Presented by: James Hawkins, Ph.D., LPC
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LOCATION: First Presbyterian Church of Berkeley
2407 Dana Street, Berkeley, CA 94704
DESCRIPTION:
Emotionally Focused Therapy offers a powerful, research-based map for transforming emotional and relational distress. Yet many therapists struggle to confidently incorporate cultural identity, lived experience, and systemic context into the EFT process.
This workshop provides a clear, attachment-grounded framework for cultural attunement that strengthens therapeutic presence, deepens emotional engagement, and enhances bonding events with all couples.
Participants will learn where culture appears on the EFT map—within reactive cycles, secondary emotion, primary emotion, attachment needs, and blocks to engagement—and how to integrate these elements into the EFT Tango. Through teaching, demonstrations, video analysis, and guided enactment practice, therapists will learn to name cultural dynamics, respond to cultural pain with sensitivity, and support culturally meaningful connections during Stage 1 and Stage 2 work.
The workshop also addresses the therapist's cultural self-awareness, power dynamics, cultural trauma, and strategies for repairing cultural mis-attunements. Therapists will leave with greater clarity, humility, and competence in helping clients feel deeply seen—not only as individuals, but as cultural beings whose stories shape their pursuit of connection. This workshop is ideal for EFT practitioners who seek to expand their cultural responsiveness while maintaining fidelity to the EFT model.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES:
By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
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Identify how cultural identity, social location, and systemic forces shape attachment strategies and emotional experience.
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Locate cultural dynamics on the EFT map and integrate them into case conceptualization and treatment planning.
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Apply the EFT Tango with cultural responsiveness, naming cultural elements that influence secondary emotion, primary emotion, attachment needs, and the blocks to engagement.
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Demonstrate cultural attunement during the co-regulation and de-escalation processes in Stage 1 of EFT.
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Facilitate culturally meaningful enactments in Stage 2 of EFT that foster bonding through shared understanding, repair of cultural wounds, and tenderness around identity.
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Recognize their own cultural shaping and how it impacts their therapeutic presence when using EFT.
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Use culturally attuned language that invites emotional depth without imposing assumptions or erasing complexity.
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Respond to cultural misattunements in session using EFT repair processes.
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Name two key principles that influence cultural attunement using an attachment lens with EFT.
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Discuss moving from Stage One to Stage Two in the Tango to access underlying or disowned parts of the Self tied to cultural identity.
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Name two techniques that can be used during the initial assessments of EFT to introduce and identify cultural components.
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Explain how cultural identity can impact emotional experience/connection in Stage Two of EFT.
PRESENTER:
Dr. James Hawkins, Ph.D., LPC—also known as Doc Hawk—is a Licensed Counselor with over 12 years of experience. He is a certified trainer, supervisor, and therapist with the International Centre for Excellence in Emotionally Focused Therapy (ICEEFT). Dr. Hawkins holds a Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Counseling and a Ph.D. in Psychology and Counseling.
Currently, Dr. Hawkins serves as the Clinical Coordinator at a non-profit counseling practice in Northwest Arkansas, where he specializes in helping individuals, couples, and families navigate relational distress. He is also the founder of Healing Conversations, a training initiative designed to equip organizations and communities to engage in productive conversations about race.
An active voice in the therapy community, James co-hosts two podcasts: The Leading Edge in Emotionally Focused Therapy and The Leading Edge: Transforming Leadership Through Attachment Science. He is a faculty member of Success in Vulnerability, an online training program that supports EFT therapists and supervisors in deepening their clinical practice.
Known for his warmth, expertise, and passion, Doc Hawk is dedicated to promoting emotional and relational health in both clinical and community settings. He lives in Northwest Arkansas with his wife, Nicola, and their five daughters.
AGENDA:
Day One:
9:00 am - Registration/check-in/mingling with refreshments
9:30 am - Training begins
1:00-2:00 pm - Lunch - provided
2:00 pm - Training resumes
4:30 pm - Training adjourns
A 15-minute break will be offered with refreshments mid-morning.
Day Two:
9:00 am - Registration/check-in/mingling with refreshments
9:30 am - Training begins
1:00-2:00 pm - Lunch (provided)
2:00 pm - Training resumes
4:30 pm - Training adjourns
A 15-minute break will be offered with refreshments mid-morning.
