By
Lisa Aronson Fontes, PhD

Course Outline

The interview is a crucial tool for gathering information about a new client, building a strong working relationship, and guiding decision making for interventions. Yet barriers created by cultural differences all too frequently get in the way of these important goals. From leading practitioner and educator Lisa Aronson Fontes, this indispensable guide helps professionals conduct competent, productive interviews with clients from any cultural or linguistic background.

Packed with practical pointers, chapters walk the reader through each stage of a cross-cultural interview, from preparing before the meeting to writing a fair, accurate report at its conclusion. Diverse client populations and interview contexts are reflected in numerous case examples that bring to life a wide variety of problems and solutions. Fontes draws on extensive real-world experience to present clear-cut guidelines and strategies for:

• Building rapport and putting individuals and families at ease
• Sending welcoming, respectful nonverbal cues
• Recognizing and overcoming one’s own cultural biases
• Minimizing language barriers, including effective use of interpreters
• Taking culture into account in child and adolescent assessments
• Steering clear of the most common pitfalls in cross-cultural interviews

The book also explores cultural reasons why a client may be reluctant to confide in an interviewer or to discuss certain topics, and offers tips for handling sensitive matters. Every chapter concludes with thought-provoking discussion questions and suggestions for further reading.

Highly readable and engaging, this book provides invaluable knowledge and skills for professionals who interact with clients in mental health, human service, educational and forensic settings. It is an ideal text and professional development resource for graduate students and practitioners in clinical psychology, social work, counseling, family therapy, psychiatry, nursing, and related fields.

About the Authors

Lisa Aronson Fontes, PhD, is a Core Faculty Member in the PsyD Program in Clinical Psychology at Union Institute and University in Brattleboro, Vermont. She has dedicated almost two decades to making a social service, mental health, criminal justice, and medical systems more responsive to culturally diverse people. Dr. Fontes editedSexual Abuse in the Nine North American Cultures: Treatment and Prevention, authored Child Abuse and Culture: Working with Diverse Families, and has written numerous journal articles and book chapters on cultural issue in child maltreatment and violence against women, cross-cultural research, and ethics. She has worked as a family, individual, and group psychotherapist, and has conducted research in Santiago, Chile, and with Puerto Ricans, African Americans, and European Americans in the United States. In 2007 Dr. Fontes was awarded a Fulbright Foundation Fellowship, which she completed in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Fluent in Spanish and Portuguese, she is a popular conference speaking and workshop facilitator.

Learning Objectives

After completing this course you’ll be able to:

Course Contents

Feedback

"Absolutely excellent. Every question answered with practical examples and information in a conversational style that was easy to understand without being patronizing or condescending and keeping true to the excellent research. BRAVO!" --C.Kries, MFT, CA

 “This book is a ‘must read.’… It is important, accessible, and filled with lively case examples. I recommend this book as required for graduate and undergraduate courses and for professionals who work with clients or carry out research in any mental health or human service setting.” -- Sandra A. Graham-Bermann, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Michigan

“This work is an essential addition to the library of professionals who conduct nearly any kind of interview. Its careful strategies for respecting and negotiating so many different aspects of cross-cultural interactions are invaluable. Fontes’s reputation in the field is top-notch, and with this book she provides the best, most current interviewing guide I have seen.” -- Sharon W. Cooper, MD, FAAP, Department of Pediatrics, University of North Carolina School of Medicine

“No matter what your professional training and background, you will benefit enormously from the rich material and interesting examples in this book. I highly recommend it as a course text for teaching students to conduct a sensitive, effective, and culturally informed interview with clients from all walks of life.” -- David A. Wolfe, Ph, Director, Centre for Prevention Science, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, University of Toronto

“This extremely helpful and instructive book has amazing breadth and depth in analyzing the interview process from beginning to end. Fontes provides guidance on all aspects of preparing for, conducting, and documenting interviews, interweaving culturally issues throughout. She shows tremendous sensitivity and good sense in helping readers handle cultural differences and dilemmas.” -- Stanley Sue, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Psychology and Asian American Studies, University of California, Davis

“Today, helping professionals must think globally; we need tools to interview and assess racially, ethnically, culturally, and economically diverse clients. Fontes’s book is timely and informative. Drawing on the research and practice literature, her personal experience, and that of other professionals who provide culturally sensitive services, she offers much-needed, practical advice.” -- Kathleen Coulborn Faller, PhD, ACSW, Director, Family Assessment Clinical, School of Social Work, University of Michigan 

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