Transcultural Psychiatry

Transcultural psychiatry is a branch of psychiatry concerned with the cultural context of mental illness. Although there is a belief in the universality of major mental illnesses such as mood disorders and schizophrenia, cultural factors shape the manifestation and explanatory model of a given illness, as well as its diagnosis and treatment approach. For example, Caucasian Americans with depression commonly describe feelings of sadness and guilt, while Asian Americans may focus more on somatic symptoms, such as pain or fatigue. There are some syndromes that appear to manifest only in specific societies or cultural areas and do not clearly fit into the diagnostic categories of Western psychiatry. These are referred to as culture-bound, or culture-specific syndromes in Western psychiatry. One example is Amok, an illness described in Malaysia in which an individual, typically a male with no history of aggressive behavior, will acquire a weapon and attempt to kill or seriously injure...