Discussion 1: Defining Mental Health

Many Western groups advocate viewing mental health issues from a medical model. Providers of mental health services and advocates for the mentally ill use this medical model with the intention of reducing the stigma placed on the individual diagnosed with the mental illness. Yet, consider the startling finding that, "those who adopted the biomedical and genetic beliefs about mental illness were most often those who wanted less contact with the mentally ill or thought of them as dangerous and unpredictable" (Watters, 2010, p. 173). Western conceptualization of mental health and illness has spread across the globe and impacted how individuals are treated. For example, cultures may have initially been more tolerant of these behaviors due to factors such as externalized locus of control, beliefs in traditional healing, spiritual beliefs, and less expressed emotion. (Watters, 2010)

For this Discussion, review this week's Learning Resources. Select a culture and consider how this culture perceives mental illness.

With these thoughts in mind:

1) Your definitions of good mental health and poor mental health. Explain two ways your own culture influences your definitions of mental health. Then explain how your definition of mental health might differ from that of your selected culture. Finally, describe a behavior that is considered normal in your culture but would be considered abnormal in the culture you selected. Support your responses using the Learning Resources and the current literature.

Watters, E. (2010). The shifting mask of schizophrenia in Zanzibar. In Crazy like us: The globalization of the American psyche (pp. 127-186). New York, NY: Free Press.

Discussion 2: Social Change

In this course, you may have found it interesting to discover how extensively culture impacts psychology. Culture influences human development, identity and personality, attitudes and beliefs, and healthcare. As a scholar-practitioner, you may want to create a positive social change. In doing so, reflect on your future role as a scholar-practitioner. Consider the possible future research related to culture and psychology you might be interested in conducting. Think about how you may affect social change.

For this Discussion, reflect on how learning about the impact of culture on human psychology can help you develop as a scholar-practitioner, dedicated to positive social change.

With these thoughts in mind:

2) A brief description of two topics related to culture that you might be interested in researching further. Then, as a future scholar-practitioner, explain two ways you might impact social change in relation to culture and psychology. Be specific and use examples to illustrate your points.