Course Description

For people of color and other marginalized groups, brief, everyday insults known as microaggressions can be a significant source of psychological distress. Microaggressions are subtle, often unintentional, put downs that reflect prejudiced or discriminatory messages about minority groups in our society. Because microaggressions may be unintentional, perpetrators are often unaware of their impact, leaving the targets often microaggressions feeling hurt, confused, or worse, tangibly affected by some limitation to their functioning and well-being. 

While microaggressions experienced in any setting are psychologically harmful, those experienced within the context of therapy can be especially distressing due to the deeply personal nature of the therapeutic alliance. In this course, you'll increase your understanding of microaggressions and learn strategies to minimize and respond to their occurrence in the counseling setting. Specifically, by the end of this course you'll be able to:

  1. Define microaggressions and their various forms.

  2. Describe the psychosocial effects of microaggressions and their impact on the counseling process.

  3. Increase awareness of aspects of one's worldview (e.g., biases, stereotypes, and privilege) that may lead to microaggressions being directed at a client.

  4. Identify strategies for responding to client microaggressions against the therapist or other clients in individual or group counseling settings.

  5. List self-care strategies process and minimize the impact of managing microaggressions in therapeutic practice.

This course is 100% self-paced and available on-demand. You can start at any time and complete all modules all from the convenience of your home.

Course Curriculum

  • 1

    Introduction

    • Introduction
  • 2

    Defining Microaggressions

    • Defining Microaggressions

    • Types of Microaggressions
  • 3

    Understanding the Impact of Microaggressions

    • Microaggressions and Their Psychosocial Effects

    • Microaggressions and Their Impact on the Counseling Process
  • 4

    Preventing Microaggressions in Therapy

    • Understanding Biases and Stereotypes

    • Acknowledging One's Privilege

    • Becoming an Ally
  • 5

    Responding to Microaggressions in Therapy

    • Responding to Microaggressions in the Counseling Dyad

    • Responding to Microaggressions in Group Therapy
  • 6

    Embracing Self-Care

    • Managing the Hard Work With Self-Care
  • 7

    Conclusion

    • Conclusion

Pricing options

Order now and save. Regularly priced $125. Now only $99.

Instructors

Charmeka Newton

Dr. Charmeka Newton is a fully licensed psychologist and owner of Legacy Mental Health Services, PLLC. She has over 10 years of experience in clinical, academic, and community settings, including teaching experience at both undergraduate and graduate levels of higher education. Her areas of expertise include multicultural counseling, research methods, tests and measurement, career counseling, and clinical supervision of master’s-level counseling practitioners and students. In addition to her clinical and teaching expertise, Dr. Newton is also a member of the Michigan Board of Psychology, appointed by Governor Gretchen Whitmer. She is a sought after psychology expert featured in prominent magazines and newscasts, recently featured on the June 2020 broadcast of West Michigan Woman, where she discussed how to have difficult conversations with your family about race. She is also co-author of the soon to be released book, Black Lives Are Beautiful: 50 Tools to Heal from Trauma and Promote Positive Racial Identity, published through Routledge, an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, LLC., as well as co-author of the peer-reviewed article, “Culturally Adapted CBT as a Model to Address Internalized Racism Among African American Clients: The Case of Star,” soon to be published in the April 2022 issue of the Journal of Mental Health Counseling.

Janeé Steele

Dr. Janeé Steele is a licensed professional counselor, counselor educator, and diplomate of the Academy of Cognitive and Behavioral Therapies. Dr. Steele is also the owner and clinical director of Kalamazoo Cognitive and Behavioral Therapy, PLLC, where she provides therapy, supervision, and training in CBT. She is the author of the upcoming book, Racism and African American Mental Health: Using Cognitive Behavior Therapy to Empower Healing, and the co-author of the upcoming book, Black Lives Are Beautiful: 50 Tools to Heal from Trauma and Promote Positive Racial Identity, both published through Routledge, an imprint of Taylor & Francis Group, LLC. Her other scholarly activity includes peer-reviewed articles focused in the areas of CBT, social justice advocacy, and counselor training. Her most recent article, published in the May 2020 issue of the International Journal for the Advancement of Counselling and Development, describes cognitive conceptualization and treatment planning using CBT and a proposed cognitive model of internalized racism.