“WHY, WHY, ANDAND HOW, HOW,

CULTURE MATTERSCULTURE MATTERS...”

STRATEGIES TO SUPPORT ADOLESCENT/YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH

USING CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICES

AUGUST 26, 2014

the visible childthe visible child

Your presenter:Your presenter:

Who I am and what I do…

Regarding cultural competence…

Overview of today’s session:Overview of today’s session:

I. Introductions

II. So, what about “homeless youth”…?

III. What’s culture got to do with it?

IV. Strengths & vulnerabilities

V. Therapeutic approaches

VI. Your cases and questions

Today’s Learning Objectives:Today’s Learning Objectives:

1) Define relevant terms such as “homelessness”, “normative development”, and “culture” .

2) Clarify our individual and societal perceptions about homelessness, youth, and culture.

3) Develop strategies for improving our work with youth and families facing homelessness, particularly with communities of color.

Today’s ground rules…Today’s ground rules…

curiosity…

openness…

mutual respect …

fairness…

empathy…

confidentiality…

???...

Group Exercise: “Introductions…”

1) Who are you?

2) What do you do (and where)?

3) What do you hope to learn from today’s session?

4) If you haven’t already, jot down your case or question for discussion.

So, what do we need to know about children and families facing

homelessness?

DefinitionsDefinitions

What is

“homelessness”?

“Homelessness”

Lack or insufficiency of adequate housing.

Many causes (and many forms)

Can be episodic or chronic

Destabilizing effect on relationships (particularly parent-child)

Affects children and families disproportionally

What are some typical consequences

of the experience(s) of homelessness

for children of color?

“Homelessness” + “disproportionality”

Linkages Between Disparities

What do we need to know about child development?

Child and youth development

A process of skill and knowledge acquisition that occurs over time (typically two decades).

Different stages for different ages…

Parent-child relationships are critical

Individual and/or family trauma can disrupt normative development

Cultural factors affect development (e.g. gender)

What do we need to know about culture and diversity?

Cultural contexts

Culture is a collective term encompassing beliefs, values and experiences that shape human experience(s).

Culture can be internal or external

Culture is typically transmitted through close relationships (e.g., familial, community, etc.)

Culture is broader than: skin color

socioeconomic classlanguage

belief systems

Most people typically live in several different cultures,

and experience several different cultural influences

throughout their lives.

Group Exercise

“Circles of my cultureCircles of my culture…”

““Circles of My Culture”Circles of My Culture”

Using a blank sheet of paper, diagram the various cultural contexts that have shaped and currently affect your life.

Feel free to use circles, ovals, or whatever shapes you choose. (There is no right or wrong way to do this.)

(Be creative!)

Group Discussion:“Circles of my culture”

What were your primary cultural contexts?

How did you decide on these?

Were there contexts that others don’t see?

What about the people you work with?

(How much do you each know about your

respective cultural contexts?)

…a slight detour into perceptions…

How do we perceive “homelessness”?

Perceptions, lenses and reality

How does new (or old) knowledge shape our perceptions?

How easy is it to change or reconfigure our “lenses”?

How well do our perceptions and beliefs match reality?

““What do What do youyou see?” see?”

Take a few minutes to examine the following images that appear on the

screen.

What do they appear to be?

Do you see a triangle between the cut circles?

Actually, it’s not there! The way the circle parts are cut out, makes us think we are see a centrally located triangle that isn’t really there…

So, what do we need to know about culture and its role in both

homelessness, and providing care to children and families facing

homelessness?

CultureCulture

Culture and homelessness

If culture is “…the outward reflection of inward values and attributes that characterize people and their lives.”

How does society view the homeless?

How do the homeless view themselves?

How do we best serve these families?

Why andWhy and

How How

Culture Culture

Matters…Matters…

10 minute Break…

(Turn in your questions…)

Why discuss culture ?Why discuss culture ?

To quote Cornell West:

“…race matters…”

Why culture mattersWhy culture matters…

Cross-cultural competenceCross-cultural competence

…is a foundational component of professional competence and effective service

provision to communities of color.

