Culture Bound Syndromes

Culture Bound Syndromes

Amok

Malaysia, Laos, Philippines, Papua Ne Guinea, Puerto Rico, Polynesia

dissociative episodes, outbursts of violent and aggressive or homicidal behavior directed at people and objects, persecutory ideas, amnesia, exhaustion

latah(startle reflex)

MalaysiaandIndonesia

afflicted person becomes flustered and may say and do things that appear amusing, such as mimicking people's words and movements (echolalia and echopraxia)

Maldeojo(evil eye)

Mediterranean and Latin American Hispanic populations

is a folk illness primarily affecting children, with infants being particularly vulnerable. This supernaturual belief holds that an admiring look or a stare can weaken the child, leading to bad luck, sickness and even death.

fitful sleep, crying without apparent cause, diarrhea, vomiting, fever in a child or infant

susto(fright sickness)

Latin American Hispanic populations in U.S.A.,Mexico, and Central and South America

usually associated with a broad array of symptoms, including nervousness, anorexia, insomnia, listlessness, despondency, involuntary muscle tics, and diarrhea; thought to be caused by fright that results in loss of soul from the body; causes can be natural or "supernatural" -- naturalsustomay occur after a near miss or accident, a supernaturalsustomay occur after witnessing a supernatural phenomena such as a ghost; a supernaturalsustomight be sent by sorcerers; those most likely to suffer fromsustoare culturally stressed adults--women more than men

pibloktoq(Arctic hysteria)

Inuit of the Arctic, Siberian groups

brooding, depressive silences, loss or disturbance of consciousness during seizure, tearing off of clothing, fleeing or wandering, rolling in snow, speaking in tongues or echoing other people's words

windigo

Cree, Ojibwa, and related Native American groups of central and northeastern Canada

depression, nausea, distaste for usual foods, feelings of being possessed by a cannibalistic monster, homicidal or suicidal impulses

ghost sickness

Navajo of the southwestern United States

weakness, bad dreams, feelings of danger, confusion, feelings of futility, loss of appetite, feelings of suffocation, fainting, dizziness, hallucinations and loss of consciousness

Aiyiperi

Yoruba(Nigeria)

hysterical convulsive disorders, posturing and tics, psychomotor seizures