Mul/cultural Competence: Examining Awareness, Knowledge and Skills of School Psychologists J. Dixon, Ph.D., NCSP Eric Kuehn, M.Ed. & Robert University of Wisconsin-­‐La Crosse ABSTRACT School psychologists work with an increasingly
diverse range of students which challenges them to
develop their multicultural competencies.
Practitioners may vary in the proficiency of their
multicultural competence; therefore, continual
improvement and evaluation is necessary in order to
provide appropriate services for students and
families. This study identifies multicultural
competencies of practicing school psychologists
based on self-reports. Implications to practitioners
and training programs will be discussed.
INTRODUCTION •  Projections of increasing demographics in the
United States estimate non-Hispanic whites will
no longer make up the majority of the population
(46%) by 2042 (U.S. Census Bureau, 2012).
•  Demographics of the National Association of
School Psychologists reported that 91% of
respondents identified their ethnicity as white or
Caucasian (Curtis, Castillo, & Gelley, 2010).
•  Three common themes determine the amount of
multicultural competence of a practitioner:
awareness, knowledge and skills (Knoff, 2007).
•  Díaz-Lázaro & Cohen (2001) found that crosscultural contact is an important factor in the
foundation of multicultural competencies.
•  The purpose of this study is to explore the
differences among school psychologists’
multicultural competence (i.e., awareness,
knowledge and skills) based on years as a
practitioner and multicultural experiences.
METHODS Participants
•  90 of 289 school psychologists responded to the
survey (31% response rate).
•  Participants were accessed via the Wisconsin
School Psychologists Association mailing list.
•  Male: n = 21; Female: n = 69
RESEARCH POSTER PRESENTATION DESIGN © 2012
www.PosterPresentations.com
Demographics Area of Prac/ce 1% 1% 13% 44% 98% White Asian 43% Rural Suburban DISCUSSION & IMPLICATIONS RESULTS Urban Amer. Indian Instruments
•  Multicultural Competence: The Multicultural
Awareness, Knowledge and Skills Survey –
Counselor Edition Revised examines multicultural
competence via a self-report of awareness,
knowledge and skills.
•  Multicultural Experience: The Multicultural
Experience Inventory determines the extent of
interactions a person has with persons of racial,
disabled and sexual minorities.
•  The mean, standard deviation and internal
reliability of the scales were as follows:
Scale
Mean
SD
Min
Max
α
Awareness
2.51
.38
1.78
3.44
.67
Knowledge
2.86
.37
1.92
3.77
.85
Skills
3.00
.38
2.25
4.00
.78
Experience
1.52
.38
1.00
2.65
.90
•  Years as Practitioner: A median split determined:
•  Beginning professional (13 years or <, n = 43)
•  Experienced professional (> 13 years, n = 45)
•  Multicultural Experiences: A median split
determined:
•  Low experience (< 1.39, n = 40)
•  High experience (> 1.40, n = 48)
A MANOVA was conducted with the independent
variables of years as a practitioner and multicultural
experiences:
•  Multicultural experience: F(3, 82) = 3.95,
p = .01, η =.13
•  Years of Practice: F(3, 82) = .19, p > .05
•  Interaction: F(3, 82) = 1.27, p > .05
A subsequent ANOVA describes the impact of
multicultural experiences on multicultural
competence:
•  Awareness: F(1,84) = .10, p > .05
•  Knowledge: F(1,84) = 8.50, p < .05, η = .09
•  Skills: F(1,84) = 8.01, p < .05, η = .09
5 Mul/cultural Experiences 4 3 2.51 2.53 2.74 2.96 2.87 •
•
•
•
•
3.09 Multicultural experiences of school psychologists
impacted their knowledge and skills; however, it
did not impact awareness.
Participants tended to overestimate their
multicultural competence but recognized the
need for increased diversity opportunities to
develop their skills.
To move beyond awareness and positively
impact multicultural competence (i.e.,
knowledge and skills), training programs and
continuing professional development should
provide multicultural experiences and
opportunities.
Limitations: Sample demographics, limited
generalization to U.S. practitioners.
Implications to school psychologists:
Multicultural competence is a complex skill that
requires practitioners to engage in experiences
outside their comfort zone to effectively work
with diverse youth.
REFERENCES 2 1 Awareness Knowledge Low Skills High QUALITATIVE QUESTIONS Q1: On a scale of 1-10 (low-high), what would you
rate your overall multicultural competence?
•  34% reported a “7.” M = 6.16, SD = 1.59
Q2: What would help increase your overall
multicultural competence?
•  More opportunities or experiences with diverse
populations (n = 26).
•  Professional Development (n = 19).
Q3: What barriers exist?
•  Location/limited interactions (n = 20).
•  Time/other priorities in the district (n = 17).
Curtis, M. J., Castillo, J. M., & Gelley, C. (2010). School
psychology 2010: Demographics, employment, and
the context for professional practices—part 1.
Communiqué, 40(7).
Díaz-Lázaro, C., & Cohen, B. (2001). Cross-cultural
contact in counseling training. Journal of
multicultural counseling and development, 29(1),
41-56. doi:10.1002/j.21611912.2001.tb 00502.x.
Kim, B. J. (2003). A revision of the multicultural
awareness, knowledge, and skills survey-counselor
edition. Measurement & evaluation in counseling &
development (American counseling association),
36(3), 161.
Ramirez, M. (1999). Psychotherapy and counseling with
minorities: A cognitive approach to individual and
cultural differences. Boston: Allyn & Bacon.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS •  University of Wisconsin-La Crosse Graduate Studies
Office for support of this research project.