Examining the Relationships Between Multicultural Counseling Competence, Multicultural Self-Efficacy, and Ethnic Identity Development of Practicing Counselors

Abstract

The present study investigated the relationship between cultural competence, multicultural self-efficacy, and ethnic identity among professional counselors (n = 172). Researchers found a moderate positive correlation between cultural competence and multicultural ethnic identity, r = .41, p < .01, and between ethnic identity and multicultural self-efficacy, r = .31, p < .01. Additionally, there was a large positive correlation between cultural competency and multicultural self-efficacy, r = .61, p < .01. Finally, results from a hierarchical multiple regression indicated that ethnic identity and multicultural self-efficacy accounted for 42.4% of the variance in multicultural counseling competence after controlling for social desirability, F(3, 159) = 38.99, p < .001. Discussion of the results, implications for the counseling profession, and areas for future research are explored.

Counselors-in-Training Reactions to Clients Living with and without HIV

“…The positive significant relationships between counselor self-efficacy and multicultural knowledge, and skills, demonstrates the strong link between each of these variables. Therefore, knowing that CIT self-efficacy was lacking when working with clients living with HIV, self-efficacy may increase as multicultural knowledge and skills increase (Matthews et al, 2018). Likewise, if CITs were able to gain additional self-efficacy in working with these clients, we would hope to see an increase in their overall multicultural competence as well (Barden & Greene, 2014).…”

“…Training and level of education have been found to be significant predictors of CSE levels; however, negative implications may be present in terms of lower selfefficacy for students in counseling programs with a limited multicultural training approach (Lopez-Baez & Paylo, 2009). Further, relationships exist between cultural competence and multicultural self-efficacy (Matthews, Barden, & Sherrell, 2018), suggesting that increasing students' multicultural training could bring about benefits in self-efficacy as well.…”

Multicultural and Social Justice Counseling Competency Research: Opportunities for Innovation

“…Survey data indicate that counselors perceive themselves as moderately competent in terms of multicultural awareness and knowledge (Barden, Sherrell, & Matthews, 2017; Holcomb‐McCoy & Myers, 1999) and social justice counseling competency (Crook, Stenger, & Gesselman, 2015), particularly those with higher racial identity development statuses (e.g., Chao, 2012, 2013; Johnson & Jackson Williams, 2015) and greater counseling self‐efficacy (e.g., Crockett & Hays, 2015; Matthews, Barden, & Sherrell, 2018). Furthermore, those who report higher levels of multicultural counseling competency also indicate greater perceived competency working with clients of color (Worthington, Soth‐McNett, & Moreno, 2007), individuals in poverty (Clark, Moe, & Hays, 2017), transgender and gender‐nonconforming people (Couture, 2017; Dispenza & O’Hara, 2016), and individuals of a variety of spiritual or religious backgrounds (Dailey et al, 2015).…”

“…A disconnect between these concepts and available assessment tools may be a result of a second limitation: the insufficient psychometric evidence available for these tools. First, scales tend to be normed and validated with primarily White counselor trainees; a lack of professional counselor or diverse trainee samples (Dunn et al, 2006; Matthews et al, 2018) likely limits the variability of the constructs being measured and thus restricts their definitions (Dillon et al, 2016). Second, scholars in counseling and related disciplines note that there is limited evidence of content validity (Drinane et al, 2016) and construct validity—especially divergent validity (Dunn et al, 2006; Soto et al, 2018).…”

Yabanci Uyruklu Öğrenci̇lerle Çalişan Psi̇koloji̇k Danişmanlarin Öz Yeterli̇li̇kleri̇ İle Çok Kültürlülük Algilari Arasindaki̇ İli̇şki̇ni̇n İncelenmesi̇

“…Danışanın danışma sürecine getirdiği durumların psikolojik danışmanın değer yargılarıyla anlaşılması zor olabilir. Anlaşılmasının ötesinde psikolojik danışman yargılayıcı bir tutuma bürünebilir ancak yargısız bir dinleme ve danışanın içinde bulunduğu kültürü tanıması ve danışanı bu kültürün içinde koşulsuz kabul etmesiyle danışma süreci sağlıklı yürüyebilir (Pedersen, 1991;Matthews, Barden, Sherrell, 2018;Ridley vd. 2021).…”