Publications and Research
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
8-1-2019
Abstract
The purpose of the present study was to validate the already existing Racial Microaggression in Counseling Scale (RMCS) when the term “therapist” was replaced with “physician”, thus constituting the modification as the Racial Microaggression in Medical Practice Scale (RMMPS). Racial microaggressions work at reinforcing inferior social status on a cognitive level. Unlike overt racism, messages behind microaggression are subtler and more every day. A lack of acceptance, respect, and regard emerges from interactions in medical contexts as there are layers of in-group and out-group statuses at play (e.g., physician-patient, Black-White, expert-lay, and Westernized-alternative). The layer focused on in the present study was that of race or skin color. A sample of racial minorities in the Northeast (n=91) was investigated both quantitatively and qualitatively to validate the modification and future use of a Racial Microaggression in Medical Practice scale (RMMPS). The scale was related to the racial incongruence between patient and provider. Qualitative findings support the original concepts and themes used when developing the 10-item measure in a counseling setting. Psychometric findings for the scale also supported its factorial structure using generalizability theory estimates. Future implications of this research relate to health behavior, trustworthiness, and health outcomes of minority patients. Its potential for use among various practitioners, educators, and researchers is also discussed.
Comments
This is the author's accepted manuscript of an article originally published in Ethnicity & Health, available at https://doi.org/10.1080/13557858.2017.1359497