Multicultural Psychology Exam # 3 Study Guide

A collection of key terms and definitions related to multicultural psychology, focusing on power, privilege, prejudice, cultural assessment, and therapeutic adaptations.

Why the concepts Power, Privilege, and Prejudice matter?

These three ideas form the ethical and social foundation of multicultural psychology.

Power, Privilege, and Prejudice help us ask?

• Who benefits from current systems?

• Whose voices are centered or excluded?

• How can psychology challenge inequality?

Understanding power, privilege, and prejudice is

essential for creating equity and inclusion.

Power

The capacity to influence, control, or define reality for others.

Personal Power

Ability to act and make choices (confidence, leadership, self-
advocacy).

Institutional Power

Authority within organizations or systems (schools, courts,
hospitals).

Structural Power

Large-scale patterns that advantage some groups over others
(laws, cultural norms, wealth, patriarchy, colonialism).

Power is not only force;

it is embedded in systems and norms.

Power is relational —

it exists through social interaction and institutional design.

Example of Power

A professor controls grades (institutional power), a confident student
influences peers (personal power), and university policies reflect broader inequalities (structural power).

Privilege

Unearned, often invisible social advantages given to members of a dominant group.

Characteristics of Privilege

• Based on group membership, not personal effort.

• Often invisible to those who have it.

• Maintained by systems (norms, policies, access), not individual choice

Examples of Privilege

• Being assumed competent until proven otherwise.

• Seeing your race, gender, or culture reflected positively in media.

• Feeling safe in everyday interactions (with police, teachers, etc.).

Privilege is often invisible to those who benefit from it —

that invisibility itself is a form of power.

Recognizing Privilege

Acknowledging privilege is not about guilt, but about responsibility and awareness

Prejudice

A learned, usually negative attitude toward individuals based on group membership.

Three Components of Prejudice

Cognitive, Affective, and Behavioral

Cognitive Component of Prejudice

Beliefs or stereotypes (“All older people are bad with technology”).

Affective Component of Prejudice

Feelings or emotions (fear, dislike).

Behavioral Component of Prejudice

Actions or discrimination (avoidance, exclusion).

Prejudice is learned through socialization, not biological—

it reflects the values and biases we are taught.

How Power, Privilege, and Prejudice Interact

• Together, they shape social hierarchies and systemic inequality.

• Privilege maintains power, while prejudice justifies unequal systems.

• Understanding their interaction helps identify where and how bias operates.

Cycle of Socialization (Harro, 2000)

Explains how bias is learned, reinforced, internalized, and reproduced through institutions; can be broken through awareness and education.

The Cycle of Socialization

(Harro, 2000): Socialization → Institutional Reinforcement → Internalization → Behavioral Reproduction

Socialization (1)

We learn norms, stereotypes, and roles early in life.

Institutional Reinforcement (2)

Systems and policies maintain these norms.

Internalization (3)

Individuals come to see these norms as “truth.”

Behavioral Reproduction (4)

Bias is acted out and passed on.

Goal of The Cycle of Socialization (Harro, 2000)

Break the cycle through awareness, education, and critical reflection.

Social identities

race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, etc.

Social identities (race, gender, class, sexuality, ability, etc.) exist within

hierarchies of power.

Intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1989)

People can experience both privilege and oppression at the same time.

Example of Intersectionality (Crenshaw, 1989)

A Black woman may face racism and sexism but hold privilege as educated or able-bodied.

Multicultural psychology views identity as

political, social, and psychological.

From Awareness to Action

1. Self-Awareness

2. Education

3. Accountability

4. Allyship

Self-Awareness (1)

Recognize your own position within systems of power and privilege.

Education (2)

Learn the histories of oppression and resistance.

Accountability (3)

Listen to marginalized voices and accept feedback.

Allyship (4)

Use your privilege to challenge inequity in daily life and professional settings.

Key Point of (From) Awareness to Action

Change begins with self-reflection and extends through social and institutional action.

Summary of Power 

Who defines rules and controls access to resources.

