Interdisciplinary Centre for Palliative Medicine and Department of Neurology, Ludwig-Maximilians-University, Munich, Germany.
Epilepsy Behav. 2010 Dec;19(4):596-601. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2010.09.023. Epub 2010 Oct 20.
The social stigma toward people with epilepsy (PWE) varies greatly between cultures. In this study, 167 people (59 PWE, 62 relatives, 46 villagers) in a rural area of northern Tanzania were interviewed at the hospital and in the community regarding their prevailing beliefs about epilepsy and attitudes toward PWE. Seventy-eight of those interviewed (46.7%) thought that epilepsy was due to supernatural causes, but 86 (51.5%) assumed that epilepsy is caused by brain disorders or is inherited. According to the interviewees, epilepsy impacts on the lives of affected people. 65.3% (n=109) thought that PWE should not attend school or go to work and 38.3% (n=64) were of the opinion that PWE had decreased chances of getting married. A minority (11.4%; n=19) thought that epilepsy was a reason not to have children. In summary, supernatural and more scientific ideas about the causes of epilepsy seem to coexist. Nevertheless, there is considerable stigma toward PWE, which needs to be interpreted within the sociocultural context of the study.
在不同文化中，人们对癫痫患者（PWE）的社会污名化程度差异很大。在这项研究中，在坦桑尼亚北部的一个农村地区，医院和社区共采访了 167 人（59 名 PWE、62 名亲属、46 名村民），了解他们对癫痫的普遍看法以及对 PWE 的态度。接受采访的 78 人（46.7%）认为癫痫是由超自然原因引起的，但 86 人（51.5%）认为癫痫是由大脑疾病引起的或遗传的。根据受访者的说法，癫痫会影响患者的生活。65.3%（n=109）认为 PWE 不应该上学或工作，38.3%（n=64）认为 PWE 结婚的机会减少。少数人（11.4%；n=19）认为癫痫是不生孩子的一个原因。总的来说，关于癫痫病因的超自然和更科学的观念似乎并存。然而，PWE 仍然存在相当大的污名化，需要在研究的社会文化背景下进行解释。
