Dissertation Writers: Discussing Psychological Services to Ethnic, Linguistic, and Culturally Diverse Populations
Discussing Psychological Services to Ethnic, Linguistic, and Culturally Diverse Populations
There is increasing motivation among psychologists to understand culture and ethnicity factors in order to provide appropriate psychological services. This increased motivation for improving quality of psychological services to ethnic and culturally diverse populationsis attributable, in part, to the growing political and social presence of diverse cultural groups, both within APA and in the larger society. New sets of values, beliefs, and cultural expectations have been introduced into educational, political, business, and healthcare systems by the physical presence of these groups. The issues of language and culture do impact on the provision of appropriate psychological services.
Psychological service providers need a sociocultural framework to consider diversity of values, interactional styles, and cultural expectations in a systematic fashion. They need knowledge and skills for multicultural assessment and intervention, including abilities to:
- recognize cultural diversity;
- understand the role that culture and ethnicity/race play in the sociopsychological and economic development of ethnic and culturally diverse populations;
- understand that socioeconomic and political factors significantly impact the psychosocial, political and economic development of ethnic and culturally diverse groups;
- help clients to understand/maintain/resolve their own sociocultural identification; and understand the interaction of culture, gender, and sexual orientation on behavior and needs.
