Are culturally sophisticated agencies better workplaces for social work staff and administrators?

Using the concept of cultural sophistication, data from 285 African American social workers and administrators were analyzed to demonstrate the effect of perceptions of agency cultural sophistication on reports of psychological and work-related stress. Among African American workers, perceptions of cultural sophistication had a significant effect in many areas of work stress but not with reported psychological problems. For African American supervisors and administrators, a moderate effect was identified between cultural sophistication and decreases in work-related stress. The usefulness of cultural sophistication as an explanatory variable in understanding staff perceptions of occupational and psychological stress in human services organizations is discussed.