Abstract
Background: This study focused on the cultural and gender differences in the perception of living group climate quality between native Dutch youth and Dutch youth with a Turkish and Moroccan cultural background placed in Dutch residential youth care. Method: Living group climate was examined by means of a self-report measure in a sample of 437 youth of whom were 178/173 native Dutch boys and girls, and 40/46 Turkish/Moroccan boys and girls. Living group climate was measured with the Group Climate Instrument that consists of four subscales (i.e. Support, Growth, Repression, and Atmosphere). Result: Results indicated that Turkish/Moroccan boys experienced significantly less support and growth in comparison to native Dutch boys. Conclusion: We conclude that a cultural sensitive approach in residential youth care is important by acknowledging the cultural values, specifically the collectivistic masculine identity of Turkish/Moroccan boys, to better meet basic psychological needs of these boys in residential care and improve treatment efficacy. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed.
