Week 4:Cultural Competency, What does it mean to be culturally competent? This question is the foundation for your examination of issues related to diversity and social justice this week. Culture influences all people and the lenses through which they view the world. Because the world comprises many cultures, these different perspectives represent opportunities for individuals to learn from one another, but they may become sources of conflict as well.

Diversity encompasses more than racial and ethnic identities—issues such as class and gender cannot be ignored in discussions of cultural competency.

Students will:

• Analyze client needs through different cultural lenses
• Apply multiple perspectives in treating clients
• Analyze strategies for increasing cultural competency within organizations
• Analyze strategies for developing cultural competency in administrative practice

Week 4:Cultural Competency

Learning Resources

Required Readings

Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and practice (6th ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publications

Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications via the Copyright Clearance Center.

• Chapter 15, “Culture and Leadership” (pp. 383–421)

Required Media

Laureate Education (Producer). (2014a). Cortez case study [Multimedia]. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Optional Resources

Walden University. (2014). Master of Social Work home page. Retrieved from https://class.waldenu.edu

Visit the Master of Social Work interactive home page to explore resources available to students in the program.

Week 4:Cultural Competency

Discussion 1: Looking Through Different Lenses

As a social worker, you bring your own lens—that is, your own set of assumptions, biases, beliefs, and interpretations—into your interactions with clients and the human services professionals with whom you collaborate. Human services organizations have their own cultures that influence their organizational lenses.

An organizational lens reflects key assumptions about the individuals to whom the organization provides services. These assumptions influence the organization’s policies and procedures which, in turn, impact service delivery. For example, an organization that focuses on understanding the perspectives of the clients it serves may allow clients to provide feedback about their client experience through membership on advisory boards or boards of directors.

The clients may have the power to make recommendations and decisions about the organization’s policies and procedures.

Understanding cultural lenses—your personal lens, as well as those of the organizations and other individuals with whom you work and interact—will enable you to better serve your clients.

Focus on the Paula Cortez case study for this Discussion. In this case study, four professionals present their perspectives on the Paula Cortez case. These workers could view Paula’s case through a variety of cultural lenses, including socioeconomic, gender, ethnicity, and mental health. For this Discussion, you take the role of the social worker on the case and interpret Paula’s case using two of these lenses.

By Day 3

Post how you, as a social worker, might interpret the needs of Paula Cortez, the client, through the two cultural lenses you selected. Then, explain how, in general, you would incorporate multiple perspectives of a variety of stakeholders and/or human services professionals as you treat clients.

Support your post with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.

By Day 5

Respond to at least two colleagues in the following ways:

• Address a colleague’s post that differs from yours with regard to at least one cultural lens and expand upon the colleague’s interpretation of Paula’s needs.
• Explain whether you might use your colleague’s strategy for addressing multiple perspectives when treating clients, and explain why.

Return to this Discussion to read the responses to your initial post. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you gained as a result of the comments your colleagues made.

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 4 Discussion 1 Rubric

Post by Day 3 and Respond by Day 5

To participate in this Discussion:

Week 4 Discussion 1

Week 4:Cultural Competency

Discussion 2: Administration and Culturally Competent Advocacy

Social work administrators can use their roles as leaders to increase cultural competency within their organizations and, thus, help to create positive social change. As social work administrators critically assess situations in which social injustice or inequality has taken place, they may discover an organizational need for increased cultural competency.

However, changing the culture of an organization is not an easy task since administrators must address personal and organizational assumptions about diversity and cultural competency simultaneously.

For this Discussion, consider how social work administrators might apply their leadership roles to increase cultural competency within their organizations.

By Day 4

Post at least two strategies social workers may use to become advocates for social change through cultural competence. In addition, identify at least two challenges administrators may face in developing cultural competency within their organizations.

Support your post with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.

By Day 6

Read a selection of your colleagues’ posts.

Respond by to at least two colleagues who identified strategies and/or challenges that differ from the ones you posted, and respond in at least one of the following ways:

• State whether you think the strategies your colleague identified would be effective in advocating for social change through cultural competence, and explain why.
• Identify a strategy social work administrators might use to address one of the challenges your colleague identified, and explain why this strategy might be effective.

Return to this Discussion to read the responses to your initial post. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you gained as a result of the comments your colleagues made.

Submission and Grading Information

Grading Criteria

To access your rubric:

Week 4 Discussion 2 Rubric

Post by Day 4 and Respond by Day 6

To participate in this Discussion:

Week 4 Discussion 2

Week 4:Cultural Competency

Week in Review

This week you analyzed client needs through different cultural lenses and applied multiple perspectives in treating clients. You also analyzed strategies for increasing and developing cultural competence in organizations and administrative practice.

Next week you will focus on how to best plan for change by taking proactive steps to help prepare organizations respond to changes that occur both inside and outside the organization.

To go to the next week:

Week 5