While there are numerous resources for practitioners on the subject, the ambiguity remains of what actually constitutes effective multicultural counseling and psychotherapy and how it should be incorporated into their sessions. This book addresses the question of how to apply current theories and research with a unique "start-to-finish" approach, examining the role culture plays in each stage of the therapeutic process, from before the clinical intake to termination. Each chapter is devoted to one of these stages and provides practical strategies, techniques, examples, and case studies. The reader will find new ways to consider the influence of culture and expand their own knowledge and skills as a practitioner.

While there are numerous resources for practitioners on the subject, the ambiguity remains of what actually constitutes effective multicultural counseling and psychotherapy and how it should be incorporated into their sessions. This book addresses the question of how to apply current theories and research with a unique a oestart-to-finisha approach, examining the role culture plays in each stage of the therapeutic process, from before the clinical intake to termination. Each chapter is devoted to one of these stages and provides practical strategies, techniques, examples, and case studies. The reader will find new ways to consider the influence of culture and expand their own knowledge and skills as a practitioner.

FEMA Community Preparedness Award When disasters happen, people turn to local churches as centers for response and assistance. When floods or tornadoes devastate an area, or when shootings and violence shock a community, knowing what to do can be the difference between calm and chaos, courage and fear, life and death. But few churches plan in advance for what they should do-until the storm hits. Don't get caught unprepared. If a natural disaster or human tragedy strikes your community, your church can minister to the hurting. Jamie Aten and David Boan, codirectors of the Humanitarian Disaster Institute, provide a practical guide for disaster preparedness. Disaster ministry is a critically important work of the church, preparing for the unthinkable, providing relief to survivors, caring for the vulnerable and helping communities recover. Filled with resources for emergency planning and crisis management, this book provides best practices for local congregations. By taking action in advance, your church can help prevent harm and save lives during a disaster. The time to plan is now. Be prepared.

This book is an in-depth practical guide for mental health practitioners working across diverse theoretical orientations to provide mental health services tailored to the needs of refugees.  These needs are felt more keenly than ever as displaced populations continue to grow. Refugees often experience high rates of psychological distress, and appropriate mental health care services remain severely underdeveloped. Chapters in this edited volume outline research-supported psychological interventions that can be used in a culturally sensitive manner. They cover important topics like cultural humility, issues in screening and assessments, and specific ethical dilemmas when working with refugees. The book explores the ways in which Western interventions such as cognitive behavior therapy, group therapy, expressive therapy, and school-based programs have been adapted to serve resettled refugee populations. Strengths and limitations of these approaches as well as recommendations for incorporating more holistic frameworks in practice are discussed, providing mental health professionals with a better understanding of the psychological issues associated with the refugee experience and best practices for treatment. 

This book is for therapists who want to enhance their effectiveness with clients whose spirituality is a salient part of their worldview. Whether or not the therapist has a spiritual background, the authors demonstrate that it is possible to honor clients' spiritual experience from the beginning to the end of the therapeutic process.Practical strategies, techniques, and examples are used to show how spirituality can influence each stage of treatment from before the clinical intake, starting with an understanding of ethical practice guidelines and therapist self-awareness, through termination. Self-reflection questions, diverse case examples, and a multiple session case study chapter are provided to build readers' understanding and ability to incorporate spirituality into counseling and psychotherapy.Practitioners in a broad variety of fields, including counseling and clinical psychology, counselor education, and marriage and family therapy will find this book to be a rich source of ideas for examining and modifying their practice. The authors discuss therapist self-awareness tools such as genogram, autobiography, journaling, and mindfulness; recommendations for overcoming biases toward spirituality; and how an agency's climate, referral sources, and intake forms can discourage or set the stage for discussing the spiritual.The chapters provide example probing questions and assessment instruments for exploring how spirituality can be a source of strength or confound problems, and present sample treatment plans that address various encounters with clients' spirituality. The authors demonstrate how meaning systems theory can inform case conceptualization and how spiritual discussions and interventions can be part of cognitive behavioral, interpersonal, psychodynamic, and humanistic therapies.The book also prepares readers for spiritual issues that frequently arise in termination, even if spirituality had not been a focus in previous sessions.

Are Christian treatments as effective as secular treatments? What is the evidence to support its success? Christians engaged in the fields of psychology, psychotherapy and counseling are living in a unique moment. Over the last couple decades, these fields have grown more and more open to religious belief and religion-accommodative therapies. At the same time, Christian counselors and psychotherapists encounter pressure (for example, from insurance companies) to demonstrate that their accommodative therapies are as beneficial as secular therapies. This raises the need for evidence to support Christian practices and treatments. The essays gathered in this volume explore evidence-based Christian treatments, practices, factors and principles. The authors mine the relevant research and literature to update practicing psychotherapists, clinical researchers, students, teachers and educated laypersons about the efficacy of certain Christian-accommodative therapies. Topics covered in the book include: devotional meditation cognitive-behavior therapy psychodynamic and process-experiential therapies couples, marriage and family therapy group intervention The book concludes with a review of the evidence for the various treatments discussed in the chapters, a guide for conducting clinical trials that is essential reading for current or aspiring researchers, and reflections by the editors about the future of evidence-based Christian practices. As the editors say, "more research is necessary." To that end, this volume is a major contribution to a field of inquiry that, while still in its infancy, promises to have enormous implications for future work in Christian counseling and psychotherapy. Christian Association for Psychological Studies (CAPS) Books explore how Christianity relates to mental health and behavioral sciences including psychology, counseling, social work, and marriage and family therapy in order to equip Christian clinicians to support the well-being of their clients.