Psychotherapy for 

Indonesians
24
Dahlia and Marthoenis

Background

Indonesia is an archipelagic country in Southeast Asia that consists of thousands of

islands. In 2018, the country had a population of more than 260 million, globally
ranking the fourth largest country after China, India and the USA. Indonesia is also
home to more than 300 different ethnic groups. Each ethnic group has a distinctive
appearance, culture, beliefs and way of life. Some ethnic groups have more similari-
ties with people from the neighbouring countries than their fellow Indonesians. The
Papuan aborigines, for instance, have an appearance that is more similar to the
Papua New Guinean aborigines than the Indonesians living in Borneo Island. The
Acehnese have closer ancestral connections to the Malaysian Malay than the fellow
Javanese Indonesians. Due to this diverse cultural background, providing psycho-
therapy for Indonesians is not an easy task. The only thing that Indonesians have in
common is the fact that they speak Bahasa Indonesia, the national language of
Indonesia. Indonesia is therefore a context in which no generalisations can be made,
a deeply multicultural country in which cultural differences are highly relevant in
many areas of life, including psychotherapy.
Historical notes con rm that Indonesia used to consist of small kingdoms across
Nusantara, another term for the Indonesian archipelagos. Europeans arrived in
Nusantara in the fteenth century and colonisation started not long after their arrival.
The Dutch colonised some of the kingdoms across Nusantara for approximately

Dahlia
School of Psychology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Syiah Kuala, Banda Aceh, Indonesia
e-mail: dahlia@unsyiah.ac.id
Marthoenis ( )
Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health Nursing, Universitas Syiah Kuala,
Banda Aceh, Indonesia
e-mail: Marthoenis@unsyiah.ac.id

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 349

M. Schouler-Ocak, M. C. Kastrup (eds.), Intercultural Psychotherapy,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24082-0_24
350 Dahlia and Marthoenis

350 years. Later, Indonesia was occupied by Japan for 3.5 years during World War
II. Indonesia declared its independence from foreign occupations in 1945.
Before the Indonesian independence, the Dutch colonial powers administered
mental health treatment in psychiatric hospitals. The hospital not only treated peo-
ple with mental disorders, but also functioned as a place of custody, both those who
disturbed the social order, and did not comply to the colonial will [1] and those who
were diagnosed as insane by a physician [2] were locked inside the asylum. After
independence, Indonesia inherited four large psychiatric hospitals and some psychi-
atric clinics in the major cities that had been under Dutch Colonial rule. The psychi-
atric infrastructures built by the Dutch then remained in place and served basic
mental healthcare, but the very limited budget allocated by the Indonesian govern-
ment for mental healthcare meant that the facilities were inadequate [3].
During the colonial era, the Dutch implemented European methods of mental
treatment in the Dutch East Indies, the Dutch name for Indonesia during colonial-
ism. Although the Dutch Government established the rst psychiatric hospital in
1882, the hospitalisation of people with mental disorders had happened earlier.
Around the seventeenth century, the Verenidge Oost-Indische Compagnie (VOC,
Dutch East Company) built a hospital outside Batavia (modern-day Jakarta) with
treatment allocated only for Europeans. At that time, the prevailing medical theory
assumed that being sick or healthy depends on the balance of humour in the body.
The humid climate in Southeast Asia was believed to affect humour of the Europeans,
and common therapies included cupping, bloodletting and trepanation [4].
Despite the fact that this psychiatric hospital was reserved for Europeans, large
numbers of locals were also hospitalised for different reasons. Between 1638 and
1642, locals who were rebels or who did not comply with the Dutch will were pun-
ished inside the psychiatric hospital. They were subjected to violent treatment
including whipping, being tied up and being forced to perform heavy tasks; these
were the same punishments as those given to patients who showed mental and
behaviour decline [4]. In 1635, driven by a sense of personal moral regret, the Board
of Deacons established an accommodation for the locals, especially the orphans.
This institution was the rst in Indonesia to serve a non-European population. Later,
a small number of people regarded as the “European insane” were also treated in the
facility, while the “native insane” were imprisoned and chained [4].
The third institution for medical treatment in Indonesia was the Chinese hospital
in Batavia, established in 1640. It was funded by wealthy members of the Chinese
community, staffed by Chinese medical specialists, and served the Chinese com-
munity, including people with mental disorders. The hospital eventually served
those locals who had signi cant contact with the colonial presence. At the end of the
eighteenth century, the Chinese hospital bought a nearby building, which later
turned into psychiatric wards. At the end of the nineteenth century, the local people
from Batavia and outside the island was locked up in the Chinese hospital in Batavia
[4]. The Dutch also built a large psychiatric hospital on the Island of Sabang, which
now is part of Aceh province. The hospital mainly served psychiatric patients from
Sumatra Island and once had more than 1200 patients. The hospital was later closed
24 Psychotherapy for Indonesians 351

