Transgender and gender diverse clinical competency and affirmative training in graduate education.

Abstract

Transgender and gender diverse (TGD) people face marginalization and exclusion within the mental health field. Barriers to services include providers' insensitivity, internalized cisgenderism, microassaults, and lack of skills and knowledge related to TGD affirmative practices. As the mental health field has worked to address the historical pathologizing of TGD people, this study aimed to examine students' and faculty's self-reported TGD clinical competency and perceived TGD affirmative training in graduate programs. We sampled students (N = 155) and faculty (N = 69) from nationally accredited clinical training programs (i.e., American Psychological Association, Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs, Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education, and Council on Social Work Education). Results indicated that faculty and students self-reported moderate levels of TGD clinical competency and TGD affirmative training in graduate programs. We discuss implications for training programs. Public Significance StatementThis present study suggests that students who receive and faculty who provide transgender and gender diverse (TGD) affirmative training may help promote TGD clinical competency. Additionally, it highlights how individual and programmatic characteristics are associated with reported clinical competency and experiences of affirmative training.