Navigating family cultural tensions
Culturally responsive practice requires a collaborative and curious approach, seeking to learn from families and drawing on their skills and knowledge. Practitioners can be invited into conversations with families to discuss tensions arising from differing ideas about what should be prioritised within the family.
It may seem like families want practitioners to take a position on who is right or wrong or to offer solutions. But culturally open and curious practitioners create a safe space for family members to express their thoughts, feelings and experiences, fostering mutual understanding of differing perspectives and priorities. Exploring the family’s strengths, skills and wisdom can assist them to protect their relationships with one another from the impacts of the tensions they’re experiencing and develop collaborative responses and solutions.
In this episode, parents Wei and Renee share their personal experiences of managing and navigating intergenerational differences of ideas and cultural practices. Additionally, practitioners Etty Garabelli and Pshko Marden discuss their key considerations when facilitating conversations with families to strengthen and connect family relationships and diffuse tension.
In this episode, you will learn:
- the kinds of challenges that can arise when adapting within two different cultures [02:14]
- the important role practitioners play in assisting with the exploration of concerns [12:34]
- ways of exploring family members’ concerns to uncover core family values [14:43]
- the importance of building on families’ skills and knowledge [17:46]
Further information and resources: