Assessing and Treating Culturally Diverse Clients: A Practical Guide (Multicultural Aspects of Counseling And Psychotherapy) [Paperback]

Freddy A. Paniagua (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 16, 1998 | ISBN-10: 0761910506 | ISBN-13: 978-0761910503 | Edition: 2nd

The Second Edition of this concise guide includes a new chapter on cultural variables in the DSM-IV. All other chapters have been updated.

The author summarizes current literature on cross-cultural mental health and provides helpful clinical suggestions for practitioners with a multicultural clientele. Among the topics explored are: cultural variables which may affect assessment and treatment across groups; epidemiological mental health data across groups; application of data from culture-specific, biased measures; and factors to consider during delivery of treatment.

Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Sage Publications, Inc; 2nd edition (April 16, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0761910506
• ISBN-13: 978-0761910503
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,163,223 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Freddy A. Paniagua was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He completed undergraduate training at the Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo (1970-1974), and came to the United States in 1976 for graduate training at the University of Kansas,where he received his M.A in Human Development in 1978, and the Ph.D. in Child and Developmental Psychology in 1982. In 1984-1985, he completed postdoctoral psychology training at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine,Kennedy Krieger Institute. He spent over 24 years at the University of Texas Medical Branch and retired with the rank of Tenured Professor in 2009, and is currently Adjunct Professor in Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association, a position given to him for his contributions to psychology with particularly emphasis on the impact of multicultural variables in the assessment, diagnosis, and treatment of mental disorders, as well as applied and theoretical contributions in psychology. His first book, "Assessing and Treating Culturally Diverse Clients: A practical guide"(Sage), is listed among the 100 top bestsellers in counseling. In additon to his devotion to advance the scientific nature of psychology, he also enjoy writing fictions.e.g., "The Blessing Flood and Other Tales" (iUniverse), playing congas,and cooking. Freddy is an expert cooking chicken with rice, which is known as "Locrio" in the Dominican Republic.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Worthy of a second reading, May 14, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Assessing and Treating Culturally Diverse Clients: A Practical Guide (Multicultural Aspects of Counseling And Psychotherapy) (Paperback)

Insightful and thought provoking. Will very likely read it again. Though I am not a psychologist, I found this book to be a helpful learning tool. As a student service administrator, I serve numerous individuals from various backgrounds. It is very important for me to recognize "the cultural, individual, and role differences" of the people I serve in order to successfully fulfill my duties. This requires continuous education on my part, and Dr. Paniagua's book has provided an integral part of that learning process.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Terrible Book...If You don't Read it Carefully!!, May 10, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Assessing and Treating Culturally Diverse Clients: A Practical Guide (Multicultural Aspects of Counseling And Psychotherapy) (Paperback)

[some think] that this "book is constantly overgeneralizing and making blanket statements about cultural groups." In the Preface, however, the author precisely alerted readers that this type of generalization should be avoided when reading this book and then proposed that the main feature of this book is to provide a summary of cultural variables shared by members of these culturally diverse groups (what is known as "cultural commonalities"), as well as a description of variables which appear specific to each group. This book has not only been considered a bestseller among current crosscultural texts, but it has also received many positive reviews. For example, a reviewer in the "Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology" wrote that "this book can be read many times and should be part of every culturally competent clinician's library." The review magazine "Choice" concluded that this book...will be useful for anyone...who delivers sevices to people of varying cultural groups." In addition, this book is in its second edition, meaning that a significant number of readers interested in the understanding and applications of cultural variables in the assessment and treatment of mental disorders among culturally diverse groups discussed in this book have found it extremely valuable to them.

2 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Terrible Book!, April 18, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Assessing and Treating Culturally Diverse Clients: A Practical Guide (Multicultural Aspects of Counseling And Psychotherapy) (Paperback)

I was required to read this text for a class and it was totally useless. The book is constantly overgeneralizing and making blanket statements about cultural groups. The focus is not on assessment appropriate for the individual, but assessment based on over generalized cultural assumptions. The book holds the basic idea that if you are white you are racist and have no cultural understanding. It also lumps varying ethnic groups together as if they are all the same. (For example, in the book, all Asian cultures are the same and summed up in one small chapter. There is also a Hispanic chapter that is meant to include all South American countries, Mexico, Spain, Puerto Rico, etc. as if all these countries have the same culture.) I found that all this book did was focus on differences and worked to divide cultural groups more than they are already divided. If you buy this book you are wasting your money. If it is required for school, then that is really too bad.