Cultural Understanding in Clinical Psychology

In clinical psychology, a respect and understanding of cultural differences is vital. Patients who come from different cultures racially, religiously, geographically and econmically will have different needs, bias and expectations. The clinical psychologist must foster an understanding and put away their own cultural bias and expectations in order to provide a comfortable, therapeutic environment.  This need for culutral understanding extends into all areas associated with clinical psychology.

Cultural limitations include different educational backgrounds and emphasis as well as an understanding of common experience. Most psychological tests are based on common experience. For example, in Western cultures, killing domesticated pets is considered an early sign of anti-social behavior that can lead to more dangerous behavior as a child grows. In Eastern and third-world countries, killing a domesticated pet (such as a dog or a cat) may be the only way to survive. Without context, these cultural differences can skew the assessment and future treatment options.

Middle Eastern cultures, particularly orthodox Muslims, put a high value on modesty and concealment of issues. It is difficult to enter into an open and honest dialogue about potential marital issues in this type of situation if the Western psychologist believes that orthodox culture is oppressing the patient or client. This can make determining treatment for any disorder difficult. Understanding and respecting these cultural differences may be difficult for a treating psychologist, but if they do not attempt to do so, their ability to treat their patient will be  hindered

Plante, T. G. (2005). Contemporary Clinical Psychology (2nd ed.). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley