USF Scholarship: a digital repository @ Gleeson Library | Geschke Center
Abstract
According to the 2015 Census, 44% of people ages five and older in California speak a language other than English in their household, indicating the growth of multilingual persons in California. Among the top three languages spoken at home in California, Chinese takes third following English and Spanish. The demand for multilingual mental health services may continue to grow with the increase of multilingual individuals. Although there is an increase in need for multilingual mental health services, there remains a lack of formal training and clinical supervision for multilingual trainees. This study adopted a qualitative approach and utilized semi-structured interviews and a thematic analysis to examine the experiences of multilingual therapists in training providing therapeutic services in a Chinese dialect. The purpose was to provide more research on experiences and needs of multilingual trainees. Thirteen participants of Chinese descent were interviewed via VSee, a telemedicine platform. The results yielded eight emerging themes that highlighted the various emotions and challenges experienced by multilingual therapists in training, as well as their suggestions for future trainings. Results indicated multilingual trainees face unique challenges in their experience when providing services in a Chinese dialect, further highlighting the need for additional research and attention towards improving training to support multilingual therapists in training