COST:
Registration: $450
Early Bird Registration before March 15: $425
Student/Associate/Equity rate: $375
Equity Rate: Accessibility is important to NCCEFT. As such we offer a reduced cost for our EFCT trainings to individuals from diverse backgrounds.
Eligibility Criteria: Represent and/or work with underserved & underrepresented communities and/or work with clients with less financial means. This includes, but is not limited to, BIPOC clinicians, sexual and gender minorities, differently-abled individuals, immigrants & clinicians who are semi-retired.
Please note that this is a FUNDRAISER for NCCEFT and a majority of the profits go towards supporting DEIC efforts within the community.
Twelve (12) Continuing Education (CE) credits are available for a charge of $45. A link to register and pay $45 for CE's will be emailed to all registrants at a later date prior to the training.
CONTINUING EDUCATION:
Alliant International University is approved by the American Psychological Association to Sponsor Continuing Education for psychologists.
Alliant International University Maintains Sole Responsibility For This Program and Its Content.
Provider Approved by the California Board of Registered Nursing, Provider #CEP17538, For 12 Contact Hours.
Approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No.4469
Those seeking CE Credit under the BRN must retain this certificate for a minimum of 4 years.
There are no known conflicts of interest, and no commercial support, associated with this program.
AI WAS NOT used in the creation of this CE.
We are not authorized to speak on behalf of any licensing boards. If you have questions, check your licensing board’s website for their approved CE providers (for example, to see if they accept APA- or NBCC-approved CE providers). If you are still not sure, feel free to send what you have found on your licensing board’s website to help@trieft.org and they can help further clarify.
ACCOMMODATIONS:
NCCEFT meets all applicable local, state and federal standards, including the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42, U.S.C. 12101-12213 (2008)). We hold events only at professional venues that comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), 42, U.S.C. 12101-12213 (2008)
ADA NEEDS: We will be happy to accommodate your ADA needs; please contact us at ncceftinfo@gmail.com at least two weeks prior to the seminar date.
NCCEFT PROGRAM GRIEVANCE AND REFUND POLICY:
The Northern California Community for Emotionally Focused Therapy (NCCEFT) is fully committed to conducting all activities in strict conformance with the American Psychological Association's Ethical Principles of Psychologists. NCCEFT will comply with all legal and ethical responsibilities to be non-discriminatory in promotional activities, program content and in the treatment of program participants. The monitoring and assessment of compliance with these standards will be the responsibility of the CPA PAS CE Program Director in consultation with the Board of Directors (Steering Committee).
While NCCEFT works to assure fair treatment for all participants and attempts to anticipate problems, there will be occasional issues which will require intervention and/or action on the part of NCCEFT. This procedural description serves as a guideline for handling such complaints.
When a participant, either orally or in written format, files a grievance and expects action on the complaint, the following actions will be taken:
1. If the complaint concerns a speaker, the content presented by the speaker, or the style of presentation, the individual filing the complaint will be asked to put his/her comments in written format. The CE Program Director will then pass on the comments to the speaker, assuring the confidentiality of the aggrieved individual.
2. If the complaint concerns a workshop offering, its content, level of presentation, or the facilities in which the workshop was offered, the CE Program Director will mediate and will be the final arbitrator. If the participant requests action during a workshop or conference, the CE Program Director or his/her representative will:
a. attempt to rectify the situation, and/or
b. provide a credit for a subsequent presentation, in the event of a program having an attendance fee or
c. provide a partial or full refund of the registration fee, in the event of a program having an attendance fee.
Actions 2b and 2c will require a written note, documenting the grievance, for record keeping purposes. The note need not be signed by the aggrieved individual.
3. If the grievance concerns the business practices of the NCCEFT CE program in a specific regard, the CE Program Director or Administrator will attempt to arbitrate.
CODE OF CONDUCT:
By registering for this training, participants agree to abide by the NCCEFT Code of Conduct, which ensures a respectful, inclusive, and supportive environment for all attendees. Failure to adhere to this Code may result in removal from the event without refund.
REFUND AND ATTENDANCE POLICY:
In the event that a program presentation has an attendance fee, CANCELLATIONS are subject to a $50.00 processing fee and must be received 14 days prior to be eligible for a refund.
