Psychotherapy with Caribbean Women: Examples from USVI, Haiti, and Guyana

Abstract

The Caribbean region represents a mosaic of cultures and languages, bound by a common experience of colonization, and marked by distinct histories of freedom and independence. Throughout the various countries that comprise the region, the role and importance of women is clearly recognized, highlighted, and demonstrated. Gender issues and feminist ideals have been and continue to be an area of discourse in all disciplines, including psychology. In this article, we provide an overview of the Caribbean region in order to contextualize the information presented. Next, we highlight three different countries in the region, US Virgin Islands, Haiti, and Guyana, to showcase the characteristics and experiences (i.e., gender role and gender socialization) of women in these respective countries, as well representations of feminist ideals. Lastly, we highlight the integration of Caribbean cultural backgrounds, social/political contexts, and feminist ideals in psychotherapeutic interventions with women in the region with specific recommendations for psychotherapy treatment process and outcomes.