Rehabilitating Psychology in Australia: The Journey from Colonising Agent to Cultural Broker
Year: 2015
Type: article
Abstract: Historically, research, theory and practice have focused on promoting and maintaining Western privilege through Western knowledge and Western ways of knowing that deny the validity of Indigenous knowledge and culture. In Australia, psychology, in particular, has been complicit in the colonising process and, as a dominant discourse, has a documented past that has been ethnocentric and has objectified, dehumanised, and devalued those from culturally different groups. It has acted as an agent for assimilation and oppression. As psychotherapists who may be invited into the lives of Indigenous clients, we need to develop reflective competency in, and respect for, the distinct and diverse nature of Indigenous cultural identity and experience if we are to successfully forge meaningful therapeutic alliances. We need to engage in a journey of decolonisation. Such a journey will take many of us through two mindscapes, two worlds. Decolonisation is not a simple process. Managing its complexity requires personal, professional, and social introspection, and commitment to change. This paper offers a model for decolonisation which can support this process. Central to the success of this model will be the role psychotherapists can play as change agents and cultural brokers in developing approaches which are fully committed to genuine reconciliation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
DOI: 10.1002/ppi.1351
Author: Suzanne Jenkins
Institution: The University of Notre Dame Australia
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,500
OpenAlex ID: W1934830801