Ch 8 Flashcards
diversity and social justice in group work (42 cards)
diversity
associated with terms such as race, ethnicity, language, culture, gender, socioeconomic class, sexual orientation, religion, ableism, and disability
social justice
examining differences among people and striving for the far and equitable distribution of power, resources, and obligations in society of all people regardless of their backgrounds
emphasizes empowerment, self-determination, advocacy, and change in order to confront injustice and inequality in society
by cooperating collaboratively with persons who are not like themselves, individuals in groups can…
bridge the gap of differences
become more creative in their problem solving
grow in their cognitive and moral reasoning
learn to view matters from a new perspective
multicultural and social justice competence principles for group workers
ASGW framework for working with culturally diverse groups
three reasons for delay in dealing with diversity and social justice in groups
- emphasis of the group movement was forgotten and soon after Lewis death in 1947
- during the development of the group movement in 1960s and 1970s, culturally diverse group members were not considered to be significantly different from dominant group members in regard to concerns and issues
- traditionally cultural minority members were not thought to have a great deal more influence on group dynamics than those from the dominant cultural group
stages of social justice
stage 1: naivety
stage 2: multicultural integration
stage 3: liberators critical consciousness
stage 4: empowerment
stage 5: social justice advocacy
- naivety
a lack of awareness of how issues of diversity impact the intra and interpersonal interactions within the group
- multicultural integration
the group leader moves out of an ethnocentric lens and fully recognizes the richness of the cultural elements of each member
- liberators critical consciousness
each member of the group gains a more expansive understanding of self and the conditions that help form their beliefs
- empowerment
group members find their voice as the atmosphere within the group promotes self-advocacy
- social justice advocacy
group members expand their advocacy skills into the larger community and society as a whole
strategies to assist in group discussions on social justice issues
- be intentional about having diversity of group membership and avoid representation/token members of a marginalized community
- use structured activities to talk about issues of privilege and oppression
- facilitate consciousness raising and create awareness of social justice in group members by processing issues of oppression in the moment
settings for culturally diverse
racial-cultural sensitivity groups
alcohol and other drug abuse recovery programs
groups conducted inside correctional facilities
career development and job training programs
three modifications in traditional ways of working in a group
- understand what culture is
- group theory and technique must be modified and applied to different cultures in ways that are congruent with the beliefs and behaviors of those cultures
- group theory and techniques must be developed that acknowledge, explore, and use group members differences to facilitate change and growth
culture
the set of attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors shared by a group of people, communicated from one generation to the next via language or some other means of communication
three types of diversity related groups
culture-specific groups
interpersonal learning groups
other content focused groups
culture-specific groups
focus on a specific cultural population where members are of the same or similar background 1
interpersonal learning groups
are designed to promote greater understanding across cultural groups and contain members from different cultural backgrounds
other-content focused groups
mainly focus on other topics, such as substance abuse, but at the same time pay attention to the diversity of their members as an important group issue
myths of multicultural groups
- discussion of racial or cultural differences is offensive to group members and is best never mentioned
- groups can be homogenous so focusing on diversity is not needed
- group member differences do not matter and seldom, if ever, affect the process and outcome of task and psychoeducational groups
- group work theories are appropriate for all clients all the time
diverse and multicultural groups are…
goal directed
three common goals of diverse and multicultural groups
- to understand the situation that brought the person to the group from a cultural perspective
- to approach all events and behavior in the group from a functional perspective
- to help members make sense of new behaviors, beliefs, and skills within a cultural context
five factors that every group leader needs to be conscious of
culture
worldview
identities
statuses
demographics
the awareness and abilities of group leaders in culturally diverse groups may be increased in multiple ways (strategies)
- consultation with minority counselors about working with groups they may already be serving
- having group leaders become immersed in culturally enriching and sensitive traditions such as the observation of significant holidays or festivals
- proactively taking note of the needs and issues of minority groups
- taking language lessons and pronunciation training so as to be comfortable and correct when speaking a culturally specific circumstances
- examine their family as the place where they learned about their culture and relationships with others
- employment of both didactic and experiential education
