Shared understanding as a gateway for treatment engagement: a preliminary study examining the effectiveness of the...

For ethnic minority families, the bridging of clinician-client differences is essential to their engagement in treatment. The Culturally Enhanced Video Feedback Engagement (CEVE) intervention aims to enhance client engagement through fostering clinician-client shared cultural understanding. The present study tested the effectiveness of the CEVE on client-rated clinician cultural competence and therapeutic alliance.

Nineteen ethnic minority families with children aged 3-6 years were randomized to the CEVE (n = 9) or treatment as usual (n = 10) at an outpatient clinic.

Results from linear mixed effects regression models indicated a significant effect of the CEVE on intercept, suggesting that clinician cultural competence and therapeutic alliance were significantly higher in the CEVE condition. No effect was found for clinician growth in skills.

The results indicate that the CEVE enhances client treatment engagement via clinician cultural competence and clinician-client alliance, suggesting its promise as a clinical engagement tool, particularly for treatments serving ethnic minority families.