Clinical Supervision Handbook - CAMH Knowledge Exchange ..

Cultural Competence and Clinical Supervision
Supervisors can influence clinicians by helping them investigate ways to maintain
language competency while communicating or when trying to understand the
diverse communication styles of their clients. In supervision, they can share valid
and reliable assessment tools and techniques (Gopaul-McNicol, 2001; Paniagua, 1998).
Supervisors can also use a variety of strategies to address issues of diversity, race and
culture. However, a willingness to engage in ongoing self-examination and an openness
to new and unknown information are foundational requisites for these strategies
(Tummala-Narra, 2004). Some approaches to develop cultural competence include
role play, interpersonal process recall, first person feedback and metaphor (for a
detailed discussion see Cashwell et al., 1997; Divac & Heaphy, 2005; Hernandez, 2003).
Tummala–Narra (2004) describes four strategies that can be utilized by supervisors:
• increasing cultural knowledge
• initiating the discussion of race and culture
• attending to transferential responses
• engaging in multicultural education.
Although no individual is expected to have detailed knowledge about every cultural
group, it is important for supervisors to attain a “reasonable” level of cultural awareness,
knowledge and range of communication skills in order to model these to their supervisees
(Garret et al., 2001). This generic cultural knowledge includes knowledge of:
• institutional barriers that prevent some clients from using mental health services
• history, experience and consequences of oppression, prejudice, discrimination,
racism and structural inequalities
• the heterogeneity that exists within and across cultural groups and the need to
avoid overgeneralization and negative stereotyping (Haarmans, 2004).
While it may be important at times for the supervisor to ask the supervisee about
issues pertinent to a particular cultural group (or for the therapist to ask a client),
such inquiries should not be considered sufficient to serve as a knowledge base that
guides supervision or psychotherapeutic interventions (Tummala-Narra, 2004).
Supervisors and clinicians need to make a commitment to acquire such knowledge
as part of their ongoing learning, and use the supervisee or client to validate the
issues pertinent to them as members of particular groups.
Initiating discussion of cultural and diversity issues is another recommended strategy.
Such initiation by the supervisor recognizes the power dynamics of the relationship
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