Full Course Description

Liberation Psychology in Practice with Dr. Thema Bryant: Cultivating Joy with Marginalized Clients

Joy is commonly understood as a positive emotion with physical, psychological, and social benefits. In the liberation psychology framework, joy also functions as both a protective factor and a resistance strategy against chronic stress, collective and intergenerational trauma, and systemic oppression. It serves to confront colonialism and other forms of oppression while activating and sustaining an affirmative cultural identity. This workshop introduces the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. model, which outlines seven pathways to cultivate and sustain joy among marginalized clients. Through real-life case studies, you’ll learn how cultivating joy is a liberatory, transformative practice that not only promotes psychological health but also affirms wholeness and resistance, expanding resilience, fostering well-being, and reclaiming humanity among marginalized communities. You’ll discover how to:

Harness joy as a protective factor and resistance strategy against trauma and oppression through seven critical pathways
Apply the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. model to cultivate and sustain joy for marginalized clients
Integrate joy into therapy to expand resilience, affirm identity, and reclaim agency

Program Information

Objectives

Define liberation psychology.
Describe the use of spirituality and creativity in cultivating joy.
Explain the importance of intimacy, or social and community support, for enhancing the mental health of marginalized clients.

Outline

Liberation Psychology

How oppression, systemic forces, and intergenerational trauma shape psychological experience
Marginalized communities and affirming cultural identity and humanity
Use joy, spirituality, creativity, and community support as liberatory practices
Limitations of the research and potential risks

Joy

An emotion with physical, psychological, and social benefits
Functions as a protective factor and resistance strategy in liberation psychology
Counter to chronic stress, oppression, and collective trauma
Strengthen resilience and affirm cultural identity and wholeness

Justice Pathway

Joy as a liberatory and transformative practice for marginalized clients
Support reclaiming agency, strengthening resilience, and affirming identity

Unearth the Truth Pathway

Encourage honest reflection around trauma, identity, and lived experience
Help clients uncover truths that contribute to healing and empowerment

Spirituality Pathway

Spirituality as a meaningful contributor to joy and resilience
Use of spiritual practices to help sustain joy

Time On / Time Off Pathway

Importance of the balance between engagement and restoration as supportive of joy
Help clients cultivate rhythms that foster presence, rest, and well‑being

Intimacy Pathway

The importance of social and community support for mental health
Connection, belonging, and supportive relationships

Creativity Pathway

Creativity to cultivate joy and affirm personal and cultural identity
Building resilience and agency through creative expression

Embodiment Pathway

How joy is connected to physical experience and the body
Encourage reconnection with the body as a source of vitality and joy

Practitioner’s Inner Life

Self-awareness around identity, experience, and therapeutic influence
Self-care and community care
Becoming an agent of change

Target Audience

Social Workers
Counselors
Psychologists
Psychotherapists
Addiction Counselors
Marriage & Family Therapists
Behavioral Health Nurses
Psychiatrists
Other Mental Health Professionals