Controversy: Culturally Bound Syndromes and Symptoms

You must successfully complete the “Dissociative, Somatic Symptom, Schizophrenia, and Neurocognitive Disorders” quiz before you will be allowed to post in this discussion forum. Before you begin working on this discussion, please read the article by Wen-Shing (2006) as well as the “Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organizational Change for Psychologists,” and review any relevant Instructor Guidance.

For this discussion, you will enter into another conversation on an ongoing controversy and contemporary issue regarding abnormal psychology. Specifically, are there psychological syndromes and symptoms that appear only in certain cultures?
 
Because this topic is not covered explicitly in your course textbook, it is absolutely essential to read the Wen-Shing (2006) article, guidelines 1, 2 and 5 from the “Guidelines on Multicultural Education, Training, Research, Practice, and Organizational Change for Psychologists,” and your instructor’s initial post before responding.

As you enter into this conversation, carefully consider the historical information you read regarding the discovery and identification of symptoms and syndromes that could potentially be bound to specific cultures. Then, take a moment to relate this historical background to the current ethical, clinical, and social considerations when working with individuals from diverse backgrounds. Interpret specific symptoms and syndromes as they relate to abnormal behavior from a culturally sensitive standpoint. Be sure to integrate knowledge of any appropriate cultural considerations psychologists must be aware of when working with individuals from backgrounds dissimilar to their own.

Again, the goal of this discussion forum is to have a single dynamic and respectful conversation about culturally bound symptoms and syndromes, not a series of 20 to 30 separate conversations. This means every post should be in response to another post. Your instructor will be posting the initial thread to which you will respond. Only start a new discussion thread if you want to address an entirely different theme or question(s) within the discussion subject area. Additionally, only post after first carefully reading what all the others within the thread have written.