An Assessment of Practitioner Cross-Racial Treatment Experiences

In contrast to earlier decades, when social work practice was assumed to be "color blind," it is now acknowledged that racial dynamics critically affect helping relationships (Davis & Proctor, 1989; Grantham, 1973; Greene, Abramowitz, Davidson, & Edwards, 1980; Gross, Herbert, Knatterud, & Donner, 1969). The considerable attention that has been devoted to cross-racial helping behavior is unlikely to wane as the minority population in U.S. society increases relative to the white population. Significant numbers of minority clients will continue to be seen by white counselors, and increasing numbers of white clients will be seen by minority practitioners. However, social workers' knowledge of the cross-racial perspectives and experiences of practitioners remains limited. Seldom have practitioners been asked, "What factors make the cross-racial practitioner experience different from a same-race practitioner experience?" Research has shown that most minority clients who seek help expect to be met by a white helping professional (Proctor & Rosen, 1981). But little is known about the expectations of white or minority practitioners who are about to work with a client of a different race. What race-related problems do practitioners expect to encounter? What are their most common race-related treatment problems? What are their most common cross-racial fears or concerns? The absence of attention to these questions is surprising given that social workers should be exploring all aspects of the helping relationship. Knowing the answers to these questions would have considerable usefulness for those who attempt to better prepare themselves for cross-racial practice. A major assumption of those who have focused on cross-racial practice is that cross-racial practice experience is common for both white and minority social workers. It is possible, however, that the cross-racial experience vanes depending on the race of the practitioner. For example, how similar or different are the issues that white and minority social workers bring to cross-racial practice? How do white and minority practitioners perceive themselves to be responded to by their different-race clients? The cross-racial experiences of white and minority practitioners may very well differ, as do their life experiences in general. The study described in this article sought to assess differences in the cross-racial treatment experiences and perceptions of white and minority practitioners. We wanted to answer five questions: (1) To what extent are white and minority practitioners different or similar in their perceptions of their effectiveness in cross-racial helping situations? (2) Do white and minority practitioners differ in their perceptions of the source of client problems? (3) Do white and minority practitioners experience different race-related difficulties or concerns in their cross-racial treatment experiences? (4) Do white and minority practitioners spend different amounts of time working on client problems? (5) Do white and minority practitioners experience differences in cross-racial difficulties? Literature Review Some of the earliest research on cross-racial practice focused on client preference for race of practitioner. Many minority clients express a preference for same-race counselors, especially black clients (Atkinson, 1983; Atkinson, Furlong, & Poston, 1986). Although little empirical evidence indicates that cross-racial treatment is less effective than same-race treatment, those being helped often perceive a different-race helper as being less helpful (Morrow-Howell, Lott, & Ozawa, 1990; Terrell & Terrell, 1984). In addition, practitioners who engage in cross-racial practice often perceive themselves as being less comfortable and less effective when working with different-race clients (Franklin, 1985; Fry, Knopf, & Coe, 1980; Turner & Armstrong, 1981). One key concern has been that client-practitioner rapport may be difficult to establish because of racial in-group-out-group mistrust (Banks, 1972; Hankins-McNary, 1979; Jones, 1979; Siegel, 1974). …