Introduction
A multilingual workforce is a standard demonstration of the workplace’s cultural diversity. Language variety can complicate communication but can have advantages for the company. Customers can stop coming to your establishment if the staff has trouble understanding their orders. Linguistic diversity enables the company to convey its message of inclusivity to the audience. When facing a culturally diverse environment and when you want to reach a diverse marketplace, bilingual staff can help assure message clarity. Employees might bring different belief systems and levels of religious observance into the workplace. These variations can occasionally take the form of apparent needs, such as the necessity for specific holidays to be off work, dietary restrictions, wardrobe requirements, and prayer needs. The variations could be more minor, influencing the employees’ personalities and how they interact with others. Workplace religious diversity necessitates efficient communication, respect, and empathy among employees. Divergent viewpoints are a benefit of different beliefs, just like with other aspects of cultural diversity.
Discussion
The main goal of intercultural communication is to enable companies to create teams and groups that bring together various perspectives and talents, boost creativity and productivity, and increase profits. Studying and applying this type of communication in the workforce “inherently involves exposure to different ways through which meaning is produced among and across communities” (Hall et al., 2017, p. 17).
A few people gather informally for sensitivity training away from the office to gain a deeper understanding of both their behavior and that of others. It aids people in becoming conscious of interpersonal dynamics, as well as of their own and others’ objectives and prejudices. It is a developmental method of instruction that seeks to improve the participants’ well-being. All staff members receive sensitivity training to help them recognize and respect one another’s cultural differences. It aids in directing and educating employees on proper behavior and interpersonal connections in business settings. Sensitivity training courses help employees communicate more effectively, develop anti-bullying management strategies, and end harassment in the workplace by teaching appropriate etiquette and language. All of these lay the groundwork for understanding various viewpoints and backgrounds, appreciating them, and growing empathy – the capacity to recognize and connect ideas, feelings, and experiences.
Two main ethical concerns affect workers’ lives, clients, and the business’s productivity: discrimination and privacy concerns. Discrimination is one of the significant moral problems facing the industry. The lack of diverse staff at many firms in recent months has drawn criticism, which is frequently the result of discrimination. But prejudice can happen in organizations of all sizes. It pertains to any behavior that results in the treatment of an employee unfairly. Discrimination is frequently not only unethical but also unlawful. Some laws prevent discrimination against workers based on age, gender, ethnicity, religion, disability, and other factors. The gender and racial pay discrepancies yet demonstrate that discrimination is still pervasive.
Other frequent examples of discrimination include terminating workers after they reach a specific age or giving members of ethnic minorities fewer promotions. Increasingly, employees have noticed that the line between work and personal life has blurred. The fundamental reason for this is technological advancements. One example is that companies may discipline employees for social media posts, especially if they criticize working conditions or the business. Employees who post controversial views against the company’s ideals risk being fired by their employers. The use of company-owned gadgets raises another moral dilemma. Employers can now observe all employee activity on laptops and mobile devices. While this ensures that workers only engage in work-related activities during business hours, some employers go further by monitoring keystrokes and reading emails. Where to draw the line between surveillance and invasion is the question.
The most effective approach is to proactively identify and rectify unethical conduct as soon as they occur. It is crucial to ensure that new hires read all company policies, including social media and privacy, before they begin working for the organization. The first should outline what online behavior and other data would be accessible to employees. In contrast, the second should specify how the company expects staff to conduct themselves publicly on social media. Since poor activity might worsen the issue, seeking outside assistance from a recognized organization or expert is advisable. It may be necessary to monitor employee activity to some level, especially if managers are worried that employees are using too much work time for personal pursuits, which might be considered unethical behavior in and of itself. It’s essential to avoid going too far and cultivating a mistrusting culture.
Various factors help one reflect and control oneself to regulate one’s values and behave professionally in practice. First of all, social workers must be familiar with the profession’s core values, ethical standards, and pertinent laws and rules that could have an impact on their work, as well as with ethical decision-making frameworks and know how to apply critical thinking concepts to such frameworks in the practice, research, and policy spheres. Secondly, social workers should recognize the distinction between private and professional principles and personal values. They should also be aware of the impact individual events and emotional responses have on their behavior and judgment in the workplace. Thirdly, social workers must become familiar with the profession’s background, objectives, and duties. Social workers should know the importance of other occupations when working in inter-professional teams. They must be dedicated to keeping their skills current to keep them functional and efficient, understanding the value of lifelong learning.
