Counseling with Special Populations

There are numerous and varied definitions of what constitute a “special population.” These vary depending on if we are considering the topic as a sociologist, politician, theologian, or “whatever.” One factor common to all definitions, however, is likely to be that a special population is composed of individuals who have special needs.

When counseling such individuals, it is incumbent upon practitioners to recognize that the resistance some individuals display in counseling may have less to do with their denial or hesitancy about committing to counseling than about the apparent lack of understanding displayed by the practitioner for their special needs. The old “blame the client/patient” excuse for less than desired results in counseling and therapy is not only antiquated, it is, as we used to say in the 60s, “a copout.”

I teach a course in Addiction Counseling with Special Populations where we look at “adolescents” and “older adults” as two examples of special population – AKA, populations with “special needs.” As an assignment in that course, I invite students to visit several YouTube clips and watch them, considering them in the context of our course and the materials we review and discuss in the course. In this post, I will share this assignment for your consideration. If you have the time, I welcome your thoughts.

Here are the video clips of which I speak. I have added a couple sentences of "introduction" for each in order to set them up and prepare your consideration of each in the context of our course.

1.       Adolescence as portrayed as portrayed in film - This is a montage of brief clips from popular films illustrating various aspects of adolescences...as seen through the eyes of adults. What, if anything, does this say about adolescence…or is this just a stereotypical view presented by an adult film maker?
2.       Older adults and the power of music - This clip takes place in a nursing home. The documentary, narrated by Oliver Sack, introduces us to several patients that are unresponsive or difficult to reach by facility staff. In particular, we meet one gentleman whose unresponsiveness is particularly acute. The clip suggests that the use of music can have a profound effect on older adult patients, perhaps even accomplishing what counselors using traditional "talk therapy" cannot.
3.       My First Mister - In this clip from what I believe was a “sleeper film” of a few years back, portrays an adolescent girl—who we know from scenes earlier in the film, but not shown here, comes from a troubled and emotionally charged background—who interacts with a middle-class, white, middle-aged male. Their initial interaction appears charged with both the “typical adolescent” and “typical (parental) adult” reactions we expect from stereotypes, but towards the end of the clip, when the male speaks to the girl from the doorway of the shop as she sits on a bench in the mall, watch how the male approaches her. Ask yourself, what lesson can we learn as counselors approaching adolescents as we consider the male's behavior? What does he do that enables him to be firm yet engaging?
4.       Call me maybe - This is just a fun clip (I think). Once you open the clip in your browser and the “ad” plays a couple seconds so you can click and make it disappear, but before the video itself "gets going," close your eyes, listen to the music, and picture what you think you will see when you open your eyes to watch the video...keep your eyes closed for about 5 - 10-seconds of the music. When you open your eyes, note your first impressions and then ask yourself, what does this say about my interacting with a special population? More to the point, does it suggest anything I need to watch for when working with culturally different individuals or those with special needs?
5.       Stand by me” - This is another "feel good" clip, but as you watch, ask yourself what does the divergence of cultures and peoples performing this song suggest about how we are all different yet the same...and what does that have to say about treating individuals from special populations who have special needs? How does this video suggest the importance of a collaborative nature of therapy? HINT: Think about this from the perspective of the PRODUCER of the video (practitioner), not just the performers (clients).