Facilitating Cultural and Linguistic Competencies Among Social Work Students: A Convergent Mixed Method Study

Background and Purpose: Providing culturally and linguistically appropriate care is a critical way to ensure inequities in health care do not persist. If social workers do not have these competencies, they risk further harming already oppressed communities. Subsequently, national initiatives have sought to provide workforce development programs focused on increasing graduate students’ cultural and linguistic competencies. However, research on these programs often used either quantitative or qualitative methods. Though providing important information, these studies often omit triangulating findings and neglect obtaining a nuanced understanding of training elements that influence outcomes. One approach to addressing this gap in the literature is for studies to use convergent mixed methods. This method provides an integrated understanding of participants’ experience with a program. The purpose of this study was to merge quantitative and qualitative data to describe participants’ experience in a workforce development program focused on enhancing graduate students’ cultural and linguistic competencies.

Methods: This study used a convergent (parallel) mixed methods design among final-year master students participating in a workforce development program (N = 19). Quantitative data were gathered using a retrospective pretest-posttest design, which collected data once but allowed participants to rate themselves for two time points. Participants completed the Promoting Cultural and Linguistic Competency Self-Assessment Checklist for Personnel Providing Primary Health Care Services, which included three subscales (Physical Environment, Materials, and Resources; Communication Styles; and Values and Attitudes). A paired-sample t-test examined total scores and scores for the subscales. Effect sizes were based on Cohen’s d. Only one participant had missing data that resulted in removal from analyses. Qualitative data were gathered from three focus groups using a semi-structured interview guide. Data were digitally recorded and transcribed. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis to examine patterns of experiences. Results from the quantitative and qualitative analyses were systematically merged and compared.

Results: The 19 students participating in the program were 24-51 years of age (M = 31), predominantly female, non-veterans, with 32% representing historically excluded racial or ethnic groups, in suburban/rural areas. The paired sample t-test indicated significant improvement for the total score and each subscale, with effect sizes ranging from moderate to large. For example, participants perceived an improvement in their overall competence, with mean scores for before (M = 1.85, SD = 0.23) and mean scores for after the program (M = 2.22, SD = 0.22); t(18)=5.68, p <.001. The effect size was 1.34. Themes from the qualitative data also showed participants reported improved competencies (e.g., improved awareness of cultural factors in care and use of inclusive language). The combined data showed improved competencies; however, unlike the quantitative findings, qualitative findings indicated that participants wanted more training to improve their competencies. The qualitative results further indicated that case studies were valuable for fostering competencies.

Conclusions and Implications: Although participants perceived themselves as having improved cultural and linguistic competencies after participating in a workforce development program, they shared needing more training that used case studies. These programs would benefit from mixed methods research to understand the nuance of participants’ experiences.