505 - Art Therapy Clinical Seminar: Culturally Responsive Counselling Skills & Ethics

3 credits / 30 hours

This course focuses on issues relating to ethical clinical art therapy practice. This includes an exploration of the complex cultural influences in the therapeutic relationship. A land-based expressive arts approach is introduced to explore complex cultural influences in the therapeutic relationship to foster empowerment, embrace limits and enhance trust.  Therapist and client/participant identity will be explored in terms of intersectionality: the interface between the multidimensionality of race, ethnicity, stage of life, generational influences, developmental and acquired diverse-abilities, religion and spiritual orientation, socio-economic status and class, sexual orientation, and gender identity.  Students will be oriented to ethical standards of practice and strategies for addressing ethical dilemmas. Students will also be oriented to the topic of suicide assessment and intervention.