Standards and Indicators for Cultural
Competence in Social Work Practice
Standard 1. Ethics and Values
Social workers shall function in accordance with
the values, ethics, and standards of the NASW
(2008)
Code of Ethics. Cultural competence
requires self-awareness, cultural humility, and
the commitment to understanding and
embracing culture as central to effective practice.
Interpretation
A major characteristic of a profession is its ability
to establish ethical standards to help professionals
identify ethical issues in practice and to guide
them in determining what is ethically acceptable
and unacceptable behavior (Reamer, 1998). The
NASW (2008)
Code of Ethics speaks directly to
cultural competence in section 1.05, Cultural
Competence and Social Diversity. The
Code of
Ethics
includes a mission statement, which sets
forth several key elements in social work
practice, mainly the social workers’ commitment
to enhancing human well-being and helping
meet basic human needs of all people; client
empowerment; service to people who are
vulnerable and oppressed; focus on individual
well-being in a social context; promotion of
social justice and social change; and sensitivity to
cultural and ethnic diversity. Social workers
clearly have an ethical responsibility to be
culturally competent. The NASW (2008)
Code
of Ethics
also identifies service, social justice,
dignity and worth of the person, the importance
of human relationships, integrity, and
competence—all values that provide a
foundation for culturally competent practice.
Regarding cultural competence the NASW
(2008)
Code of Ethics states,
- Social workers should understand culture and
its function in human behavior and society,
recognizing the strengths that exist in all
cultures.
- Social workers should have a knowledge base of
their clients’ cultures and be able to demonstrate
competence in the provision of services that
are sensitive to clients’ cultures and to
differences among people and cultural groups.
- Social workers should obtain education about
and seek to understand the nature of social
diversity and oppression with respect to race,
ethnicity, national origin, color, sex, sexual
orientation, gender identity or expression,
age, marital status, political belief, religion,
immigration status, and mental or physical
disability.
The term “cultural humility” (Tervalon &
Murray-Garcia, 1998) has been introduced in
these standards to underscore its importance in
culturally competent practice. In relationship to
child welfare practice, Ortega and Faller (2011)
described a cultural humility perspective as one
that “encourages workers to take into account an
individual’s multiple identities and the ways in
which their social experiences impact their
worldview, particularly as it related to their
expression of their culture. This perspective has
the benefit of placing the worker in a learning
mode as opposed to maintaining power, control
and authority in the working relationship,
especially over cultural experiences about which
the client is far more knowledgeable” (p. 33). The
practice of cultural humility provides greater focus
on the role of the social worker as learner and
listener, empowering clients as “expert” in their
own lives. In this context, cultural humility is
viewed as both a value and practice.
Culture may affect how individuals cope with
problems and interact with each other. What is
assessed as behaviorally appropriate in one culture
may be assessed as problematic in another.
Accepted practice in one culture may be prohibited
in another. To fully understand and appreciate
these differences, social workers must be familiar
with varying cultural traditions and norms.
Clients’ cultural backgrounds may affect their
help-seeking behaviors. The ways in which
social services are planned and implemented
must be culturally sensitive and responsive to
client needs to be effective. Cultural competence
builds on the profession’s ethics and values
relative to self-determination and individual
dignity and worth and embraces the practices of
inclusion, tolerance, cultural humility, and
respect for culture and diversity, broadly
defined. Social workers are required to address
the struggle with ethical dilemmas arising from
value conflicts or special needs of marginalized
clients (such as helping clients enroll in
mandated training or mental health services that
are culturally insensitive). Cultural competence
requires social workers to recognize the
strengths that exist in all cultures while
renouncing cultural practices that violate human
rights and dignity. For example, some cultures
subjugate women, oppress people based on
sexual orientation, or value the use of corporal
punishment and the death penalty. Cultural
competence in social work practice must be
informed by and applied within the context of
NASW’s
Code of Ethics and the United Nations
Declaration of Human Rights.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers shall
demonstrate
- knowledge and practice of the NASW Code
of Ethics
- understanding of cultural humility as integral
to client self-determination and worker
self-awareness
- commitment to social justice and human rights
- ability to describe and negotiate areas of
conflict and congruity between their personal
and professional values and those of other
cultures.
- ability to recognize the convergence and
disparity between the values and practices of
the dominant society and the values and
practices of the historically oppressed,
underrepresented, and underserved populations
-
respect for cultural differences and
affirmation of cultural strengths
- capacities to manage and effectively negotiate
the ethical dilemmas encountered in work
with marginalized groups in relation to
- boundaries
- conflicts in values and expectations
- power and privilege
- norms of behavior
- styles of advocacy
- diverse values and beliefs
- dual relationships
- styles of conflict management.
Standard 2. Self-Awareness
Social workers shall demonstrate an appreciation
of their own cultural identities and those of
others. Social workers must also be aware of
their own privilege and power and must
acknowledge the impact of this privilege and
power in their work with and on behalf of
clients. Social workers will also demonstrate
cultural humility and sensitivity to the dynamics
of power and privilege in all areas of social work.
