This vibrant new book springs from the continued failure of the counselling and psychotherapy profession to adequately prepare trainees to meet the needs of today's multi-ethnic, multiracial and multicultural society. The editors, both highly experienced trainers and academics, have gathered together here a group of new and established writers who draw on personal and professional experiences to present an array of fresh ideas and approaches. Their aim is to inform training curricula that would more adequately prepare therapy students to respond sensitively and in culturally appropriate ways to clients of diverse cultural and racial identities. Each chapter presents a challenge to all therapeutic practitioners, whatever their specialist role, to attend to and reflect on their personal and professional attitudes and behaviours in relation to clients of all heritages and origins. Issues addressed include unconscious privilege, 'othering', micro-aggressions, broaching, racism, discrimination, the search for meaning, identity complexity, intersectional understanding, heritage, biases and projections, trauma, intergenerational trauma, introjections, projection and decolonisation of the curriculum. This book is a wake-up call to the profession to develop more inclusive models of theory and practice, and to every counsellor, psychotherapist and counselling psychologist to review their professional practice and ensure a better fit between the aspirations and theories of their professional calling and the needs of our multi-ethnic, multiracial and multicultural society today.
About the Author: Divine Charura is professor of counselling psychology and programme director for the doctorate in counselling psychology at York St John University. He is a chartered counselling psychologist and registered psychotherapist and has co-authored and edited numerous books in counselling and psychotherapy. His two latest co-edited books are Love and Therapy: In relationship (with Stephen Paul) and The Person-Centred Counselling and Psychotherapy Handbook: Origins, developments and current applications (with Colin Lago). Divine is a lover of photography, art, music and outdoor pursuits. Colin Lago was Director of the University of Sheffield's counselling service from 1987 to 2003 and now works as an independent counsellor/psychotherapist, trainer, supervisor and consultant. He is a Fellow of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy. He has published numerous articles, videos and books on transcultural concerns and psychotherapy. His books include Race, Culture and Counselling: The ongoing challenge; Anti-Discriminatory Practice in Counselling and Psychotherapy (co-edited with Barbara Smith); The Handbook of Transcultural Counselling and Psychotherapy and The Person Centred Counselling and Psychotherapy Handbook: Origins, developments and current applications (co-edited with Divine Charura). His passions include mountain travel, biking, swing dancing and art.