magazine issue 10 2009 / Issue 10

Culture and Health Psychology: Insights from a Socio-Cultural Perspective

• written by Ayse K. Uskul & David Sherman
• edited by Selin Kesebir

Conclusion

So far, the evidence suggests that socio-cultural environments play an important role in health and illness-related outcomes. Importantly, research shows that socio-cultural factors can shape psychological constructs such as the factors that determine how people respond to health messages and use their social support networks as well as how illness-related thoughts are shaped and when behaviour is likely to change -- issues commonly tackled by psychological models of health behaviour. It is therefore essential that existing models of health behaviour are tested cross-culturally and modified accordingly. Increasing the understanding of the role of culture in health and illness would also help developing culturally sensitive and effective ways of preventing and curing disease. Despite the growing amount of research on culture and health and the preliminary attempts to collate the vast amount of knowledge accumulated in the hitherto disconnected subfields of cultural and health psychology, more research is certainly required which will help researchers, practitioners, and lay people acquire a better understanding of how the psychological experiences of illness and health are shaped by individuals’ socio-cultural environment.

References

Adams, G. (2005). The cultural grounding of personal relationship: Enemyship in North American and West African worlds.Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 88, 948–968.

Cesario, J., Grant, H., & Higgins, T E. (2004). Regulatory fit and persuasion: Transfer from “Feeling right”. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 86, 388-404.