Interpretation
Cultural competence requires social workers to
examine their own cultural backgrounds and
identities to increase awareness of personal
assumptions, values, stereotypes, and biases. The
workers’ self-awareness of their own cultural
identities is as fundamental to practice as their
informed assumptions about clients’ cultural
backgrounds and experiences. This awareness of
personal values, beliefs, stereotypes, and biases
informs their practice and influences relationships
with clients. Social workers must also be aware
of occupying a role of privilege and power by
the nature of their professional role and cultural
identities and must acknowledge the impact of
this privilege and power on oppressed populations.
Cultural competence includes knowing and
acknowledging how fears, ignorance, and the
“isms” (for example, racism, sexism,
ethnocentrism, heterosexism, homophobia,
cissexism, ageism, ableism, xenophobia, classism,
among others) have influenced their attitudes,
beliefs, and feelings.
Social workers need to be able to move from
being aware of their own cultural heritage to
becoming aware of the cultural heritage of
others. This cultural awareness enables them to
value and celebrate differences in others as well
as to demonstrate comfort with cultural
differences. Although they strive to obtain the
knowledge and skills necessary to serve a
multicultural clientele, they have an awareness
of personal and professional limitations that may
warrant the referral of a client to another social
worker or organization that can best meet the
clients’ needs. Self-awareness and self-reflection
also helps in understanding the process of
cultural identity formation and helps guard
against stereotyping. As one develops
understanding of the diversity within one’s own
cultural groups, one can be more open to the
diversity within other groups.
The development of cultural competence
requires social workers to move from cultural
awareness to cultural sensitivity and to evaluate
growth and development throughout these
different levels of cultural competence in practice.
Self-awareness becomes the basis for professional
development and should be supported by
professional supervision and organizational
administration. Administrators and public policy
advocates also need to develop strategies to reduce
their own biases and expand their self-awareness.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers shall
- examine and describe their cultural identities,
to increase awareness of assumptions, values,
beliefs, stereotypes, and biases, and to recognize
how these affect services, and influence
relationships and interactions with clients.
- identify how their own knowledge, fears, and
“isms” (such as racism, sexism, ethnocentrism,
heterosexism, homophobia, cissexism, ageism,
ableism, xenophobia, and classism) influence
their attitudes, beliefs, and feelings
- develop and apply strategies to inform and
change their detrimental attitudes, beliefs,
and feelings
- demonstrate an awareness of personal or
professional limitations that may warrant the
referral of a client or organization to another
resource that can better meet the client’s
needs, along with the skills to make such
referrals effectively
- demonstrate comfort with self- and
other-awareness about different cultural
customs and views of the world
- use relationships with supervisors, mentors,
and colleagues to enrich self-awareness and
self-reflection
- practice cultural humility to balance the
dynamics of power and privilege inherent in
the social work position and the practitioner’s
multifaceted cultural identity.
Standard 3. Cross-Cultural Knowledge
Social workers shall possess and continue to
develop specialized knowledge and understanding
that is inclusive of, but not limited to, the history,
traditions, values, family systems, and artistic
expressions such as race and ethnicity; immigration
and refugee status; tribal groups; religion and
spirituality; sexual orientation; gender identity
or expression; social class; and mental or
physical abilities of various cultural groups.
Interpretation
Culture is a universal phenomenon, and everyone
is part of multiple cultures. Cultural education
begins with social workers understanding their
own roots and cultures, and with such a sense of
grounded identity, they can learn and value
others. To have a grounded understanding of
diversity, awareness of global interdependence is
critical, whether the social worker is engaged in
social work assessment, intervention, or
evaluation. To be effective social work
practitioners, educators, policymakers,
administrators, and researchers, there is a need
to focus on cultural awareness as well as cross-
cultural transactions. Unprecedented movement
of people across the globe, globalization of
labor, and concerted attention to educational
exchanges to prepare practitioners for an
interdependent world increases the importance
of cultural competence and cross-cultural
knowledge (Link & Ramanathan, 2011). This
global interdependence is an integral part of the
multicultural knowledge base of social workers.
Cultural competence is dynamic and requires
frequent learning, unlearning, and relearning
about diversity. Social workers need to expand
their cultural religious traditions, spiritual belief
systems, knowledge, and expertise by expanding
their understanding of the following areas: “the
impact of culture on behavior, attitudes, and
values; the help-seeking behaviors of diverse
client groups; the role of language, speech
patterns, religious traditions, spiritual belief
systems, and communication styles of various
client groups in the communities served; the
impact of social service policies on various client
groups; the resources (agencies, people, informal
helping networks, and research) that can be used
on behalf of diverse client groups; the ways that
professional values may conflict with or
accommodate the needs of diverse client groups;
and the power relationships in the community,
agencies, or institutions and their impact on
diverse client groups” (Gallegos, 1982, pp. 7–8).
Cultural competence refers to social workers’
ability to identify their own affiliations to
culture and recognize and respect differing
traditions of culture in others in ways that
influence styles of communication and
expressions of respect. Recognition of and
respect for others’ cultural traditions implies
deep understanding of the intrapersonal layers
that are built through cultural heritage and
norms of behavior. People in parallel cultures
may not share norms, and caution is advised
because the word “normal” could become a trap
for judging others (Link & Ramanathan, 2011).
