Burr J A, Chapman T
Centre for Health Research and Evaluation, Edge Hill University College, Ormskirk, Lancashire, UK.
J Psychiatr Ment Health Nurs. 1998 Dec;5(6):431-7. doi: 10.1046/j.1365-2850.1998.560431.x.
This article critiques the contribution of two main theoretical perspectives on mental health care and ethnicity, with particular reference to Asian women. It considers the work of those who highlight the impact of culture on the health and illness experience (Kleinman 1980, Rack 1982, Fernando 1989) and the work of authors who argue that the impact of broader socio-economic structures must be considered (Donovan 1989, Pearson 1989, Ahmad 1993). It is posited that the emphasis on cultural difference results in crude monolithic generalizations about Asian culture and operates as a smokescreen for the impact of poverty and racism. The backdrop to this article is provided by an assessment of the problematic conceptual framework of Western mental health and the role it plays in perpetuating stereotypes. It is concluded that mental health nurses need a thorough understanding of the complexity of the cultural and social factors that influence health and illness; an understanding which falls somewhere between these two theoretical perspectives. Such an approach needs to be grounded in the experience of mental health clients themselves if it is to be appropriate.
本文批判了关于精神卫生保健与种族问题的两种主要理论观点的贡献，尤其以亚洲女性为参照。它考量了那些强调文化对健康与疾病体验影响的学者的著作（克莱曼，1980；拉克，1982；费尔南多，1989）以及主张必须考虑更广泛社会经济结构影响的作者的著作（多诺万，1989；皮尔逊，1989；艾哈迈德，1993）。文章认为，对文化差异的强调导致了对亚洲文化的粗略单一概括，并且成为了贫困和种族主义影响的遮羞布。本文的背景是对西方精神卫生问题概念框架及其在延续刻板印象中所起作用的评估。结论是，精神科护士需要透彻理解影响健康与疾病的文化和社会因素的复杂性；这种理解介于这两种理论观点之间。如果要做到恰当，这样一种方法需要以精神卫生服务对象自身的经历为基础。
