Keynote - Therapeutic Oppression or Liberation: The Case for Multicultural Counseling and Therapy (MCT)

Traditional Western European therapy operates from hidden assumptions: (a) disorders reside in individuals, (b) disorders are departures from conventional (statistical) norms, (c) psychological principles derived from the dominant group are universally applicable, and (d) therapy consists of a series of strategies and techniques detached from the cultural context. When imposed upon clients of color, however, they potentially produce therapeutic harm. Rather than free and liberate, they may oppress and silence culturally diverse clients. MCT scholars and practitioners operate from different assumptions: (a) mental disorders are often sociopolitical constructions, (b) all treatments and behaviors cannot be isolated from their cultural contexts, (c) the individual is not necessarily the psychosocial unit of operation, and (d) cultural universality must be balanced with cultural specificity. When seen from this perspective, MCT represents true “healing” and liberation.