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Culture has a huge influence on how people view and deal with psychological disorders. Being able to successfully treat someone for a mental illness has largely to do with what they view as normal in their own culture. In Western cultures we think that going to a counselor to talk about our emotions or our individual problems and/or getting some type of drug to help with our mental illness is the best way to overcome and treat it, but in other cultures that may not be the case. In particular Western and Asian cultures vary in the way they deal with psychological disorders. In this paper I am going to discuss how Asian cultures and Western cultures are similar and different in the way they view psychological disorders, the treatments and likelihood of getting treatment, culture bound disorders, and how to overcome the differences in the cultures for optimal treatments. The Asian cultures make up a large portion of the world’s population, so being able to understand their way of dealing with psychological disorders is important. The way most of the Asian cultures view mental illness is vastly different from how Western cultures view mental illness. In a study it showed that “Asian Americans show stronger implicit mental illness stigma compared to Caucasian Americans” (Cheon & Chiao, 2012). One reason for this is that in Asian cultures they are more likely to attribute mental illness with some type of supernatural cause. This could include punishments by god or ancestors that they did not please by bad behavior or they may believe mental illness could be a result of a possession by an evil spirit. These types of beliefs lead to a stronger stigma against mental illness in Asian cultures. Since they believe that it can be caused by ... ... middle of paper ... ...ge of all of their options for treatment. Another very important thing that can be done is to educated mental health professionals about the different aspects of the Asian culture. Being aware of how Asians view and how they have traditionally treated mental illnesses is extremely important to treating people from Asian cultures. Lastly, being open to using modern counseling and drug therapies with tradition ways of treatment is a great way to overcome the challenges of treating Asians. In conclusion, the Asian and Western cultures have very different ways of viewing and dealing with psychological disorders. They both have their own ways of viewing mental illness, treating it, there are cultural-bound syndromes, and most importantly there are ways that can help to overcome these differences to help the people with psychological disorders in the best way possible.
As an expat child having gown up and lived across three continents-politely labelled as a third culture kid, but in reality not belonging to any one culture-I doubt if my own parents would understand me let alone a doctor in another country. My mother suffers from trichotillomania and on visiting a psychiatrist in a foreign country, he mentioned not seeing this disease often in his country: he had made her feel at once both alienated and awkward, and not likely to trust his diagnosis or his treatment. I have seen her throwing her medication away- Pharmacotherapy cannot work without psychotherapy-and the demands of psychotherapy seem to be only increasing when you add a complex cultural element to it. Gold and his brother argue that both biological and social factors contribute to psychosis. In the field of psychiatric and behavioural sciences this would call for physicians skilled in appreciating all sorts of cultures and environments and while this may seem a tall order, a first step towards a solution would lie in acknowledging the role and importance of such external stimuli. Doctors cannot know it all but at least when they give a label it will be real. In a field where labels tend to stick and where the social stigma attached to mental illness is still considerable, it is worth while for doctors to make more informed diagnoses. Diagnoses that we can
Kleinman, A. 1980. Patients and Healers in the Context of Culture: An Exploration of the Borderland between Anthropology, Medicine, and Psychiatry. University of California Press.
Culture is a collection of religion, traditions, and beliefs that are passed down from generation to generation. Culture is created and maintained through the repetition of stories and behavior. It is never definite because it is continuously being modified to match current trends, however, historical principles are still relevant. With respect to mental illness, culture is crucial to how people choose to deal with society and the methods used to diagnose and cope with mental illnesses. In Watters’ The Mega-Marketing Depression of Japan, he focuses on how Japan and other cultures define depression, but also displays how the influence of American treatments in eastern countries eventually becomes the international standards. Even though the
During the initial interview with the client a new format is used called the Cultural Case Formulation. This takes into account the cultural identity of the person, their cultural definitions of distress, and cultural stressors. Psychosocial stressors are included which can be unique to each culture and the level that a person identifies with their culture can be taken into account when treatment planning. By assessing a client's cultural identity this may allow the clinician to identify barriers or commonalities between themselves and the
Crazy Like Us is a book written by Ethan Watters. Through this book, Ethan explores the spread of anorexia, post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, and schizophrenia. Through case studies, the author explains the causes, and symptoms of Anorexia in Hong Kong, depression in Japan, post-traumatic stress disorder in Sri Lanka, and how Schizophrenia came to Zanzibar. Moreover, he explains how these disorders are prevalent in the Eastern nations due to the American influence. In addition, Ethan Watters outlines the implications of the American influence, and the urgent need to treat these illnesses in a culturally suitable framework. Ethan states that American influence changes a lot the way many nations view these disorders, and the American mental health treatments do not work well live the cultural treatment of many nations.
