Essay On Asian American Culture

442 Words2 Pages

I found this chapter to be not only very interesting, but extremely important. Culture plays such a big part in the daily life of a person, so it is only logical that it would play a big part in how they approach treatment.
Towards the middle of the chapter, the textbook talks about the role of mental health services in the lives of ethnic minorities, saying that members of ethnic minority groups underutlize mental health services, instead going to traditional healers, spiritualists, or members of the clergy. This preexisting relationship people form with traditional forms of healing is important to consider in a historical context, and helps shed light on why they may be hesitant to engage with mental health services outside of their culture.
Later in the chapter, the textbook …show more content…

Therapists should also examine their own attitudes and underlying prejudices, because leaving them unchecked can be destructive to the relationship they form with their patients.

When treating Asian American patients, for example, therapists must keep in mind that outward expressions of emotion are not encouraged in Asian cultures, and should not consider their patients to be cold or shy for their emotional restraint when talking about themselves. Another thing therapists should consider is that while American society prioritizes individualism, Asian cultures center around group values; therapists should "emphasize more of a we/us orientation than a me/I orientation" (p. 81) to connect better with their clients.

When treating Hispanic American patients, one thing therapists should keep in mind is that many Hispanic cultures put a lot of emphasis on family, which, similarly to Asian Americans, conflicts with the emphasis on independence in American