‘Globalisation may be defined as a process in which the traditional boundaries separating individuals and societies gradually and increasingly recede. This process is changing the nature of human interaction in many spheres: economic, political, social, cultural, environmental and technological. It is changing the way we perceive time and space, and the way we think about the world and ourselves’ (Kunitz 2000) Mental health disorders cause disability across the globe. Western countries, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, have well established services for treating mental distress and similar services are beginning to be set up in more developing countries. There are major inequalities in the availability of mental health support …show more content…
However, it must be discussed who the Globalisation of mental health systems really benefits. Is the Globalisation of the Western conception of mental illness the answer? Is it our place to dictate to the world what madness is and where it comes from? Ethan Watters in his 2010 essay ‘The Americanization of Mental Illness’ suggests that perhaps the attempt by the West to educate the planet on mental illnesses, has actually created problems that did not previously exist. Watters writes that Western researchers run almost all scholarly journals and host the psychiatry conferences, Western pharmaceutical companies spend billions marketing medications to ‘cure’ mental distress and Western-trained psychologists are sent over to help in areas of war and natural disasters as professionals to help cure the nation of its distress. But, what makes us know better than them? It has actually been suggested that individuals suffering with, what the West would call, Schizophrenia receive more helpful treatment in some developing countries. In Zanzibar, East Africa, Schizophrenia was seen as …show more content…
Research is carried out by the companies eager to prove the effectiveness of their new products. More people with the diagnosis, means more people who need the treatment. In addition, it has been suggested that most funding for psychiatric meetings comes from pharmaceutical companies. There is no argument that the western ideas of mental health is changing expressions of illness in other countries. For example, when first introduced antidepressants failed to take off in Japan, so marketing efforts have encouraged a complete change in the way depression is viewed in the country. Therefore, in the last few years, the market for antidepressants in Japan has grown enormously because of the movement towards recognising human suffering in ways that suit the interests of the western pharmaceutical industry. It is not enough for them just to convince the West that their sadness is ‘depression’ and their shyness is ‘social anxiety disorder’. These western views are increasingly being used to sell drugs worldwide; often with little or no evidence of their effectiveness. So therefore, the questions remain: Is it fair for the West to impose their knowledge of mental illness on other nations? Who does this really
...us advances in this field, while we still consider it a stigma even to be referred to a psychiatrist. Mental illness is just another biological or sociological problem, which needs to be dealt with on time, before it’s too late, by a specialist.
Culture is a collection of religion, traditions, and beliefs that are passed down from generation to generation. Culture is created and maintained through the repetition of stories and behavior. It is never definite because it is continuously being modified to match current trends, however, historical principles are still relevant. With respect to mental illness, culture is crucial to how people choose to deal with society and the methods used to diagnose and cope with mental illnesses. In Watters’ The Mega-Marketing Depression of Japan, he focuses on how Japan and other cultures define depression, but also displays how the influence of American treatments in eastern countries eventually becomes the international standards. Even though the
As science has evolved, so have treatments for mental illnesses have over time. The medical model is described as the view that psychological disorders are medical diseases with a biological origin (King, 2010, pg. 413). Abnormal behavior that categorizes some disorders can be impacted by biological factors such as genes, psychological factors such as childhood experiences, and even sociocultural factors such as gender and race (King, 2010). Treatments such as psychosurgery (lobotomy) , drug therapy (pharmaceuticals), electroconclusive therapy, and psychoanalysis are used to treat a wide range of psychological disorders. Back then, the public’s negative views on mental illnesses also went as far to associate with the people who treated it; psychiatrists. “Nunnally (1961) found that the public evaluated professionals who treated mental disorders significantly more negatively than those who treat physical disorders,” (Phelan, Link, Stueve, & Pescosolido, 2000, pg. 189). People back then didn’t see the point in “paying to be told that they were crazy”. However, in today’s society, it is now acceptable to seek help from psychiatric professionals; we are seeing more and more people seek mental health treatment. “In terms of facility-based records of utilization (Manderscheid and Henderson 1998), the data suggest that the rate of utilization of professional mental health services has at least doubled and maybe tripled, between the 1950’s and today,” (Phelan, Link, Stueve, & Pescosolido, 2000, pg. 189). In the 1950’s, neuroleptic drugs like Thorazine were introduced to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia. These drugs block a neurotransmitter called dopamine from getting to the brain, which in turn reduce schizophrenic symptoms, however there are some side effects such as substantial twitching of the neck, arms, and legs, and even dysphoria or lack of pleasure. (King, 2010, pg.
