origin, and gender. Engagingly written and featuring a variety of case examples, this book combines the latest research with vignettes from the author's own practice. Each chapter's contents are summarized in "Key Idea" tables, which facilitates use of the guidelines in the classroom as well as in the clinic. Unlike other books on therapy with diverse clients, which tend to focus on working with one particular ethnic group, Addressing Cultural Complexities in Practice provides a framework that can be used with a person of any cultural identity. This thought-provoking book will be invaluable to counselors, clinicians, and any professional working with clients from a variety of diverse backgrounds.