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- MBA FPX 5002 Assessment 3
Abstract
Which is why they are more susceptible to the occurrence of mental health problems. The LGBTQ+ PoC faces a variety of obstacles to historic and current mental health care and treatment, and one of them is the absence of culturally competent providers who specialize in LGBTQ+ PoC affairs. For the graphic, my vision is to be a clinical research psychologist providing services to queer individuals of color, specifically members of the lesbian community.
Thus, education and research are my goals to help create a society in which sexual minorities of various backgrounds have equality in terms of the availability of opportunities to receive mental health services. To enhance this vision, I have planned to continue my education and earn my Master’s and PhD in clinical psychology with specializations that include counseling of the LGBTQ + PoC population.
In this paper, I explain prior literature on LGBTQ+ PoC that informed my vision and future professional and ethical competencies, which are central to my future occupation as a clinical research psychologist. I also included an operational plan through which I could actualize the mentioned dream.
My Career As a Clinical Research Psychologist for LGBTQ+ PoC
When the client is in a sexual minority as well as is a PoC, more variation between the mental health professional and the client emerges. The obtaining and employing of cultures with competencies in the practice with the LGBTQ+ population is therefore very essential.
Application of Vision
The experience of vulnerability is compounded to a higher degree when the person is PoC as they experience oppression in multiple domains that are related to their double marginalized status (Mayers, 2021). It is, therefore, essential to understand the specific circumstances that could constitute a challenge to the PoC that identifies as LGBTQ+.
Discrimination, or a mixture of racism, heterosexism, and cissexism that black queer and non-binary people encounter, leads to poor health. External stigmatization can be associated with poor mental health. Members of the LGBTQ+ PoC face access to mental health care services as a challenge. Another critical challenge is the scarcity of those who are skilled in the various concerns that men of color may have.
As per the U. S. Census Bureau, the demographic composition of the United States is projected to change significantly over the years. Race and sexual orientation are so because both are identities and are different for each person. The connection between practitioners and clients is challenged by the hailing of having to belong to two vulnerable groups at the same time (Ubl, 2018).
The LGBTQ+ PoC experiences some stressors that include exclusion of sexual orientation, mental health professionals not taking racial/sexual identity concerns seriously, and other forms of discrimination in the therapeutic context (Ubl, 2018).
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Early in my life, I was raised in an immigrant household and witnessed the daily challenges of my gay brother; thus, initially, I am aware of some of the mental health issues an LGBTQ+ PoC may experience. There is the dream of living in the most diverse and inclusive society with equal opportunities for the Queer PoC to receive affirmative mental health counseling free from prejudices rooted in the cultural norms of the society.
Goals
For this, I have the following three education and career Personal SMART goals: These have been prepared based on achieving the SMART objectives. The goals are specific, challenging, realistic, and temporal. They are quantifiable and operational at the same time, containing sufficient details that would assist me in bringing my vision of being a clinical research psychologist to reality.
First, about education, I intend to complete a Master’s Degree in Psychology for the next three years. Then, four years after the master’s degree, I will continue the study of Ph.D. clinical psychology, and I focus on LGBT counseling. In the next two years, after getting my PhD, I’ll work as an intern with an experienced psychotherapist, where I will fight for the representation of the LGBTQ+ PoC and actively engage in research.
Value of Networking and the Professional Interview
Preserving excellent working relationships with other psychologists will assist me in the growth and proper staffing, sharing of knowledge, and development of beneficial relations. I plan to network on two fronts: This makes the communication intra-organizational and inter-organizational.
Intra-organizational networks entail establishing professional contacts with people in my college or workplace, including instructors, classmates, and co-workers. This will assist me in the production of occupational knowledge and competencies. Staying connected with my contacts, who are in different networks other than the workplace, I will attend symposiums and conferences to be updated on industry trends. This will enable me to interact with other people of like mind and consequently build a healthy rapport with people (APA, 2017).
The one focused on LGBTQ professionals and academic organizations will allow me to communicate with other professionals and merely observe the work of outstanding scholars who have already made substantial contributions to the field of the study of LGBTQ+ PoC. Such inter-organizational networking will assist in finding out the current available research and the difference between the findings of the study and the incumbent realities of the communities in which PoC LGBTQ+ resides. It was insightful to interview Dr. Jane Harris, PsyD from the University of Michigan, about the role of school psychologists.
