Culturally Sensitive Treatment of Black Alcoholic Families

Abstract Background: Despite conflicting results in the literature concerning its efficacy in practice, racial matching has been identified as a component of culturally sensitive treatment. Methods: This study examined the perceived importance and prevalence of racial matching by surveying a national sample of substance abuse treatment centers from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). Results: Using univariate statistical analysis, results for the prevalence of racial matching revealed that in 58% of the clinics, there was the potential to match a counselor with a racially similar client, while in 39% of the clinics, there was no potential to provide such a match. Among the agencies that displayed a potential for racial matching, 26% of the respondents indicated that they never racially matched clients and therapists, 71% reported that they sometimes practice racial matching, 15% indicated that they usually racially match, and only 7% purported to always racially match clients and therapists. Results for the perceived importance of racial matching revealed that in both situations where treatment centers had the potential for racial matching and did not have the potential for racial matching, supervisors reported that it was relatively important to provide culturally sensitive treatment but that it was not as important to match clients in substance abuse centers with racially/ethnically similar counselors. Conclusion: The topic of racial matching can be very complex and has shown variation amongst substance abuse centers; however, this study emphasizes the importance of providing culturally sensitive treatment and an appreciation of differences among members within each racial group. Keywords: culturally responsive counseling; cross-racial counseling; addictions treatment

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Culturally sensitive treatment: Cuento and hero/heroine modeling therapies for Hispanic children and adolescents.

Psychosocial treatments for child and adolescent disorders: Empirically based strategies for clinical practice. ◽

10.1037/10196-025 ◽

1996 ◽

pp. 639-669 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Giuseppe Costantino ◽

Robert G. Malgady

Keyword(s):

Children And Adolescents ◽

Culturally Sensitive ◽

Hispanic Children ◽

Culturally Sensitive Treatment

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Adapting CBT for traumatized refugees and ethnic minority patients: Examples from culturally adapted CBT (CA-CBT)

Transcultural Psychiatry ◽

10.1177/1363461512441595 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 49 (2) ◽

pp. 340-365 ◽

Cited By ~ 74

Author(s):

Devon E. Hinton ◽

Edwin I. Rivera ◽

Stefan G. Hofmann ◽

David H. Barlow ◽

Michael W. Otto

Keyword(s):

Ethnic Minority ◽

Behavioral Therapy ◽

Somatic Symptoms ◽

Psychological Flexibility ◽

Culturally Sensitive ◽

Minority Populations ◽

Comorbid Anxiety ◽

Culturally Adapted ◽

Ethnic Minority Populations ◽

Culturally Sensitive Treatment

In this article, we illustrate how cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can be adapted for the treatment of PTSD among traumatized refugees and ethnic minority populations, providing examples from our treatment, culturally adapted CBT, or CA-CBT. CA-CBT has a unique approach to exposure (typical exposure is poorly tolerated in these groups), emphasizes the treatment of somatic sensations (a particularly salient part of the presentation of PTSD in these groups), and addresses comorbid anxiety disorders and anger. To accomplish these treatment goals, CA-CBT emphasizes emotion exposure and emotion regulation techniques such as meditation and aims to promote emotional and psychological flexibility. We describe 12 key aspects of adapting CA-CBT that make it a culturally sensitive treatment of traumatized refugee and ethnic minority populations. We discuss three models that guide our treatment and that can be used to design culturally sensitive treatments: (a) the panic attack–PTSD model to illustrate the many processes that generate PTSD in these populations, highlighting the role of arousal and somatic symptoms; (b) the arousal triad to demonstrate how somatic symptoms are produced and the importance of targeting comorbid anxiety conditions and psychopathological processes; and (c) the multisystem network (MSN) model of emotional state to reveal how some of our therapeutic techniques (e.g., body-focused techniques: bodily stretching paired with self-statements) bring about psychological flexibility and improvement.

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