What do culturally sensitive mental health services mean? The case of Hispanics.

Abstract

Three broad approaches to the development of culturally sensitive therapy programs were uncovered in the mental health literature on Hispanic populations: first, rendering traditional treatments more accessible to Hispanics; second, selecting available therapeutic modalities according to the perceived features of Hispanic culture; and third, extracting elements from Hispanic culture to modify traditional treatments or to use them as an innovative treatment tool. The conceptual order introduced into the meaning of culturally sensitive mental health services proceeds with descriptive accounts of diverse therapeutic programs within each of the three approaches. The article raises a fundamental question as to how the relationship between culture and therapy is conceived by clinical practitioners and how it ought to be conceived: Must the content of all culturally sensitive therapies stand in isomorphic, mirror-like relationship to the client's culture? Research seeking to evaluate a culturally sensitive therapy modality for children examines this question and invites more appropriate formulations relating culture to therapy.

Concordance among biological, interview, and self-report measures of drug use among African American and Hispanic adolescents referred for drug abuse treatment.

“…The third research objective explored the concordance among the drug use measures within a clinical sample of drug-abusing/dependent African American and Hispanic adolescents across assessment points. Differences across drug use assessments as well an array of cultural factors may influence the ways drug-abusing/dependent African American and Hispanic youth differentially respond to drug use assessment procedures (Rogler, Malgady, Costantino, & Blumenthal, 1998). These factors include negative attitudes about treatment and research, cultural mistrust, social desirability, and deference to perceived authority figures.…”

A Typology of Women's Use of Violence in Intimate Relationships

“…Acculturation has been defined as the process by which an immigrant's attitudes and behaviors change toward those of the predominant cultural group as a result of exposure to the new culture (Rogler, Malgady, Costantino, & Blumenthal, 1987). Recent studies indicate that couples who are in the midst of undergoing the acculturation process-who are in between the gender roles of the country of origin and those of the mainstream United States-may be at the highest risk of partner violence.…”

The Role of Culture in Health Communication

“…Because language is fundamental to effective communication, linguistic accessibility has been termed "the lowest common denominator of cultural sensitivity" (79). Linguistic strategies may involve creating program information in different languages or translating existing information from one language to another.…”