Campbell Megan M, Sibeko Goodman, Mall Sumaya, Baldinger Adam, Nagdee Mohamed, Susser Ezra, Stein Dan J
Department of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of Cape Town, J-Block, Groote Schuur Hospital, Observatory, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa.
Department of Psychology, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, 6140, South Africa.
BMC Psychiatry. 2017 Jan 24;17(1):41. doi: 10.1186/s12888-017-1196-3.
Although the relationship between cultural beliefs and schizophrenia has received some attention, relatively little work has emerged from African contexts. In this study we draw from a sample of South African Xhosa people with schizophrenia, exploring their cultural beliefs and explanations of illness. The purpose of the article is to examine the relationship between this cultural context and the content of delusions.
A sample comprising 200 Xhosa people with schizophrenia participating in a South African schizophrenia genomics study were interviewed using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Axis I Disorders (SCID-I). Participant delusions were thematically analyzed for recurring themes.
The majority of participants (n = 125 72.5%) believed that others had bewitched them in order to bring about their mental illness, because they were in some way jealous of the participant. This explanation aligns well with the understanding of jealousy-induced witchcraft in Southern African communities and highlights the important role that culture plays in their content of delusions.
Improved knowledge of these explanatory frameworks highlights the potential value of culturally sensitive assessment tools and stigma interventions in patient recovery. Furthermore such qualitative analyses contribute towards discussion about aspects of delusional thought that may be more universally stable, and those that may be more culturally variable.
尽管文化信仰与精神分裂症之间的关系已受到一定关注，但来自非洲背景的相关研究相对较少。在本研究中，我们从患有精神分裂症的南非科萨人样本中进行取材，探究他们的文化信仰及对疾病的解释。本文的目的是考察这种文化背景与妄想内容之间的关系。
对参与一项南非精神分裂症基因组学研究的200名患有精神分裂症的科萨人样本，使用《精神疾病诊断与统计手册》第四版轴I障碍结构化临床访谈（SCID-I）进行访谈。对参与者的妄想进行主题分析以找出反复出现的主题。
大多数参与者（n = 125，72.5%）认为，其他人对他们施了巫术以导致其精神疾病，因为这些人在某种程度上嫉妒该参与者。这种解释与南部非洲社区对因嫉妒引发巫术的理解高度契合，并凸显了文化在其妄想内容中所起的重要作用。
对这些解释框架的深入了解凸显了文化敏感评估工具和消除污名干预措施在患者康复中的潜在价值。此外，此类定性分析有助于讨论妄想思维中可能更具普遍稳定性以及可能更具文化变异性的方面。
