Workshop Description

Many psychotherapies can be criticized for being intended to help people from countries and communities described as WEIRD. The term WEIRD is a reference to Western-, Educated-, Industrialized-, Rich- and Democratic. In contrast, Tree of Life is a narrative therapy which works well with many different cultures and communities. Tree of Life therapy uses the metaphor of the tree to help participants understand and share important experiences in their lives. Tree of Life was primarily developed by Ncazelo Ncube, a psychologist working in Southern Africa with children who had been orphaned by HIV/AIDS. According to her website, Tree of Life is a culturally sensitive methodology that has been used successfully in more than 30 countries worldwide.

International psychologists will be interested in this highly interactive, culturally-grounded Tree of Life workshop that includes each participant drawing and discussing their own Tree of Life picture as well as commenting on the Tree of Life drawings of the other participants.

The four parts of a Tree of Life workshop include the following: Part 1: Drawing the Tree of Life Part 2: Discussing all of the participants’ trees in a display called the Forest of Life: Part 3: Discussing the Storms of Life (The “Storms” refers to traumas in life, including sadness, physical hurt, harm, injuries, diseases, and deaths). Part 4: Certificates, song, dancing, and delicious food. Note: Because the workshop is only three hours, Part 3 and Part 4 will be significantly abbreviated.

Participants can learn about adapting Tree of Life for online purposes through the sharing of the Tree of Life drawings of two adult sisters from Afghanistan who were hiding from the Taliban. Their Tree of Life drawings demonstrate that pictures speak louder than words. Participants will also see the Tree of Life drawings of international, applied psychology graduate students at a university and the Tree of Life drawings of immigrant adults from Jamaica who are living in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. Additionally, participants will learn about using the Tree of Life metaphor to respond to loss and grief.

Instructor

Leading this workshop is a licensed psychologist who has studied with the major developer of Tree of Life (ToL), Ncazelo Ncube. The presenter was an applied psychology professor for 44 years at an international university that gave her teaching and/or research opportunities in 13 different countries. She was a Fulbright scholar in Norway, a Sverdrup International Scholar in both Switzerland and the Netherlands, and a Messing Award recipient in Singapore. She is still an international human rights fellow where she was a professor for 44 years. The presenter studied art and psychology and has been giving and attending Tree of Life workshops for over 30 years. Even with all this Tree of Life experience, she is always expanding her knowledge and learning from others, especially workshop participants.

Learning Objectives

  1. Participants will be introduced to the four-step process of Tree of Life therapy: 1) the Tree of Life drawing 2) the Forest of Life 3) the Storms of Life and 4) the Ceremony, in which participants receive personalized praise and certificates.
  2. Participants will gain self-knowledge through participation in the Tree of Life workshop.
  3. Participants will broaden their understanding of group-based, culturally grounded therapies.
  4. Participants will learn how Tree of Life therapy can be incorporated into the professional practice of psychologists, especially psychologists who work with international populations.
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