Paper Title
Discourse Analysis on Efficacy of Therapeutic Approaches For Victims of Domestic Violence Associated With Australia’s Cald Communities
Abstract
There is a research gap that exists in the literature pertaining to the understanding of the efficacy of therapeutic
approaches used with domestic violence victims belonging to Australia’s culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD)
communities. A discourse analysis was carried out on the literature available on the subject of therapeutic approaches and
their effectiveness in when dealing CALD communities. Relevant articles were selected and analysed by extracting common
themes. The main themes that have emerged are that the cultural adaptations of Cognitive Behaviour Therapy (CBT) have
been found to be effective with some groups from the CALD communities, but they are not universally successfully; culture
has an influence on the meanings and the approach the victims of domestic violence choose with regards to therapy; support
from the respective communities can enhance uptake and efficacy of therapeutic techniques; the current mental health
services in this area are inadequate in terms of representation form CALD communities; there is a need for multicultural
competency training of therapists to make therapy more effective. Overall, it would be safe to say that the efficacy of any
therapeutic technique used with domestic violence victims from the CALD communities cannot be studied or altered in
isolation. The findings from this discourse analysis indicate that the various stakeholders in this space including the
therapists, training providers, community organisations, relevant local, state and federal government bodies and academia
need to work together towards developing a better understanding and eventually improving the efficacy of therapeutic
technique used with domestic violence victims from the CALD communities.
Keywords- CALD Communities, Domestic violence, Cognitive behaviour therapy