Deck 2: What It Means to Be Culturally Competent

Question 1

Discuss how changing demographics in the United States have created a greater need for cultural competence among human service practitioners.

Answer 1

Answers will vary.

Question 2

Which of the following factors contribute most substantially to demographic shifts in the U.S. population?

A)Increased self-identification to minority groups
B)Lower mortality rates among minorities
C)Increased immigration and birthrate
D)Changing labor demographics

Answer 2

Increased immigration and birthrate

Question 3

Consider the continuum of cultural competence in agencies developed by Cross et al. What level of cultural competence would be assigned to an agency that unintentionally promotes racial bias, discriminates in hiring, and holds lower expectations for clients of color?

A)Cultural destructiveness
B)Cultural incapacity
C)Cultural blindness
D)Cultural pre-competence

Answer 3

Cultural incapacity

Question 4

Under which of the following stages of the cultural competence continuum do most agencies fall?

A)Cultural blindness
B)Basic cultural competence
C)Cultural pre-competence
D)Cultural proficiency

Question 5

What unique activities do agencies in the cultural proficiency stage of the cultural competence continuum undertake?

A)Providing competent cross-cultural service delivery
B)Seeking advice from minority communities
C)Hiring providers of color
D)Advocacy and research related to multiculturalism in the health care system

Question 6

Which statement best summarizes Cross et al.'s perspective on family and its role in a culturally competent care system?

A)Family, as defined by the client's culture, should be understood as the context within which the client functions.
B)Family dynamics often contribute to client issues and therefore should not be a primary point of intervention.
C)Family definitions tend to be consistent throughout minority ethnic groups.
D)The family unit is unlikely to be the primary support system when church and community resources are available.

Question 7

Unlike earlier U.S. immigration patterns, approximately one-third of all immigrants are from ________.

A)Eastern Europe
B)Western Europe
C)Central and South America
D)Africa

Question 8

Which of the following processes defined by Fisher and the APA discusses the creative application of APA ethics code to fit individual cultural context?

A)Multicultural ethical commitment
B)Multicultural ethical awareness
C)Goodness of fit ethics
D)Multicultural ethical decision-making

Question 9

Which of the following statements does NOT describe an agency in the cultural blindness stage on the cultural competence continuum?

A)It avoids victim blaming by blaming society for clients' problems.
B)It ignores the cultural strengths and uniqueness of people of color.
C)It applies dominant culture approaches to all clients.
D)It ultimately fails to provide unbiased service.

Question 10

Which of the following is NOT a characteristic of a culturally skilled counselor, as defined by Arrendondo et al.?

A)Awareness of his or her own assumptions, values, and biases
B)Understanding of the cultural competence of various local agencies
C)Understanding of the culturally diverse clients' worldviews
D)Awareness of culturally appropriate intervention strategies

Question 11

Which of the following processes defined by Fisher and the APA implies that helpers must be knowledgeable about cultural differences and how they affect the expression and solution of ethical problems?

A)Multicultural ethical commitment
B)Multicultural ethical awareness
C)Goodness of fit ethics
D)Multicultural ethical decision-making

Question 12

A human service practitioner appreciates the impact of her own ethnicity and racial attitudes on potential clients and actively works to limit the impact of such factors. Into which of Cross et al.'s individual cultural competence skill areas does this fall?

A)Self-awareness
B)Adaptation of skills
C)Knowledge of the client's culture
D)Dynamics of difference

Question 13

Which of the following is NOT noted as a reaction to growing diversification in the U.S. population?

A)Return to "traditional values"
B)Strained relations among people of color
C)Anti-immigrant sentiment
D)Anti-affirmative action sentiment

Question 14

Agencies in the cultural pre-competence stage of cultural competence often have a difficult time making progress, despite sincere efforts. What are some of the underlying reasons for this stunted development?

Question 15

Why is it important to personalize conversations about culture and race in a learning environment?

A)It builds support groups for students struggling with race-related content.
B)It minimizes name-calling and labeling.
C)It acts as a mechanism for students to recognize and take responsibility for their own biases and experiences.
D)It ensures confidentiality rules will be respected.

Question 16

A human service practitioner is aware of potential cross-cultural miscommunication. Into which of Cross et al.'s individual cultural competence skill areas does this fall?

A)Self-awareness
B)Adaptation of skills
C)Awareness and acceptance
D)Dynamics of difference

Question 17

Describe the importance of self-honesty in the pursuit of cultural competence.

Question 18

According to Bennett, ethnorelativism is:

A)the perspective that values and identity are not ethnically bound.
B)the perspective that behavior is assessed in relation to one's own cultural standards.
C)the perspective that behavior can only be understood within a cultural context.
D)the perspective that values are constructed by culture.

Question 19

Two qualities critical to one's pursuit of cultural competence are sustained commitment and ________.

A)selflessness
B)self-honesty
C)aggressiveness
D)detachment

Question 20

Discuss how a move toward ethnorelatism transforms your thinking and prepares you for working more effectively with culturally diverse clients.

Question 21

Describe the difference between multicultural ethical commitment and multicultural ethical awareness. Discuss how they support each other in ethical decision making.

Question 22

Knowledge of the client's culture is one of Cross et al.'s five cultural competence skill areas. Given that it is impossible to know every culture in depth, what can service providers do to ensure they bring the appropriate understanding into their interaction with clients?