and has since been replaced by a new psychiatric hospital in Band Aceh, the capital
of Aceh province [1].
Despite such changing and challenging political situations, the effort to improve
mental health services in post-colonial Indonesia began in 1966, when the ministry
of health applied three principles as a key to mental healthcare systems: prevention,
treatment and rehabilitation. During the 1970s and 1980s, the number of mental
hospitals in Indonesia increased. New forms of mental health care were developed
and research projects conducted. The period was considered as an achievement for
Indonesian psychiatry because it was offered as a model for other Southeast Asian
Nations. Unfortunately, during the 1990s, the Indonesian government decreased the
budget for mental health services, leading to the deterioration of their quality [2].

The Condition of People with Mental Disorders in Indonesia

The current condition and treatment of people with mental disorders in Indonesia
represents a signi cant neglect of human rights [5]. Large numbers of people with
mental disorder are treated improperly, not given access to proper medication,
unable to have a job or to earn an income; thousands of them are even locked away
or chained up by the family or the community [6]. The local term “pasung”, which
is de ned as physical restraint and con nement of people with a mental disorder in
the community, is still very common in almost all provinces of Indonesian [7]. The
government has raised concerns about the pasung problem, but efforts to release the
patients from restraint are nevertheless still far off.
Improper treatment of people with a mental disorder has to do with the large
treatment gap for mental disorders. The treatment gap for mental disorders in
Indonesia is estimated to be more than 90%, meaning that the vast majority of peo-
ple with a mental disorder do not obtain proper treatment. A large treatment gap is
the consequence of a lack of awareness of, literacy about and stigma towards mental
illness. The absence of health facilities or the long journey to such facilities to
access treatment also contributes to this large treatment gap [1], a situation that
requires further attention from the government and healthcare providers.
Large numbers of people with mental disorder cannot obtain proper treatment as
primary health institutions give low priority to mental health treatment. The health-
care staffs working in these institutions have very limited expertise in detecting and
providing appropriate treatment for patients with mental disorders. Furthermore,
the quality of the services in the psychiatric hospitals is generally poor. Many psy-
chiatric inpatients were under normal weight [8], indicating poor nutritional intake
during hospitalisation. Custodial treatment is the only approach offered by the psy-
chiatric hospitals. Involuntary treatment is common even though there is no legal
basis for involuntary admission. Someone who shows strange behaviour can be
taken to the hospital without his or her consent. Comparable to the situation in other
developing countries, the standard of psychiatric care in Indonesia is generally poor
and fails to protect the human rights of the patients [9].
352 Dahlia and Marthoenis