Finally, social workers should also be knowledgeable about new technological developments and their ethical application in social work. They must understand and identify professional strengths, limitations, and challenges, engage in reflective practice, and demonstrate professional use of self with clients, including clinical reasoning. Recognizing and managing personal biases affecting professional behavior and judgment and identifying and navigating inconsistencies in inter-professional relationships are also crucial.
A variety of activities can be done to engage in supervision properly. Supervision is an “activity that occurs in a variety of professions, but within social work, especially in the field, supervision is a dynamic process” (Witt et al., pp. 51-68). Applying and expressing an awareness of how variety and difference shape life experiences at the micro, mezzo, and macro levels is essential. Along with using self-awareness and self-regulation to control the impact of personal prejudices and values when dealing with different clients and constituencies, it is necessary to convey oneself as a scholar and encourage customers and constituencies as specialists in their own experiences. Students should be ready for supervision, attend on time, participate in weekly supervision, and correctly request supervision outside of scheduled meeting times. They should also ask their supervisor for advice when necessary.
Because of deeply ingrained unfair institutions that uphold the legacy of previous overtly discriminatory practices, policies, laws, and attitudes, racial disparities and the resulting socioeconomic and health repercussions continue. “Systemic racism is so embedded in systems that it often is assumed to reflect the natural, inevitable order of things” (Braveman et al., 2022, p. 4). Sometimes these systems and institutions, founded on white supremacy ideals, work mistakenly or unknowingly but successfully to create and maintain racial inequality. Black people, Indigenous people, and other people of color are systemically and pervasively disadvantaged in society due to systemic racism. It is frequently traceable to willful discrimination in the past, such as racial segregation legislation requiring residential segregation. However, once established, systemic racism often continues on its own, having long-lasting negative consequences on health even after the expressly discriminatory measures have been lifted. Based on their significance in sustaining racial injustice with health effects, as well as the diversity of the sectors and systems involved, some examples of systemic racism are presented.
Residential segregation based on race was first spawned by the explicit and deliberate racism established in Jim Crow legislation, which continues to this day. Concentrated economic adversity and few prospects for career progression mobility, such as reputable career opportunities and reputable educational institutions, are virtually invariably present in areas of racial segregation. However, most health and medical studies do not include neighborhood conditions variables. Due to segregation, African Americans and Latinos are more likely than White people with similar average wages to live in neighborhoods with concentrated disadvantages, which has been shown to have detrimental effects on health. For most Americans with limited resources, owning a home is the primary source of wealth. Private banks later accepted the government Home Owners’ Loan Corporation’s bank lending rules.
In determining mortgage lending risks, the standards specifically considered the racial and cultural makeup of the community and income data. Non-White and low-income regions were disproportionately rebuilt during the decades when federal loan programs significantly increased the homeownership of white people. For instance, disenfranchising individuals—denying them the opportunity to vote or reducing the significance of their votes—can harm one’s health. Finally, systematic racism can worsen the health of people of color at all income levels by subjecting them to repeated instances of racialized, unfair interpersonal treatment. Chronic stress has been found to raise the chance of developing chronic diseases. Even if a person has not personally seen an overt act of discrimination, being aware of racial injustice toward members of one’s community can be upsetting. Chronic stress and anxiety over prospective personal situations and possible societal exclusion, hostility, or disrespect for one’s race or ethnic group could result from it. Self-esteem can be damaged by interpersonal racism, which has a significant indirect impact on health.
Voter suppression denies people political power despite their formal emancipation, which can cause or intensify all other health-damaging paths. Lack of political power results in a lack of access to vital opportunities and resources, like clean water, communities free of pollution, well-resourced schools, cheap housing, and access to healthcare. People cannot compel elected officials to act on their behalf when they are denied the right to vote or when their votes have less weight. To combat systematic racism, it is essential to enforce current antidiscrimination laws. While it is important to adopt more just rules and regulations and repeal unfair ones, history has demonstrated that these steps are insufficient without enforcement. Despite changes to written laws and policies, discriminatory practices can persist due to pervasive and deeply ingrained unwritten guidelines, traditions, beliefs, and attitudes.