MBA FPX 5002 Assessment 3 Clinical Research Psychologist
In many of the national and international civil rights organizations, he doubles up as a subject matter specialist in issues to do with the LGBTQ community. By enshrine of the interview, I got the idea of work nature and competencies, which are essential for them to become a clinical research psychologist, along with their requirement and qualifications. Therefore, in the opinion of Dr Harris, the single most important characteristic that a psychologist devoted to minorities must exhibit is sensitivity to cultural differences. It is necessary to provide your clients with the conditions in which they will feel comfortable and prove that you appreciate their decision.
Critical Thinking
Thus, the knowledge, skills, and behaviors that are essential for a clinical research psychologist MUST encompass the following competencies. Professionals in this specialization should be able to acquire data and choose the appropriate action between two or more.
This means that many choices have to be made, from research and hypothesis formation down to how clients will be dealt with, hence the need to make proper decisions. They should also incorporate the best practices and evidence to enhance the ways of delivering mental health care and fortify results.
Clinical experience and client attributes that are supported by research to support decision-making in health endeavors is the definition of evidence-based practice (EBP) as postulated by Busch and McCarthy (2022). Interpersonal conflict-solving is a skill that can assist the psychologist in winning the trust of people in cases where trust is hard to come by. Hence, it is advisable (Getha-Taylor et al., 2019).
Lastly, when dealing with patients in clinical settings, it is widespread for clinical research psychologists to attempt to find a way to assist in untangling the circumstances, and therefore conflict-solving is essential.
Critical thinking in this profession requires psychologists to identify data and information and make rational decisions on issues relating to treatment or research. Hence, critical thinking is a component of evidence-based practice that is considered necessary (Burell et al., 2022).
To be a psychologist, one must be flexible-minded, have tremendous curiosity, and be skeptical. For instance, any time I write an assignment on any subject, there will always be research works that agree with my hypothesis. Crucially, as a psychologist, I will have to critically evaluate the quality of the study based on the evidence.
The sample size, the qualifications and credibility of the researchers, and whether other researchers get similar results will influence my decision. Hence, decision-making skills are always associated with critical thinking.
Finally, after careful consideration of the pros and cons of each decision-making approach accessible to a psychologist, they have to come to a conclusion and decide if the matter is about treatment planning for a client or selecting a research method.
Ethical Competencies
Information about ethical issues should be easy to understand for psychologists, and they should possess sufficient competence to analyze and solve them. As stated by APA (2017a), ethical principles point to the pursuit of the best interests of society and offer direct instructions on most of the issues concerning a psychologist.
It is a combined set of guidelines by and with accordance to which the certified sessional and scientifically experienced mental health professionals establish their practice. It is stated that the APA’s ethics code entails ten ethical principles, and their violation can lead to sanctions. These standards include issues such as privacy, research, dealing with people, proficiency, documentation, and advertisement and promotional statements.
It is essential to remember all of these standards when interacting with LGBTQ+ clients. However, some of the critical in this case are the privacies and confidences, human relations, and competence.
LGBTQ+ PoC might often experience discrimination, and therefore, their identity might be concealed, which requires the protection and maintenance of clients’ privacy and confidentiality as an ethical approach. The source that can be used to assist ethic psychologists in formulating a code of practice is the Code of Ethics on Human Relations.
This code outlines principles on how to approach a client in order to build trust in the process of interviewing. Another ethical guideline that every psychologist must observe is competence. It is impossible to have a single psychologist who is competent in all the areas of the specialization.
They should practice within the scope of ideal competence based on the counselor’s training, experiences, and education. They justified that if they feel the client requires assistance outside their expertise, then the client should be redirected to the right expert (Tien et al., 2012).
Due to the colonial impact that is still very much present and rampant in the current society, ethically sound mental health care. The susceptibility of this population to mental illness is why ethical, unconcerned worries in assessment and management surface more fundamentally. Inappropriate or non-reciprocated clinical relationships diminish the possibility of arriving at the end or completion of an intended journey, that is, of the client.
Conclusion
The difficulties and Discrimination faced by LGBTQ+ PoC while seeking mental health services could be eradicated if only society and politicians stepped in. Psychologists are considered to be essential in this vision. Looking at the scope of the various health disparities and inequities that exist, as a future clinical research psychologist for the community, I have the duty of researching the factors and doing my best to eradicate them.
My vision for the future is to see a world in which LGBTQ+ PoC clients require and can readily obtain support and services from welcoming and culturally competent providers. The profession I have described above will help me with the implementation of the vision.
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References
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