The proposed research will investigate the extent to which recent advances in the understanding of cultural diversity in psychological processes are being integrated into the practice of clinical psychology and the training of clinical psychologist in the United States.
Specific aims of the research are to (I) asses the state of expert clinical knowledge regarding the influence of socio- cultural factors on cognitive affective and somatic expects of the person and on """"""""personhood"""""""" itself (2) describe and critique the conceptual models of culture race and ethnicity that inform current multicultural approaches in mental health research and practice and (3) illuminate the implicit theories used by psychologists to resolve apparent tensions between respect for individual experience, cultural) difference and universal psychological processes. The project will employ a qualitative ethnographic interpretive research paradigm based on the methods of cultural psychology. Data will be collected during structured interviews with 40 clinical psychologists and from 50 multicultural curricula of clinical psychology graduate programs around the country. The interview data will undergo rigorous content analysis in order to provide insight into how clinical psychologists are responding to the call for responsive and meaningful treatment among a population that is increasingly diverse as well as increasingly committed to maintaining traditional cultural understandings lifestyle and identities. Through this contribution to the literature on culture and mental health, the project endeavors to son out the heterogeneous set of multicultural agendas that abound in professional discourse in the hope that clarity can produce purpose, old debates can be transcended and social science can continue to contribute to the quality of mental health services available during the coming decades. The project will also have implications for the study of social and group processes. Research-clinical dialogue, and theories relating collective meaning to individual experience.