Cultural Factors and Psychotherapy for Asian

Scientists and clinicians stressed the importance of cultural factors in the practice of
psychotherapy in the early 1960s. Consequently, comparative research on the prac-
tices of indigenous healing, contemporary and formal psychotherapy were initiated.
They investigated the culturally speci c psychotherapies, the examination of inter-
cultural psychotherapy and transcultural psychotherapy or counselling across cul-
tures. Transcultural psychotherapy emphasises the importance of overcoming the
cultural barriers that exist between the therapist and the patient. Intercultural psy-
chotherapy identi es that the cultural background between the therapist and the
client will interact through the therapeutic process, therefore emphasising the “inter-
cultural”, “interactional” process. These terms highlight important in uences on
cultural processes in the practice of psychotherapy [10].
Due to the importance of cultural factors in psychotherapy, the therapists should
consider several principles of engagement while interacting with people of Asian
ethnicity [11]. The principles include respecting the culture, exploring the experi-
ence of the distress, adapting the communication style that is acceptable to the indi-
vidual preferences. Some Asian living abroad might not speak uent English,
having someone to accompany during the therapy session might also be helpful.
Further, the therapist should also assess and address their limitation in understand-
ing the mental health services system of such a country. Providing them with such
information is expected to increase their adherence to the therapy. The therapist
might invite the family or someone close to the client in discussing the treatment
goals. Ensure that the goals are not only t with the preference of the client, but also
his or her family. The therapist should keep in mind that the connectedness between
family members is high among Asian community and therefore the family should
be involved in most process of psychotherapy. The therapist should therefore assess
the literacy of the family member towards mental problem and psychotherapy.
When necessary, the therapist should also educate the family [11]. The perceived
stigma of having psychotherapy is also prevalent among Asian [12–14], thus assess-
ing their perceived stigma is important. The therapist then has to discuss issues
related to stigma and set the goal and methods to reduce the perceived stigma with
the client. Lastly, Asia is a large continent with many countries that culture can be
signi cantly different, such generalisation cannot be made when engaging with cli-
ent of Asian background. As it has been stated above that even in a country such as
Indonesia, the culture can be different. Respecting the individual cultural values
should be, therefore, one of the focuses of the therapist while engaging with the
client.

Psychotherapy in Indonesia

Previously, psychotherapy in Indonesia was considered unnecessary because it was

not well understood by health practitioners. The Indonesian medication system was
dominated by the materialistic-organic point of view that placed no attention on the
24 Psychotherapy for Indonesians 353

in uence of mental treatment movement. Yet, in society, the mental treatment move-
ment took their action that encouraged a very small group of psychiatrists to deal
with unresolvable mental disorders. The treatment of neuroses was outside the
scope of the medical profession, which encouraged medical schools to be more
vigorous in initiating treatment for neurosis disorders. Despite the fact that cases of
neurosis had been recorded long before World War II, it was not until later, amid
rapid modern movement, the assimilation of new concepts of life and increased
education in psychology, that neurosis gained more attention as a subject. As the
result, the report on the prevalence of neurosis increased rapidly after Indonesian
independence [15].
The Indonesian model of counselling and psychotherapy adopts concepts from
the West. The school of psychology at the universities in Indonesia teaches Western
methods and uses Western books. Among the common psychotherapy techniques
applied by the Indonesian therapists include psychoanalytic and psychodynamic,
humanistic, rational-emotive, gestalt, cognitive, behavioural and analytical psycho-
therapy. These philosophical orientations of therapy for mental disorders were also
adapted from the West, such as the Indonesian Manual of Diagnostic and
Classi cation of Mental Disorders (PPDGJ), which is based on the American
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) with some modi ca-
tions. Nevertheless, Indonesian clinical psychologists or psychiatrists usually adopt
the local wisdom in their practices, thus integrating local and Western practices.
Nevertheless, this effort has been challenging due to a lack of research conducted in
this area. Thus, the scienti c evidence on the effectiveness of adopting the Western
psychotherapy in Indonesia is therefore also scarce. Nevertheless, such paper stress-
ing the importance of developing culturally relevant counselling to Indonesian is
existing [16].

Customised Counselling in Indonesian Culture

Cultural in uences on counselling and psychotherapy cannot be underestimated.

