Scenario
You are the administrator of a counseling practice. Branden, an African American
male, is a client who was recently diagnosed as having Bipolar I. Branden came
to the counseling practice today because he was experiencing a manic episode
and needed support. His agitation increased when, upon arriving to the
counseling practice, he learned that his regular therapist had to leave suddenly
due to a personal emergency. For this visit, Branden was assigned to a male
Caucasian therapist, Steve, who Branden perceived as being very opinionated
and having a passive-aggressive approach. During the session, as Branden
explained his challenges, he felt that Steve was dismissive and appeared to be
uninterested in what Branden had to say. He thought that Steve focused more on
his personal opinion of Branden rather than listening to Branden’s perspective.
Immediately following the session, Branden talked to the case manager, Jill, who
is also African American. Branden said that, as an African American man, he
didn’t feel like Steve was sensitive to his needs. Branden said, “My session was
horrible! It seemed to me that Steve wanted to only hear himself and was not
very interested in my actual challenges!”
Jill thanked Branden for reporting his experience, apologized, and assured him
this would not happen again. Jill, who communicates with a very direct approach,
addressed Branden’s concerns with Steve. Steve felt attacked and became
defensive. You overhear Steve say, “I was only trying to tell Branden that he
should stop focusing on stuff that doesn’t matter and get on with life!” Jill, the
case manager, quickly retorted with “You see, that is a major problem! It’s not
about you; it’s about Branden and what he is experiencing from his perspective
only!” Before this continued to escalate, you shut down the communication
between them and ask them to please meet you in the conference room to
resolve this matter. In your opinion, the main goal should always be to meet the
needs of the client which ultimately did not happen in this case.
Instructions
To complete this assignment, write a 2–3 page paper addressing the following:
● Analyze aspects of the communication in the scenario that were influenced
by the personal identities of the people involved.
○ Consider individual, group, and cultural identities.
○ Explain how you think these identities were displayed in their
communication.
● Analyze your perspective on this situation based on your personal identity.
○ How did you react as the administrator?
○ How would you have reacted if you had been the therapist or the
case manager?
○ As you respond to these questions, consider your attachment style
and self-concept and how they influence your reactions.
○ Reflect on how the identity of your culture or society may have
influenced your self-concept and communication style.
● Recommend strategies the case manager and the therapist could use to
improve communication.
○ Align your recommendations with what you perceive as each of their
personal identities and preferred communication styles.
○ How could they make their communication more empathic?
○ How could they employ active listening?
○ How could they work more successfully with people who have
different perceptions?
○ How could they better understand other’s personal, group, and
cultural identities?
○ Support your recommendations using your textbook and other
scholarly literature.