This graduate course is designed to develop multicultural competencies and to increase participants' understanding about Peruvian Families and Mental Health Services provided in Lima, capital of Peru. Participants will increase their understanding of the historical, sociopolitical, and cultural influences impacting Peruvian families. Participants will enhance their ability to apply their knowledge around multicultural issues to their personal and professional lives. The experience will enable participants to further develop their sensitivity to ethnic and minority issues that may impact their professional approaches and interventions for individuals with different cultural backgrounds.
The course is informative and experiential in nature and it will include an interdisciplinary group of mental health professionals from Peru. Students will participate in guided visits to mental health organizations where participants will learn about the social reality of Mental Health services. In addition, students will participate in lectures offered by professors of the Department of Psychology of the prestigious Pontifical Catholic University of Peru (PUCP).
The history of Peru and to a similar extent the history of South American culture was similarly shaped during the Colonial period and will provide a basis for understanding the current culture. Participants will visit museums, explore the Historic Center of Lima with its colonial buildings. They will also visit the traditional bohemian district of Barranco that features Republican architecture. Participants will visit the modern district of Miraflores with their tourist attractions. Lima has been called the “Gastronomy Capital of Latin America.” Peruvian exquisite cuisine has been influenced by different immigrant cultures, and the three main regions: the coast, the Andes, and the rainforest.
*Minimum of 10 students required for this trip.
