| CODE | COU5118 | ||||||||||||
| TITLE | Using Helping Skills in Transcultural Contexts and with Multicultural Populations | ||||||||||||
| UM LEVEL | 05 - Postgraduate Modular Diploma or Degree Course | ||||||||||||
| MQF LEVEL | 7 | ||||||||||||
| ECTS CREDITS | 10 | ||||||||||||
| DEPARTMENT | Counselling | ||||||||||||
| DESCRIPTION | Multiculturalism results from life, countries, people, and culture changes, which progress inevitably brings. Multiculturalism is a fact of life that cannot be denied and should not be resisted as it is part of the inevitable change process. It enriches the culture of a country and the way of life of its people and has existed in Malta throughout its history. Centuries of foreign domination introduced new cultures to the local Maltese population, with many foreigners on the islands. Two examples are the Knights of St John鈥檚 administration of the Maltese islands between the 16th and 18th centuries, with knights of different nationalities, their retainers, and several others hailing from both European and non-European cultures, and the British colonial period in the 19th and 20th centuries. Since the turn of the century, Malta has witnessed an increase in migration, with people whose religion and culture differ from most Maltese. Change cannot be stayed, and therefore, one needs to continuously adapt to live effectively in one鈥檚 environment, locally a cosmopolitan country with different religions peacefully coexisting side by side. This reality must be supported within the educational sector and in the world of work and leisure. Thus, a successful community needs to both respect the multiculturalism present in its population, where groups of cultures live together and independently, and also embrace transculturalism, where these cultures become closely linked and can influence and interpenetrate each other, thus respecting where we came from to "reinventing of the new common culture" (Ortiz). This unit covers the development of helping skills at the individual and group level through didactic instruction and role-plays (including required videotaped role-plays) with a transcultural backdrop. The main focus of this study-unit is on the acquisition and implementation of helping skills which are diverse and culturally sensitive. Participants will also engage in role plays of culturally diverse situations and reflect on their implications for their counselling practice. Participants will be supported to identify areas of professional growth. This study-unit also aims to introduce participants to the transcultural curriculum using national and international research-based best practices. It will combine experiential and theoretical approaches, providing participants with an understanding of the cultural context for therapeutic relationships. It will cover current issues and trends, including identity, helping theories, strategies and techniques, advocacy, cultural and social justice, conflict resolution and the promotion of diversity and combatting prejudice and discrimination. Participants will also be able to visit places of education, work, and other sectors where multi-cultural populations co-exist and transculturalism is embraced. Study-unit Aims: This study-unit will equip participants with essential helping skills tailored to transcultural contexts. It addresses advanced skills such as listening, feedback, empathy, questioning, immediacy, meta-communication, and closure through immersive practice and reflection. The unit ensures a comprehensive understanding of diverse groups nationally and internationally by introducing international and pluralistic trends in transcultural theory, including cultural identity development and power differentials. Participants will be able to critically examine and reflect on their attitudes, beliefs, and acculturative experiences, understanding how these elements impact helping skills sessions. The study-unit contextualises these insights to improve strategies for helping skills implementation in culturally diverse populations, particularly by focusing on Malta鈥檚 cosmopolitan and multicultural profile. Additionally, it emphasises the development of cultural self-awareness, advocacy for social justice, and effective conflict resolution. By exploring the helping professional's role in addressing bias, prejudice, and discrimination, the unit prepares participants to foster optimal wellness and growth in their clients. Furthermore, transculturalism is contextualised within various domains such as poverty, gender identity, migration, religion, spirituality, education, and intersectionality, providing a holistic framework for practical application. The study-unit aims to create culturally competent professionals adept at navigating and enhancing group and individual interactions in diverse settings through this comprehensive approach. Learning Outcomes: 1. Knowledge & Understanding By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Explain the importance of establishing a safe and positive rapport; - Demonstrate and conceptualise