Integrating Asian Clients’ Filial Piety Beliefs into Solution-Focused Brief Therapy

Abstract

Culturally sensitive counseling models for non-Western clients are rarely seen in the literature. Because filial piety is a prevailing cultural belief in Taiwanese/Chinese societies and influences a wide range of individual and interpersonal behaviors, counseling and psychotherapy would be most effective when this cultural norm is considered and incorporated in the treatment process. This study will begin with a brief introduction of important elements of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT). It will then outline a counseling model that integrates the cultural construct of filial piety with SFBT. The implementation of this integrative, culturally sensitive model will be exemplified by descriptions of the processes and outcomes of two Taiwanese adult clients who were dealing with various forms of parent-child conflicts. Limitations, implications, and further directions will be discussed based on SFBT and Chinese cultural contexts.