Psychotherapeutic approaches such as psychoanalytic, behavioural therapy, gestalt
therapy, person-centred therapy and transactional analysis are different from theo-
retical frameworks and paradigms. It is perilous to ignore the lack of a theoretical
framework in relation to culture, so it is imperative that therapists look for accurate
ways to properly test their diverse approaches and strategies [17]. In addition, the
Western style of psychological service is dif cult to be fully applied in developing
countries due to cultural and other differences and the lack of professional human
resources. If Western culture approach is applied in developing countries, it can
disrupt important elements in the regions’ native cultures. Therefore, psychological
or therapeutic assistance must be suited to the culture and the local human resources.
Through a cultural approach that sees the de nition of disorder based on cultural
perspectives and also with existing community assistance, a clear understanding of
appropriate psychological interventions can be applied to people in need of psycho-
logical help [18].
354 Dahlia and Marthoenis

Indonesian people have different cultural values than Western people. The appli-
cation of Western psychotherapy, therefore, needs to be adjusted to Indonesian cul-
ture [16] or speci cally to which community in Indonesia the client comes from.
The ecological point of view stresses the importance of the modi cation and adapta-
tion, as it aims to t the interventions onto the local cultural perspectives [19]. In
order to ensure that psychotherapy is culturally competent, there are three levels of
cultural adjustment that must be done, which include technical adjustments, theo-
retical modi cations and philosophical reorientations [20].
Appropriate technical adjustments are required in therapeutic relationships
between therapist and patients, the eld of communication, the therapeutic focus
and the choices of therapeutic models. The goal is to provide clients with appropri-
ate therapy from a wide variety of backgrounds. In the West, meeting a psychothera-
pist is considered a common way of dealing with problems in life. In contrast to
some Asian cultures, which include the Indonesian, meeting a psychotherapist is
undesirable because mental illness may be stigmatised [1, 20]. Apart from the low
literacy rate on mental health, stigma is considered as the leading factor that hinders
the prompt treatment of mental disorders among Indonesians [1]. Furthermore, the
way Indonesians understand psychotherapy is also different from the Westerners.
Unlike the Westerners who on average have a positive attitude towards psychother-
apy and tend to consider it as a viable treatment for mental disorders [21], Indonesian
people seem to be reluctant to share their problems with others and prefer to talk to
their family, friends or trusted ones. In fact, an intervention study conducted among
war-affected population in a province of Aceh, Indonesia, found no intervention
effect of talk therapy in reducing the burden of depression and anxiety [22]. This
might be due to the fact that the Acehnese feel less con dent to share their problem
in public as it was in the intervention, or perhaps the fact that Acehnese usually use
talking and sharing their problem to their family and friend in private way, thus no
different between intervention and control found in the study.
Family might provide additional support during a psychotherapy session, so it is
therefore important for the therapist to determine both the client’s and his/her fam-
ily’s knowledge about and orientation towards psychotherapy. Some customisations
are required including providing knowledge about psychotherapy itself to the client
and the family and applying more concise and practical approaches where possible.
In the relationship between therapist and patient, Indonesians usually appreciate
therapists’ self-disclosure to the patients, seeing it as a mark of professionalism.
Other cultural adjustments are needed in order to conduct psychotherapy sessions
with Indonesian patients. This includes involving the client’s interpersonal net-
works, applying a more direct therapeutic style, focussing on harmonious relation-
ships and incorporating spiritual and religious approaches [16].
Theoretical modi cations are commonly applied to the concepts of self, body
and mind, interpersonal dependency, defence mechanisms, coping and personality
development concepts. The Western theoretical concepts of psychotherapy need to
be examined and evaluated upon its application to patients from different cultural
backgrounds. For example, the psychoanalytic personality theory, which divides the
self-structure into the id, ego and superego, can be blurred or even confused in
24 Psychotherapy for Indonesians 355

