Revisiting the Rainbow: Culturally Responsive Updates to a Standard Clinical Resource

Publication Date

1-1-2023

Document Type

Article

Publication Title

American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology

Volume

32

Issue

1

DOI

10.1044/2022_AJSLP-22-00215

First Page

377

Last Page

380

Abstract

Purpose: Cultural responsivity is essential for efficacious and affirming clinical relationships. This may be especially important with historically marginalized cli-ents, such as transgender and gender-diverse (TGD) people seeking behavior-ally based affirming communication services. We recommend modifications to standard tools for diagnostics and training that otherwise might undermine our efforts to create an inclusive and affirming environment. Method: Modifications to the Rainbow Passage, a standardized paragraph uti-lized for eliciting speech samples in clinical settings, focused on nongendered terminology and the elimination of content with religious connotations. Results: The recommended edits to the Rainbow Passage maintain similar length, cadence, and phonetic balance while considering cultural and health care context for TGD people and other clients. Conclusion: Simple linguistic changes to a standardized paragraph maintain clinical benefits and facilitate SLP efforts toward cultural responsivity, client engagement, and good clinical outcomes.

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