Abnormal Psychology

The History of Abnormal Psychology 9

Constellations of symptoms, such as koro and possession trance, that are generally

observed only in certain countries or cultures are said to be culture-bound.

Even within a country or culture, there are different segments—subcultures—

that have their own norms and values, and these subcultures may support divergent

views about mental health and mental illness. For instance, families who immi-

grated to the United States from Southeast Asia tend to value self-control and are

more likely to interpret a child’s pattern of physically active or aggressive behavior

as a problem than are most Americans, who view such behavior in children as nor-

mal and healthy.

In addition, culture can shape the form taken by psychological distress and

any ensuing problematic behaviors. As we shall see in the rest of this chapter,

culture—and its evolution over time—affects the way individuals with mental

illness see themselves and how other people respond to them. However, cul-

tural norms about psychopathology are not set in stone but can shift. Consider

that, in 1851, Dr. Samuel Cartwright of Louisiana wrote an essay in which he

declared that slaves’ running away was evidence of a serious mental disorder,

which he called “drapetomania” (Eakin, 2000). More recently, homosexual-

ity was offi cially considered a psychological disorder in the United States until

1973, when it was removed from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Men-

tal Disorders, the manual used by mental health clinicians to classify psycho-

logical disorders.

Cultural norms also affect how mental health professionals view mental illness.

In fact, in the 1960s and 1970s, some researchers and psychiatrists believed that

culture and context were so important that behavior that was merely unusual or

undesirable had come to be labeled as mental illness. Thomas Szasz (1960) argued

that because all people engage in “us-versus-them” thinking, it is easy for a society

to stigmatize people who are noticeably different. That is, culturally undesirable

behaviors, emotional diffi culties, and coping problems may be inaccurately called

mental illness. In fact, Szasz proposed that mental illness is actually a myth.

Although culture is undeniably important, it does not entirely defi ne mental ill-

ness. As we shall show in this book, many studies have documented both common-

alties across a wide range of culture and the contribution of neurological factors to

the development and expression of mental illness. The assertion that mental illness

is a myth is therefore not true and has been relegated to history. However, it is al-

ways important for mental health professionals to ensure that the diagnosis of men-

tal illness is not used simply to label people who are different or, as in the former

Soviet Union, who question the policies of the government or those in authority.

Diagnosing someone with a mental illness assigns a label that

may infl uence how the diagnosed person feels about himself

or herself and how that person is seen and treated by others

(Eriksen & Kress, 2005).

Let’s examine the behavior of the Beales within their con-

text and culture. Big Edie’s father claimed that his ancestors

were prominent French Catholics; she and her siblings grew

up financially well off. She was a singer and a performer,

but, as a product of her time, she was expected to marry

well (McKenna, 2004). Her father arranged for her to wed

New York lawyer Phelan Beale, from a socially prominent

Southern family (Rakoff, 2002). Little Edie was born about

a year later, followed by two brothers. Big Edie was very

close to her daughter, even keeping her out of school when

Little Edie was 11 and 12, ostensibly for “health reasons.”

However, Little Edie was well enough to go to the movies

with her mother every day and on a shopping trip to Paris

(Sheehy, 2006).

Although you may view the intentional

facial scarring of this man from a tribe

in West Africa as unusual, you prob-

ably do not view it as an indicator of

a psychological disorder. But what if

your neighbor or classmate had similar

scarring—might you view it as a sign of

a psychological disorder? Notice that

the context of the behavior and the

culture of the person infl uence your

Charles & Josette Lenars/Corbis assessment.