another culture [20]. In the context of Indonesian culture, they strongly emphasise
social relations, while the interests of individuals receive less emphasis. The family,
including the extended family, has an important place for the individual [16]. When
someone suffers from health problem, other extended family members feel respon-
sible for the individual, typically providing a wide range of support, from moral to
nancial. In terms of health seeking, most of the time it’s not the patient who seeks
help from the professional or traditional healer, but rather the family members who
seek helps on his or her behalf. The concept of interpersonal dependency therefore
differs strongly to the relative independence of the individual in the Western world.
In addition, the psychological development of the individuals differs between
Eastern and Western cultures. In Western countries, growing up fast and becoming
independent is generally considered important during adolescent. In contrast, chil-
dren in Asian societies are often treated in such a way by their parents and extended
families that they are not forced to move towards the next stage of individual devel-
opment [20]. To give some examples from Indonesian culture, breastfeeding is
extended until the babies reach 2 years old or older, children sleep in their parents’
room until they start schooling, and parents feed them until they are capable of
doing it without spilling food. However, when children enter school, they are
expected to be more mature and disciplined. If the children have younger brothers
and sisters, they are expected to take on the role of big brothers or sisters who take
part in raising their younger siblings. In some Indonesian society, even after getting
married, the new couple is expected to stay with the parent until they have two to
three children, able to take care of them and can be nancially independent from the
parent. The way Indonesian societies accept and experience psychological develop-
ment need to be considered and adjusted culturally while applying the Western
developmental theories [16].
A considered philosophical orientation is also necessary for culturally competent
psychotherapy. Lifestyle choice, soul and spirituality, and the meaning of maturity
are concepts to be considered as part of philosophical reorientation [20]. The purpose
and meaning of psychotherapy differ between cultures. While Western styles of ther-
apy often have more focus on cognition, such as getting insight and awareness about
childhood experiences, Eastern culture focuses more on experience and enlighten-
ment through struggle and self-seeking, emphasising personal and subjective experi-
ences as well as their role in and responsibility to the society. Therapy through prayer
and fasting taught in Islam, for example, is believed to encourage positive feelings
and values of tranquillity, happiness, joy, empathy, faith, connection, mindfulness,
wisdom and trust [23]. Furthermore, how clients assess and interpret their lives also
differs, one difference being acceptance versus conquering. Western culture gener-
ally considers that problem solving has many advantages and can develop a person’s
potential and help them attain achievement. In contrast, in Eastern cultures, individu-
als are expected to accept their limitations and live by the rules given by nature [20].
With regard to the cause of mental illness, many Indonesian Muslims believe that
mental problems occur when someone has a high expectation towards something and
has lower acceptance of the God-given gifts; thus, working with the concept of
acceptance might help in reducing a client’s mental health problem.
356 Dahlia and Marthoenis

Islamic Based Psychotherapy in Indonesian

In Indonesia, over the last two decades, there has been an awareness of the impor-
tance of developing indigenous psychotherapy. Some academics have tried to dig up
local values and develop culturally speci c models of psychotherapy. One such
example is Islamic psychotherapy, which has been developed based on Islamic val-
ues that are followed by the majority of Indonesians [16]. They use the term of
Islamic psychology to distinguish between the Western model of psychology and
the Islam-based psychology. Among the scholars and scientists who are trying to
establish Islamic psychology in Indonesia are Djamaluddin Ancok, Fuad Nashori
Suroso, Hanna Djumhana Bastaman and Subandi. They have introduced the con-
cept of Islamic psychology in various forums and writings [24, 25]. Nevertheless,
research to provide scienti c evidence to support this new model is yet to be con-
ducted. This new method therefore requires more research before it can be used on
a wide scale in Indonesia.
Psychologist Hanna Djumhana Bastaman is one of the psychologists attempting
to enrich Indonesian psychology by introducing the concept of Islamic psychology.
He has a distinctive and special place in the world of modern thought, being among
the very few scholars who were very serious about the relevance of psychology and
Islam. He founded the concept of Islamic psychology, stating that Islamic psychol-
ogy was born as part of the effort to include the Islamic values in the world of psy-
chology and psychotherapy. His vision, the “Islamisation of psychology”, is de ned
as an attempt to incorporate Islamic insights into the foundation of philosophy and
psychology in Islamic world, especially in Indonesia. In other words, Islamic psy-
chology is de ned as a psychological style based on the human image according to
Islamic teachings. In the concept of Islamic psychology, it studies the uniqueness
and patterns of human behaviour as an expression of the experience of interaction
between the self, the environment and spiritual nature, with the aim of improving
mental health and religious quality. This view builds on the Islamic psychology
methodology, embracing the Islamic view of the human, and has a goal of leading
to a healthy mind [24].
Other psychologists, such as Djamaluddin Ancok and Fuad Nashori Suroso,
have also discussed their concepts and views about Islamic psychology [24, 25].
They stressed that in Islam, there is no separation between science and religion.
Religion and science instead should go hand in hand and are inseparable. Therefore,
it is very unlikely for a religious Muslim to separate between a psychological
approach (religion-free) rather than seeing science and religion as the way of life.
The teachings of Islam and psychotherapy can be combined; indeed, there are even
several verses in the Qur’an that show that religion itself contains aspects of therapy
for mental disorders [26]. Nevertheless, all concepts of Islamic psychology dis-
cussed above are under development phase and have not been implemented by all
therapists in Indonesia. Only some therapist who have good understanding on
Islamic religious aspects, or when the client prefers to have more Islamic compo-
nents of therapy, then this approach is usually applied. After all, evidence-based
24 Psychotherapy for Indonesians 357

