CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

Cultural Differences in Asian Nationality from the Past to the Present

Cultural Differences in Asian Nationality from the Past to the Present

Introduction

Counseling psychologists must address the cultural context of the individuals and the cultural lens from which they view themselves and the world. Understanding the worldviews of Asian nationality from the cultural perspective is critical for an accurate understanding and assessment of how Asian nationality may respond to counseling and psychotherapy. Without accounting for the differences from past to present times that exist within Asian nationality ethnic subgroups, it is inevitable that there will be errors of omission, that is, failures to account for culture, ethnicity, or cultural differences, as well as making false generalizations of individuals within a given culture. In this entry, key aspects of the Asian nationality cultural perspective are highlighted. Systematic and practical barriers that impede service utilization and compromise service effectiveness as well as ways of overcoming those barriers through culturally responsive services are outlined. Recommendations for counseling Asian nationality are presented throughout this entry (Kim, 2001).

Discussion

Asian nationality worldview emphasizes humility, modesty, treating oneself strictly while treating others more leniently, obligation to family, conformity, obedience, and subordination to authority. This cultural context also values familial relations, interpersonal harmony versus honesty emphasis, role hierarchy versus egalitarianism, and self-restraint versus self-disclosure (Kim, 2003).

Awareness of these values sheds light on why research and clinical findings have shown Asian nationality to exhibit greater respect for counselors, preference for a counselor who is an authority but is not authoritarian, tendency to exhibit lower levels of verbal and emotional expressiveness, preference for directive counseling styles, and crisis-oriented, brief, and solution-oriented approaches rather than insight and growth-oriented approaches. Asian nationality is likely to find difficulty with the Western model of counseling and psychotherapy, which is filled with ambiguity by design and typically conducted as an unstructured process. For Asian nationality that tends to be less tolerant of ambiguity, the mismatch with insight-oriented psychotherapy may account for the early termination and the underutilization rates that exist. Similarly, Asian cultural values of reserve, restraint of strong feelings, and subtleness in approaching problems may come into conflict with the Western model of counseling and psychotherapy, which anticipates clients to display openness, psychological mindedness, and assertiveness (Yeh, 2000).

An example of error of omission leading to false generalizations and conclusions about Asian nationality can be found in career counseling. Asian nationality report significantly high parental expectations ...