Application of Cultural and Environmental Issues in Family Therapy with Immigrant Chinese Americans

Abstract

Two major factors for consideration in working with immigrant Chinese American families are cultural issues, and problems faced by these families as immigrants. Salient aspects of Chinese culture include the role of the family, the family hierarchy, communication style, social etiquette, and the client's concept of therapy and expectation for the therapist. Problems which immigrant families might face include social isolation, adjustment difficulties relating to relocation, as well as cultural and language barriers between parents and children. Implications of these issues for therapy are discussed. Strategies used by the author in working with Chinese American families, including cases examples, are presented. This paper is a discussion of some therapeutic strategies which I find helpful in working with immigrant Chinese American families. The term “immigrant families” is used here to include families whose parents are immigrants and whose children might either be immigrants or American born. While many of the points made are also relevant for consideration in individual therapy, this discussion is focused on family therapy and family sessions.