Lost in Translation, by Sahar Dorani, M.A.

In a field as diverse and evolving as Psychology, being culturally aware has become as much of a clinician’s skill set as formulating cases and planning interventions. Clients immigrating to America often experience hardship during their move and acculturation process. Working with these clients in therapy proves even more challenging when English is not their first language, and the therapist is less than fluent in the client’s native tongue. Moving to a foreign country to relocate one’s life can be difficult and emotionally taxing for anyone; culture shock and trauma are not uncommon to this adjustment process, especially for women coming from Middle Eastern countries without much social support here in the States.

Working in therapy with Iranian women who are monolingual Persian speakers has proved to be a difficult experience, specifically given the differences between us within our shared Persian culture. As these clients comprehend and speak very little English, my Persian language skills are challenged weekly during every session. While this does not burden the therapy itself, language proficiency nonetheless remains a difference between my clients and I. Regardless, sharing culture with another person inevitably creates a familiarity that is conducive of a strong therapeutic relationship and alliance.

It is true that our shared culture seems to contribute to the level of comfort in the room; however, another aspect of culture- age- seems to be equally present in the room. As a younger therapist, most of my clients are older than myself, which is also true of my Persian clients. There is an almost innate pull for me to be slightly submissive towards them, and their maternal way of regarding me at times is a clear example of how culture plays a powerful role in the therapeutic relationship. It is a personal preference of mine to not accept gifts from clients. However, when the Persian New Year comes around (the biggest of holiday celebrations), gift giving is not only essential, but it is expected. As always, it is unheard of to decline a gift in lieu of the upcoming year, which puts the psychodynamic therapist in quite a bind. Here, my theoretical orientation must take a back seat to my cultural knowledge about the client’s background. Overall, though the slight language barrier and cultural nuances create a few extra obstacles in our treatment, the experience of working with these clients is even more rewarding, as I feel that I am supporting an underserved population that happens to share thousands of years of history with my ancestors.

This article was originally published in The National Psychologist, Volume 21, No. 2, page 19.

Sahar Dorani is a third-year doctoral student at The Wright Institute in Berkeley, California. She continues to work clinically with multicultural clients, as well as conduct research on the acculturation process of Iranian-Americans. She can be reached at Smaknoon@wi.edu.

(Photo by neepster)