Title: 
Headings: AMCD Multicultural Counseling Competencies
AMCD
 
Multicultural
 
Counseling
 
Competencies
 

I.
 
Counselor
 
Awareness
 
of
 
Own
 
Cultural
 
Values
 
and
 
Biases
 

II.
 
Counselor
 
Awareness
 
of
 
Client's
 
Worldview
 

III.
 
Culturally
 
Appropriate
 
Intervention
 
Strategies
 


Content: Knowledge
 

 
Culturally
 
skilled
 
counselors
 
have
 
a
 
clear
 
and
 
explicit
 
knowledge
 
and
 
understanding
 
of
 
the
 
generic
 
characteristics
 
of
 
counseling
 
and
 
therapy
 
(culture
 
bound,
 
class
 
bound,
 
and
 
monolingual)
 
and
 
how
 
they
 
may
 
clash
 
with
 
the
 
cultural
 
values
 
of
 
various
 
cultural
 
groups. Culturally
 
skilled
 
counselors
 
are
 
aware
 
of
 
institutional
 
barriers
 
that
 
prevent
 
minorities
 
from
 
using
 
mental
 
health
 
services. Culturally
 
skilled
 
counselors
 
have
 
knowledge
 
of
 
the
 
potential
 
bias
 
in
 
assessment
 
instruments
 
and
 
use
 
procedures
 
and
 
interpret
 
findings
 
keeping
 
in
 
mind
 
the
 
cultural
 
and
 
linguistic
 
characteristics
 
of
 
the
 
clients. Culturally
 
skilled
 
counselors
 
have
 
knowledge
 
of
 
family
 
structures,
 
hierarchies,
 
values,
 
and
 
beliefs
 
from
 
various
 
cultural
 
perspectives. They
 
are
 
knowledgeable
 
about
 
the
 
community
 
where
 
a
 
particular
 
cultural
 
group
 
may
 
reside
 
and
 
the
 
resources
 
in
 
the
 
community. Culturally
 
skilled
 
counselors
 
should
 
be
 
aware
 
of
 
relevant
 
discriminatory
 
practices
 
at
 
the
 
social
 
and
 
community
 
level
 
that
 
may
 
be
 
affecting
 
the
 
psychological
 
welfare
 
of
 
the
 
population
 
being
 
served. Skills
 

 
Culturally
 
skilled
 
counselors
 
are
 
able
 
to
 
engage
 
in
 
a
 
variety
 
of
 
verbal
 
and
 
nonverbal
 
helping
 
responses. They
 
are
 
able
 
to
 
send
 
and
 
receive
 
both
 
verbal
 
and
 
nonverbal
 
messages
 
accurately
 
and
 
appropriately. They
 
are
 
not
 
tied
 
down
 
to
 
only
 
one
 
method
 
or
 
approach
 
to
 
helping,
 
but
 
recognize
 
that
 
helping
 
styles
 
and
 
approaches
 
may
 
be
 
culture
 
bound. When
 
they
 
sense
 
that
 
their
 
helping
 
style
 
is
 
limited
 
and
 
potentially
 
inappropriate,
 
they
 
can
 
anticipate
 
and
 
modify
 
it.