Biomedical subjects

R Wintrob

Publications and source records attributed to R Wintrob.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1988

Developing instruments for cross-cultural psychiatric research.

The growth of cross-cultural psychiatry is now occurring at a time when psychiatry in general is emphasizing diagnostic clarity and the use of quantifiable and reliable methods of collecting clinical and research data. It is now imperative that cross-cultural psychiatry also examine its methods for developing instruments for use in cross-cultural research. This paper outlines a method for developing instruments designed in one culture for use in a second, and particular attention is given to cross-cultural validity or equivalence. Five types of equivalence are enumerated and defined: content, semantic, technical, criterion, and conceptual equivalence. These concepts are illustrated by examples from the authors' experience in research on internal migrants in Peru.

Cross-Cultural Comparison↗

PubMed1979

"Folk" criteria for the diagnosis of mental illness in rural Laos: on being insane in sane places.

"Folk" criteria for identifying the mentally ill, as distinguished from folk theories about the causes of mental illness, have been comparatively neglected in cultural psychiatry. The authors describe the criteria by which villagers in Laos labeled 35 subjects as baa (insane). Unprovoked assaultive or destructive behavior, social isolation, self-endangerment due to neglect of personal needs, nonviolent but socially disruptive or inappropriate behavior, and inability to do productive work were found to be important folk criteria. The authors emphasize that folk criteria for mental illness are determined primarily by the persistence of socially dysfunctional behavior rather than by disturbances in thought and affect.

Adult↗

PubMed1979

"Folk" explanations of mental illness in rural laos.

To obtain "folk" explanations of specific cases of mental illness the authors interviewed 35 baa(insane) Laotian individuals and their relatives and neighbors. They obtained 54 explanations; 15 focused on supernatural causes, 15 on physical causes, 14 on social problems, and 10 on psychological states. Although 31 theories (57%) focused on etiologic factors familiar to clinical psychiatrists, many self-evident factors (such as familial prevalence) were not mentioned. Except for 3 cases, responsibility for the illness was attributed to factors outside the subject's control. This view of mental illness absolves the baa person from blame and ensures support from the social group.

Brain Diseases↗

PubMed1978

A review of the relationship between dysphoria, pleasure, and human bonding.

A model is presented which links up recent findings regarding the biochemical substrates of neurological networks mediating pleasure states with the concept of animal behavior relating to bonding. The forms of human bonding (parent-child, kinship, friendship) have analogies in the animal world and appear to be based on a combination of fixed action patterns, learning behaviors supported by endogenous secretion of "pleasure-producing" endorphines, and social reinforcement. The implications of this model for psychiatric treatment and rehabilitation are discussed.

Affective Symptoms↗

PubMed1975

Foreign medical graduates who return home after U.S. residency training: the Peruvian case.

With few exceptions, reports on foreign medical graduates (FMGs) are concerned with their academic, clinical, and adaptational problems during their training at American hospitals and universities. This report, part of a study of FMGs from Peru who have completed postgraduate training in the United States in the past 10 years, is concerned with the psychosocial and professional stresses of adaptation experienced by a group of 21 Peruvian doctors who have returned home to practice. The authors discuss the "push" factors and "pull" factors that motivated these physicians to return to Peru to pursue careers in academic medicine, private practice, and government service in contrast to many of their colleagues who have remained in the United States.

Adaptation, Psychological↗