How to cultivate an impression of cultural humility in counseling 

Cultural humility can help you better relate to your clients from diverse backgrounds. Like cultural competency, cultural humility is based on respecting cultural differences and how they impact your clients’ experiences and mental health. However, cultural humility is centered around a deeper self-reflection and understanding of how your cultural background impacts your ability to understand the experiences of culturally diverse clients.¹ 

This article will explore how mental health professionals can foster cultural humility in counseling and the benefits of doing so. 

What is cultural humility?

Rather than an end goal you can check off a list, cultural humility is a life-long process of identifying, acknowledging, and overcoming your biases through self-reflection and self-critique. It helps you understand that you can never be truly 'culturally competent' when it comes to knowing someone else’s experiences because of the complex nature of personal identities.² 

Developing cultural humility can help you be open and curious about your clients and cultural groups they belong to. With an attitude of openness, you can better listen to your clients. You’ll come to your counseling sessions with the intent to learn from your clients about how you can best serve them. Deeper relationships with your clients based on clear understanding are also associated with better clinical outcomes.³ 

Key components of cultural humility in counseling

Before you can cultivate an impression of cultural humility, you have to do the work, starting with a commitment that will last throughout your career. The key components of cultural humility include being self-aware, valuing others, and committing to lifelong growth. 

Be self-aware

Start by trying to understand yourself and how your culture has influenced you. This includes how your social identities are reflected in your views, beliefs, and values. You can develop self-awareness through reading, discussions, workshops, or other methods of self-discovery.⁴ 

Value others

To be truly culturally humble, you need to respect other cultures as much as you do your own. Learn from others and approach them with a sense of curiosity and openness. However, it’s a fine line between asking others about their experiences and asking them to educate you. Educate yourself through books, courses, and other resources. If people are willing to share their cultural experiences, take the opportunity to express interest and learn from them.⁴

Commit to lifelong growth

You’ll probably experience some uncomfortable emotions during the process of self-awareness. Push through and realize that it’s a commitment to lifelong learning, worth it for the honest and trustworthy relationships you build and valuable mental health support you can provide.⁴ 

How does cultural humility differ from cultural competence?

Cultural competence revolves around a set of skills that health care providers can develop to better meet the needs of their patients from different backgrounds. The theory of cultural competence implies that you can learn everything you need to know about another culture and that you can complete the process. By implying you can completely understand an entire group of people, cultural competence can unintentionally lead to bias and prejudice.² 

Cultural humility, however, is a life-long process where you recognize that you can never fully understand another person’s experience. Every person is an individual and brings a unique mix of experiences that are different from anyone else’s. With cultural humility, you work to understand the unique perspective of everyone you encounter and the cultural factors that influence their lives.²

Strategies to develop cultural humility in counseling

Once you’ve done the personal work and committed to practice cultural humility, you can approach it with the following strategies: 

Be an active listener

The best way to express cultural humility and to learn from your clients is to actively listen to what they have to say. When you practice active listening, you aren’t just hearing the words–you’re attempting to understand the meaning and intent underlying their words (as well as what they leave out). Keep in mind that people are experts on their own experience but don't represent an entire culture. Ask questions to help you better understand what your client is trying to convey to you. Be fully present in the conversation and avoid outside distractions.⁵

Be respectful about cultural experiences

People will be more willing to share with you if they sense that you respect their culture. Take time to build cultural awareness and learn about different cultures through reading, watching documentaries, or taking classes. Pay careful attention to social customs such as greeting, personal space, and other practices.⁶

Acknowledge personal biases

No matter how fair-minded you try to be, you have unconscious biases that are a result of your experiences and exposure to stereotypes from the time you were a child. The first step in eliminating these biases is to acknowledge them. It’s often difficult to identify your unconscious biases, particularly if you work hard to be fair. However, if you don’t work to mitigate your biases, they can cloud your judgment and decision-making.⁷ 

Project Implicit offers a number of online tests that can help you identify hidden biases. You can also consider your life experiences and how they’ve affected your views of other cultures. Ask family and friends for feedback and keep an open mind.⁷ 

Encourage flexibility in approaches

Instead of relying on a standardized, one-size-fits-all approach to counseling, consider each client’s cultural background and the specific ways their various identities intersect. Cultural humility in counseling involves approaching each client by understanding how these factors can influence their mental health.⁸ 

You may also be able to continue to use evidence-based approaches to counseling while validating your client’s experiences and developing a trusting relationship. When your clients feel respected and heard, you can focus on building a strong bond that can improve their mental health outcomes.⁸ 

Embrace cultural humility with an online master’s in counseling

Obtaining an online Master’s in Education in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from Oklahoma City University can help you begin the lifelong journey of developing cultural humility. Our staff are experts in their fields and will work closely with you to help you gain the skills and education you need to make a difference in the lives of the people you help. 

With a rigorous curriculum that includes a practicum and internships to give you clinical experience, you’ll graduate prepared to make a difference in your community. Contact one of our admissions outreach advisors today to learn more, or if you’re ready to apply, get started on your application.