Naturally, to have this frame of reference will
require that we approach this understanding
with cultural humility.
Social workers need to possess specific
knowledge about the culture of the providers
and client groups with whom they work. This
includes, among other considerations, historical
experiences, religious traditions, spiritual belief
systems, individual and group oppression,
adjustment styles, socioeconomic backgrounds,
life processes, learning styles, worldviews and
specific cultural customs and practices,
definitions of and beliefs about wellness and
illness or normality and abnormality, and ways
of delivering services.
They also must seek specialized knowledge
about domestic and global social, cultural, and
political systems. Knowledge of how the systems
operate and how they serve or fail to serve
specific client groups is important. This includes
knowledge of institutional barriers that prevent
marginalized groups from using services.
Culturally competent social workers need to
know the limitations and strengths of current
theories, processes, and practice models, and
which have specific applicability and relevance
to the service needs of culturally, religiously, and
spiritually multicultural clientele.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- expand their cultural knowledge, expertise,
and humility by studying
- the help-seeking behaviors and pathways
of diverse client groups
- the historical context of marginalized
communities
- the role of language and communication
styles of various cultural groups
- the impact of social policies on
marginalized groups served
- the resources such as organizations,
people, informal helping networks, and
research that can be mobilized on behalf
of various cultural groups
- possess specific knowledge about traditional
and nontraditional providers and client
groups that they serve, including
- understanding historical experiences,
immigration, resettlement patterns,
individual and group oppression,
adjustment styles, socioeconomic
backgrounds, and life processes
- learning styles, cognitive skills, worldviews,
and specific cultural concerns and practices
- definitions of and beliefs about service-
related concepts such as the causation of
wellness and illness, physical and
psychological disorders, normality and
abnormality, family roles and responsibilities,
child rearing practices, birth, marriage,
death and dying, and so forth
- beliefs and practices related to how care
and services should be delivered, including
diverse approaches to service delivery and
alternative healing options
- factors associated with acculturation and
assimilation
- demonstrate knowledge of the power
relationships in the community and in
institutions, and how these affect
marginalized groups
- possess specific knowledge about U.S., global,
social, cultural, and political systems—how
they operate and how they serve or fail to
serve client groups; include knowledge about
institutional, class, cultural, and linguistic
barriers to service
- identify the limitations and strengths of
contemporary theories and practice models
and those that have applicability and
relevance to their specific client population
- recognize the heterogeneity within cultural
groups and similarity across cultural groups
- describe how people within different groups
manifest privilege
- describe the effects that dominant and
nondominant status has on interpersonal
relations and group dynamics in the workplace
- distinguish between intentional and
unintentional assertion of privilege related to
race, class, and other cultural factors
- recognize the intersection of “isms” (for
example, racism with classism) and their
institutionalization
- acknowledge the ways in which their
membership in various social groups
influences their worldview and contributes to
their own patterns of privileged behavior or
internalized oppression
- understand the interactions of cultural systems
of the social worker, client, the service setting,
and the community
- demonstrate cultural humility and empathy
toward clients from different cultural groups.
Standard 4. Cross-Cultural Skills
Social workers will use a broad range of skills
(micro, mezzo, and macro) and techniques that
demonstrate an understanding of and respect for
the importance of culture in practice, policy, and
research.
Interpretation
Practice in an increasingly multicultural and
globally interconnected world requires social
workers to continuously hone new skills for
practice, research, education, administration,
and policy development while enhancing the
knowledge base that informs their skills. Most
specifically, active listening, empathy, and
strengths-based interventions are essential in
culturally competent practice. In addition,
critical thinking and comfort in both asking
questions and “not knowing” open communication
and build the relationships critical to helping
clients and advancing social justice.
Cultural humility is described as a complement
to cultural competence (Ortega & Faller, 2011).
Cultural humility actively involves multicultural
clientele in the delivery of services, research, and
policy making, thereby mitigating the
expectation that social workers should know
about all cultures. Social workers should
demonstrate the ability to work sensitively and
effectively at counteracting biases based on their
own positions of power and privilege.
Skills in cross-cultural practice include the
ability to convey and communicate authenticity,
genuineness, empathy, and warmth and to
engage culturally relevant community resources.
Engaging the client in finding solutions requires
the flexibility to consider what is best for the
client. Second-language acquisition and expertise
are included here as cross-cultural skills.
Furthermore, social workers should demonstrate
the ability to critique and assess policies and
research for cultural appropriateness, sensitivity,
relevance, and inclusiveness, to ensure that
outcomes benefit client groups or populations.
This includes engaging client groups in the
design of policy and research.
