Three Generations of Asian
Counselors:
The Role of Ethnic and
Cultural Identity in
Counseling Supervision
Overview
• Multidimensions of cultural Identity
• Introducing our own cultural identity
• Supervision experiences with
supervisor/supervisee who are sharing similar
cultural background
• Common Asian values & identity development
process
• Application of supervision theory
• Discussion
Constantine Questions
• What are the main demographic variables that make up my
cultural identities?
• What worldviews do I bring to the supervision relationship based
on these cultural identities?
• What knowledge do I possess about the worldviews of
supervisors/supervisees who have different cultural identities
from me?
• What are some of my struggles and challenges in working with
supervisors/supervisees who are culturally different from me?
• In what ways would I like to improve my abilities in working with
culturally diverse supervisors/supervisees?
Our Cultural Identities
• Alison, Chinese American Immigrant Student
• Ji-yeon, Korean International Female
Student
• Jerry, Chinese-English-American
Psychologist
Our Cultural Identities
• Alison, Chinese American Immigrant Student
• Ji-yeon, Korean International Female
Student
• Jerry, Chinese-English-American
Psychologist
Our Cultural Identities
• Alison, Chinese American Immigrant Student
• Ji-yeon, Korean International Female
Student
• Jerry, Chinese-English-American
Psychologist
Negative Experiences
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•
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Being “different”
Being a visible minority
Feeling marginalized, invisible, discounted
Being stereotyped
Being the victim of racial discrimination and
prejudice
• Shame, pain, confusion
Positive Experiences
• Figuring out who I am
• Putting seemingly discrepant pieces
together—integration
• Feeling pride in my cultural heritage
• Feeling connected to others with similar
backgrounds
• Appreciating the richness of my heritage
Common Asian Values(Ho, 1992)
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•
•
•
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Filial piety
Shame
Self-control
Assumption of a middle position
Awareness of social milieu
Fatalism
Inconspicuousness
Learning through Supervision
• Integrating cultural identity with professional
identity
• Acceptance of diversity
• Identifying similarities and differences
• Empathic understanding
• Emphasis on genuine relationship
• Clarification of values, assumptions
• Sharing dimensions of culture
Examples
• Automatic empathic understanding. “I have
had the same experience.”
• Sharing of experience. “Perhaps my story will
help you deal with this challenge.”
• Role model. “I’m glad there’s someone here
who has a similar background to me.”
• Counselor identity. “How can I or should I
bring my identity into my counseling
sessions?”
Means of Interpersonal Functioning
(Ancis & Ladany, 2001)
• Adaptation: complacency, apathy, superficial
understanding of differences
• Incongruence: Confusion, some awareness,
lack of commitment
• Exploration: Strong emotions, e.g., anger,
curiosity and insight
• Integration: integrative awareness and
interpersonal proficiency
Supervision Relationship Types
(Ancis and Ladany, 2001)
•
•
•
•
Progressive
Parallel-Advanced
Parallel-Delayed
Regressive
Discussion Questions
• What’s your most salient identity and how it played out in
your supervisory relationship when your
supervisor/supervisee was similar to yours vs. different
• How cultural identity influences the development of
multicultural competencies in counseling and supervision
• What are some of my struggles and challenges in
working with supervisors/supervisees who are culturally
different from me?
• In what ways would I like to improve my abilities in
working with culturally diverse supervisors/supervisees?
References
Ancis, J., & Ladany, N. (2001). Multicultural supervision. In L. J. Bradley & N. Ladany (eds.),
Counselor supervision: Principles, process, & practice (3rd ed., pp. 63-90). Philadelphia:
Brunner-Routledge.
Constantine, M.G. (1997). Facilitating multicultural competency in counseling supervision:
Operationalizing a practical framework. In D.B. Pope-Davis & H.L.K. Coleman (eds.),
Multicultural counseling competencies (pp. 310-324). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Publications.
Ho, M.K. (1992). Minority children and adolescents in therapy. Newbury Park, CA: Sage
Publications
Kim, J. (1981). The process of Asian American identity development: A study of
Japanese-American women’s perceptions of their struggle to achieve personal identities as
Americans of Asian ancestry. Dissertation Abstracts International, 42, 1551 1A (University
Microfilms No, 81-18080)
Kitano, H.L., &. Maki M. T. (1996). Continuity, change, and diversity: Counseling
Asian Americans. In P.B. Pedersen et al. (eds.) Counseling Across Cultures (4th
ed., pp. 124–45). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.