research has been rarely conducted with regard to this issue; thus, the ef cacy and
effectiveness of the approach is largely questioned.
Nevertheless, for religious and practicing Muslims, religious aspects are impor-
tant for their daily life [23]. Therefore, therapists should consider these aspects
while conducting psychotherapy with Indonesian Muslims. The therapist might
invite the client and the family into “religious conversations” such as by asking
about daily prayer activity, dif culty with performing prayer or whether they could
nd a mosque or a place for performing daily or weekly prayer. Some empirical
research has found that different forms of religious psychotherapy are effective for
Muslim clients who suffer from anxiety, depression and bereavement [27]. After all,
asking about religion and religious preference to Indonesian is not taboo as it is to
Westerners, where assessing religious or spiritual functioning is largely neglected in
clinical practices [28]. The Indonesians are usually very open with their religious
preference and always happy to talk this issue with the therapist.

Psychotherapy and Pharmacotherapy: Treatment Preferences

Despite the effort in improving the quality of mental health services by providing
both psycho- and pharmacotherapy to clients with mental problems, pharmacother-
apy seems to dominate and be preferred by the many of Indonesian client and thera-
pist. In Bahasa Indonesia, the Indonesian language, the word for “having a treatment
or having a consultation with a doctor or other healers” is called “berobat”, which
literally means “to take a drug”. With this concept of health seeking in the Indonesian
consciousness, every meeting with a doctor should be followed by having drug to
take home. A medical doctor who does not prescribe or give drugs to the patient
might be seen as unprofessional or less intelligent. Many believe that only a chemi-
cal substance can help to relieve the problem, even for mental and psychological
problems. Psychotherapy is seen as nothing but sharing the problem with someone
else. Formal psychotherapy sessions are also not preferable for some Indonesians;
instead, informal discussion and communication might help the client to be open
about his or her problem. The therapist has to put more effort into explaining the
advantages of having psychotherapy and how the client will be bene tted from it in
the long term.

Conclusion

Psychotherapy is one of therapeutic efforts that aims to help people with mental and
psychological problems. The concept and techniques of psychotherapy are mostly
invented, developed and implemented in Western societies. The difference in the
cultural concept and values between Western and Eastern might con ict the applica-
tion of Western psychotherapy to people from the Eastern society such as Indonesian.
The therapist should consider various aspects of the client, from their understanding
358 Dahlia and Marthoenis

the concept of psychotherapy, help seeking preference, role of family, inspiration of

the society, in uence of religious background as well as perceived stigma towards
having consultation with a therapist. Lastly, multiculturalism is unavoidable in psy-
chotherapy. Therefore, it is important for therapists to pay more attention to the
issues around culture and religion when providing psychotherapy to Indonesian
clients.

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