Where can psychologists turn to gain more cultural competence skills?
There are two issues here. First, formal training through workshops and academic work is required. However, that is not enough. Cultural competence is more than cognitive and intellectual understanding. If psychologists believe they need only specialized training, they will never become culturally competent. Cultural competence must be obtained through experiential reality. In this case, intimate contact with Asian Americans, their communities and with healthy members are paramount to understanding the group. Psychologists must realize that cultural competence is not acquired just through book learning and skills training alone. Q: Is becoming culturally competent equally important for researchers? A: Yes. Researchers are also representatives of their culture and society. If they are unaware of how their biases and values affect what and how they ask research questions, conduct research and interpret findings, then they may perpetuate stereotypes and create a biased knowledge base.-M.
