Lesson 3: Sociocultural Causes of Abnormal Behaviour

Societal Influences that Increase Vulnerability

Although people interact in their own specific ways with their environment and have unique blends of roles, expectations, and family dynamics, some situations negatively affect entire cultures despite individual differences of the members. One situation relates to economic status. In general, the lower the socio-economic level, the higher the incidence of abnormal behaviour for some disorders, at least in North American society (Eron & Peterson, 1982). There are many factors that contribute to this statistic. For instance, wealthy people have more resources at their disposal than poor people — from better nutrition to easier access to health care professionals. The wealthy often have distinct advantages over the poor. However, being poor does not mean that a person is destined to develop mental illness. Many mentally healthy people come from disadvantaged backgrounds, and many ill people come from privileged environments.

A second situation that predisposes individuals to mental illness relates to war-like situations. People who are gentle in nature may be asked to serve their country during periods of conflict – perhaps even killing others and experiencing heinous atrocities and torture. Both victims and veterans of war may need counselling for post-traumatic stress disorder as a result of their experiences.

Difficulties arising from employment also affect many cultures. Not having gainful employment or being dissatisfied with the job that one holds can increase the likelihood of mental illness. Responses related to workplace stress include anxiety, tension, depression, and marital discord. Problems with prejudice and discrimination also are significant in mental illness. Stereotypes and a lack of tolerance or acceptance put undue pressure on the mental health of individuals. As North America becomes more culturally diverse it is extremely important that people (especially health care practitioners) become culturally aware and sensitive. Our North American concept of abnormality has been based primarily on European and American research and so should not be generalized to other cultures. Also important to note is the realization that classification systems are the result of the society in which they were developed. Classification systems must be more inclusive of cultural differences regarding how disorders are displayed.