Clinical psychology, social identities and societal challenges: Implications for diversity-sensitive practice and training

Abstract

Clinical psychologists are increasingly urged to recognize and understand the significance of societal factors such as marginalization experiences, within themselves and among the individuals and communities they serve. At the same time, there is a dearth of research in the field to guide this pursuit, and especially so in European contexts. We conducted an online survey (N = 646) to assess the social identities of clinical psychologists (graduate and trainees) in Germany and their incorporation of societal challenges in therapy and training. Overall, our sample was demographically rather homogenous and privileged: Clinical psychologists tended to be white (91%), nonmigrant (77.6%), female (74.5%), cis-gender (93.8%), heterosexual (75.4%), able-bodied (56.0%), and grew up in families with an academic background (68%). Although the majority of participants expressed a tendency to contemplate their identity when it came to their psychotherapeutic practices and believed that discussing societal challenges in therapy was pertinent, only a small proportion (~5%) reported actively introducing related subjects during therapy sessions or taking them into account during initial case conceptualization (~8%). The majority of participants indicated a lack of coverage of related topics in standard clinical psychological curricula. Greater perceived competence in addressing these topics was linked to clinicians initiating discussions about marginalization or discrimination in therapy. We explore the implications for future training aimed at fostering equitable, effective, and diversity-sensitive therapeutic practices.