Marriage and Family Therapy Students’ Views on Including Weight Bias Training into Their Clinical Programs

Abstract

Discussions about diversity rarely focus on overweight, obesity, and bias about body size (i.e., weight bias). These discussions allow students to develop selfawareness about how their biases can affect their clinical work, as well as the challenges and subsequent bias clients may face in their everyday lives and from clinical providers. One consequence of the rising prevalence of overweight and obesity in the United States is the increase in the level of weight bias and discrimination towards individuals who are overweight, which has been documented among mental and healthcare professionals. Thus, it is imperative that training programs integrate weight bias as a part of diversity training. The authors will review weight bias in mental and healthcare professions, and describe several trainings focused on self-awareness about weight bias. The purpose of this study was to pilot and evaluate a training program for marriage and family therapy (MFT) students about developing self-awareness around weight bias and working with clients who are overweight. Following the program, focus groups were conducted to explore participants' experiences, learning, and feedback on the content and delivery method. Focus Group methodology was used to guide the analysis process. Four themes emerged: training program feedback, challenges for the MFT field, self-of-therapist, and etiology of weight loss/gain. Implications for MFT training programs are discussed.

The Meaning of Obesity among Marriage and Family Therapists

“…This study also highlights and confirms other findings that reflect that the role of bias merits consideration when developing training programs, some of which may be shaped by personal experiences. These findings remain consistent with previous research that indicated that a lack of clinical training and bias towards persons experiencing weight-related issues, such as obesity [7], can serve to influence how therapists interact with obese patients in their future work. While revamping the training process [6] prefaces the idea that instructors in the MFT programs must ensure that student clinicians receive the necessary tools to provide sensitive treatment to clients impacted by obesity, it is also pertinent that future research focus not only on biases about clients, but therapists' own personal perceptions and experiences regarding weight as well.…”

“…Similar to previous studies [7], some participants in the study struggled with the notion of what their roles entail in working with obese clients. This study also highlights and confirms other findings that reflect that the role of bias merits consideration when developing training programs, some of which may be shaped by personal experiences.…”

“…Likewise, other researchers have indicated that weight bias education may be needed within marriage and family therapy training programs as an increasing number of therapists interact with obese populations. For example, Pratt et al [7] conducted a study among 162 marriage and family therapy students and found that some therapists present an explicit weight bias. If marriage and family therapy educators do not adequately train students on how to broach working with obese clients, they may adversely impact client outcomes (engagement in treatment and adherence to treatment among therapists and other medical professionals) when they matriculate into the field.…”

“…If marriage and family therapy educators do not adequately train students on how to broach working with obese clients, they may adversely impact client outcomes (engagement in treatment and adherence to treatment among therapists and other medical professionals) when they matriculate into the field. In addition, other researchers have explored the topic of weight bias in the field of marriage and family therapy and have suggested that it definitely deserves attention in the process of training therapists to work in the field of obesity and weight-related behaviors [7]. The focus of this study was to explore the meaning of obesity among Marriage and Family Therapists-specifically to explore epistemology as it relates to obesity among Marriage and Family Therapists.…”

“…While some students may gain exposure and training specifically in working with obese populations during their internship experiences, the standard preparation process for potentially working with this population during the didactic portion of these students' clinical training remains unclear. With the exception of a few studies [6][7][8], there has been a lack of discussion regarding the training methods used to prepare marriage and family therapists to work with obese populations. In addition, the existing work has been focused on perspectives of treatment, with limited exploration regarding epistemology, knowledge, and perceptions of obesity as a phenomenon and as a clinical treatment issue.…”