Closing the Gap in Cultural Humility: The Bridge Between Post-Baccalaureate Research and Graduate Clinical Competency

Objectives Post-baccalaureate research assistant (RA) positions provide valuable opportunities to enhance skills prior to pursuing a doctoral degree in clinical psychology, and often include trainees’ first experiences with patient interactions. Although multicultural competencies are emphasized in clinical and research graduate training, the present commentary argues that it is an ethical imperative to integrate cultural humility into even earlier stages of training. Methods: The authors review clinical competencies in multiculturalism, discuss how these competencies are developed in graduate programs, and describe an example of a trainee-led initiative to translate training in cultural humility for RAs. Results: The core competencies in pediatric psychology include the importance of self-reflection of attitudes and beliefs and their impact on clinical care, knowledge of sociocultural factors and intersectional identities that may influence clinical presentations, and the role of systemic racism and other injustices in equitable care practices. In order to promote these competencies, doctoral programs utilize coursework, experiential training, readings, colloquia, class discussion and other tools. DEI Dialogues, a six-session introductory program, is one example of how specific cultural competencies and cultural humility training strategies can be modified for RAs. Conclusions: Introducing post-baccalaureate RAs to diversity, equity, and inclusion issues early in their training will not only enhance their interactions with research participants, but will also adhere to the field’s ethical guidelines by paving the way for the development of cultural humility in graduate training and beyond. The DEI Dialogues program represents a feasible approach to providing valuable systematic training early in the trajectory of a career in pediatric psychology. Implications for Impact Statement Training in diversity, equity, and inclusion is an ethical necessity across the career trajectory in pediatric psychology and is often lacking for trainees in earlier stages, such as post-baccalaureate research assistants. Clinical competencies gained at the research assistant stage can translate well into later graduate training. This commentary provides an example of a training program for post-baccalaureate research assistants to highlight how graduate-level cultural humility training strategies can be implemented earlier in the career trajectory.