How can you integrate respect for peers' values and beliefs into your peer support practice?

1 What are values and beliefs?

Values and beliefs are the core principles and assumptions that guide your thoughts, feelings, and actions. They can be influenced by your culture, religion, family, education, personal experiences, and preferences. They can also change over time as you grow and learn. Values and beliefs are not right or wrong, but they can affect how you perceive and respond to situations, and how you relate to others.

3 How can you respect your peers' values and beliefs?

Respecting your peers' values and beliefs can be achieved by actively and empathically listening to their stories without interruption or criticism. Asking open-ended questions to explore and clarify their values and beliefs, without challenging or interrogating them is also important. Acknowledge and validate their values and beliefs, without agreeing or disagreeing with them, and express curiosity and interest in their values and beliefs without making assumptions or generalizations. Lastly, support their choices and actions that are consistent with their values and beliefs, without influencing or directing them.

4 How can you balance respect with self-disclosure?

Self-disclosure is the act of sharing your own personal experiences, feelings, opinions, or values with your peers. It can be a powerful tool for building connection, credibility, and hope in peer support, but it can also be risky. To ensure that you are balancing respect with self-disclosure, you should assess the readiness, relevance, and purpose of your self-disclosure before sharing it with your peers. Additionally, consider the timing, frequency, and amount of your self-disclosure based on the context, relationship, and goal of the peer support session. Furthermore, monitor the impact and feedback of your self-disclosure during and after sharing it with your peers. Finally, respect your own values and beliefs while acknowledging that they may differ from those of your peers and respect your own privacy and comfort level while being honest and authentic with them.

5 How can you balance respect with boundaries?

Boundaries are the limits and expectations that you set for yourself and your peers in peer support, which can help maintain a healthy and safe relationship, protect your well-being and role, and prevent role confusion, burnout, or harm. However, boundaries can be difficult to manage since they may vary depending on the situation, culture, or individual. Thus, it is important to balance respect with boundaries. You should communicate your boundaries clearly and consistently with your peers, negotiate them flexibly and respectfully while being open to feedback and adjustment, enforce them firmly and politely while addressing any violations or conflicts as soon as possible, review them regularly and reflectively while seeking support or supervision if needed, and always respect your own needs and limits while being supportive and compassionate with your peers.

7 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?