More specifically, social workers with
cross-cultural skills
-
work with people and groups of different
cultures, taking responsibility for learning
about differences and recognizing the
multiple identities that are inherent in
understanding people and their cultural
contexts
- assess the cultural context for clients and
client groups, encouraging open discussion of
difference while maintaining a stance of
curiosity and openness to learning
- respond skillfully to cultural bias in both
themselves and others
- practice interview techniques that appreciate
the role of diverse languages and meanings in
the client’s culture
- demonstrate sensitivity to challenges in the
use of interpreters and translated materials
- conduct culturally effective assessments and
culturally appropriate intervention plans,
collaborating with and empowering clients by
soliciting and prioritizing their perspectives
and service goals
- select and develop appropriate methods, skills,
and techniques that are attuned to their
clients’ cultural, bicultural, or marginal
experiences in their environments
recognize the verbal and nonverbal
communication skills of marginalized clients
and groups and respond in culturally
empathic ways
- understand the interaction of the cultural
systems of the social worker, the client, the
particular organizational setting, and the
community
- effectively use clients’ natural support systems
in resolving problems—for example, folk
healers, storefronts, religious and spiritual
leaders, families of choice, and other
community resources
- demonstrate advocacy and empowerment
skills in work with clients, recognizing and
combating the isms, stereotypes, and myths
held by individuals and institutions
identify service delivery systems or models
that are appropriate to the client population
of focus and make appropriate referrals when
indicated
- consult with supervisors and colleagues for
feedback and monitoring of performance and
identify features of their own professional
skills that impede or enhance their culturally
competent practice
- evaluate the validity and applicability of new
techniques, research, and knowledge for work
with specific client groups.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- interact with people from a wide range of
cultures, religions, and spiritual belief systems
and take responsibility for learning what they
do not know
- display proficiency and comfort in discussing
cultural difference with colleagues and clients
- demonstrate skill in conducting a comprehensive assessment of clients in which culturally
normative behavior is differentiated from
potentially problematic or symptomatic
behavior
- assess cultural strengths and challenges and
their impact on individual and group
functioning, and integrate this understanding
into intervention plans
- select and develop appropriate methods, skills,
and techniques that are attuned to their
clients’ cultural, bicultural, multicultural, or
marginal experiences in their environments
- adapt and use recognized culturally appropriate
models
- communicate effectively with clients through
language acquisition, proper use of interpreters,
professionally translated materials, verbal and
nonverbal skills, and culturally appropriate
protocols
- advocate for the use of, and work effectively
with, interpreters who are both linguistically
and culturally competent and prepared to
work in the specified service environment
- demonstrate cultural humility in engagement
with all clients and client groups
- effectively engage clients’ natural support
systems in resolving problems; for example,
work with folk healers, indigenous remedies,
religious leaders, friends, family, and other
community residents and organizations
- use empowerment skills in their work with
clients
- identify features of their own professional
style that impede or enhance their culturally
effective practice and consult with supervisors
and colleagues for feedback and monitoring
of performance and learning needs
- conduct supervision and other professional
responsibilities with cultural humility and
sensitivity to culture, language, and difference
- convey empathy, curiosity, and a willingness
to learn.
Standard 5. Service Delivery
Social workers shall be knowledgeable about
and skillful in the use of services, resources, and
institutions and be available to serve multicultural
communities. They shall be able to make
culturally appropriate referrals within both
formal and informal networks and shall be
cognizant of, and work to address, service gaps
affecting specific cultural groups.
Interpretation
Organizations need to support the evaluation of
culturally appropriate service delivery models
and setting standards for cultural competence.
Culturally competent social workers need to be
vigilant about the dynamics that result from
cultural differences and similarities between
workers and clients. This includes monitoring
cultural competence among social workers
(agency evaluations, supervision, in-service
training, and feedback from clients).
Social workers need to detect and prevent
exclusion of underserved clients from service
opportunities and seek to create opportunities
for clients, matching their needs with culturally
appropriate service delivery systems or adapting
services to better meet the culturally unique
needs of clients. Furthermore, they need to
foster policies and procedures that help ensure
access to care and accommodate varying cultural
beliefs.
Direct practitioners, policymakers, and
administrators should
- recruit and retain multicultural staff and
include cultural competence and cultural
humility as requirements in job descriptions
and performance and promotion measures
- review the current and emergent demographic
trends for the geographic area served by the
organization to determine service needs and
requirements for interpretation services
- integrate and create (or advocate for the
creation of ) service delivery systems or
models that are more appropriate to targeted
clients who are underserved
- include clients and constituents as major
stakeholders in the development of service
delivery systems and policy and research
agendas
- ensure that program design is reflective of the
cultural heritage of clients and families using
the service
- attend to social issues (for example, housing,
education, policing, and social justice) that
concern clients or constituents
- confront staff remarks that demean the
culture of clients, constituents, and colleagues
- support the inclusion of cultural competence
standards in accreditation, organizational
policies, and licensing and certification
examinations
- develop staffing plans that reflect target
populations served and those populations the
agency wishes to serve (for example, hiring,
position descriptions, performance evaluations,
training)
- develop performance measures to assess
culturally competent practice
- engage client groups in the development of
research and intervention protocols.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- identify the formal and informal resources in
the community, describe their strengths and
weaknesses, and facilitate referrals as
indicated, tailored to the culturally relevant
needs of clients and client groups
- advocate for and promote efforts to create
culturally competent services and programs by
- recruiting multicultural staff and including
cultural competence requirements in job
