Culturally Responsive Diagnosis

     Based on last week's discussion, I read this chapter a bit more critically to understand where a focus on culture can start to have negative effects. The book discusses how we need to be extra careful when diagnosing someone of a different culture, which is important to do. However, doesn't everyone have their own culture? Even within the same race or ethnicity, there are different cultures. The point should be more about being hesitant to diagnose anyone quickly- not just people from different cultures. If we put too much emphasis on culture, are we restricting people from getting the help they need? Culture can impact the maintenance of a disorder but does it create a whole new set of reinforcing factors that we've never seen before? People are complicated, but we often simplify them in the same way despite the differences. I know it sounds cliché, but we are just people at the end of the day. The book also discusses the role of poverty briefly. In schools, you see that not necessarily students of color are failing, but kids who are in poverty or lower class. Is it more about protecting those in poverty from the current system than individual cultures? I am not saying that considering culture is not important, but we should also associate poverty with the same level of importance. 

The book also talked about diagnosing transgender individuals. A news report just picked up a story last week about a gender clinic in St. Louis that has allegations of providing unethical service to kids. I think this example can go to show the power of a diagnosis and the repercussions of a wrong one. Many children were given a gender dysphoria diagnosis or medical treatment without any kind of assessment or a short questionnaire that held no real weight. It goes to show the importance of using good measures and maintaining an ethical code when diagnosing a patient. 

In regards to the MINI, I liked that it has several different ones. One for the clinician, one for the researcher, and one for the child psychologist. I wish more people did that! It seems like an interesting tool and I am excited to learn it. 

Grade: 17/20