Mental illness has been around as long as people have been. However, the movement really started in the 19th century during industrialization. The Western countries saw an immense increase in the number and size of insane asylums, during what was known as “the great confinement” or the “asylum era” (Torrey, Stieber, Ezekiel, Wolfe, Sharfstein, Noble, Flynn Criminalizing the Seriously Mentally Ill). Laws were starting to be made to pressure authorities to face the people who were deemed insane by family members and hospital administrators. Because of the overpopulation in the institutions, treatment became more impersonal and had a complex mix of mental and social-economic problems. During this time the term “psychiatry” was identified as the medical specialty for the people who had the job as asylum superintendents. These superintendents assumed managerial roles in asylums for people who were considered “alienated” from society; people with less serious conditions wer...
Mental healthcare has a long and murky past in the United States. In the early 1900s, patients could live in institutions for many years. The treatments and conditions were, at times, inhumane. Legislation in the 1980s and 1990s created programs to protect this vulnerable population from abuse and discrimination. In the last 20 years, mental health advocacy groups and legislators have made gains in bringing attention to the disparity between physical and mental health programs. However, diagnosis and treatment of mental illnesses continues to be less than optimal. Mental health disparities continue to exist in all areas of the world.
Due to the endless efforts and research of certain foundations and individuals, the ideas and functions of mental health have improved significantly. The advancements made in the field are impressive and without them, humankind would not be the same. Yet then why do only fewer than eight million people who are in need of help seek treatment? National Mental Health Association, 2001. The history, stigmatization, and perception of mental illness are some of the many reasons behind that alarming statistic.... ...
People who are in different societal groups measure health in different ways. Mental health affects people in developing countries in different ways because they look at different aspects of and compare different things. People in developing countries who have money and who are able to access the medical care are looked at to be at a higher social status. Medical care in these areas cost money, a lot of people who do not have the money are not able to access the support they would need to improve their mental health. Due to mental health being a topic that is rarely talked about it is also something that a lot of people suffer from but no one talks about because they are not able to get
Stigma towards some of the mental health disorders among certain cultures and age groups(consulting psychiatrist for depression in older age groups), lack of knowledge in identifying psychiatric illnesses and risk of over or under diagnosing mental illness, are some of the major public health challenges in global mental health disease burden.
Cultural differences can conflict with diagnosing in different countries mental health disorders aren’t even recognised and there is also a stigma attached to mental health problems making people resistant to seek help or treatment. Diagnosing can also be difficult due to problems such as in one culture hearing voices can be totally normal yet in others this could mean your schizophrenic. (Hayes,2000)
I have thoroughly enjoyed World Cultures (HSC 4M). As a whole, this course has enabled me to think critically about the numerous barriers to equality affecting various groups, like the LGBTQ community, Aboriginals and those diagnosed with mental health disorders, among others. It has made me much more aware about my own pre-conceptions of and attitudes towards others, and how they are largely influenced by the media, ‘single stories’ and to be completely honest, fear. This is something that I did not realize before, but this realization has been imperial to my growth, development and change throughout this course. This course has also encouraged me to challenge my own pre-conceptions and beliefs and to modify my overall attitude towards others
Doward, J. (2013), Medicine's big new battleground: does mental illness really exist? The Observer 12 May.
Globalisation can be construed in many ways. Many sociologists describe it as an era in which national sovereignty is disappearing as a result of a technological revolution, causing space and time to be virtually irrelevant. It is an economic revolution, which Roland Robertson refers to in his book ‘Globalisation’ 1992 pg 8, as “the compression of the world and the intensification of consciousness of the world as a whole”. It is argued that globalisation allows the world to become increasingly more united, with people more conscious of ethnic, societal, civilizational and individual aspects of their lives.
Mental disorders are rapidly becoming more common with each new generation born in the world. Currently, nearly one in two people suffer from some form of depression, anxiety, or other mental health problem at some point in their lives (Editor). With so many people suffering from their mental illnesses, steps have been taken in order to get help needed for these people but progress has been slow. In the medical world, hospitals are treating those with physical problems with more care than those with mental problems. Prescription drugs can only do so much helping the mentally ill go through their daily lives and more should be done to help those who need more than medicine to cope with their illness. Mental health should be considered just as important as physical health because of how advanced physical healing is, how the public reacts to those with mental illness, and due to the consequences that could happen if the illness is not correctly helped.
It is deeply alarming that ignoring mental health is systematically ignored as an important part of health promotion. This is shocking because, in theory, mental health is recognized as an important component of health, the close link between physical and mental health is recognized, and it is generally known that physical and mental health share many of the same social, environmental and economic components. We know that facilities dedicated to those with mental health problems are more vulnerable to the resources of physical diseases in many parts of the world, and it is essential that mental health promotion should not be equally affected
Globalization is defined as “the historical process involving a fundamental shift or transformation in the spatial scale of human social organization that links distant communities and expands the reach of power relations across regions and continents (Baylis, 2014).”