descriptions and measures of performance
and promotion
- reviewing current and emergent
demographic trends for the geographic
area served by the organization to determine
needs for the provision of interpretation or
other culturally relevant services
-
integrating and creating service delivery
systems or models that are appropriate to
targeted client populations or advocate for
the development and implementation of
such services
- including clients as major stakeholders in
the selection, decision making, and
evaluation of service delivery systems
- ensuring that program design reflects the
culture of clients and families using the
service
- attending to social issues (for example,
housing, education, policing, and social
justice) that concern clients and
constituents of diverse backgrounds
- using effective strategies for confronting
staff remarks that insult or demean clients
and their culture
- supporting the inclusion of cultural
competence standards in accreditation
bodies and organizational policies as well
as in licensing and certification examinations
- developing staffing plans that reflect the
targeted client population (for example,
hiring, position descriptions, performance
evaluations, training)
- developing performance measures to assess
culturally competent practice
- supporting participation of client groups in
the development of research and
intervention protocols
- building culturally competent organizations
through the following policies and practices:
- an administrative mission and purpose that
embodies cultural competence and cultural
humility in the values, goals, and practices
- effective recruitment of multilingual and
multicultural staff
- sensitivity to and respect for cultural and
religious calendars as they relate to our
employees and people served
- staff composition reflecting the diversity of
the client population
- service planning strategy that includes an
assessment/analysis of the client
demographics compared with the
demographic trends of the service
community
- expanded service capacity to improve the
breadth and depth of services to a greater
variety of cultural groups
- meaningful inclusion of clients and
community members representing relevant
cultural groups in decision-making and
advisory governance entities, program
planning, program evaluation, and
research endeavors
- physical surroundings designed and
decorated in a manner that is welcoming
to the diverse cultural groups served
- engagement in advocacy to improve social
issues relevant to targeted client groups
- a work climate that addresses workforce
diversity challenges and promotes respect
for clients and colleagues of different
backgrounds
- advocacy for culturally competent policies
and procedures from accrediting,
licensing, and certification bodies and
contracting agencies
- inclusion of cultural competence and cultural
humility in job descriptions, performance
evaluations, promotions, and training.
Standard 6. Empowerment and Advocacy
Social workers shall be aware of the impact of
social systems, policies, practices, and programs
on multicultural client populations, advocating
for, with, and on behalf of multicultural clients
and client populations whenever appropriate.
Social workers should also participate in the
development and implementation of policies
and practices that empower and advocate for
marginalized and oppressed populations.
Interpretation
Culturally competent social workers should be
aware of and take action to confront and change
the deleterious effects of bias, fears, and isms,
including, but not limited to, racism, sexism,
ethnocentrism, heterosexism, homophobia,
cissexism, ageism, ableism, xenophobia, classism,
and other forms of oppression on clients’ lives.
Social advocacy and social action should be
directed at empowering marginalized clients and
strengthening communities. Social workers
should advocate for anti-isms and social justice
when colleagues and clients express biases and
stereotypes based on culture.
Empowerment has been defined as an
intervention, a skill, and a process. Hegar and
Hunzeker (1988) and McDermott (1989)
described empowerment as an effective
intervention with oppressed populations.
Pinderhughes (1983) defined empowerment as
an individual feeling of increased power and the
capacity to influence forces that affect a person.
Empowerment refers to enhancing a client’s
ability to do for himself or herself. Empowerment
is closely related to advocacy. When engaging in
advocacy, social workers must be careful not to
impose their values on clients and must seek to
understand what clients mean by advocacy.
Respectful collaboration needs to take place to
promote mutually agreed-on goals for change.
Social workers need commitment and skill to
advocate for and with clients against conscious
and unconscious devaluation of cultural
experiences related to difference, oppression,
power, and privilege domestically and globally.
The empowerment tradition in social work
practice suggests a promotion of the combined
goals of consciousness raising, education,
self-awareness, and the development of a sense
of personal power and skills while working
toward social change. Best practice views this as
a process and outcome of the empowerment
perspective (Gutiérrez, 1990; Simon, 1994).
Social workers using this standard will apply an
ecosystems perspective and a strengths
orientation in practice and policy development.
This means that in describing client needs,
workers consider client situations as transitory
challenges rather than fixed problems.
According to Gutiérrez and Lewis (1999),
empowerment is a model for practice, a
perspective, and a set of skills and techniques.
Culturally competent social workers reflect
these concepts in their practice.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- advocate for public policies that respect the
strengths, cultural values, norms, and
behaviors of multicultural groups and
communities
- advocate for policies that address social
injustice and institutionalized isms
- select appropriate strategies to intervene with
colleagues, collaborating partners, and
institutional representatives, helping them
examine their levels of awareness and the
consequences of fears and isms, such as
exclusionary behaviors or oppressive policies, by
- assessing dominant group members’ level
of readiness for feedback and intervention
- adopting strategies including developing
allies, education, dialogue, increased
intergroup contact, or social action
- participating in antidiscriminatory
activities and social action to better
empower diverse clients and communities
at the local, state, and national levels
- use practice approaches that help clients
facilitate a connection with their own power
in a manner that is appropriate for their
cultural contexts
- provide support to marginalized cultural
groups who are advocating on their own behalf
- partner, collaborate, and ally with client
groups in advocacy efforts
- work to increase each client group’s skills and
sense of self-efficacy as social change agents
- demonstrate intentional effort to ensure that
they do not impose their own personal values
in practice
- respect and foster client rights to
self-determination
Standard 7. Diverse Workforce
Social workers shall support and advocate for
recruitment, admissions and hiring, and retention
efforts in social work programs and organizations
to ensure diversity within the profession.
