Counseling Clients from Collectivist Cultures – October 2

Logistics & Scheduling

Preferred date or timeframe: October 2
Proposed length: 2 hours
Requested fee:

Curriculum & Content Plan

Content/curriculum: The entire curriculum is focused on law & ethics, The entire curriculum is focused on culture and implicit bias topics

Online class experiential components: slides (PowerPoint, Google Slides)

Learner experience level: Novice/Beginning Learners: No advance knowledge required

NBCC Content Area: Social and Cultural Foundations

Program Description:

This session emphasizes the counselor’s primary ethical obligation to promote client welfare (American Counseling Association, 2014) while critically examining how dominant counseling theories and practices, rooted in individualistic cultural frameworks, may not fully align with the values and lived experiences of clients from collectivist cultures. Although multicultural competence has been widely discussed in the field of counseling, the practical and ethical application of culturally responsive counseling remains dependent on the counselor’s understanding of how cultural tunnel vision (Hegblom et al., 2025) may influence their understanding and awareness of self and others. Attendees explore practical strategies for ethical practice with clients from collectivist backgrounds, including ethical and effective broaching techniques, culturally attuned counseling skills, and careful diagnostic considerations. Particular attention is given to navigating ACA ethical standards related to client welfare, assessment, diagnosis, multicultural considerations, and advocacy, with the goal of reducing potential harm, avoiding cultural bias, and promoting equitable and effective care.

The American Psychological Association defines collectivism as:

• the tendency to view oneself as a member of a larger (family or social) group, rather than as an isolated, independent being.
• a social or cultural tradition, ideology, or personal outlook that emphasizes the unity of the group or community rather than each person’s individuality. Most Asian, African, and South American societies tend to put more value on collectivism than do Western societies, insofar as they stress cooperation, communalism, constructive interdependence, and conformity to cultural roles and mores. Compare individualism.

Please join us to gain insight and practical knowledge into these important cultural differences, and our ethical duty as counselors to support clients based on their perspectives, worldview, and community.

Educational Goals:

This training brings in ethical considerations based on the ACA Code of Ethics in supporting clients from their cultural perspectives of collectivism, in contrast to commonly held practices from individualistic counseling practices.

Learning Objectives:

• Name at least four ACA ethics codes that influence counselors’ ethical practice in serving clients from collectivism
• Identify at least three significant differences between collectivism and individualism values manifested in counseling
• Describe at least two specific ethical practices relevant to counseling and diagnosing clients from collectivist cultures

Equity Focus:

References:

Presenters

Presenter Name:

Pronouns:
Email:
For this training, this presenter’s background and expertise qualifies them for this NBCC Presenter Category:
Presenter CV/Resume :

Education:

Relevant experience/training related to topic :
Professional licenses (including state), and/or specific certifications that are related to this topic.:
Presenter Bio (to be included on promotional materials):

Dr. Keiko Sano is a licensed Mental Health Counselor, National Certified Counselor, and State Approved Supervisor. She was born and raised in Japan, and she worked with individuals and families from diverse backgrounds in Japan, Australia, and Hong Kong before moving to the US. Her strong passion for counseling and counselor education in global contexts has led her to research and publish book chapters about culturally sensitive approaches, focusing on gaps in counseling theory and practice, and on the diversity of counselors and supervisors. Currently, she teaches in a doctoral program of counselor education and supervision, sees clients in her local community, provides consultation for EMDR trainees and clinicians, and serves in various leadership roles, including American Counseling Association (ACA) Foundation, ACA of Washington, and Chi Sigma Iota International Honor Society.

Does presenter have special needs or require any accommodations?:
Permission to Record I give my permission to record my presentation for use by Resonant Equity in creating an on-demand version of my training content.

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Respect for Intellectual Property – All presenters attested that: The content to be presented does not infringe upon or violate intellectual property or privacy rights of any other party, including copyright, trademark, and license rights, The presenters attest that they either own the materials to be presented, and/or are permitted by law to use the materials in the proposed program.