https://www.junweicounselling.com/

Jun Wei Counselling and Psychotherapy, Hong Kong (2026)

09/05/2026

I am happy to share that I have been added to the Editorial Board of the International Journal of LGBTQ+ Youth Studies!

This is a meaningful milestone for me because it offers an opportunity to contribute to the scholarly community working to advance knowledge on LGBTQ+ youth. I am grateful for the chance to contribute to a journal that centres LGBTQ+ youth scholarship, and I look forward to supporting new and important research findings so they can be known, shared, and useful to the communities, practitioners, researchers, and advocates who need them.

04/05/2026

How does living with an LGBTQ+ identity in Malaysia shape one’s mental health?

In our latest publication in the Journal of LGBTQ Issues in Counseling, we describe this experience as “Finding Lighthouse in the Raging Sea of Expulsion.” Drawing on qualitative responses from 398 LGBTQ+ Malaysians, our findings show how many participants felt excluded in Malaysia and unable to find peace within themselves. Yet, amid this sense of exclusion, hope was not entirely absent. Like a lighthouse whose beam briefly sweeps across the darkness, participants encountered fleeting but meaningful moments of safety, affirmation, and connection that allowed them to be themselves, and supported their mental health.

Three key insights stood out to us:
(1) First, affirmation from long-term close friends can be deeply powerful. Being accepted by someone who had known them for a long time helped LGBTQ+ individuals accept their own identity and support their mental health, sometimes even more meaningfully than connection with LGBTQ+ communities alone.

(2) Second, emotional and identity suppression may not only reflect internalized stigma. For some LGBTQ+ Malaysians, muting themselves may also function as a culturally embedded strategy of care, an attempt to protect their loved ones from shame, conflict, or emotional distress.

(3) Third, online solidarity matters. Participants felt profoundly validated when they witnessed strangers defending LGBTQ+ individuals in hostile online comment sections. These moments offered a sense of existential relief, reminding them that they were not alone.

We wish to thank the 755 participants who completed this section of the KAMI Survey, and fellow colleague Aron and Kyle who are co-authors of this paper. The study is now available Open Access at https://doi.org/10.1080/26924951.2026.2628744

03/05/2026

Teaching counseling has always been one of my deepest passions, and I recently received students’ feedback on my teaching from the university administrators.

This semester, I taught Psychological Testing, a highly technical course that goes into the details of validity, reliability, norming of psychological tests, and the careful selection and use of assessment tools in counseling practice. Beyond introducing students to commonly used measures, I wanted them to begin thinking like practitioners: critically, ethically, and contextually.

I am grateful that my ongoing clinical experience continues to enrich my teaching. Actively serving clients has helped me breach theoretical learning with real-world counseling practice, and I was heartened to see these reflected in students’ feedback. Many commented that the course was practical, relevant, clearly structured, and it helped them understand standards they can aspire to as future counsellors.

Most importantly, and grateful to have taught a group of students who engaged so openly and thoughtfully with their learning. Their curiosity and willingness to learn made it possible for me to create a meaningful and positive learning experience.

29/12/2025

I wrapped up my final guest lecture of 2025 to BSc (Hons) Psychology students at on “Culture, Power, and Marginalized Communities.” I am truly grateful that invited me to deliver this session, and met , and who are all serving as lecturers at APU, and it honestly felt like a meaningful way to close the year!

In this lecture, we explored how ideas like heteronormativity, norms, and privilege have shaped Psychology, and why it is important to look beyond intrapersonal factors to understand people in their situated contexts. Drawing from on my engagement with the Deaf community and the LGBTQ community, we discussed how culture organizes power, how marginalization operates, the costs of marginalization, and what it means for students stepping into the field as future Psychology graduates.

Thank you to the students who engaged so thoughtfully and asked important questions. Moments like this give me hope for the kind of Psychology graduates we are shaping!

13/12/2025

This is one of my proudest moment to have my paper with my HKU supervisor published in the Journal of Family Theory & Review (IF 4.5), the leading journal for family theory advancement!

Whether parents accept/reject their LGB child has been the dominant way we understand parents of LGB people. However, I found that parents do not aim to accept or reject their LGB child. Instead, most parents strive to care, and equipping this view will fundamentally change the way scholars and clinicians understand and work with these parents.

I introduced (1) matched care, (2) misguided care, and (3) self-protective withdrawn care as concepts to understand parents’ caregiving motivation and behavior. This way shifts cliniicnas’ work with parents of LGB people because we move from “good parents” (predominantly accepting parents) and “resisting parents” (predominantly rejecting parents) to “caring parents” (parents become allies in disguise, and our next step will be to support them to be the caring and effective parents they aspire to be.

This conceptual paper discusses these concepts in greater depth along with its potential research and clinical implications. Read more about this at https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/jftr.70038

08/12/2025

Kyle Tan and I recently published a paper on LGBT+ people’s encounters with police in Malaysia, and it is timely to discuss it in relation to the recent police raid in Malaysia.

