Wednesday 22 July 08:15
- 09:45
Hall: 28 - Room 6 SPT
Chair and Presenter:
Lee Jiyoon
Discussant:
Hartung Paul
Division: Division 16: Counseling Psychology
Internationalization has advanced significantly within counseling psychology over the past several decades (Clinton, 2018; Nilsson, Wang, & Chung, 2019). Exchange programs across borders, increasing enrollment of international students, and cross-national collaborations have expanded counseling psychology's global reach (Bullock, 2014). However, these practices often reproduce Western-centric approaches that may clash with local cultural needs and indigenous knowledge systems. Counseling Psychology, therefore, faces the challenges of moving beyond exporting Western frameworks toward approaches that are culturally grounded and liberatory.
This symposium aims to critically examine internationalization through the lenses of indigenization, decolonization, and liberation psychology. By offering an open forum for dialogue, we invite participants to reconsider assumptions embedded in Western psychotherapy and explore pathways toward more culturally grounded and liberatory practices. Presenters— all international psychologists—will address how these concepts shape their work in diverse cultural contexts, including: 1) reframing Western psychotherapy through critical consciousness in Chinese contexts, 2) indigenization of counseling practice in Malaysia, 3) reflective praxis for inclusive and decolonized practices in Korean sociocultural contexts, 4) decolonial healing and the spirit of Sikolohiyang Pilipino, and 5) implications of internationalization and liberation for Counseling Psychology. Through these perspectives, presenters will highlight the challenges and opportunities of internationalization while emphasizing the importance of culturally responsive and socially just practices. By centering liberation and decolonization, this symposium aims to strengthen global collaboration and support practices that honor diverse epistemologies and promote equity in the field.
