Question

what our perspectives on cultural biases on mental illness, outlook upon mentlly ill person , Alcohlism and genetic

Answer 1

CULTURAL BIASES ON MENTALLY ILL PERSON

The culture of the patient, also known as the consumer of mental health services, influences many aspects of mental health, mental illness, and patterns of health care utilization. One important cautionary is to be noted that, however, is that general statements about cultural characteristics of a given group may invite stereotyping of individuals based on their appearance or affiliation. Because there is usually more diversity within a population than there is between populations (e.g., in terms of level of acculturation, age, income, health status, and social class), information in the following sections should not be treated as stereotypes to be broadly applied to any individual member of a racial, ethnic, or cultural group.

The symptoms of mental disorders are found worldwide. They cluster into discrete disorders that are real and disabling . mental disorders are defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders(American Psychiatric Association ). Schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, panic disorder, obsessive compulsive disorder, depression, and other disorders have similar and recognizable symptoms throughout the world. Culture-bound syndromes, which appear to be distinctive to certain ethnic groups, are the exception to this general statement.

One way in which culture affects mental illness is through how patients describe (or present) their symptoms to their clinicians. There are some well recognized differences in symptom presentation across cultures. The description ethnic variation in symptoms of somatization, the expression of distress through one or more physical (somatic) symptoms . Asian patients, for example, are more likely to report their somatic symptoms, such as dizziness, while not reporting their emotional symptoms. Yet, when , they do acknowledge having emotional symptoms .The finding supports the view that patients in different cultures tend to selectively express or present symptoms in culturally acceptable ways .

CULTURAL BIASES ON ALCHOLISM

One common example of an entire culture of people who have experienced strong bias, stereotype, myth, and marginalization on multiple levels are Native Americans (NA). This is particularly true as it relates to NAs and alcoholism. For hundreds of years, the world has believed NA cultures are particularly vulnerable to alcoholism and their prevalence of alcohol use far exceeds other populations by comparison. Research studies comparing alcohol use rates illustrate this long held belief may be highly exaggerated or altogether inaccurate.

Upon examining the National Survey on Drug Use and Health we found thay the following:

• 60% of Native Americans abstained from using alcohol altogether compared to 43% of whites.
• Almost 15% of Native Americans were light/moderate drinkers compared to almost 33% of whites.
• Native American binge drinking estimates were 17.3% similar to their white counterparts—16.7%.
• Heavy Drinking was also similar with Native Americans at 8.3% and whites at 7.5%.

As the numbers comparing Native Americans and Whites provide evidence for, addiction impacts individuals, families, and communities at an epidemic rate regardless of age, gender, race, culture, religion, socio-economic status, sexual orientation, etc. The truth is approximately 10% of the population 12 years and older meet the criteria for intensive substance use treatment and most likely suffer from the brain disease of alcoholism/addiction .

CULTURAL BIASES ON GENETIC.

A cultures impose on their members ideas about who they are, how they came to be, and where they fit in socially. For example, pre-modern societies believed that a woman who had a any kind of physical relationship before marriage might carry the imprint of her lover within her, so that her child born in wedlock would resemble the earlier lover, rather than the husband. This served to justify the premium placed on female chastity.

Folk ideas about heredity are a particularly powerful cultural tool, but they are not unique to pre-modern societies. Even contemporary science has its own cultural ideologies about heredity, which are often difficult to disentangle from the complex data and high technology that we believe produces objective, value-free glimpses of nature.

In the field of human origins, it is well-known that a human DNA sequence is nearly 99% identical to the corresponding part of a chimpanzee’s DNA. From there, it is not uncommon to hear the conclusion that we are ”nothing but” chimpanzees (and fated to be aggressive, or to possess whatever attributes are being imputed to apes these days), or that apes merit human rights. Once again, social meanings are enmeshed within beliefs about heredity.