HC 11 cultural psychology Flashcards
Abnormality perspectives: universalist perspective?
many disorders have identical symptoms across cultures
–> Alzheimer, Parkinson, schizophrenia, autism
Abnormality perspectives: cultural relativism?
–> view that culture and psychopathology are intertwined, disorders
can be understood only in the cultural framework within which they occur
–> culture and psychopathology are intertwined
Abnormality perspectives: frequentist approach?
–> denied because not all rare behaviors are disorders
- Defining abnormality as causing distress not all disorders cause distress
- Defining abnormality as going against the norm depends on the culture,
homosexuality is seen as against the norm in many countries but it’s no disorder
Cultural concepts of distress (according to the DSM V)?
- Cultural syndromes of distress: patterns of symptoms that tend to cluster together for individuals in specific cultural groups, communities, or contexts
- Cultural idioms of distress: ways that communities and cultural groups communicate and express their distressing thoughts, behaviors, and emotions
- Cultural explanations of distress: what communities and cultural groups believe is the cause of the distress, symptoms, or illness
Culture specific example: somatization?
- More prototropically collectivist cultures report their psychological distress with most
somatic symptoms (physical symptoms, complaints) - More prototypically individualist cultures report their psychological distress with
more psychological symptoms (emotional symptoms, complaints)
Results of failure in addressing issues of assessment?
- Overpathologizing: considering behavior as pathological, when behavior is a normal variation for that individual’s culture
- Underpathologizing: indiscriminately seeing behavior as cultural, when behavior actually reflects abnormal psychological response
Expressed-emotion construct?
= family and social interactions (hostility, criticism, over-involvement) influence the course of
schizophrenia
Results of study on how hearing voices is perceived in different countries?
–> Certain countries (India and Ghana) who believe in spirits saw the voices as pleasant, and the voices were most often relatives
Depression?
- Characterized by physical, motivational, emotional and behavioral changes
- Universally women are more likely to experience depression than men
- Cross-cultural symptoms: sadness, joylessness, anxiety, tension, lack of energy, loss
of interest, loss of ability to concentrate, ideas of insuffiency - In collectivist countries, somatic symptoms are more prevalent
ADHD?
- Characterized by inattentiveness, impulsivity and hyperactivity, interfering with social
and academic functioning - 2 main views of causes of ADHD
1. Biological
2. Social/cultural - Variation in prevalence rates across the world due to methodological differences
–> ADHD may be a universal disorder
Minorities characteristics: African Americans?
- Important to look at the historical context
- Have lower rates of depression
–> attributed to strong family, community and religious networks - Higher rates of bipolar disorder and schizophrenia explained by lower socioeconomic status
Minorities characteristics: Latino Americans?
- Very heterogenous group and fastest growing
–> varying rates of mental illnesses - Important to look at ethnic community vitality and strength when making
conclusions about prevalence of illnesses
Minorities characteristics: Asian Americans?
- Very heterogenous group with low prevalence
- Looked at as the model minority, which masks mental health issues
Minorities characteristics: native Americans?
- Higher prevalence on depression, disorders, alcohol abuse
- Attributed to culture loss and trauma of their historical past
Common mental health problems in immigrants & refugees?
- Initial health issues of immigrants lower than general population
- Most important is the prevalence of trauma (in refugees)
Psychotherapy?
= a method of healing that emphasizes an explicit focus on the self
–> Has a western origin and is focused on the individual; talking about issues
Views on role of the person?
- Egocentric: defined by personal history, the locus of control is the individual and the effective healing system is psychotherapy
- Sociocentric: defined by their community, the locus of control is their group, and the effective healing system is a collective ritual or family therapy
- Ecocentric: defined by the environment, locus of control is the nature and the elements, and the effective healing system is shamanism
- Cosmocentric: defined by their ancestors, the locus of control are gods or spirits, and the effective healing system is possession of divination
The two positions in psychotherapy?
- Cultural relativist position: psychotherapy was developed in a specific culture and
cannot be exported to other cultures - Universalist position: there are aspects of psychotherapy that are relevant for all people
–> culturally sensitive (modified) psychotherapies are useful
Differences within and between countries in general treatment?
- Those in lower income countries are less likely to receive treatment than those in countries with more economic resources
- Same difference within one country, mental health utilization and length of treatment differ by racial or ethnic group
Treatment barriers: language?
= language proficiency affects the use of mental services
- Lowering the barrier by using interpreters works, but not on the long term
Treatment barriers: stigma and mistrust?
= emotions such as shame and loss of face is associated with mental health services
- For Asian Americans and African Americans especially
- Mistrust is especially high in groups that experienced unethical studies, especially African Americans
Treatment barriers: beliefs on healt and illness?
= people are encouraged to rely on willpower to confront problems rather than relying on formal treatment
- Some groups feel strong and get through it themselves, or groups don’t want to rely on others
- Holistic and medical views do not match
Treatment barriers: social structures and policies?
= lack of availability of mental health services, health insurance, and culturally competent services
Removing barriers?
Barriers interact with racial or ethnic backgrounds, immigration status, and socioeconomic
status
- Hire bilingual and bicultural staff
- Increasing outreach and practitioners in the community –> decreasing stigma
- Having flexible hours of mental health care, even in odd hours that are not usual
working hours to increase availability
