Korean immigrant women have encountered various challenges upon their migration to the United States. This study aims to examine their unique challenges, such as disconnection from their family of origin and the host country and explore their impact on posttraumatic growth through a phenomenological method. The study involved eight Korean immigrant women in the Washington D.C. metro area. Data collection employed semi-structured interviews, allowing an in-depth exploration of participants’ lived experiences in the U.S. The results revealed five primary themes, including improved interpersonal relationships, personal strengths, discovering new life possibilities, spiritual transformation, and a greater appreciation for life. A thorough discussion of the study framework, the researcher’s reflexive statement, participant selection, data collection, analysis, and trustworthiness will be presented.

This article focuses on feminist leadership in the American Psychological Association (APA), tracing the “herstory” of the Leadership Institute for Women in Psychology (LIWP) as an exemplar of a successful feminist approach to leadership development in the Association. Our central assertion is that feminist leadership principles and practices should be incorporated into all leadership development efforts in APA. We begin with discussion of the unique challenges facing organizations in our contemporary world that render traditional leadership approaches ineffective. We suggest a feminist leadership approach as a more appropriate alternative, defining its core components and highlighting its fit with APA’s strategic plan and leadership development goals. We then discuss the creation, implementation, evolution, success, and current challenges of the LIWP, and we conclude with three recommendations for APA to support its current leadership development efforts.

This article highlights interdisciplinary contributions to Latinx Feminism to address the complexity of multiple positionalities (e.g., gender, ethnicity, race, sexuality immigration, socioeconomic status) historically invisible in mainstream feminism and feminist psychology. Latinx feminists are taxed with the duty to raise awareness, dismantle the combined effects of imperialism, colonialism, and misogyny, and develop anti-colonial futures. The authors draw from multiple sources of conocimiento (knowledge), and discuss constructs to help understand Latinx feminist psychology from a contextual lens (e.g. Nepantla, harbor mind and puente aéreo). Feminist Liberation Psychology is presented as an example of a decolonial approach to address structural discrimination in psychology, and as a method to use clinically through conscientization and testimonios to facilitate collective healing. Examples of collectives of Latinas engaging in this community-based healing work include Indigenous Latinx and AfroLatinx groups, Mujeres de Maiz and Mujeres de la Caña de Azucar. Finally, psychospiritual concepts of culturally-centered feminist empowerment, such as Sacredness and Spirita, are presented as a form of feminist spirituality and spiritual activism.

In this qualitative study, we drew from the capability approach to more fully understand the sexual well-being of woman-identified survivors of sexual assault. We interviewed 19 survivors, ages 19–59 years, and analyzed their data using thematic analysis. Our findings revealed that sexual assault created alterations in sexuality and negative views of men. Obstacles to attaining one’s best sexual self included both logistical (e.g., poor quality sex education, lack of trauma informed health care) and systemic (e.g., rape culture, heterosexism/bisexism) components. The process of becoming one’s best sexual self involved (a) taking healing action, (b) challenging early patriarchal socialization messages, (c) overcoming blame, shame, and guilt, (d) breaking the silence, (e) finding healing and growth in safe intimate relationships, (f) prioritizing one’s own sexual well-being and creating healthy boundaries, and (g) engaging in anti-sexual assault advocacy. Overall, women described their best sexual self as one that is liberated from restrictive and oppressive societal messages, experiences, and contexts tied to patriarchy. Results can guide clinical work with survivors in enhancing understanding of common facets of a survivor’s healing process and relationship with their sexual well-being, areas where they may feel they need more support, and action toward legislative, institutional, and cultural change.

There is evidence of significant fluctuations in mental health symptoms across the menstrual cycle, however it is not clear whether mental health practitioners routinely address this with their clients. This study aimed to explore the current practice, confidence, and attitudes of mental health professionals in considering the role of the menstrual cycle in their clients’ mental health. Mental health professionals working in Australia (N = 197) responded to an online survey. Findings indicate that while many mental health professionals are relatively confident in discussing the menstrual cycle it is not consistently common practice. Of eight psychological variables, participants perceived mood symptoms as most important to address in relation to client’s menstrual cycle, while risk to others and psychotic symptoms were perceived as least important. In terms of barriers to discussing the menstrual cycle, four categories of barriers identified were: lack of knowledge and training; not considering it to be relevant; shame and discomfort; practical barriers. Two categories relating to additional resources required to support this practice were: training and practical tools. Training opportunities, practice guidelines, and resources are required to support practitioners in considering and discussing the menstrual cycle with mental health clients.

With the prevalence of higher-weight people and the adverse outcomes associated with weight stigma, body size is a necessary component of multicultural training. However, body size has not routinely been included in identity-based prejudice training for mental health professionals. This article aims to support clinicians and researchers in their recognition of, and response to, weight stigma and size privilege. Further, this article asserts that training in sizeism is essential for the multicultural competencies of mental health providers, psychological science researchers, and those in allied fields. As such, methods for recognizing, situating, and challenging size privilege are proposed.

In this paper, we highlight the sexism and racism experiences of women of color in leadership positions in higher education systems. The aims of the paper are threefold: (1) to center the experiences of women of color in the leadership literature; (2) to validate the experiences of women of color readers who are currently in or who are seeking leadership positions by highlighting institutional barriers and common experiences of women of color faculty and leaders in higher education; and (3) to identify institutional changes that can advance efforts to diversify the leadership of women of color in higher education. In addition, we hope that the information and recommendations in this paper can educate leaders from non-marginalized groups in supporting their women of color peers and can increase empathy and understanding of the circumstances that women of color encounter in their leadership in higher education.

In the following we introduce a special issue of the journal Woman & Therapy, titled Women in Their 80s and 90s: Positively Vital. Our intent has been to provide a balance to the prevailing literature on older women which tends to present a negative view of the trials and tribulations of old age. We believe that this information is vital not just for old women but also for feminist psychologists who work with this population and for the world at large.

Asian American feminisms in psychology are not an identity or an ideology but an unapologetic praxis, in which theorizing and practice are closely connected and lived out. In this praxis, there is no single feminism but plural feminisms, given the complexities and diversity of the Asian American communities. In this article, we bring attention to Asian American feminisms by highlighting previous work done by Asian American feminists, identifying the complexities of conceptualizing Asian American feminisms, and illustrating how Asian American feminisms hold multiple perspectives simultaneously while combating multiple oppressions. Specifically, we discuss issues related to a restive orientation of resisting oppression and centering collective values, redefining psychological health, and healing from internalized oppression and standing with other marginalized groups.

In this article, we present a review of the #MeToo movement alongside therapeutic, feminist self-disclosure by situating feminist self-disclosure in dialogue with and in response to the current #MeToo era of mainstream self-disclosures regarding sexual violence. We consider issues of transference and countertransference when therapists who are survivors work with survivors of sexual violence in therapy, and we employ the categories of the Feminist Self-Disclosure Scale as a guiding framework for the possible benefits of therapist self-disclosure in relation to #MeToo. We discuss different and provocative ways in which feminist clinicians conceptualize self-disclosure as compared to dominant therapeutic models, while also exploring potential ethical questions. Importantly, we present eight suggested practices that have developed through our engagement with clinical work. These suggested practices range from exploring the therapist’s use of office décor to utilizing supervision as a modality for discussing survivorship; within each suggested practice, we provide a clinical example to illuminate the practice and provide a concrete way in which the reader might employ the practice. We also provide ideas for therapists who are not survivors themselves to convey allyship.