Interpretation
Increasing cultural competence within the
profession requires recruitment and retention of
a multicultural cadre of social workers, many of
whom would bring some “indigenous” cultural
competence to the profession as well as
demonstrated efforts to increase avenues for the
acquisition of culturally competent skills by all
social workers. Cultural diversity should be
evident within all organizational levels, and not
just among direct practitioners.
The social work profession has espoused a
commitment to diversity, inclusion, and
affirmative action. However, available statistics
indicate that in the United States social workers
are predominantly white and female (86.0
percent), 8 percent are African American, 3
percent are Latinas, and 3 percent identify as
other (NASW, Center for Workforce Studies
[CFWS], 2006a); male social workers are 85
percent white, 8 percent African American, 5
percent Latino, and 2 percent other (NASW,
CFSW, 2006b).
The proportion of people of color has increased
in NASW’s membership over a period of several
years: 8.5 percent identify themselves as African
American; Hispanics, including Mexican
Americans, Puerto Ricans, and other Hispanic
groups, constitute about 4.5 percent of the
membership; Asians and Pacific Islanders 1.9
percent; and American Indians/First Nations
People 0.5 percent (personal communication
with T. Chang, database administrator, NASW,
Washington, DC, March 16, 2015).
Major demographic shifts in the U.S. population
“will affect the social work workforce, their
clients, agencies, organizations, communities
and service delivery systems” (NASW, CFSW,
2011, p. 1). Social work client populations are
more diverse than the social work profession
itself. In many instances, services to clients are
targeted to marginalized communities and
special populations, groups that typically include
disproportionately high numbers of people of
color, older adults, people with disabilities, and
clients of lower socioeconomic status.
The discrepancy between the social work labor
force racial and ethnic makeup and the changing
demographics of the populations they serve
guided the profession to respond to the need for
social workers to increase cultural competence
(Gibelman, 2005; Whitaker, Weismiller, Clark,
& Wilson, 2006). To meet this identified need
for increased diversity in the workforce, the
federal government has taken steps through the
funding of education and training programs for
health and mental health workers, including
social workers from communities of color (U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services,
Health Resources and Services Administration,
Bureau of Health Workforce, National Center
for Health Workforce Analysis [HRSA], 2015).
Aligning workforce demographics to client
populations can be an effective strategy for
bridging cultural differences between social
workers and clients, although it cannot be the
only strategy. The assumption is that individuals
of similar backgrounds can understand each
other better and communicate more effectively
(Jackson & López, 1999). Yet an equally
compelling fact is that “the majority of clinicians
from the mainstream dominant culture will
routinely provide care for large numbers of
patients of diverse ethnic and/or cultural
backgrounds. Clearly, increasing the numbers of
culturally diverse social workers is not sufficient.
Even these professionals will need to be able to
provide care for patients who are not like
themselves” (Jackson & López, 1999, p. 4). In
addition, culturally competent social workers
who bring knowledge or special language skills
to the profession, like bicultural or bilingual
skills, are entitled to professional equity and
should not be exploited for their expertise but
should be appropriately compensated for skills
that enhance the delivery of services to clients.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- advocate for and support human resource
policies and procedures that ensure diversity
and inclusion within their organization
- work to achieve a multicultural workforce
throughout all levels of the organization that
reflects the demographics of both the
population served and other potential clientele
- advocate for and support policies that assure
equity and appropriate compensations for
social workers who bring special skills or
knowledge to the profession, such as
bicultural or bilingual skills
- advocate for and support recruitment and
retention and promotion strategies that
increase the diversity within the profession
through social work programs and schools of
social work
- promote and maintain the expectation that all
staff, regardless of cultural membership,
continuously engage in the process of
improving cultural competency and the
capacity to serve a variety of populations.
Culturally competent organizations will
- develop and implement organizational
policies, procedures, and practices that
support staff multiculturalism at all levels of
the organization
- develop and implement policies, procedures,
and practices that effectively address the
dynamics of a multicultural workforce
- regularly monitor the extent to which their
management and staff composition reflect the
diversity of the client population and the
community
- review organizational selection and hiring
policies for inclusion and inadvertent exclusion
of the underrepresented, underserved, and
oppressed cultural groups and the community
- regularly monitor and take remedial action as
needed to ensure that all client groups can
access services and communicate in their
preferred language by
- actively recruiting and seeking to retain
multilingual staff who are qualified to
perform their work tasks in the indicated
language(s)
- providing “second language” and certification
courses and testing to existing staff
- providing appropriate compensations for
social workers who bring special language
skill or knowledge to the profession, such
as bicultural or bilingual skills
- include cultural competence as a requirement
for job performance, by including it in job
descriptions, performance evaluations,
promotions, and training
- foster a work climate, through formal and
informal means, that addresses workforce
diversity challenges and promotes respect for
groups, communities, clients, and colleagues
of different backgrounds
- establish cultural norms of
- openness and respect for discussion of
situations in which insensitive or
exclusionary behaviors were experienced
- intolerance of bias, discrimination, and
marginalization within the organization
and among colleagues.