Japanese people once did not believe depression was a disease, but a collection of emotions felt sometimes physically, through pain in the stomach, or emotionally through sadness. American pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline wanted to change that. “‘The focus was not on medication.’ Kirmayer remembers ‘they were not trying to sell there drugs to us. They were interested in what we knew about how cultures shape the illness experience’”
Abnormal Psychology Abnormal psychology in the area within psychology that is focused on maladaptive behavior-its causes, consequences, and treatment. Abnormal psychology deals with how it feels to be different, the meanings the get attached to being different, and how society deals with people whom it considers to be different. The spectrum of differences is wide, ranging from reality defying delusions and severe debilitations to worries and behavioral quirks that we would be better off not having but do not significantly interfere with our daily lives. An example of the milder end of the spectrum is a man who was an eminently successful district attorney, was elected governor of New York on three occasions, and was almost elected president of the United States in 1948. This man, Thomas E. Dewy, reached the pinnacle of success, displaying such qualities as rectitude, efficiency, precision, and nearly limitless capacity for hard work.
In “The Mega Marketing of Depression in Japan”, Ethan Watters draws attention to the ways in which concepts that are usually taken as concrete and standardized, such as depression or mental illness, are actually extremely varied and complex. In other words, people’s definition and the experience of such concepts are shaped by the cultures that they belong to. For example, if a Westerner experiences a depression, it will be different from ways that an Easterner will experience depression. However, despite the significant role that culture plays in determining people’s way of thinking, there is a certain limit to how influential culture can be; being aware of cultural differences and understanding why there are cultural differences can greatly
Anxiety is a feeling of tension associated with a sense of threat of danger when the source of the danger is not known. In comparison, fear is a feeling of tension that is associated with a known source of danger. I believe it is normal for us to have some mild anxiety present in our daily lives. Everyday that I can think of I have some kind of anxiety though out that day. Anxiety warns us and enables us to get ready for the ‘fight or flight’ response. However, heightened anxiety is emotionally painful. It disrupts a person's daily functioning.
Cultural shame and social stigma are the primary reasons hindering Vietnamese American parents from recognizing mental illness in their children and utilizing mental health services and support. There is no significant difference in comparing the first generation with the second generation of Vietnamese American in terms of their views or perspectives on mental health. Despite the difference experiences and opportunity the second generation receiving including possible higher education and SES (social economic status). This study will solicit Asian-American answers to this questions: “What we can do as individuals, communities, or churches and to model the decision to put our children’s mental health and happiness above the cultural shame?” and ultimately, their children’s happiness will prevail over cultural shame.
According to Kramer (2002), Asian Americans are the fastest growing racial group in the United States; growing from fewer than 1 million in 1960 to 7.2 million in 1990. But despite this ongoing rapid progression, Asian Americans have the lowest rate of utilization of any professional mental health related services than the general United States population (Tung 2011). To increase the utilization of mental health services among the Asian American community, the most hindering barriers that exist preventing Asian Americans in general from seeking out these services must be identified and explored. In spite of the fact that Asian Americans are viewed as the “model minority”, with high academic achievements and few mental/behavioral problems, studies
The DSM is the manual used to classify mental disorders, it plays a major role in the health care system in the United States. Inclusion of conditions definitely affects the legitimization of them, since it is the standard book used by health professionals to label disorders. The DSM affects the sick role due to labeling and realizing a person needs treatment based on their condition, without it people wouldn 't be able to adopt the sick role, in terms of mental disorders. Cultural diversity is a factor that affects labeling and the treatment of mental disorders because different cultures can perceive and treat mental disorders through an ethnocentric view compared to using the DSM. Overall the DSM plays a big role in the health care system, from diagnosing to treating , labeling and access to health care.
In a country based around free will, the United States contains a vast variety of personalities and behaviors. Plenty of people, probably more than we know, exert abnormal behavior. Abnormal behavior is patterns of emotion, thought, and action that are considered pathological. Historically, people blame witchcraft for this eccentric type of behavior and tended to perform exorcisms in hopes of abolishing such actions. Anxiety disorders and personality disorders, two forms of abnormal behavior, can alter a person’s personality as a result of life experiences.
Desapriya, E., & Nobutada, I. Stigma of mental illness in Japan. The Lancet , 359, 1866 . Retrieved May 3, 2014, from
The Western Culture focuses on two methods of healing: chemically engineered compounds and surgical procedures. For instance, in the United States, individuals have the option of antidepressants with or without the aid of cognitive therapy(Selhub 2007) Most individuals choose the quick approach due to its alluring quick fix scheme. These contrasts different from the Eastern Culture’s main focus: the power of the mind and the energy from within: mind, body, and soul. The effects of Eastern Culture’s approach have been proven to be enduring and beneficial to the individuals involved. The Western Culture would greatly