Cultural Humility for People of Color: Critique of Current Theory and Practice

Abstract

Cultural humility and the broader multicultural orientation approach (MCO) is important for clinicians of color as it is for White clinicians; however, the MCO framework does not address how experiences of racism and oppression impact how therapists of color think about and practice cultural humility. This article attempts to address important ways that the dialogue around cultural humility must be nuanced for therapists of color, and will provide examples of ways in which the framework for racial/ethnic minority community is fundamentally unique, both conceptually and in application: perspectives will be provided through responding to concepts within MCO framework such as “other-oriented” stance, leaning into cultural opportunities, and cultural comfort from a person-of-color lens. We contend that the traumatic effects of racism, microaggression, intergenerational trauma, and the pressures to assimilate to White culture make it difficult for therapists to practice cultural humility in the way that it is currently discussed in the literature. The authors provide potential resources for therapists of color, and explore how it is essential to have institutional and communal resources provided in White spaces.

Do workforce diversity, inclusion practices, & organizational characteristics contribute to organizational innovation? Evidence from the U.A.E

“…A diverse climate shows how much an organization recognizes the diversity-friendly practices like diversity training and mentorship of all levels of employees. The evidence that disadvantaged employees are less committed suggests that organizations need to consider how they can structure their HR system, practices, and climate to meet the expectations of the employee and generate commitment among diverse people (Moon & Sandage, 2019). Consequently, inclusion practices generating a sense of fairness, belongingness, uniqueness, and diverse climate/culture among employees is important for generating innovation at the workplace (Jones et al, 2021).…”

Windows of cultural opportunity: A thematic analysis of how cultural conversations occur in psychotherapy.

“…A final suggestion for future research is to consider the cultural identities of therapists when investigating cultural opportunities. For instance, Moon and Sandage (2019) explained that when we situate the therapist in context, particularly therapists of color, we widen our lens to see the broader context which encapsulates oppression, such as ongoing racism. Accordingly, it is important to consider the oppressive experiences of therapists of color when examining MCO factors, such as if and how they are engaging in cultural conversations (Moon & Sandage, 2019).…”

Students’ Social Perceptions of Humility and Arrogance Among Band Directors

“…I edited the scripts following their feedback, and two White male music education graduate students recorded several takes of both conditions (the final scripts are available in the supplementary file included with the online version of this article). I specifically elected to use White men as actors to control for problematic judgments of humility toward marginalized groups, particularly women (Code, 1991;Heatherington et al, 1998) and people of color (Collins, 2000;Moon & Sandage, 2019). The actors were directed to avoid adding additional emotion or sounding overly agreeable or unpleasant with either condition, since that may have unduly influenced the participants' ability to judge the single constructs of humility and arrogance (Landrum et al, 2013).…”