Standard 8. Professional Education
Social workers shall advocate for, develop, and
participate in professional education and training
programs that advance cultural competence within
the profession. Social workers should embrace
cultural competence as a focus of lifelong learning.
Interpretation
Cultural competence is a vital link between the
theoretical and practice knowledge base that
defines social work expertise. Social work is a
practice-oriented profession, and social work
education and training need to remain current
while anticipating future changes in professional
practice, which includes the changing needs of
multicultural client populations. Diversity and
cultural competence need to be addressed in
social work curricula and practice, and viewed as
relevant to faculty, staff appointments, and
research agendas.
The social work profession continues to take
steps to ensure that cultural competence is a
core component of social work education,
training, and practice and to engage in research
and scholarship that focus on culturally
competent practice among social workers. This
includes undergraduate, master’s, and doctoral
programs in social work as well as post-master’s
training, continuing education, and meetings of
the profession. Practice settings should be
encouraged to provide in-service training and
other continuing education opportunities
focused on cultural competence to staff.
In addition, the NASW (2008) Code of Ethics
clearly states, “Social workers who provide
supervision and consultation are responsible for
setting clear, appropriate, and culturally sensitive
boundaries” (p. 14). This highlights the
importance of providing culturally sensitive
supervision and field instruction, as well as the
pivotal role of supervisors and field instructors
in promoting culturally competent practice
among workers and students.
Educational content for professional practice
and licensing should prepare social workers for
culturally competent practice across the full
spectrum of social work practice roles—direct
practice, supervision, administration, policy,
education, and research.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- include cultural competence content as an
ongoing part of their professional development
- promote professional education that advances
cultural competence within the profession
- advocate for the infusion and integration of
cultural competence in social work curricula
and research at the BSW, MSW, and PhD levels
- encourage and conduct research that develops
conceptual, theoretical, and practice skills to
enhance practice at all levels
- advocate for professional education on social
justice and inclusion
- educate staff in cross-cultural skills and
techniques for resolving conflicts that emerge
from differences in communication, customs,
values, norms, and behaviors between staff
and the clients served.
Culturally competent organizations will
- provide ongoing training, leadership, and
support for improving cultural competence to
all employees, including top management,
middle management, immediate supervisors,
direct staff, and administrative/custodial staff
- resolve cultural conflicts between staff and the
clients served and among employees
- teach skills to conduct evaluation research to
ensure effectiveness in serving and engaging
with multicultural client groups
- determine the demographics of their service
area and assess potential service utilization
gaps of underserved client groups in the
geographic area.
Standard 9. Language and Communication
Social workers shall provide and advocate for
effective communication with clients of all
cultural groups, including people of limited
English proficiency or low literacy skills, people
who are blind or have low vision, people who
are deaf or hard of hearing, and people with
disabilities (Goode & Jones, 2009).
Interpretation
Social workers should accept each individual in
totality and ensure access to needed services.
Language is a source and an extension of
personal identity and culture and, therefore, is
one way that individuals interact with others in
their families and communities and across
different cultural groups. Individuals and groups
have a right to use their preferred language.
Linguistic diversity is a resource for society, and
as such, should be preserved and promoted. The
essence of the social work profession is to promote
social justice and eliminate discrimination and
oppression based on linguistic or other diversities.
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964,
Executive Order 13166 is titled “Improving
Access to Services for Persons with Limited
English Proficiency.” The Executive Order,
signed in August of 2000, “requires Federal
agencies to examine the services they provide,
identify any need for services to those with
limited English proficiency (LEP), and develop
and implement a system to provide those
services so LEP persons can have meaningful
access to them. It is expected that agency plans
will provide for such meaningful access
consistent with, and without unduly burdening,
the fundamental mission of the agency. The
Executive Order also requires that the Federal
agencies work to ensure that recipients of
Federal financial assistance provide meaningful
access to their LEP applicants and beneficiaries”
(LEP.gov, 2015).
Organizations and social work practitioners who
receive federal funds are therefore required to
facilitate quality language access at no charge to
the consumer. Organizations may neither
discriminate nor use methods of administering
services that may subject individuals to
discrimination. Organizations and social work
practitioners are expected to take reasonable
steps to provide services and information in
appropriate languages, other than English, to
ensure that people with LEP are informed and
can effectively participate in and benefit from
their programs. Similarly, the Americans with
Disabilities Act requires communication
accommodation for people with disabilities.
It is the responsibility of both social workers and
organizations to provide services in each client’s
preferred language or to seek the assistance of
professional interpreters. Social workers need to
communicate respectfully and effectively with
clients from different cultural and linguistic
backgrounds. It is advantageous if the worker
speaks the client’s preferred language with the
proficiency required for specific interaction one
is having (for example, the language skill is
different for casual conversation as compared
with psychotherapy). Professional interpreters
(for example, certified or registered sign language
interpreters) should be used. Interpreters should
be treated as members of the services provision
team and offered orientation and training for
the type of setting and services that are being
provided (for example, health, legal, mental
health, child welfare).
