3 TPC Digest T he Latine population is a fast-growing group in the United States and makes up approximately 19% of the U.S. population. Despite this growth, members of this culturally diverse population continue to face individual, interpersonal, and institutional challenges. Because Latine individuals experience discrimination in negative environments, perceive lack of support from counselors and teachers in K–12 school environments, and experience microaggressions, they are likely to experience greater mental health challenges. Researchers have identified numerous symptoms that represent Latine individuals’ mental health experiences, likely putting them at greater risk for mental health impairment and poor psychological functioning. Given that Latine individuals might be at greater risk for psychopathology and their mental health needs are often unaddressed, further evaluation of the effectiveness of counseling practices for this population is necessary. Solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) is a strength-based and evidence-based intervention that helps clients focus on personal strengths, identify exceptions to problems, and highlight small successes. Developed from the clinical practice of Steven de Shazer and Insoo Kim Berg, SFBT is a future-focused and goal-directed approach that focuses on searching for solutions and is created on the belief that clients have the knowledge and resources to resolve their problems. Counselors’ therapeutic task is to help clients imagine how they would like things to be different and what it will take to facilitate small changes. Counselors take active roles by asking questions to help clients look at the situation from different perspectives and use techniques to identify where a solution occurs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of SFBT for increasing hope and decreasing clinical symptoms among Latine clients. We evaluated the following research question: To what extent is SFBT effective for increasing hope and decreasing clinical symptoms among Latine clients who receive services at a community counseling clinic? Participants in this study were two adults admitted into treatment at an outpatient community counseling clinic in the Southern region of the United States. Both participants identified as Hispanic; one identified as a female and the other identified as a male. The results yield promising findings and preliminary evidence about the efficacy of SFBT as an intervention for promoting positive change in two Latine clients’ clinical symptoms and levels of hope. Findings from the current study also lend further support regarding the efficacy among counselors-in-training (CITs) who aim to impact clients’ psychological functioning at a community counseling training clinic. Based on our findings, we propose a few recommendations for counselor educators, CITs, and practitioners. Our study provides evidence that CITs at community counseling centers can provide effective treatments with culturally diverse clients with moderate internalized symptoms such as depression and anxiety. As a result, SFBT can be taught and infused into counselor education curricula and can be delivered by future licensed professional counselors, school counselors, or counseling interns. Krystle Himmelberger, MS, LPC, is a doctoral candidate at St. Mary’s University. James Ikonomopoulos, PhD, LPC-S, is an assistant professor at Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi. Javier Cavazos Vela, PhD, LPC, is a professor at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley. Correspondence may be addressed to James Ikonomopoulos, 6300 Ocean Drive, Unit 5834, Corpus Christi, TX 78412, james.ikonomopoulos1@tamucc.edu. Krystle Himmelberger, James Ikonomopoulos, Javier Cavazos Vela Evaluating the Impact of Solution-Focused Brief Therapy on Hope and Clinical Symptoms With Latine Clients | TPC Digest
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