10. What are the major hurdles to reaching cultural competency?
11. Be aware of these qualities
Biases
Diversity
Stereotypes
• I acknowledge my personal values, biases,
Development
Different
assumptions, and stereotypes in the
workplace and private life.
Identities
Point of View
•Impact aware of my own cultural identities and
I am
Goals
recognize how culture has impacted my
personal interactions.
Assumptions
Ambiguity
• I can appreciate how diversity has benefited
and enriched my life’s experiences.
14. “One’s own culture provides the “lens” through which we
view the world; the “logic” . . by which we order it; the
“grammar”. . . by which it makes sense.”
Avruch and Black, 1993
What is Culture? Culture refers to the special background or characteristics which each person possesses.
Culture can include race, ethnicity, gender, orientation, demographics, and economics, i.e., culture of poverty.
Culture is also the shared values, traditions, norms, customs, arts, history, folklore and institutions of a group of people or individual.
What is a diversity? Diversity refers to all the ways that we are both similar and different.
Diversity encompasses more than race and gender to include all those differences that makes us unique.
The differences matter, especially the ones that may not matter to you, but may matter to someone else, like your clients.
What is cultural Competence? Cultural Competency refers to the process by which individuals and systems respond respectfully and effectively to people of all cultures, languages, classes, races, ethnic backgrounds, religions and other diversity factors in a manner that recognizes, affirms and values the worth of individuals, families and communities and protects and preserves the dignity of each.
Cultural Competence, the operational definition: The integration of knowledge about individuals, families and groups of people into specific standards, policies, practices and attitudes used in appropriate cultural setting to increase the quality of services, thereby producing better outcomes.
How do we want our clients to feel? Here are some examples:
I believe my provider likes me and is concerned about my well being.
My provider treats me with respect.
My race and/or ethnicity does not affect the quality of care I receive.
When I don’t understand what my provider says, I feel comfortable asking questions.
Diversity means acknowledging and valuing differences
Awareness and sensitivity to differences has to be followed by expanding knowledge of cultures being served and developing the skills for enabling more insight into clients’ cultural values.
Cultural competency is dynamic and ongoing process, much like culture is itself (not static)
Cultural Competence Focuses on three areas:
Attitudes
Knowledge
Skills
These are likened to the three legs of a stool. They need to be balanced because if one leg is too long or too short the stool gets wobbly.
Cultural competency is more than providing service to diverse populations. It is about developing attitudes, knowledge, and skills that challenge our assumptions and unconscious biases.
How can you be more culturally competent?
Value diversity
Develop capacity for cultural self-assessment
Understand the dynamics of the interaction between cultures
Institutionalize cultural knowledge
These five elements should be manifested at the policy making, administrative, and practice levels of the organization. . . . and should be reflected in the attitudes, structures, policies, and services of the organization.
There is no one recipe for cultural competency. It is an ongoing evaluation . . .an ongoing process.
Adapt service delivery based on an understanding of cultural diversity
What are the major hurdles to reaching cultural competency in an agency?
Recognizing differences among people of different ethnic, racial groups, social, economic groups.
Identifying communication barriers, i.e., need for interpreters, nuances of words, reluctance for clients to talk about personal matters.
Respect for belief systems of others and effects of those beliefs on individual behavior
Developing trust when clients inherently mistrust due to having been victims of personal, ethnic, institutional maltreatment.
Be aware of these qualities …
I acknowledge my personal values, biases, assumptions, and stereotypes in the workplace and private life.
I am aware of my own cultural identities and recognize how culture has impacted my personal interactions.
I can appreciate how diversity has benefited and enriched my life’s experiences.
I acknowledge my personal values, biases, assumptions, and stereotypes in the workplace and private life.
I am aware of my own cultural identities and recognize how culture has impacted my personal interactions.
I can appreciate how diversity has benefited and enriched my life’s experiences.
I recognize my own privileges and am able to articulate areas of disadvantages.
I am aware of my own developmental stage and am constantly working towards improvement.
I have knowledge of my personal diversity issues and am able to resist “getting hooked” by inflammatory statements or behaviors.
I am comfortable being with members of groups different from my own.
I am able to recognize different points of view, behaviors, values, and goals both with clients and co-workers.
I am comfortable communicating about diversity.
I am able to be flexible, non-judgmental, and tolerant of ambiguity, both with clients and co-workers.
What’s the point of being culturally competent? By being culturally competent, we can help the child, youth, and family – no matter how challenging the social and emotional distress – access quality services at the Center for Children and Families, Inc., within the context of their homes and community.
Oklahoma has a variety of faces …
Examples include:
- Native Americans
-Grandparents and relatives raising children
-Individuals of all ages with mental illness
-Gay, Lesbian, Bi-sexual, and Transgendered (GLBT)
-Developmentally disabled
-Generationally poor, middle class, wealthy
-African American families and individuals
-Pacific Islander families and individuals
-Hispanic families and individuals
-Rural, suburban, urban families and individuals
-Middle eastern families and individuals
-Adult survivors of childhood abuse, domestic violence, neglect
-Foster and adoptive families with children “from hard places”
-Limited educational experience to maximized educational experience (no GED to PhD)
-Faith communities (Islam, Christian, Jewish, other)
-Children of multi-ethnic and/or racial and cultural family of origin and extended families
-Gang members
-Released prisoners and families with family members in prison
-Families in specific neighborhoods, i.e., drug activity, absent parents, high move rates, family feuds, neighborhood fighting, etc.
-Families whose lives have been repeatedly punctuated with natural disasters, sudden and violent death, child deaths, and other tragedies
-Undocumented families and individuals
“One’s own culture provides the “lens” through which we view the world; the “logic” . . by which we order it; the “grammar”. . . by which it makes sense.”
The Cultural Sensitivity Continuum: Where do you fit?
Fear: others viewed with trepidation and contact is avoided
Denial: existence of the other is denied
Superiority: the other exists but is considered inferior
Minimization: the other is acknowledged, but the importance of cultural differences is minimized
Relativism: Differences are appreciated, noted, and valued
Empathy: Broader understanding of how others perceive the world and how they are treated is achieved
Integration: assessment of situations involving member of other cultures can be accomplished and appropriate actions undertaken.
Here is the link to set up your own access to Culture Vision, which is the tool that ODMHSAS makes available to agencies they contract with for utilization in the provision of services. ODMHSAS has agreed to allow us to use this tool for utilization with our clients.