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Colorism and historical trauma are part of the lived experiences of many racialized and marginalized groups. However, few studies have examined the meaning and function of colorism and historical trauma among clinical social workers and how prepared they feel to support healing from these experiences in their practice and lives. To address this gap, 42 clinicians of diverse racial, ethnic, gender, and regional identities from the United States were surveyed, of which 35 were interviewed, to explore their experiences of colorism, historical trauma, healing, and clinical social work education. Key themes will be presented: 1) Invisibilized healing & wounds: Black, Asian, mixed race, Latine, and people of color (POC) clinicians identified a need to heal personally from intrafamilial and societal experiences of historical trauma and colorist microaggressions, 2) Closing the gaps in clinical education, and 3) Clinical supervision as a compounded barrier or stepping stone. Implications for decolonial clinical social work education and practice will be discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Little is known about cross-cultural supervision dynamics between Black, female supervisors who provide clinical supervision of White supervisees. This study examined transference enactments which occurred between Black, female clinical supervisors (N = 57) and White supervisees. The results show that White supervisees' racist and sexist behaviors towards the Black, female supervisors demonstrated remnants of stereotypical images historically attributed to Black women (i.e., Mammy, Jezebel, and/or Sapphire). Moreover, the findings highlight the need to initiate multicultural awareness, knowledge, and skills to enhance clinical skills. The paper concludes with recommendations for cross-cultural supervisory dyads and implications for future research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports the findings of a study that investigated Black women’s experiences of colorism. The authors introduce a new framework, “colorist microaggressions”, which highlight the microaggressions experienced by Black women. The results indicate that colorist microaggressions impacted the social, relational, emotional, and relational aspects of Black women’s lives and their well-being. The results also showed that like racial microaggressions, the “colorist microaggressions” that Black women encountered in their community, family, and in society, were pervasive. We conclude with a discussion of the implications for social work research, education, and practice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The authors discuss transference enactments that occur during cross-cultural supervision. Previous research has shown that few mental health professionals willingly talk about race during supervision and that White supervisees experience significant difficulty when directly engaged in discussions about race. They introduce a new phenomenon, “stereotypical” transference enactments, as a means for understanding the countertransference Black female clinical supervisors experience during clinical supervision of White supervisees. The findings indicated that effective cross-cultural supervision should address the intersectionality of race and gender to enhance the development of multicultural clinical skills. The clinical and educational challenges are discussed by using two case vignettes. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

As the population becomes more diverse, social work educators will bear a larger responsibility for educating culturally competent practitioners. To enhance student learning, research should consider those factors that influence students' multicultural awareness, knowledge, and skills. This information potentially can help students better prepare for cultural competency courses and improve student outcomes. The focus of this study was to evaluate BSW and MSW students' (N = 191) multicultural awareness, knowledge, and skills at the beginning and end of a required cultural diversity course. The results indicate that more previous diversity trainings at different sites consistently predict higher pre-test scores while previous diversity training sites and pre-test scores predict post-test scores. The paper concludes with a brief discussion of research, practice, and teaching implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article addresses how racial/ethnic socialization practices shape self-esteem and influence problem-solving skills among African Americans. Attachment theory provides a conceptual model for understanding the importance of the parent-child relationship with regard to stress management. Empirical studies bolster the discussion of culturally relevant socialization practices that influence whether stress management among African American women is reduced or increased with each generation. The article concludes with practice, research, and pedagogical implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article describes how 15 African American women 18 to 55 years of age coped with traumatic life events during and in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The study's main question is how did African American women cope with traumatic events during and following Hurricane Katrina? Second, we explore how the intersection of race, gender, and social class influenced their experiences. An exploratory design of primary and secondary data using grounded theory methods generates a mid-level theory about resilience, spirituality and coping among Black women in the aftermath of the storm. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article is a continuation of a conference panel dialogue that focused on providing individualized, culturally responsible treatment of secondary traumatic stress (STS) for military social workers. Key aspects of the roles and responsibilities, professional and ethical challenges of military social workers and social work officers serve as focal points for understanding the importance of social support. This article discusses ways social support might help to moderate the impact of STS. The “buddy system” describes a culturally unique protective factor, which is a well-known and effective type of social support utilized throughout the military. This article provides valuable information on how the “buddy system” can serve as a blueprint for managing STS experienced by military social workers. The article concludes with research, policy, and practice implications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For many years, social workers have tried to establish their profession as one based on scientific principles. Following the tradition of medicine, influential leaders in social work are challenging clinicians and researchers to develop and implement evidence-based practice (EBP) models. Although various authors have discussed cautions in social work's move toward EBP, 1 issue—the influence of managed care and a market-driven economy on EBP in health and mental health care—has received less discussion. The purpose of this article is to discuss the parallel development of managed care and EBP, the possible influences of managed care on EBP, and the difficult issues faced by social workers in acting in the best interest of clients in a managed-care environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author sought to identify differences in kinship social support, self-esteem, and coping responses between African American college students who identify themselves as adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs) and adult children of nonalcoholics (non-ACOAs) at 2 separate universities. The results indicate that there were no differences in levels of self-esteem, kinship social support, and coping responses among ACOAs and non-ACOAs. The author addresses implications for practice, policy, and research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective social work practice with diverse populations requires the successful incorporation of multicultural knowledge, awareness, and skills. As a result, there is a pressing need for innovative and evidence-based teaching strategies and methods that provide social work students with these key multicultural tools. This paper describes one such teaching model and presents the findings of an exploratory study to empirically evaluate its effectiveness with undergraduate social work students (N = 23) enrolled in a multicultural social work course. Based on pre- and post-test composite scores, the findings suggest that this new model of multicultural instruction and assignments increases students' multicultural awareness and knowledge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study utilized a multi-method design that integrated both qualitative and quantitative methods. The study sought to identify differences in kinship social support, self-esteem, and coping responses between African American college students who identify themselves as adult children of alcoholic parents (ACOAs) and adult children of nonalcoholic parents (non-ACOAs) at two separate universities. The results indicate that ACOAs utilized more effective coping responses than non-ACOAs and there were no differences in levels of self-esteem and kinship social support. Personal constructs of adult children of alcoholics (ACOAs)' coping responses while living with an alcoholic parent and/or caregiver were investigated using in-depth interviews, and follow-up participant checkswere used.Atheoreticalmodelwas developed describing: (a) causal conditions that underlie the development of resilience, (b) phenomena that arose from those causal conditions, (c) context that influenced strategy development, (d) intervening conditions that influenced strategy development, and (e) consequences of those strategies. Subcategories of each component of the theoretical model were identified and illustrated by narrative data. Implications for research, practice, and policy are addressed. doi:10.1300/J137v15n02_05 [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article discusses various reports published within the issue, including one about biologic and social factors that may be linked to high rates of chronic diseases and another by Hall on differential kinship social support.

A preface for the February 2007 issue of the "Journal of Human Behavior in the Social Environment" is presented.