Most psychologists recognize and accept religion and spirituality as important aspects of human diversity. A client's culture is the embodiment of his or her worldview and is conveyed through his or her values, beliefs, morals, and religious and spiritual traditions "Since spirituality and religion are less important to psychologists in general than to their clients, may have been overlooked as important aspects of life." multicultural competence” (Ammondson, Lukoff, Pargament, Pilato, Scammell & Vieten, 2013, p.132). Incorporating spiritual and religious competencies into psychology is a form of multicultural competency. Multicultural competencies aim for psychologists to understand the worldviews of culturally diverse clients without being biased. Psychologists must implement sensitive and relevant intervention techniques with culturally diverse clients. Cultural differences extend to the client's religion and spiritual beliefs. Multicultural competence is predominant for psychologists when working with clients in any type of therapeutic environment. Culturally aware psychologists have great insight into how their cultural biases influence the counseling process, are comfortable with clients' culture, and respect clients' religion and culture (Sue, Arredondo, & Mc Davis, 1992a, 1992b ). Multicultural skills and competencies are illustrated when psychologists actively seek out culturally responsive educational workshops to elevate their expertise and training in multicultural practices. Acquiring multicultural skills is an ongoing process that includes self-awareness and reflection. Cultural competence and knowledge influence the counseling process by allowing psychologists to implement culturally sensitive counseling strategies. Effective
tags