Mindfulness and Acceptance in Multicultural Competency

In recent years, mindfulness and acceptances-based therapies have gained immense popularity in the field of behavioral health. And as these therapeutic models have proliferated, their teachings and practices have been introduced to a wide range of diverse applications.

Cognitive behavioral approaches often rely on a client’s values as a catalyst for treatment. But because values are often culturally biased, it can be difficult to apply the same techniques to clients from different cultural and ethnic backgrounds. That’s why multicultural competency training for mental health professionals is so important. Mindfulness and Acceptance in Multicultural Competency presents a contextual approach to sociocultural diversity in both theory and practice.

In this book, author Akihiko Masuda examines the cultural competency and cultural adaptation of three major therapeutic models based in mindfulness and acceptance: dialectical behavior therapy (DBT), mindfulness-based cognitive therapy, and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). Readers will learn how to translate these treatment models to other language communities, and how to tailor therapeutic approaches to address a number of cultural factors, including religion and spirituality, social stigma, and prejudice.

Written for professionals, students, and practitioners, this book offers solid data and research that shows how innovations in acceptance and mindfulness therapies can be directed for the health and wellness of all people, no matter their race, creed, or cultural background. The book includes contributions by Lynn McFarr, PhD, Holly Hazlett-Stevens, PhD, Michael P. Twohig, PhD, Jason Lillis, PhD, Michael Levin, MA, and Jason Luoma, PhD.