Beyond Interpretation

In “Beyond Interpretation: The Need for English-Spanish Bilingual Psychotherapists in Counseling Centers,” Stephanie Guilman examines how cultural diversity can create gaps in important forms of communication when multilingual patients seek mental-health services.

In her research―in which she analyzes everything from psychology journals to government documents to academic papers―she examines whether psychotherapy clinics in the United States, particularly ones in areas with larger Latino populations, should hire more multilingual professionals and implement training programs that expose psychotherapists to Spanish language and culture.

Her paper argues that psychotherapy patients who receive therapy in their native language build stronger relationships with their counselor, express themselves more effectively, and in turn get more out of their therapy. This multilingual therapy benefits not only patients but clinicians as well, as they become stronger communicators and are able to create counseling strategies that are more efficient for their patients.

“The topic reflects my undergraduate education, as I studied both Psychology and Spanish,” says Guilman. Aside from the excitement of sharing her research, becoming a published author was a great accomplishment for Guilman: “Working closely with the JMURJ Editorial Board was not only a pleasure, but also a very insightful process that helped me to improve my writing and research skills. Being published is just the beginning.”

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Stephanie Rose Guilman, from Blacksburg, Virginia, graduated from James Madison University with a major in Psychology and two minors in Latin American & Caribbean Studies and Spanish/English Translation & Interpretation. Stephanie is currently working as a Research Associate for a market research firm based in Washington, D.C. In her spare time, Stephanie enjoys reading and researching about mindfulness meditation and compassionate living.