A Relational-Cultural Trauma-Informed Care Framework: An Emerging Model for Philippine School Counseling

Abstract

This study develops a Relational-Cultural Trauma-Informed Care (RCTIC) Framework for Philippine school counseling based on an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) of Filipino school counselors’ lived experiences. It reconceptualizes trauma-informed care as a relationally embedded and culturally mediated process rather than a fixed set of clinical procedures. Findings generated four interrelated dimensions: (1) relational safety, (2) cultural mediation, (3) ethical and institutional practice, and (4) empowerment and advocacy. These dimensions function as mutually reinforcing processes that collectively enable the restoration of client agency, understood as the re-establishment of voice, choice, and self-directed meaning-making in the aftermath of trauma.
The study demonstrates that trauma-informed practice in Philippine school contexts is shaped by collectivist cultural logics, particularly kapwa, hiya, and utang na loob, which influence disclosure, help-seeking, and relational engagement. Rather than positioning culture as context, the framework conceptualizes it as an active mechanism in trauma processing and counseling interaction.
Overall, the RCTIC Framework extends dominant Western trauma-informed models by foregrounding relational-cultural dynamics and institutional constraints in shaping counseling practice. It offers a contextually grounded model for understanding how trauma-informed care is enacted within Philippine educational settings.