“All Interactions are Inherently Cultured”: Evaluating Multicultural Case Conceptualization Skills in Clinical Supervision

Supervisors are responsible for evaluating whether supervisees demonstrate the professional competencies needed to provide culturally responsive mental health care. However, there is variability and challenges in evaluating related professional competencies within graduate training programs and practicum sites. Furthermore, supervisees and clinicians have demonstrated low performance in multicultural case conceptualization skills. This study aimed to understand how clinical supervisors involved in graduate training facilitated evaluations of multicultural case conceptualization skills. Using a constructivist grounded theory (CGT) approach, seven clinical supervisors provided insight into the tasks and processes they applied to evaluate multicultural case conceptualization skills. We present a conceptual model illustrating the processes and approach clinical supervisors took to evaluate their supervisees’ multicultural case conceptualization skills in conjunction with related competencies in clinical work. Implications for graduate training programs, clinicians involved in supervision, and strategies for further developing multicultural case conceptualization skills are presented, along with the limitations of the study.