Such orientation and training would include
guidelines regarding specialized terms and
concepts, confidentiality, interpreter–client
relationships, and social work ethics that may
reinforce the interpreters’ own professional ethics.
Written communication should be provided in
the language and at the literacy level appropriate
for the intended audience. Priority should be
given to legal documents (for example, consent
for treatment), informational and educational
materials, and public awareness campaigns.
Materials should be created in the appropriate
language or translated by people with the
knowledge and skills relevant to the organizational
context, understanding of variations within a
language (for example, multiple variations of
Spanish based on national origin and region)
and literacy level. Literacy level in English is a
factor that should be accounted for in the
development of any correspondence or written
materials (Goode & Jones, 2009).
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- demonstrate an understanding that language
is part of the social identity of a person
- advocate for rights of individuals and groups to
receive resources in their preferred language
- provide and advocate for written and oral
information, referrals, and services in the
person’s preferred language
- provide jargon-free, easy-to-read material
- use descriptive and graphic representations
(for example, pictures, symbol formats) for
individuals with LEP or with limited literacy
- advocate for the preservation and appreciation
of linguistic diversity among clients
- provide and advocate for reasonable
accommodations of clients’ linguistic needs,
including professional interpreters,
professionally translated materials, assistive
devices, and alternate communication strategies
- improve their own ability to speak, read,
write, and understand the languages and
dialects of their clients without attempting to
engage in dialogue that is beyond their own
skill level
- check to ensure accurate communication,
realizing that there can be significant
variations of word usage and colloquialisms
within the same language family based on
nationality or region
- prepare themselves to work effectively with
professional interpreters and translators:
- attend workshops
- seek consultation from interpretation
services
- become familiar with standards for
professional interpretation and translation
- become familiar with techniques of
translation
- develop or advocate for appropriate
organizational policies that support the
effective use of standards for professional
interpretation and translation
- support the effective use of and orientation
and training for interpreters and translators.
Standard 10. Leadership to Advance Cultural
Competence
Social workers shall be change agents who
demonstrate the leadership skills to work
effectively with multicultural groups in agencies,
organizational settings, and communities. Social
workers should also demonstrate responsibility
for advancing cultural competence within and
beyond their organizations, helping to challenge
structural and institutional oppression and build
and sustain diverse and inclusive institutions and
communities.
Interpretation
Leadership has been described as an “activity”
(Heifetz, 1994). Social workers should
demonstrate responsibility to advance policies
and practices related to cultural competence,
with and without formal authority. Social
workers should aspire to leadership in the service
of helping organizations become diverse and
inclusive. They should also help these
organizations recognize and eradicate policies
and practices that reflect structural and
institutional oppression.
Social workers shall demonstrate the skill to
facilitate difficult conversations that lead to
understanding, growth, and organizational
strength. They should be able to recognize,
within themselves, the ways in which their own
positions of power and privilege advance or
impede progress relative to cultural competence
in their own organizations. In areas such as
recruitment, hiring, promotion, team building,
and conflict management, social workers should
be vigilant about colluding with forces that often
reinforce a problematic status quo.
Social workers should lead by example,
demonstrating leadership, self-reflection, and
advocacy within their own organizations,
promoting culturally competent practice at all
levels of the organization. Concurrently, they
should lead by demonstrating advocacy and
activism to confront community, local, and
societal policies and practices that reinforce the
marginalization of oppressed populations. Rank
and Hutchison (2000) identified, through a
survey of social workers, diversity skills including
sensitivity to diversity, multicultural leadership,
acceptance and tolerance, cultural competence,
and tolerance of ambiguity, core skills for
successful social work leadership.
Advocating for increasing knowledge development
about culturally competent practice with diverse
client groups is paramount to social work
leadership, as is being a change agent to address
injustices with colleagues and peers. The social
worker’s responsibility is to advance cultural
competence and social justice with clients and
within organizations, the profession, systems,
and society.
Social work leaders will understand cultural
humility and the dynamics of privilege, power,
and social justice as manifested in their own
places of work, taking responsibility to educate
others and, ultimately, advance social change
within systems, organizations, and society.
Indicators
Culturally competent social workers will
- advance and promote culturally competent
practice with clients and within organizations,
the social work profession, and communities
- create effective multicultural work teams
- incorporate and disseminate information on
cultural competence in professional activities
(for example, committee work, scholarship,
research) and in other appropriate arenas
- work in partnership with marginalized clients
and communities to strengthen these
communities, encouraging the use of power and
facilitating client–community empowerment
- advocate both within and beyond the profession
for fair and equitable treatment of clients and
colleagues, especially those from marginalized
cultural groups
- serve in roles in which they can make a
difference in advancing multiculturalism
inclusion and cultural competence
- develop the skill and confidence to engage in
and facilitate difficult conversations about
cultural differences
- recognize and respect the strengths and
differences in professional and personal
relationships with others
- address resistance to the adoption of
culturally competent practice
- engage colleagues in the identification and
implementation of strategies that strengthen
and sustain inclusive multicultural organizations
- mobilize colleagues, clients, and organizations
to address injustice, bias, and isms on all levels
- advocate for multicultural membership on
state regulatory and licensing boards for the
social work profession.