Belonging in a Changing Australia: A Psychologist’s Reflection on Diversity
- Helen Su
- Nov 15, 2025
- 4 min read
Diversity and inclusion are not abstract ideals in Australia. They shape the everyday realities of individuals, communities, and the systems meant to support them. As a psychologist, I see firsthand how identity, culture, and lived experience influence mental health and well‑being. This piece explores what makes Australia diverse, why diversity matters, how it intersects with psychological practice, and why cultural responsiveness is essential in a shifting political landscape.
Understanding Australia’s Diversity
Australia stands out as one of the world's most culturally diverse nations. According to the 2021 Census, over 300 languages are spoken here, with people hailing from more than 200 countries (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 2022). Nearly 30% of Australians were born overseas, bringing unique cultures and perspectives that enrich our society.
Indigenous Australians, the First Peoples of this land, remain central to this cultural landscape, carrying histories, knowledge systems, and relational worldviews that predate colonisation by tens of thousands of years.
I compare the streets of Melbourne I walked in 2003 when I first arrived to now.
There is a definitive difference in the make up of those who flit about the busy paths around me now. Today, it is more striking. Diversity extends far beyond ethnicity. It includes language, religion, sexual orientation, neurodiversity, gender, age to name a few. This richness brings creativity and complexity to Australian life. It also presents challenges particularly in education, business, and healthcare where understanding multiple cultural contexts is essential for equitable outcomes.
Why Diversity Matters
Why is diversity crucial in Australia? At its heart, diversity nurtures social unity and drives innovation. Evidence shows that diverse teams significantly outshine those with homogeneous backgrounds. McKinsey's global research found that diversity strengthens organisations, with companies in the top quartile for ethnic and cultural diversity being 35% more likely to outperform their peers (Hunt et al., 2020). But the value of diversity is not only economic, it is relational and psychological.
In healthcare, particularly psychology, recognising diverse backgrounds is essential for effective treatment. Individuals from different cultures often experience mental health issues uniquely. For instance, studies suggest that cultural beliefs about mental illness can directly influence a person's coping strategies and willingness to seek help, emphasising the need for cultural competence in psychological practices.
Diversity and Psychology
Psychology has long examined human behaviour through developmental, social and clinical lenses. Increasingly, these lenses recognise that identity and culture are not peripheral. They are central.
Mental health cannot be understood solely through biological or intrapsychic factors. Cultural variables influence emotional expression, family structures and expectations, stigma and help-seeking, identity development, concepts of self and community and interpretations of distress.
For some communities, mental illness carries stigma that discourages disclosure. For others, distress is expressed somatically rather than verbally. These patterns are not deficits. They are culturally shaped responses.
This is why cultural competence is no longer optional. It is foundational to ethical, effective psychological care. Indeed, competence is not nearly adequate these days. Instead, cultural responsiveness and reflexivity are key.
Cultural Responsiveness in Psychological Practice
Recent AHPRA updates (effective 1st December 2025) place cultural safety, reflexivity and cultural responsiveness at the centre of ethical practice (Psychology Board of Australia, 2024).
Cultural responsiveness in psychology means understanding how a client’s cultural background shapes their experiences and viewpoints. This process goes beyond awareness; it requires a commitment to ongoing learning and self-reflection. For psychologists, reflexivity - critically examining one's biases and assumptions - is vital to fostering genuine therapeutic relationships. Unlike competence which denotes mastery, reflexivity requires constant learning and adaptation.
To be culturally responsive, psychologists can adopt several practical strategies:
Cultural humility: Emphasising that learning about a client's culture is a continuous journey. It is ongoing, relational and never complete.
Reflexivity: Examining one's own assumptions, biases and cultural positioning and understanding how these shape therapeutic interactions.
Active learning: Engaging in training, supervision and dialogue that expand cultural understanding.
Client-centred inquiry: Actively seeking insight from clients on how culture shapes their experiences, values and expectations of therapy.
When psychologists practise cultural responsiveness, therapy becomes a space where clients do not need to translate themselves or shrink parts of who they are to fit Western norms.
The Impact of Politics on Diversity
Political climates shape how diversity is understood and valued. While policy shifts in the United States under President Trump were geographically distant, their rhetoric reverberated globally, including in Australia. Public discourse around immigration and multiculturalism hardened, and nationalist sentiment grew.
Recent surveys suggest that nearly 40% of Australians believe immigration has harmed national culture. Whether or not one agrees, this perception influences social cohesion and the lived experiences of migrants and minority communities.
For psychologists, this raises critical questions:
How do we support clients affected by discrimination or exclusion?
How do we advocate for inclusive systems?
How do we maintain cultural responsiveness when political narratives undermine it?
Diversity is not a threat to national identity. It is one of Australia’s greatest strengths. But it requires active understanding, nurturance and protection.
Final Reflections
Diversity and inclusion are not simply social ideals; they are essential to psychological well‑being and ethical practice. For psychologists, embracing diversity is not only about improving treatment outcomes. It is about fostering a society where every person feels valued, understood, and safe to bring their full self into the room.
As political landscapes shift, the responsibility to uphold these values becomes even more urgent. Cultural responsiveness, reflexivity, and advocacy are not optional competencies; they are the foundation of compassionate, equitable care. This work is not about blame or shame. It is about building a society where every person feels seen, valued, and safe to bring their full self into the room.
Australia’s future depends on our willingness to honour the richness of its people not just in policy, but in practice, relationship, and everyday life.
Sincerely,
Helen
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"An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity."
Martin Luther King Jr.
References
Australian Bureau of Statistics. (2022). Cultural diversity: Census, 2021. https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/people/people-and-communities/cultural-diversity-census/latest-release
Hunt, V., Prince, S., Dixon‑Fyle, S., & Yee, L. (2020). Diversity wins: How inclusion matters. McKinsey & Company.
Psychology Board of Australia. (2024). Professional competencies for psychologists (Standards effective 1 December 2025). Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency. https://www.psychologyboard.gov.au/Standards-and-Guidelines/Professional-practice-standards/Professional-competencies-for-psychology.aspx