appropriate directions for communication; - Identify culturally appropriate strategies, interventions and techniques; - Critique and explain the appropriate use of communication and helping skills; - Demonstrate a good working knowledge of issues that arise from the counselling process, including transference and countertransference; - Critically analyse the cultural implications of counselling theories; - Reflect on theories relating to transcultural counselling and identity development; - Reflect on personal implicit beliefs and values and how these can impact them personally and professionally; - Critique their role in the promotion of cultural, social justice, advocacy, and conflict resolution at their place of work/profession; - Reflect on the competencies needed to deal with culturally diverse populations. 2. Skills By the end of the study-unit the student will be able to: - Demonstrate and appropriately apply skills related to advanced listening, questioning, basic and advanced empathy, immediacy and meta-communication; - Demonstrate and appropriately apply skills to initiating and closing relationships; - Utilise role-playing as a means to strengthen individual skills acquisition; - Evaluate personal strengths and identify areas of growth in professional development; - Formulate appropriate interventions and responses within a variety of situations, especially those based on transcultural issues; - Implement appropriate diversity and culturally sensitive interventions in a variety of transcultural issues; - Demonstrate self-awareness in the development of transcultural practice; - Demonstrate a developing cultural empathy and helping skills; - Demonstrate critical reflection on practice in line with contemporary research on transcultural counselling; - Critique and evaluate the importance of understanding ethical issues across cultures. Main Text/s and any supplementary readings: Main Texts: - Lago, C. O., & Smith, B. (Eds.). (2010). Anti-discriminatory counselling practice (2nd ed.). Sage Publications. - Baker, W. (2022). From intercultural to transcultural communication. Language and Intercultural Communication, 22(3), 280-293. https://doi.org/10.1080/14708477.2021.2001477 Supplementary Readings: - Banerjee, P., & German, M. (2010). Migration and Transculturation in the Digital Age: A Framework for Studying the 鈥淪pace Between鈥�. Journal of international & global studies, 2(1), 22-35. https://doaj.org/article/c2764e353167440e8cd2cdd4c3b9e00b - Eapen, V., Karlov, L., John, J. R., Beneytez, C., Grimes, P. Z., Kang, Y. Q., ... & Volgyesi-Molnar, M. (2023). Quality of life in parents of autistic children: A transcultural perspective. Frontiers in psychology, 14, 684. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1022094 - Hoerder, D., Harzig, C., & Shubert, A. (Eds.). (2022). The historical practice of diversity: Transcultural interactions from the Early Modern Mediterranean to the Postcolonial World. Berghahn Books. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781782387183 - Lago, C. (Ed.) (2005). Race, culture and counseling. The ongoing challenge (2nd ed.):Open University Press. - Loh, S. H. (2022). The continued relevance of multiculturalism: dissecting interculturalism and transculturalism. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 45(3), 385-406. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2021.1963459 - Longmuir, F., Casinader, N., Prosser, H., & van Cuylenburg, P. (2022). Leadership of cultural education in the current age: an exploratory investigation of culturally responsive capacity through the lens of transculturalism. Journal of Educational Administration and History, 54(4), 420-439. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220620.2022.2044293 - Mansouri, F., & Jamal Al-deen, T. (2023). Acts of transcultural belonging and social empowerment among migrant youth. Ethnic and Racial Studies, 1-23. https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2023.2174811 - Moodley, R. & West, W. (Eds.). (2005). Integrating traditional healing practices into counseling and psychotherapy. Sage Publications. - Rogers, C. R. (1996). On becoming a person. Constable. - Sue, D.W., Ivey, A.E. & Pedersen, P.B. (Eds.) (1996) A theory of multicultural counseling and therapy. Brooks/Cole. |
||||||||||||
| STUDY-UNIT TYPE | Lecture | ||||||||||||
| METHOD OF ASSESSMENT |
|
||||||||||||
| LECTURER/S | Marlene Cauchi |
||||||||||||
|
The University makes every effort to ensure that the published Courses Plans, Programmes of Study and Study-Unit information are complete and up-to-date at the time of publication. The University reserves the right to make changes in case errors are detected after publication.
The availability of optional units may be subject to timetabling constraints. Units not attracting a sufficient number of registrations may be withdrawn without notice. It should be noted that all the information in the description above applies to study-units available during the academic year 2025/6. It may be subject to change in subsequent years. |
|||||||||||||