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The authors examined the associations between acculturation, supervisors' multicultural competence, and clinicians' self-efficacy in a sample of 153 immigrant therapists currently practicing in the United States. Participants completed a demographic questionnaire and 3 additional questionnaires that examined their levels of acculturation, perceived supervisors' multicultural competence, and clinical self-efficacy. Results suggested that perceived prejudice, not level of acculturation, was significantly associated with foreign-born therapists' clinical self-efficacy. Perceived supervisors' multicultural competence was significantly associated with therapists' clinical self-efficacy. Recommendations for supervisors working with foreign-born therapists are provided.

Postmodern and evidence-based practice (EBP) are compared and contrasted with the primary aim of adapting evidence-based practice with a more flexible epistemological lens. We begin by reviewing the epistemological underpinnings of postmodern and EBP within the field of marriage and family therapy (MFT). We next discuss how these contrasting philosophies inform therapists' traits and practice in the context of translational research and practice-based evidence. Finally, we point toward some promising directions for a flexible adaptation of evidence-based practice in which both modern and postmodern clinicians can practice, and ways to incorporate some of these more flexible principles into the clinical training of MFT students.

We examined how children's, parents', and observers' perceptions of the marital relationship are linked with children's adjustment. Children's perceptions of the marital relationship were assessed using a new measure, the Interparental Relationship Interview for Children (IRIC). In the first phase of the study, 63 preschoolers, 63 mothers, and 56 fathers completed questionnaires assessing the interparental relationship. Teachers assessed the children's adjustment. In the second phase, 39 of the couples enacted a typical conflictual marital interaction. Findings established the reliability and validity of the IRIC and revealed that the IRIC uniquely contributes to the prediction of children's externalizing and internalizing behavior problems. Taken together, the different perspectives of the marital relationship explained 36% of the variance in children's externalizing behavior problems. These results suggest the promise of the IRIC and demonstrate the unique contribution of the young child's perspective.

This qualitative focus group study describes posttraumatic growth experiences of African American adolescents currently coping with parental breast cancer. Twelve adolescents participated in three focus groups assessing their experiences with [...]

The Person-of-the-Therapist Training (POTT) model has been developing and evolving since the late seventies. The current study explored the relationship between the personal self-of-the-therapist and the professional self-of-the-therapist within the POTT. A directed content analysis of the 18 trainees’ final reflection papers at the end of a 9-month POTT was conducted. Findings suggest that even though the training’s goal is improving trainees’ ability to use their selves in therapy, changes in the therapist’s self appear to expand to other areas in the therapist’s life. Thus, the road to becoming a more effective therapist goes through personal changes, specifically self-awareness and the acceptance of one’s own struggles and imperfections. Implications for training and future research are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

With the growing diversity in the United States among both clinicians and clients, many therapeutic encounters are cross-cultural, requiring providers to connect across cultural differences. Foreign-born therapists have many areas of differences to work through. Thus, exploring how foreign-born family therapists in the United States connect to their clients can uncover helpful strategies that all therapists can use to establish stronger cross-cultural therapeutic connections. A thematic analysis was conducted to understand strategies 13 foreign-born therapists used during therapeutic encounters. Four themes were identified: making therapy a human-to-human connection, dealing with stereotypes, what really matters, and flexibility. Findings suggest that developing a deep therapeutic connection using emotional attunement and human-to-human engagement is crucial for successful cross-cultural therapy. Clinical and training implications are provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Person-of-the-Therapist Training ( POTT) is a program designed to facilitate clinicians' ability to consciously and purposefully use themselves at the moment of contact with their clients in order to connect, assess, and intervene effectively. This qualitative study explored the experiences of 54 master's-level students who were enrolled in an accredited marriage and family therapy program in the United States and examined their perceived professional gains following a 9-month POTT course. Content analysis of trainees' reflections which they wrote at the end of the training revealed 6 primary themes: (a) increased awareness, (b) emotions, (c) improved clinical work, (d) humanity and woundedness, (e) meta-awareness, and (f) factors that contributed to the learning process. Findings suggest that key outcomes of this training curriculum are congruent with its stated goals. Clinical and training recommendations are additionally provided. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]