Multicultural competence: Criteria and case examples.

Abstract

How do you as a professional psychologist know if you are competent to treat clients whose cultural origins and values differ from your own? What awareness, knowledge, and skills do you need? With whom should you consult? When should you refer? Adopting an idiographic, inclusive approach, the authors identify 12 minimal multicultural competencies for practice and illustrate their usefulness through 3 case examples. Suggestions for how professional psychologists can augment and evaluate their own multicultural competencies are offered as well as implications for professional psychology educators. Consider the following scenario: Dr. Mary Ann Smith is a European American licensed clinical psychologist trying to build her private practice in a medium-sized town in the upper Midwest. She has worked to become listed on provider panels and realizes how important self-referred individuals with good insurance are to her livelihood. In 1 week, she receives three new clients: a recently fired Native American male nurse filing a discrimination lawsuit against the school district; a Spanish-speaking Mexican American lesbian fighting a custody battle with her ex-husband; and a blind, indigent, 70-year-old Irish American man with depression. "Am I competent to treat these clients?" wonder^ Dr. Smith, "and if not, to whom do I refer?" For professional psychologists like Dr. Smith, working with diverse clients will soon become the norm rather than the exception. Shortly after the year 2050, racial and ethnic minorities will become a numerical majority in the United States (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 1995). Nearly 75% of the current entering labor force are racial and ethnic minorities or women, and when "baby NANCY DOWNING HANSEN received her PhD in counseling psychology from the University of Florida in 1980. She is a member of the clinical psychology faculty at The Fielding Institute. Her professional interests include ethics, multicultural psychology, the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory, and qualitative research.

Individual and cultural‐diversity competency: Focus on the therapist

“…In order to ensure appropriate treatment of LBG clients and students, it is essential that psychologists fully explore their own identities and belief systems before practicing psychotherapy or teaching (Hansen, Pepitone-Arreola-Rockwell, & Greene, 2000;Phillips, 2000).…”

Defining competencies in psychology supervision: A consensus statement

“…Recognition that attention to diversity in all of its forms (e.g., age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, race, religion, sexual orientation, religion, socioeconomic status, etc.) relates to every aspect of the supervision process and requires specific competence (American Psychological Association, Presidential Task Force on the Assessment of Age-Consistent Memory Decline and Dementia, 1998;Arredondo & Arciniega, 2001;Bruss, Brack, Brack, Glickauf-Hughes, & O'Leary, 1997;Fouad & Brown, 2000;Hansen, Pepitone-Arreola-Rockwell, & Greene, 2000;Olkin, 2002;Sodowsky, Kuo-Jackson, Richardson, & Corey, 1998;Sue, 2001;Vasquez, 1992); 3. Recognition that attention to legal and ethical issues is essential (Bernard & Goodyear, 2004;Bradley, Kottler, & Lehrman-Waterman, 2001;Falender & Shafranske, 2004;Harrar et al, 1990;Kitchener, 2000;Knapp & VandeCreek, 1997;Lamb & Catanzaro, 1998); 4.…”

Enhancing Reflective Practice in Multicultural Counseling Through Cultural Auditing

“…There is a plethora of writing in the area of multicultural counseling designed to convince the practitioner that attention to culture in counseling not only is important for effective practice but also is counselors' ethical obligation in terms of competent practice (Arredondo & Toporek, 2004;Pedersen, 2007;Pettifor, 2005). There also continues to be considerable writing aimed at articulating the specific attitudes and beliefs, knowledge, and skills that practitioners require to be competent multicultural counselors (American Psychological Association [APA], 2002; Arredondo et al, 1996;Collins & Arthur, 2010b, in press-a, in press-b;Hansen, Petitone-Arreola-Rockwell, & Greene, 2000;Sue, Arredondo, & McDavis, 1992). There appears to be strong agreement that self-awareness of values, personal assumptions, and biases is the foundation for enhancing multicultural counseling competence (APA, 2002;Collins & Arthur, 2007;Pitner & Sakamoto, 2005;Sue et al, 1992).…”