Systemic racism weakens and obstacles business development and growth in various ways. For its employees, a company that seems to accept racism undermines their sense of psychological security. As a result, there is a decrease in production and a rise in personnel turnover. It is an ongoing issue, and reports of bullying and prejudice can be found worldwide. This type of discrimination at work may impact people’s physical and mental health. As a result of the stress, conditions including obesity, high blood pressure, depression, and anxiety may become more prevalent. Counterproductive actions like leaving early, showing up late, or finishing work after the deadline frequently follow.
Businesses have the chance, license, and obligation to take the lead in the fight against systemic racism. Companies must recognize that battling racism is a lifelong and daily struggle. The objective is to establish a workplace where diversity is valued. Aside from recruiting, keeping, and retaining diverse talent and achieving full racial inclusion in the distribution network, statements of support must be backed up by concrete actions. To establish credibility on the subject of racial justice, CEOs must work together. Racist preconceptions and tropes need to be destroyed, and broad representation in brand narrative needs to be encouraged.
The ethics and values of the social work profession serve as the foundation for culturally responsive social work practice. When practicing cross-culturally, social workers understand the importance of being conscious of one’s national culture and background. Genetic factors, character, professional conduct, socioeconomic class, ethnic identification, gender, sexuality, skills, historical knowledge, and social norms influence how someone experiences culture. Social workers should critically assess their cultural understanding, heritage, prejudices, and attitudes to promote the culturally competent practice, considering how their values, beliefs, and worldview shape them, acknowledging any isms they may have, and their implications when dealing with clients from different backgrounds.
To properly analyze and intervene on behalf of clients, social workers seek to comprehend their values, beliefs, traditions, and historical background. Social workers should know their advantages and disadvantages when working with clients from different cultural backgrounds. They should also send clients to other professionals to satisfy their requirements. Clients should be aware of any circumstance, situation, or pressure that interferes with social workers’ capacity to do their duties effectively and competently as soon as possible. Social workers should employ effective intervention techniques when working with clients from different cultural backgrounds and participate in ongoing professional development to advance their understanding, competence, and capacity to work with clients from various cultural backgrounds. Social workers should supervise social work practice and incorporate cultural sensitivity and awareness into their ongoing skill development.
Fundamentally, conducting business ethically entails upholding legal requirements and establishing a firm based on integrity and trust. The notion of ethical issues in business encompasses a wide range of topics, including empathy, acceptance of diversity and difference, and conducting business in line with the company’s principles.
The Seven Media Sources
The first source is the post by Sebastian Martinez, a Latinx mental health therapist, about his psychiatric issues. Published on the National Alliance of Mental Illness website, this post by Martinez discusses the challenge of finding culturally competent counselors in the United States since there is a lack of non-Caucasian professionals in this field in America (Martinez, 2020). Being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder (PSTD) in his early twenties, the author could not heal his traumas because most counselors did not address culturally sensitive topics (Martinez, 2020). Therefore, according to his experience, Martinez (2020) proposed recommendations to improve cultural competency in mental health services. For example, he suggested addressing the race issue during counseling, eliminating stigmatization, stopping relying on interpreters, and adjusting therapies to a client’s cultural needs (Martinez, 2020). Overall, this media source helps understand problems and offers solutions to culturally-related challenges of counseling.
The second media resource is the post on the website of Fountain House, a non-profit organization striving to improve mental health services for ethnic and cultural minorities. It suggests that the high prevalence of psychological problems among people of color stems from structural racism in the U.S. (“Why is cultural competence important in mental health care,” 2022). Furthermore, many of these patients lack access to adequate mental health services (“Why is cultural competence important in mental health care,” 2022). This source shows that bias and absence of cultural competence in counseling create barriers to client-counselor communication and connection, worsening mental health outcomes.
The third source is the article written by Macy Wilson, Ph.D. of Psychology, for Time2Track, titled “Cultural competence in therapy: Why we must see color?” The author raises concerns about the inadequacy of cultural competency among American counselors, leading to poor mental health outcomes among clients from minority cultures (Wilson, 2020). She states that some counselors misunderstand patients of color and have racial bias exacerbates the clients’ trauma of structural discrimination that they may have experienced (Wilson, 2020). Hence, Wilson (2020) recommends three relatively simple steps for counselors to follow to adequately address trauma in clients with a different cultural background than theirs. Firstly, she suggests that mental health workers research the customs and traditions of the client’s culture. Secondly, the author claims that counselors should engage in activities that allow exploring various cultures so that they understand these patients better. Thirdly, it is critical to control what language is used during counseling sessions because some words or actions may be expected for one culture but unacceptable for another. Following these steps may help improve cultural competency and raise patient satisfaction with the service.