(What is cultural competence?)

Cultural competenceCultural competence

1) the capacity to value diversity,

acquire cultural knowledge, and work

effectively across cultural boundaries…

2) a developmental process that evolves

over time.

Cultural Competence ProcessCultural Competence Process

1) Begin by exploring your own cultural contexts.

2) Explore and appreciate the diverse cultural contexts of others.

3) Learn how to build and maintain cross-cultural bridges (relationships).

Cultural Competence InsightsCultural Competence Insights

1) All human service is cross-cultural.

2) Balancing cultural differences with cultural similarities.

3) Awareness of the diversity within groups.

4) In an increasingly diverse world, professional competence is dependent on cross-cultural competence.

FAMILIESFACING

HOMELESSNESS

StrengthsStrengthsand and

VulnerabilitiesVulnerabilities

What is “homelessness”?

What are society’s initial reactions to the term “homeless”?

What causes homelessness?

“Could I ever become homeless”?

Do we ever think of homeless people in terms of strengths?

• Are the homeless resilient?• Do homeless people need to be resourceful?• Are homeless children survivors?• Are homeless people generally more hopeful,

generous, or communally-minded?• What has been your experience?

What do we consider to be particular vulnerabilities of homeless people?

• Are the homeless in a constant state of crisis?• Fewer resources, and/or poor utilization?

(Not just financial, but social, emotional, others?)

• Do failed or brittle relationships contribute to children and families encountering “homelessness”?• Can homelessness lead to hopelessness?• What has been your experience?

Group Discussion

Strengths

And

Vulnerabilities

FAMILIESFACING

HOMELESSNESS

TherapeuticTherapeuticApproachesApproaches

Lessons from “common factors”…

Common factors theory suggests that success in service provision is the result of factors common across approaches, rather than the particulars of any specific approach or technique. It identifies:

- Provider factors

- Client factors

- Relationship factors

Strategies for engaging homeless families

- Adopt and maintain a strength-based focus- Look for resilience- Openness (encourages openness)- Be aware of our own biases and prejudices

(including privilege)- Understand how people adapt to different

situations (coping vs. pathology)

Barriers to engaging homeless families

- Fear, mistrust- Pity- Paternalism- Shame/Pride - Lack of resources- Problem focus (crisis mode)- Seeing the homeless as “monolithic”

Benefits of better engagement

- More durable service relationships.- Better understanding of why these

families choose the strategies they do.- Deeper appreciation of the root causes

of homelessness.- Increased visibility and success for

distressed children and families in.

FAMILIESFACING

HOMELESSNESS

Your work (cases)…?Your work (cases)…?

FAMILIESFACING

HOMELESSNESS

(Questions?)(Questions?)

Thank You!Thank You!

William D. Allen William D. Allen Healing BondsHealing Bonds

621 West Lake Street, Suite 330Minneapolis, MN 55408

(612) 701-3813

References:

Allen, W. D., & Blaisure, K. R. (2009).

Family life educators and the development of cultural competency. In D. J. Bredehoft & M. J. Walcheski (Eds.), Family life education: Integrating theory and practice. Minneapolis, MN: National Council on Family Relations.

Boyd-Franklin, N. (2003).

Black families in therapy: Understanding the African American experiences. New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Pinderhughes, R. (1989).

Understanding race, ethnicity, and power: The key to efficacy in clinical practice. New York: Free Press.

References:

Sprenkle, D. (2002).

“Effectiveness research in marriage and family therapy: Introduction”.

In D. H. Sprenkle (Ed.), Effectiveness research in marriage and family therapy (pp. 9-26). Alexandria VA: American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy.

Sprenkle, D. & Blow, A. (2004).

“Common factors and our sacred models”. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 30, 2, 113-129.

Sue, D. W. & Sue, D. (2013).

Counseling the culturally diverse: theory and practice, (6th ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

References:

West, C. (1994).

“Race Matters”.

New York, NY: Vintage Books.