What does the term culture-bound syndrome refer to?

What does the term culture-bound syndrome refer to?

Abstract. Culture-bound syndrome is a broad rubric that encompasses certain behavioral, affective and cognitive manifestations seen in specific cultures. These manifestations are deviant from the usual behavior of the individuals of that culture and are a reason for distress/discomfort.

Is Pibloktoq a culture-bound syndrome?

Pibloktoq is defined as a culture-bound syndrome. Culture-bound syndromes are patterns of aberrant behaviors and troubling experiences which are recurrent and specific to certain localities or populations. They generally fall outside of traditional Western psychiatric categories or definitions of illness.

What are some culture-bound syndromes?

Culture-bound syndromes include, among others, amok, amurakh, bangungut, hsieh-ping, imu, jumping Frenchmen of Maine syndrome, koro, latah, mal de pelea, myriachit, piblokto, susto, voodoo death, and windigo psychosis. Also called culture-specific syndrome.

What causes Pibloktoq?

No wonder then that pibloktoq, also known as Arctic Hysteria, was believed to be caused by the length and severity of winters in the far North. Pibloktoq was first documented 1892 and appears to be common to all Arctic regions.

What is culture-bound syndrome in anthropology?

In medicine and medical anthropology, a culture-bound syndrome, culture-specific syndrome, or folk illness is a combination of psychiatric (brain) and somatic (body) symptoms that are considered to be a recognizable disease only within a specific society or culture.

Is Koro a culture-bound syndrome?

Koro is a culture-bound syndrome and is quite prevalent in both epidemic and sporadic forms in South East Asia. Several reports on Koro in the literature have proved that India, after China, is a Koro prone country.

Why are culture-bound syndromes important?

Culture-bound syndromes provide a useful mirror for Western mental health professionals to examine their assumptions about the nature, diagnosis, and treatment of mental disorders. The DSM-IV-TR (American Psychiatric Association, 2000) defines and states the following about culture-bound syndromes.

What is Susto disorder?

Susto is a folk illness term that is widely applied in Latin America. It indicates a serious fright or startling experience that has caused the asustado to lose his vital essence and thereby fall ill. The term is applied etiologically to a wide range of pediatric and adult problems.

Is kuru a culture-bound syndrome?

A culture-specific syndrome is not the same as a geographically localized disease with specific, identifiable, causal tissue abnormalities, such as kuru or sleeping sickness, or genetic conditions limited to certain populations.