ABSTRACT
Multiculturalism has multiple definitions evolving over time in the counseling profession. There are different definitions depending on the application of multiculturalism, but simplistically it reflects distinct cultural and ethnic groups within a society. Multicultural awareness is the impact that personal experiences and values can have on the counseling relationship. As the United States continues to change in demographics, pressures on counselors to continue to develop their multicultural competence to meet the needs of changing clients persist. The journey towards multicultural and social justice counseling competence is long and requires personal changes, along with professional changes, to address hidden bias and work towards a resolution. Multicultural and social justice competence is regarded as a lifelong process to continuously work on understanding and practicing cultural humility. The Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competencies recognize that counselors “must evolve to address the needs of culturally diverse clients and social justice concerns that both shape and contextualize mental health and overall well-being”.
