Relational Cultural Theory Research Articles

Using Relational Cultural Theory as a Pedagogical Approach for Counselor Education

ABSTRACTIn the article the authors will discuss core concepts of RCT in greater detail while relating these concepts to the counselor education classroom setting. There are many aspects of the counseling process that are open-ended due to the necessity of counselors needing to be responsive to the client’s needs in the moment. It is the assertion of the authors that using RCT in the classroom as a pedagogical framework may be beneficial to the growth of CITs. Through creating and maintaining an environment that supports growth fostering relationships, mutual empathy, authenticity, recognition and healing of disconnection, identification of central relational paradoxes, and processing relational images can all lead to developing relational competence in the CITs who will become the next generation of counselors. Additionally, the authors provide examples of the core concepts in action that are grounded in their experiences, blending RCT into their instructional delivery in their course.

Photo-synthesis: Facilitating Goal Setting in Supervision Using Images and Creativity

ABSTRACTOne of the most important aspects of clinical supervision is goal-setting. In the early stages of supervision, supervisees may find it difficult to connect authentically with their supervisors due to the inherent power differential in supervision. Difficulty connecting may be exacerbated when students are attempting to set goals regarding their areas for growth. Based on literature reviewed on the counselor-client relationship, the authors posit that using images may increase vulnerability between supervisors and supervisees. Additionally, the authors introduce relational-cultural theory as a framework for connecting authentically through creative images. The authors present examples of using images in individual and group supervision, specifically employing The Coaching Game made by Points of You.

The Teacher–Learner Relationship: Considerations for Social Work in the Digital Age

ABSTRACTIn light of a rapidly changing educational landscape, this paper will discuss the implications of online education for the teacher–learner relationship, which is a critical aspect of academic and professional development for the social work student. As technology revolutionizes relationships, how will we ensure the intra-and interpersonal nature of social work education? The pursuit of accessible and flexible educational opportunities presently driving social work education threatens to undermine this important alliance. The centrality of relationship is discussed here in the context of current trends in distance learning. Relational-Cultural Theory and Transactional Distance Theory are posited to provide evidence for the significance of relationship in learning.

Integrating Relational-Cultural Theory Concepts and Mask-Making in Group Supervision

ABSTRACTSupervisees in the clinical phase of their counselor training may experience anxiety related to evaluation and competence. Recent literature has suggested that the integration of relational-cultural theory (RCT) concepts in supervision can be used to reframe supervisee anxiety and promote professional growth. Creative arts approaches have been employed in group supervision to increase supervisee self-awareness, improve case conceptualization skills, and foster group cohesion. To date, no research exists on the use of mask-making in RCT-based group supervision. In this article, the author proposes integrating RCT concepts with a mask-making intervention in group supervision to address supervisee anxiety. Limitations and implications for counselor educators and supervisors are discussed.

Exploring the Use of Mindful Andragogy to Create Inclusive Classrooms

ABSTRACTResearchers have indicated that mindful teaching approaches support students and educators throughout the learning process. The purpose of this hermeneutic phenomenological study was to explore the lived experiences of counselor educators with a daily mindfulness practice in the classroom with culturally diverse students. Relational cultural theory (RCT) concepts of relational connections and disconnections were used to explore the participants’ lived experiences of implementing a mindful teaching approach. Purposeful sampling yielded 10 participants who participated in semi-structured interviews. The data was analyzed to identify essential themes using an inductive approach. Findings may be useful for counselor educators who seek a greater capacity for awareness, acceptance, empathy, self-care, creativity, and presence when working with diverse students in the classroom.

Using Relational-Cultural Theory to Conceptualize International Student Transitions

ABSTRACTIn this article, Relational-Cultural Theory (RCT) is applied to international student transition experiences. The purpose of this phenomenological study was to describe the lived experiences of international students transitioning to college life in the rural United States using the principles of RCT. Five women and four men enrolled at a mid-sized university agreed to participate in the study. In the data analysis phase, four components of RCT emerged as themes. The authors provide implications for campus-based mental health professionals (e.g., college counselors).

Utilizing Relational Cultural Theory in Addressing Sexism in the Counseling Relationship

ABSTRACTThe Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies conceptual framework includes a quadrant to represent a privileged client working with a marginalized counselor. Given this and given the dearth of literature on how counselors might handle microaggressions from their clients, the authors advocate for utilizing Relational Cultural Theory (RCT) to respond to microaggressions in a therapeutic way that promotes relational growth in counseling. In order to illustrate this, the authors provide a hypothetical case example, specifically sexism from a male client to a female counselor.

Relational cultural theory and cancer: Addressing the social well-being of a growing population.

Relational cultural theory and cancer: Addressing the social well-being of a growing population.

The influence of relational mutuality on dyadic coping among couples facing breast cancer

Objective: The study examined how a couple’s capacity for mutuality as conceptualized by the Relational-Cultural Theory plays a role in their managing the stresses accompanying breast cancer.Methods: Eighty-six women treated for a primary, non-metastatic breast cancer and their partners completed measures of quality of life, relational mutuality, and dyadic coping. Demographic and clinical factors were self-reported. The relationship between mutuality and dyadic coping was evaluated using the Actor-Partner Interdependence Model (APIM).Results: Relational mutuality was positively associated with both the patients’ and the caregivers’ scores on common and positive dyadic coping. Similarly, relational mutuality was associated with both patients’ and caregivers’ reduced scores on avoidance of dyadic coping.Conclusions: Relational mutuality emerges as a significant factor in our understanding about dyadic coping in the context of cancer and this study highlights the role it plays in dyadic coping behaviors.Implications: The promotion of relational mutuality in couples coping with cancer-related stress should be a major focus in couple-based interventions.

The Experiences Queer College Women of Color Have of Friendship

Research has shown that friendship between queer college women of color was beneficial to racial and sexual identity development. To date, no study has sought to discover the ways in which queer college women of color develop and navigate friendship connections in the context of a women’s college environment. Using relational-cultural theory and narrative inquiry, the researcher collected stories from participants in friendship pairs. Further, the researcher narrowed the collection of stories and selected representative narratives from two college contextual environments.

A Constructive Approach to Help Counselors Work With Clients Who Express Discriminatory Views

Although much has been written to help counselors understand the potential impact of their own biases toward clients from traditionally marginalized groups, much less attention has been given to assist counselors working with clients who express discriminatory views that counselors may find offensive. In this article, the authors briefly outline how constructive clinical supervision can be integrated with aspects of relational–cultural theory and moral foundations theory to help counselors work with clients who espouse discriminatory views.

Creative Approaches for Promoting Vulnerability in Supervision: A Relational-Cultural Approach

ABSTRACTSupervisors are responsible for protecting client welfare and for promoting counselor development. In order for counselor growth and development to occur, the supervisee must feel safe being vulnerable in supervision and a strong supervisory relationship is essential in creating this safe space for the supervisee. Given the significance of the supervisory relationship, the authors discuss the application of relational-cultural theory to the supervisory process (i.e., Relational Cultural Supervision) with a focus on the concept of vulnerability and the addition of creativity as a means of supporting the supervisory process. Creative supervision activities that may promote vulnerability within the supervisory relationship are provided.

Beyond Colleagues: Women Leaders and Work Relationships

Framed by the Stone Center's relational-cultural theory (Fletcher, 2007), which proposes that mutual growth occurs through connection, this qualitative exploratory study examines relationships with women colleagues that contribute to the quality of women's leadership experiences in higher education. Women leaders are affected by gendered organizational culture and by stereotypes of leadership that are predominantly male. They also face contradictions concerning their relationships with each other. Women are perceived to be relationally-oriented and socially responsive, but also back-biting and competitive; expected to show relational skills, but with no acknowledgement of what their skills contribute to organizations; expected to practice solidarity but also perceived as "queen bees." In the face of these contradictions, interviews with 15 women in leadership at five U.S. universities illuminate the character and contributions of select relationships that women leaders themselves identify as contributing factors to the quality of their leadership experiences. Ten benefits, which accrue both to the women and their institutions, emerged. Two of these benefits are: (1) strategizing and problem-solving; and (2) clarity of ideas, knowledge, and perspective. The benefits loosely align with the five positive outcomes associated with the Stone Center's relational-cultural model. Results offer alternative ways to think about women leaders' work-related relationships, recasting the usually invisible skills women bring to them as skills critical to enhancing their leadership, beneficial to the organization, and a means of challenging the status quo of gendered institutional culture. Keywords: women, leadership, colleagues, relational-cultural theory, support, friendship, work relationships

The Aftermath of Shelter: Abused Arab Women in Israel

Shelters for battered women play a major role in combating abuse against women. Extensive research has dealt with various aspects of shelters, including professional and ideological perceptions and the women’s experiences. However, scarce research exists on women’s coping following shelter-stay, especially research on the meaning of shelter-stay for women from collectivist societies. In the present study, we focused on how Arab women who had lived in a shelter coped after returning to the community to begin independent lives. In the Arab society in Israel, Arab women who live in shelters are perceived as violating a cultural norm. In-depth qualitative interviews were conducted with 12 Arab women aged between 25 and 42, who had stayed in a shelter for Arab women for at least six months.The major themes that emerged from the interviews revealed changes in perception of self and of social environment, including a self-transformation from weakness to strength, from perceiving themselves as devoid of rights to the development of an identity of entitlement. Through their release from weakening cultural systems, they were transformed from familial and societal victims to empowered beings, and moved from negative gender self-awareness to an empowered gender self-perception. These changes helped the interviewees to cope with stresses and to live independently. The findings are conceptualized in the discussion using relational-cultural theory.

Building Transformative Global Nursing Partnerships.