In our study, we found those who had at least 1 negative encounter with police were more 2x more likely to report depression and anxiety symptoms, self-injury behaviors, and 3x more likely to attempt su***de.

Among those who had negative encounters with police, they reported having been detained (28.8%), sexually assaulted (12.8%), and being subjected to physical force (8.0%).

Qualitative analysis participants’ narratives found police may abuse their power when participants meet certain targeted conditions (e.g., fitting the police’s stereotype of LGBT+ people). Most participants did not feel safe in their interactions with police and often sought to avoid the police or escape situations that may expose their stigmatized conditions.

Meanwhile, not all police abuse their power. Almost half of the participants reported police treated them with respect (47.2%), just that positive encounters was not associated with mental ill-health symptoms.

To sum it up:
1. Negative interactions with police can contribute to heightened risks of mental ill-health, including suicidality.
2. While police should protect the general population from harm, they may themselves be perpetrators of violence against LGBT+ people.
3. Having positive experiences with police can make a difference to LGBT+ people’s mental health. When participants were treated with respect from police, LGBT+ participants did not experience heightened levels of mental ill-health.
4. It is therefore important for police to be trained in cultural safety education in relation to power disparity and LGBT+ people’s health and well-being.

11/11/2025

I was privileged to share with the Deaf community on Self-care as Q***r Folks over the weekend. The deaf community (and many more marginalized communities) is often overlooked in policy making and in q***r spaces.

Yet, the intersection of Deaf and LGBTQ identity shapes unique lived experience that deserves more attention to improve access to social justice. Many Deaf individuals have limited access to mental health information and support simply because most resources are not available in Sign Language (their first language). Many Deaf x LGBTQ individuals in the session also shared that this was their first time learning about depression or anxiety. We went really slow to ensure the materials were understood in a way that resonate with them, and the interpreters did amazing work in sharing the information with the deaf community.

I find this talk very meaningful because it bridges the world between the hearing community and the deaf community. I’m also deeply appreciative of organizations like MADEO, PLUHO and Justice for Sisters that invited me for the talk; and the interpreters who signed for the entire five hours event.

The Deaf community is an integral part of Malaysian society, and they deserve to be seen, heard, and supported.

We urgently need more LGBTQ-affirming mental health professionals who are also proficient in sign language to serve this community. If you are interested in this venture, please feel free to reach out to me, PLUHO or Justice for Sisters and we can have more conversation about this.

06/11/2025

It was an honor to be invited by Ms. June Loo from IMU to guest lecture on the topic of Working Effectively with the LGBTQ Community.

It’s been a while since I graduated from IMU, and I’m deeply grateful for the chance to contribute back to the place that shaped me into who I am today.

Over the years, as I’ve been invited to speak on LGBTQ-affirmative care, my slides and reflections have continued to evolve — focusing on what truly matters in clinical practice. My goal has always been to make the topic approachable and immediately applicable for counselling trainees, bridging knowledge with empathy and real-world care.

I felt warmly welcomed by the students, whose openness and active engagement made for rich and thoughtful discussions. It’s inspiring to see a new generation of helping professionals ready to carry forward the work of inclusion, compassion, and social justice.

06/11/2025

I’ve recently completed Part 2 of the Clinical Supervision in Counselling training conducted by Lembaga Kaunselor Malaysia!

This program offered valuable insights into the developmental process of supervisees, the art of providing meaningful feedback, and the distinct dynamics between individual and group supervision. It was also a wonderful opportunity to connect with colleagues who are also passionate about advancing the quality of counselling supervision in Malaysia.

I look forward to applying these skills in my own supervisory practice and continuing to contribute to the growth and professionalism of our field!

11/10/2025

I was humbled to share my work using EFFT with a Malaysian family raising a transgender child here at AAFT’s 10th Conference in Okinawa, Japan.

Supporting families with trans members calls for awareness of how structural stigma impacts family life through cultural, religious, and social means, and for discernment between common family therapy concerns and those shaped by societal marginalization. It also means choosing the right timing for developmental discussions about social or medical transition, and partnering with professionals and community systems to ensure the family is supported with appropriate resources throughout their journey.

I was also deeply appreciative to receive feedback from attendees who commented on my firm, caring, and stable stance as I responded to attednees’ question, and they could imagine the experience of parents being with me in therapy. They trust my calm presence could help parents work through some of their biggest struggles, which was a deeply affirming feedback.

I am also grateful to everyone who joined the discussion and contributed to this meaningful session, and also very happy to meet fellow Malaysians and ex-lecturers here in Okinawa! This experience was a humbling reminder that our work as therapists is more than interventions — it is about the presence we bring and the safety we co-create.

03/09/2025

I have been invited to present my work at the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy’s (AAMFT) conference — the leading professional organization in the field of marriage and family therapy.

As a professional member of AAMFT, I am grateful for the opportunity to share my findings on LGB family processes with an international audience of systemic clinicians and scholars, and contribute meaningfully to this field.

Jun Wei Counselling and Psychotherapy

09/05/2026

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29/12/2025

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08/12/2025

11/11/2025

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