CULTURAL COMPETENCIES

Awareness of My Cultural Values and Biases

A. With respect to attitudes and beliefs, I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

5 believe that cultural self-awareness and sensitivity to my own cultural heritage is essential.

3 am aware of how my own cultural background and experiences have influenced attitudes, values, and biases about these aspects of my work.

5 am able to recognize the limits of my multicultural competencies and expertise.

4 recognize my sources of discomfort with differences that exist between myself and others in terms of race, ethnicity, culture, social class and sexual orientation.

B. With respect to knowledge, I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

4 have specific knowledge about my own racial and cultural heritage and how it personally and professionally affects my approach to my coworkers and clients/customers.

5 possess knowledge and understanding about how oppression, racism., discrimination, and stereotyping affects me personally and in my work. (This allows individuals to acknowledge our own racist attitudes, beliefs, and feelings.)

3 possess knowledge about my social impact on others.

C. With respect to skills,I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

4 seek out educational, consultative, and training experiences to improve my understanding and effectiveness in working with culturally different populations.

4 am constantly seeking to understand themselves as racial and cultural beings and are actively seeking inclusive ways of thinking and acting.

Understanding the Client/Colleague's Worldview

A. With respect to attitudes and beliefs,I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

5 am aware of my negative and positive emotional reactions toward other racial and ethnic groups that may prove detrimental to my work. I am willing to contrast my own beliefs and attitudes with those of my culturally different coworkers and clients/customers in a non-judgmental fashion.

5 am aware of stereotypes and preconceived notions that I may hold toward other racial and ethnic minority groups.

B. With respect to knowledge,I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

3 possess specific knowledge and information about the particular client group with whom I am working.

4 understand how race, culture, ethnicity, and so forth may affect the perspectives, values and skills of others.

C. With respect to skills,I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

4 Watch my news sources for articles related to coworkers and customers/clients who are different from me.

4 become actively involved with minority individuals outside my work setting so that my perspective of minorities is more than an academic or training exercise.

Developing Culturally Appropriate Intervention Strategies and Techniques

A. With respect to attitudes and beliefs,I, as I strive to be a culturally competent person,

5 respect clients'/colleagues' religious and spiritual beliefs and values, including attributions and taboos, because these affect worldview, workplace functioning, and expressions of distress.

B. With respect to knowledge, I, as I strive to be a culturally competent professional,

4 have knowledge of family structures, hierarchies, values, and beliefs from various cultural perspectives. I am knowledgeable about the community where a particular cultural group may reside and the resources in the community.

5 am aware of relevant discriminatory practices at the social and the community level that may affect the wellbeing of my coworkers and customers/clients.

C. With respect to skills,I, as I strive to be a culturally competent professional,

5 am able to engage in a variety of verbal and nonverbal responses. I am able to send and receive both verbal and nonverbal messages accurately and appropriately.

3 am able to exercise institutional intervention skills on behalf of my coworkers and customers/clients. I can be an ally for those who are unfamiliar with the unwritten 'rules' of our workplace.

4 take responsibility for interacting in the language of my customers/clients and, if not feasible, make appropriate referrals.

Using those criteria presented in this assessment using ratings, how would you assess their current overall degree of cultural competence? What are their current areas of strength? What areas do they need to develop in order to expand your cultural competence? Select 3 of these items; for each one share their self-rating and discuss what your next step could be for them to improve in this area