Global nursing is a relatively new term identifying nurses contributing to global health. While personally and professionally rewarding, global health projects present unique challenges to global nurses that impact partnerships. The aim of this article was to describe the role of global nursing, and focus on relational-cultural theory as the foundation of transformative partnerships. This article is based upon a review of literature related to global health and relational inquiry. Peer-reviewed papers and research articles published within the past 10 years were used to support this discussion. Publications considered to be classics in the field of relationship inquiry were also utilized. Global nursing is a relatively recent conceptualization in describing the role of nursing. Global nursing practice based upon relational-cultural theory and mediated by cultural humility provides a strong foundation for the development of transformative global nursing partnerships. This article provides a theoretical foundation for global nurses practicing in local and global contexts with diverse populations. Nursing partnerships in both local and global contexts can be challenging to initiate and manage, but global nurses are responsible for creating partnerships which are ethically sound, based on theory, and transformative in nature. Cultural humility plays a central role in the ongoing process of disconnecting and re-connecting for transformational partnerships with individuals, communities, and other health-care providers.

Critically Compassionate Intellectualism in Teacher Education: The Contributions of Relational–Cultural Theory

Cammarota and Romero describe how they utilized a framework they call critically compassionate intellectualism (CCI)—a trilogy of critical pedagogy, authentic caring, and social justice–oriented curriculum—to lift up previously disempowered Latinx youth. CCI can also serve as an appropriate framework for emancipatory pedagogy and curriculum in teacher education and other settings, especially those committed to a mission of educational justice for our most disadvantaged students. Because the compassion element in CCI is understudied in teacher education, yet crucial to the success of the framework as a whole, in this article, I apply the tenets of relational–cultural theory (RCT) to enhance existing understandings of this component. Based on feminist theories of psychosocial and moral development, RCT expands the original framework to account for varied experiences of privilege and vulnerability when applying CCI beyond its original contexts while retaining core emphases on relationships, empathy, and associated aspects of authentic caring.

Military Culture and the Civilian Therapist: Using Relational-cultural Theory to Promote the Therapeutic Alliance

ABSTRACTDeployment exposes service members to life-defining experiences that change them in various ways. The effects of these changes are felt throughout the service member’s support structure, making it necessary to address multiple areas of the clients’ lives. While there are several resources within the military structure to aid service members and their families, stigmas often prevent these services from being utilized. In order to tackle stigmas, civilian counselors are usually employed. However, they do not often have the proper training to address the culturally specific needs of military clients. Using a combination of Relational-Cultural Therapy, evidence-based practices, and cultural education, civilian counselors can begin to gain the knowledge necessary to best aid service member populations.

Love, power, resilience and vulnerability: relationship dynamics between female sex workers in Ghana and their intimate partners

Little is known about female sex workers’ daily lives or emotional relationships. Using relational-cultural theory, this study explored the relationship dynamics between sex workers and their intimate partners in Kumasi, Ghana. We collected qualitative data from 37 male intimate partners through 24 in-depth interviews and two focus group discussions (FGDs) with 13 male partners. We also conducted three FGDs with 20 women involved in sex work. Relationships between sex workers and their intimate partners were mutual, reciprocal and transactional. Male partners provided protection for financial support, a place to sleep and intimacy. Both men and women described their relationships in terms of friendship, love and a hopeful future. Women were reluctant to quit sex work because they depended on it for income. Most respondents did not use condoms in these romantic relationships, citing trust, love, faithfulness and commitment. Both men and women described high levels of violence in their relationships. The context of sex work heightens vulnerability but also appears to facilitate resilience and creative coping strategies. The relational dynamics between sex workers and their intimate partners in Ghana merit further exploration to examine the extent to which women involved in sex work hold and exert power within these relationships.

Stepping In: My Experience of Embodied Power Through the Relational-Cultural Framework

This qualitative embodied artistic inquiry self-study explored how I used my embodied power in an ethical and intentional way as a dance/movement therapist and illustrated how I experienced my embodied power as informed by relational-cultural theory and racial identity development theory. This led to an exploration of my racial identity as a White, second-year dance/movement therapy and counseling graduate student, who also identifies with other dominate cultural groups. Data were collected through five authentic movement sessions with a trained authentic movement practitioner. Data analysis took the form of creative synthesis through embodied writing passages following each authentic movement session. Results included a journey of self-compassion through a growing movement repertoire, which developed into three themes: self-acceptance, ownership of the past, and choice. Implications demonstrated the importance of therapists exploring theoretical frameworks that align with or challenge one’s worldview, and continuously engaging in introspective exploration of one’s racial identity.

A Case Study of Relationships, Resilience, and Retention in Secondary Mathematics and Science Teachers

Reasons why mathematics and science teachers leave the profession have been well documented and discussed. However, a critical examination of the nuances contributing to their retention warrants our attention. In this qualitative case study, I applied relational–cultural theory (Miller, 1986) to the experiences of three female mathematics and science teachers. I sought to unpack teachers’ decisions to remain in the classroom year after year and make meaning of their experiences as related to resilience in and through relationships. Based on findings from participants' experiences, recommendations for improving teacher retention along the career trajectory are offered.