Cultural Competence Training

The need for better quality services for people from different cultural backgrounds has widely been recognised. Calls for cultural competence training have resulted in many training activities, and yet there is little knowledge about the effectiveness of such training. This book reports on the development and evaluation of cultural competence training. An educational module was developed for staff working with people with drug and alcohol problems, with the aim of enhancing their cultural competence. The expectation was that their practice would improve by achieving a change in knowledge, attitude and behaviour of staff. This study sought to evaluate the success of the module in achieving a change in individual knowledge and behaviour, and if the learning had led to an improvement in services. It also highlights lessons that could be learnt from this study that could also inform the wider debate in educational research and anti-racism/diversity training.