Conflicting Epistemologies: A Case Study of a Traditional American Indian in Therapy

This case study contributes to the development of a flexible and coherent theory of American Indian psychology. It focuses on mental health psychology in the context of therapy with a 63-year-old traditional Southeastern Woodland woman (Selu). Theoretical constructs of American Indian therapeutic perspectives and needs are postulated, based on the client's and psychologist's interactions over the course of about one hundred counseling sessions over a 2-year period. One of the strengths of this model is that it emerges from a clinical perspective. Different therapeutic techniques are experimented with, used, abandoned, and merged. Hopefully, the following reflections will help therapists to critically consider psychological perspectives and approaches they may use with traditional American Indians or other nonmajority clients.