Training of Cross-cultural Competencies in Psychotherapists

Healthy Volunteers Clinical Trial

Official title:

Evaluation of an Internet-based Training Program to Improve Cross-cultural Competencies in Psychotherapists

Clinical Trial Details — Status: Completed

Administrative data

• NCT number: NCT03038347
• Other study ID #: Cross-cultural psychotherapy
• Status: Completed
• Phase: N/A
• Start date: September 15, 2020
• Est. completion date: August 31, 2022

Study information

• Verified date: November 2022
• Source: Philipps University Marburg Medical Center
• Contact: n/a
• Is FDA regulated: No
• Study type: Interventional

Clinical Trial Summary

The purpose of this study is to determine whether a web-based training program with text-based information as well as practical exercises can improve cross-cultural competencies in therapists.

Description:

As the number of patients from diverse cultures increases in psychotherapeutic care, cross-cultural competencies of therapists become increasingly important. In particular, mental health care of patients with immigration background needs to be improved as studies show that these patients drop out of treatment more often and benefit less from therapy. In addition, patients with immigration background and refugees show higher prevalences in mental illnesses. Nevertheless, evaluated training programs to improve cross-cultural competencies in psychotherapists are lacking. In particular, web-based training programs, which allow therapists to work time-flexible and at their own pace on a training, are, to date, missing completely.

For the current study, a web-based training program to improve therapists' cross-cultural competencies was developed. It is based on existing conceptions of cross-cultural competencies. The developed program consists of six modules with the following contents: definitions and conceptions of culture, the role of cross-cultural competencies in psychotherapy, the influence of prejudices and discrimination as well as the role of migration and acculturation, and culturally sensitive diagnostics. The modules contain PDF-files with text-based information, video files, case studies with associated questions as well as practical exercises. The main focus of the training is the participants' self-reflection concerning their conceptions of (their own) culture and their beliefs about culturally diverse patients. The training group will be compared to two other groups, i.e. an education only and a waitlist control group. Whereas the waitlist control group will not receive any training materials, the education only group will receive a slimmed down version of the training consisting only of text-based information files.

Recruitment information / eligibility

• Status: Completed
• Enrollment: 173
• Est. completion date: August 31, 2022
• Est. primary completion date: December 31, 2021
• Accepts healthy volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers
• Gender: All
• Age group: N/A and older

Eligibility

Inclusion Criteria:

• current psychotherapeutic work

• Internet access

• sufficient German language skills

• ongoing or completed training in Psychotherapy

Exclusion Criteria:

• too much previous knowledge about cross-cultural competencies (> 10h training)

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Healthy Volunteers

Intervention

Behavioral:
• Training
Six modules containing PDF-files with text-based information, video files, case studies with associated questions and practical exercises. Participants can download the modules and associated materials from an online platform they need to register for. They receive access to modules and associated exercises once a week. After six weeks the training is completed.
• Education only
Six modules containing only PDF-files with text-based information. Participants can download the modules and associated materials from an online platform they need to register for. They receive access to modules once a week. After six weeks the education is completed.

Locations

Country	Name	City	State
Germany	Philipps University Marburg	Marburg	Hessen

Sponsors (2)

Lead Sponsor	Collaborator
Philipps University Marburg Medical Center	Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin

Country where clinical trial is conducted

Germany, 

References & Publications (8)

Fazel M, Wheeler J, Danesh J. Prevalence of serious mental disorder in 7000 refugees resettled in western countries: a systematic review. Lancet. 2005 Apr 9-15;365(9467):1309-14. Review. — View Citation

Gaitanides, S. (2001). Zugangsbarrieren von Migrant (inn) en zu den sozialen und psychosozialen Diensten und Strategien interkultureller Öffnung. In G. Auernheimer (Hrsg.), Migration als Herausforderung für pädagogische Institutionen (pp. 181-194). Wiesbaden: Springer Fachmedien.

Mösko MO, Pradel S, Schulz H. [The care of people with a migration background in psychosomatic rehabilitation]. Bundesgesundheitsblatt Gesundheitsforschung Gesundheitsschutz. 2011 Apr;54(4):465-74. doi: 10.1007/s00103-011-1245-x. German. — View Citation

Mösko, M., Baschin, K., Längst, G., & von Lersner, U. (2012). Interkulturelle Trainings für die psychosoziale Versorgung. Psychotherapeut, 57(1), 15-21.

Reichardt, J., von Lersner, U., Rief, W., & Weise, C. (2017). Wie lassen sich transkulturelle Kompetenzen bei Psychotherapeuten steigern? Vorstellung eines webbasierten Trainingsprogramms [How to improve cross-cultural competencies in psychotherapists? Introduction of a web-based training program]. Zeitschrift für Psychiatrie, Psychologie und Psychotherapie, 65(3), 155-165. doi:10.1024/1661-4747/a000316

Reichardt, J., von Lersner, U., Rief, W., & Weise, C. (in Vorb.). Entwicklung und Validierung des Inventars zur Erfassung transkultureller Kompetenzen bei Psychotherapeuten (TKKP).

Sodowsky, G. R., Taffe, R. C., Gutkin, T. B., & Wise, S. L. (1994). Development of the Multicultural Counseling Inventory: A Self-Report Measure of Multicultural Competencies. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 41(2), 137-148.

Sue, D. W., Arredondo, P., & McDavis, R. J. (1992). Multicultural counseling competencies and standards: A call to the profession. Journal of Counseling & Development, 70(4), 477-486.

Outcome

Type	Measure	Description	Time frame	Safety issue
Primary	Transcultural Competencies of Psychotherapists Questionnaire (TKKP; Reichardt et. al., in prep.)	Change in cross-cultural psychotherapeutic competencies	pre-training, post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training); follow up (6 month after training completion)
Primary	Multicultural Counseling Inventory (MCI; Sodowsky, 1994)	Change in cross-cultural psychotherapeutic competencies	pre-training, post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training); follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Cultural sensitivity in actual psychotherapeutic work I	Percentage of culturally diverse patients currently in treatment in own actual psychotherapeutic work	pre-training, post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training), follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Cultural sensitivity in actual psychotherapeutic work II	Willingness to treat culturally diverse patients in own actual psychotherapeutic work (rating scale)	pre-training, post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training), follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Cultural sensitivity in actual psychotherapeutic work III	Satisfaction with cross-cultural therapies provided in actual psychotherapeutic work (rating scale)	pre-training, post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training), follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Cultural sensitivity in actual psychotherapeutic work IV	Perceived competence in the currently provided cross-cultural therapies (rating scale)	pre-training, post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training), follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Knowledge regarding the provision of cross-cultural psychotherapy	Test of specific knowledge gained during the training (knowledge test in multiple choice answer format)	post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training)
Secondary	Training satisfaction scale	Satisfaction with the training (rating scale; items assessing satisfaction with contents and structure of the developed training)	post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training); follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Learning success scale	Rating of competencies achieved through the training for the treatment of culturally diverse patients (rating scale, rating of the degree to which certain competencies have been achieved)	post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training); follow-up (6 month after training completion)
Secondary	Cultural sensitivity in psychotherapeutic work (Behavioural change measure)	Rating of different case examples with focus on expected difficulty and effectiveness of psychotherapy (given different cases with different disorders, severity levels, and cultural backgrounds)	post-training (6 weeks after the start of the training), 2 months after training completion; follow-up (6 month after training completion)