Why a Cultural Lens in Therapy Matters: Understanding Context, Not Excuses
Why Culture Belongs in the Therapy Room
When clients come to therapy, many wonder whether their cultural background “matters” in the work. The short answer? It absolutely does.
Your cultural identity shapes how you view the world, how you express emotion, and how you’ve learned to survive. It influences how you handle conflict, relationships, success, and even rest. Ignoring culture in therapy means ignoring an essential part of your story.
But using a cultural lens in therapy doesn’t mean using culture as an excuse for pain or harm—it means understanding it as context. It’s about recognizing how your environment, upbringing, and the values you’ve inherited have shaped your experience, without defining you by them.
Culture as Context, Not Excuse
When I use a cultural lens in therapy, I’m not saying, “This happened because of your culture, so there’s nothing to be done.” Instead, I’m asking:
How did your cultural environment teach you to handle emotions or conflict?
What unspoken messages shaped your ideas about success, duty, or worth?
Which parts of your identity have been celebrated—and which have been silenced?
For example, in many immigrant or collectivist cultures, self-sacrifice and achievement are seen as forms of love and gratitude. That can create deep pride, but also immense pressure. You might feel torn between honoring your family’s sacrifices and honoring your own needs.
Through a culturally aware lens, we hold both truths with compassion. We can see how these beliefs developed to help families survive and thrive, and we can also explore whether they still serve you today.
You Are Not Alone in Your Experience
One of the most healing moments for many clients is realizing: “It’s not just me.” and “It’s not just my family.”
When we frame struggles within a cultural context, we begin to see that what feels personal is often collective. The guilt you feel for setting boundaries, the anxiety around disappointing your parents, or the need to prove your worth—these experiences are shared by many within your community.
Knowing you’re not alone can soften self-blame. Instead of asking, “What’s wrong with me?” you begin to ask, “What happened to me and what did I learn to survive?” That shift opens the door to healing with compassion rather than shame.
The Balance Between Respect and Reclaiming
Culturally relevant therapy doesn’t ignore your background by solely focusing on your internal experience. Instead, it invites you to explore the nuanced interplay of family and cultural with your inner world. It’s about appreciating the wisdom and resilience within your culture and creating space for your individuality to emerge.
For some, that means reclaiming traditions or spiritual practices that once felt restrictive. For others, it means redefining success or rest in ways your family may not have modeled. Therapy becomes a space where you can honor your roots while still growing in your own direction.
As therapist and researcher Derald Wing Sue (2016) writes, culturally responsive therapy “requires awareness of one’s own cultural assumptions and a commitment to understanding the client’s worldview.” Healing happens when both therapist and client can hold these multiple truths at once.
Why This Approach Matters
Without a cultural lens, therapy risks misunderstanding or even pathologizing your experience. What may look like “avoidance” in one context might actually be a learned form of respect. What seems like “codependence” might be the product of interdependence valued in your community.
When culture is acknowledged, therapy becomes richer, more accurate, and more compassionate. It allows for complexity and honors the resilience that lives within you and your lineage.
A Reflection for You
Take a moment to ask yourself:
Which cultural messages shaped how I show up in the world?
Which do I still want to honor and which am I ready to release?
What might healing look like if I held my culture as context, not confinement?
You don’t have to untangle these questions alone. Therapy can help you explore them at your own pace with curiosity, care, and cultural respect.
References
Sue, D. W. (2016). Multicultural social work practice: A competency-based approach to diversity and social justice.John Wiley & Sons.
Yeh, C. J., & Arora, A. K. (2021). Culturally sensitive counseling and therapy: A guide for mental health professionals.Routledge.
McGoldrick, M., & Hardy, K. V. (2019). Re-visioning family therapy: Addressing diversity in clinical practice.Guilford Press.