Summary of Privilege

Unearned advantages tied to dominant group identity.

Summary of Prejudice

Learned attitudes that justify inequality.

Together (Power, Privilege, Prejudice),

they form the social structure of oppression and opportunity.

Multicultural psychology calls for

awareness, reflection, and responsibility in addressing bias and promoting justice.

Culture shapes

how distress is experienced, expressed, and understood.

Multicultural assessment means evaluating psychological functioning

within the client’s cultural, linguistic, and social context.

The goal is to

understand the person in context, not just label symptoms.

Assessment without cultural awareness risks

bias, misdiagnosis, and inequitable care.

What Is Multicultural Assessment?

Evaluation of psychological functioning that considers cultural identity, language, worldview, and values.

Purpose of Multicultural Assessment

Move beyond “checklists” — understand what symptoms mean within the person’s cultural world.

Key Question of Multicultural Assessment

How does the client’s background shape their experience of distress?

Cultural identity includes:

• Ethnic and racial background

• Language and acculturation

• Religion and spirituality

• Gender and sexual identity

• Socioeconomic status

• Disability status

Cultural Identity and Assessment

Identity factors influence both how symptoms appear and how clinicians interpret them.

Example of Cultural Identity and Assessment

A Latina mother describing “nervios” may be expressing social and spiritual distress, not a DSM anxiety disorder.

Understanding cultural idioms

prevents pathologizing normal experiences.

Acculturation

Process of adapting to a new culture through behavioral, emotional, and
cognitive changes.

Influences of Acculturation and Assessment

• Communication style

• Family and community expectations

• Help-seeking preferences

Example of Acculturation and Assessment

A bilingual student may appear “westernized” but still hold collectivistic family values. → May respond differently to self-report tests designed for individualistic cultures.

Common Problem

Psychological scales often assume Western norms (independence, self-expression). This can produce misleading test profiles if cultural differences are ignored.

Many personality or self-report items reflect

individualistic values.

Original Item: “I prefer to make decisions on my own.”

Culturally Adapted Example: “I prefer to make decisions with input from people close to me.”

Original Item: “I feel happiest when I stand out.”

Culturally Adapted Example: “I feel happiest when I contribute to my group’s success.”

Original Item: “I define success by what I personally achieve.”

Culturally Adapted Example: “I define success by how I help my family or community.”

Goal of Rewriting Biased Assessment Items

Preserve the psychological construct, but rephrase to respect cultural values.

Cultural Competence Framework: Three essential components:

1. Awareness

2. Knowledge

3. Skills

Awareness (1)

Recognize personal and systemic bias.

Knowledge (2)

Learn cultural worldviews and social structures.

Skills (3)

Apply culturally adapted interviewing and interpretation techniques.

Culturally Responsive Assessment Practices:

Begin with self-reflection and cultural self-assessment.
Center the client’s narrative before standardized testing.
Use multiple data sources (family, observation, community input).
Focus on meaning and function, not just symptom lists.
Give feedback using culturally appropriate language.

Cultural Formulation

Systematic evaluation of how culture, identity, values, and context shape
distress, symptom expression, and treatment expectations.

Purpose of Cultural Formulation

Understand the meaning of the problem in the client’s world — not just apply a label.

Benefits of Cultural Formulation

• Enhances diagnostic validity and empathy.

• Prevents pathologizing difference.

• Improves engagement and outcomes.

Cultural Definition of the Problem (CFI):

How does the client describe their problem?
“What brings you here today? How would your family describe it?”

Cultural Perceptions of Cause and Context:

Cultural Humility

An ongoing attitude of openness, reflection, and respect for cultural difference.

Ethics in Multicultural Psychology

The principles guiding the practice of psychology ensuring informed consent, cultural competence, and respect for client differences.

Culturally Adapted Interventions

Evidence-based treatments that are systematically modified to suit a client's cultural context.

Barriers to Culturally Responsive Interventions

Factors such as lack of cultural competence training and limited research diversity that hinder effective therapy for marginalized populations.