International Perspectives on Mental Health (307-0-1)

Instructors

Rebecca A Seligman
847/491-7207
1810 Hinman Ave., Room #204, EV Campus

Meeting Info

Parkes Hall 215: Wed 2:00PM - 4:30PM

Overview of class

This course will explore issues of mental health in cross-cultural, perspective and examine the impact of psychological illness on the global burden of disease. Students explore the following questions: how do cultural systems of meaning and behavior affect the vulnerability of individuals within the population to mental illness and the mental illnesses to which they are vulnerable? How does culture influence the way that mental illness is expressed and experienced and how does this affect our ability to measure psychological illness cross-culturally? How do cultural factors affect the way that mental illnesses are diagnosed and labeled, and the degree to which they are stigmatized? And how do such factors affect our ability to create effective global health interventions? Finally, how do healing practices and the efficacy of particular treatments vary across cultures? We will examine these and related questions in the context of specific forms of psychological distress, including depression, trauma, dissociation and psychosis, using case studies from a range of cultural contexts including Brazil, Japan, India, China and the U.S.

Class Materials (Required)

Watters, Ethan. Crazy Like Us : the Globalization of the American Psyche. 1st Free Press hardcover ed. New York: Free Press, 2010. Print. ISBN: 978-1416587095

Class Attributes

Social & Behavioral Sciences Distro Area
No Freshmen

Enrollment Requirements

Enrollment Requirements: Freshmen may not register for this course.