Between tradition and modernity: Arab fathers’ experiences of parental guidance in Israel

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ABSTRACT The present study examined the experience of parental guidance from the perspective of fathers from the Arab minority population in Israel. The Arab minority in Israel is currently engaged in a transition process – from a traditional and patriarchal society to the modern culture that characterizes the Israeli society. The study implemented a qualitative methodology. The sample included 15 fathers who participated in a parental guidance process. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews. Four themes were gathered: (1) referral to parental training; (2) fathers’ attitudes toward the therapeutic encounter in the context of Arab culture; (3) changes the fathers experienced as a result of the guidance process; (4) significant processes and techniques used in the parental guidance process. The findings highlighted the specific elements of the parental guidance that enables fathers to cooperate without fearing to damage their self-image as an Arab man. In addition, a new concept was proposed – a multi-cultural treatment approach, which describes a situations where both the clients and the social workers are part of a cultural minority and wherein both parties move back and forth along the continuum between the traditional and the modern culture.