Fourthly, the plan to improve cultural competency in counseling services in Los Angeles county shows in the agency’s report by the region’s Department of Mental Health, directed by Johnathan Sherin. This governmental agency’s report provides statistical information on the number of people of color living in the county and other demographic data (Sherin, 2020). Furthermore, it presents a plan to reduce cultural disparities in accessing mental health services (Sherin, 2020). The primary idea of this initiative is to focus on community and family-centered care in psychological counseling.
The fifth source is the handbook on cultural competence provided by San Diego Behavioral Health Services. It offers various tools to improve cultural competency in counseling. Specifically, the guide contains information on language services available in the County of San Diego (County of San Diego Behavioral Health Services [CSDBHS], 2020). Additionally, there are surveys for clients to check the quality of the provided counseling (CSDBHS, 2020). This report emphasizes the importance of addressing cultural differences and learning about ethnic disparities because people often experience emotional trauma from being discriminated against or stigmatized. These types of trauma can significantly affect their psychological well-being. This source has two main ethical implications for social workers who strive to be advocates for their clients. Firstly, it emphasizes justice by offering strategies to ensure equal access to mental health services. Secondly, the plan teaches counselors to respect any person’s worth and dignity by providing steps for developing cultural competency.
The sixth source is a blog post written by two licensed psychologists about the need to focus on a multicultural approach in trauma counseling. The authors state that reaction to trauma is an individual’s cultural background, perceptions, and values (Moore & Ruglass, 2018). Therefore, understanding different cultures and using a multicultural framework in trauma mental health services will help understand the etiology of a specific problem and how to resolve it (Moore & Ruglass, 2018). Indeed, it is that unique features of various cultures influence how a person will cope with stress and respond to traumatic events (Moore & Ruglass, 2018). The authors suggest that all clinicians working with PTSD patients should explore the peculiarities of their clients’ cultures and strive to eliminate their own ethnic and racial biases (Moore & Ruglass, 2018). By expanding one’s cultural competency, counselors can improve outcomes in patients with diverse backgrounds.
Conclusion
The seventh source is video training about cultural competency delivered by Dr. Deleana Strohl. During this webinar, Dr. Strohl describes the culture, trauma, psychological response, diagnosis and management of PTSD, and cultural competence (WisTech ATCouncil, 2020). Counselors must realize that people’s worldviews and emotional reactions vary with their cultural backgrounds (WisTech ATCouncil, 2020). Furthermore, the lecturer highlights the need to check if diversity is appropriately recognized, addressed, and honored (WisTech ATCouncil, 2020). Moreover, cultural competence must be vital to master for psychologists to prevent the re-traumatization of emotionally traumatized clients with a lack of empathy and respect (WisTech ATCouncil, 2020). Finally, counselors should be able to identify if a person is a victim of an individual or collective trauma. The latter is often the result of systemic racism and historical trauma; hence, any mental health professional should avoid exacerbating a client’s situation with cultural incompetency and microaggressions.
References
Witt, H., Poulin, J. E. & Matis, S (2018). The Social Work Field Placement. Springer Publishing Company.
Hall, B. J., Covarrubias, P. O. & Kirschbaum K. A. (2017). Among Cultures: The Challenge of Communication. Routledge.
Martinez, S. (2020). Why we need more culturally competent therapists. NAMI. Web.
Why is cultural competence important in mental health care? (2022). Fountain House. Web.
Wilson, M. (2020). Cultural competence in therapy: Why we must see color. Time2Track. Web.
WisTech ATCouncil. (2020). Cultural competence and trauma-informed care August 2020 [Video]. YouTube. Web.
County of San Diego Behavioral Health Services. (2020). Cultural competence handbook. Web.
Moore, S. J., & Ruglass, L. M. (2018). Utilizing a multicultural framework in trauma psychology: Highlight of division resources. Trauma Psychology News. Web.
Sherin, J. E. (2020). Cultural competence plan update. Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health. Web.
Braveman, P. A., Arkin, E., Proctor, D., Kauh, T. & Holm, N. (2022). Systemic And Structural Racism: Definitions, Examples, Health Damages, And Approaches To Dismantling. Health Affairs, 41(2). Web.