HSCI 160 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Cultural Relativism, Malaria, Ethnocentrism
17 Dec 2015
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Document Summary
Some cultural values enhance health while others don"t (monogamy in marriage. => lower hiv/aids rate vs. cultural emphasis on heaviness as a sign of wealth. Behavior and beliefs that are learned and shared. Ethnocentrism: viewing other cultures solely through the prism of their own society. Cultural relativism: because cultures are unique they can be evaluated only according to their own standards and values. How well does a given culture satisfy the physical and psychological needs of those whose behavior it guides. Highlights aspects of belief systems in low-middle income and immigrants in high income countries. Malaria is so common in sub-saharan african that it"s viewed as normal. Perceptions of disease: illness represents personal, interpersonal and cultural reactions to disease or discomfort vs. disease which is a physiological condition. Folk illness: local cultural interpretations of physical states that people perceive to be illness but that do not have a physiologic cause.
