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Wickrama T, Merten MJ, Wickrama KAS, Terrell A. Adolescents' Tsunami Exposure and Mental Health Consequences: Protective Role of Cultural Coping Strategies. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2024; 21:756. [PMID: 38929002 PMCID: PMC11203444 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph21060756] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2024] [Revised: 06/05/2024] [Accepted: 06/06/2024] [Indexed: 06/28/2024]
Abstract
There is a knowledge gap regarding the link between disaster exposure and adolescent mental health problems in developing countries. This study examines the case of Sri Lanka to investigate (a) the immediate and long-term mental health impact of the 2004 tsunami disaster on adolescents and (b) the potential moderating effects of unique cultural and family practices that prevail in Sri Lanka. This study used a random sample of 160 adolescents (ages 12-19) and their mothers who were exposed to the tsunami disaster while living in a southern Sri Lankan village and provided prospective data immediately after the disaster (2005) and three years later (2008). A cross-culturally validated instrument assessed adolescent-mother dyads' tsunami exposure, stressful loss, family cultural rituals and familism, and adolescent mental health. Structural equation modeling analysis showed that exposure and perceptions of tsunami-induced stressful experiences were associated with early and later mental health problems in adolescents. In addition, this study found that unique cultural practices and familism moderated the link between adolescent tsunami exposure, stressful experiences, and levels of PTSD and depressive symptoms. The findings of this study could be utilized to develop prevention and intervention programs that are contextually and culturally valid and empirically supported, which would be more effective for trauma-exposed adolescents in developing countries.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thulitha Wickrama
- Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA;
| | - Michael J. Merten
- Department of Child, Youth and Family Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588, USA;
| | - K. A. S. Wickrama
- Department of Human Development and Family Science, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA;
| | - Amanda Terrell
- School of Human Environmental Sciences, University of Arkansas-Fayetteville, Fayetteville, AR 72701, USA;
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2
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Lynn CD, Schell LM. Why religion and spirituality are important in human biological research. Am J Hum Biol 2024:e24106. [PMID: 38767192 DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.24106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2024] [Revised: 05/06/2024] [Accepted: 05/08/2024] [Indexed: 05/22/2024] Open
Abstract
The study of human biology includes exploration of all the genetic and environmental influences on human variation and life history, including impacts of sociocultural and physical environments. Religious practice and spirituality may be one of these influences. There are more than 5.8 billion religiously affiliated adults and children, accounting for 84% of the world's 6.9 billion people. Furthermore, 70% of Americans consider themselves spiritual in some way, including 22% who do not consider themselves religious, and the numbers for Europe are lower but proportionally similar. Such a high rate of religious affiliation and spiritual belief suggests that religion and spirituality could be sociocultural influences on human variation, but human biologists have scarcely attended to their impacts, as indicated by the limited numbers of relevant articles in the two flagship human biology journals. In this article, we discuss why human biologists may have overlooked this important force for human variability and highlight foundational work from human biology and other disciplines that can give our colleagues directions forward. We review the impacts of religion and spirituality at population and individual levels and call for human biologists to attend to the many aspects of religion and spirituality that can impact human biology and are much more than simply influences of denominational affiliation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher D Lynn
- Department of Anthropology, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, USA
| | - Lawrence M Schell
- Department of Anthropology, Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, University at Albany, Albany, New York, USA
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Kolozsvári LR, Rekenyi V, Garbóczy S, Hőgye-Nagy Á, Szemán-Nagy A, Sayed-Ahmad M, Héjja-Nagy K. Effects of Health Anxiety, Social Support, and Coping on Dissociation with Mediating Role of Perceived Stress during the COVID-19 Pandemic. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2023; 20:ijerph20085491. [PMID: 37107773 PMCID: PMC10138819 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph20085491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2023] [Revised: 03/19/2023] [Accepted: 03/28/2023] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Our study aimed to examine whether health anxiety, social support, and ways of coping relate to dissociation directly or only through the mediation of perceived stress, moderated by the time of measurement (lockdown). We investigated the effect of perceived stress on different forms (sub-scales) of dissociation. METHODS A cross-sectional survey was conducted by an online form at two points in time: the beginning and the later stage of the COVID-19 pandemic. RESULTS We received a total of 1711 responses. Perceived stress moderately correlated with dissociation in both international and Hungarian samples. Health anxiety showed a strong direct and indirect correlation with dissociation. Regarding social support, the support of family significantly decreased the dissociative experiences in the Hungarian sample mediated by perceived and direct stress. In the international sample, goal-oriented coping strategies strongly decreased all dissociation scales in the first measurement, through the mediation of perceived stress. As for the Hungarian sample, positive thinking was found to decrease dissociation by decreasing perceived stress. CONCLUSION health anxiety, coping, and social support appeared to influence dissociation directly and through the mediation of perceived stress. Social support, mainly support of the family and problem-focused coping strategies may decrease the level of stress, this way decreasing dissociative behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- László Róbert Kolozsvári
- Doctoral School of Health Sciences, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
- Department of Family and Occupational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
- Correspondence:
| | - Viktor Rekenyi
- Doctoral School of Health Sciences, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
- Department of Family and Occupational Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Szabolcs Garbóczy
- Doctoral School of Health Sciences, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Ágnes Hőgye-Nagy
- Department of Work and Social Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Anita Szemán-Nagy
- Department of Personality and Clinical Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Mohamed Sayed-Ahmad
- Department of Radiology and Imaging Science, Faculty of Medicine, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Katalin Héjja-Nagy
- Department of Personality and Clinical Psychology, Institute of Psychology, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
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Crespi BJ. Evolutionary and genetic insights for clinical psychology. Clin Psychol Rev 2020; 78:101857. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cpr.2020.101857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2019] [Revised: 02/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/21/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
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Greene T. Do acute dissociation reactions predict subsequent posttraumatic stress and growth? A prospective experience sampling method study. J Anxiety Disord 2018; 57:1-6. [PMID: 29886305 DOI: 10.1016/j.janxdis.2018.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2017] [Revised: 05/17/2018] [Accepted: 05/26/2018] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
While peritraumatic dissociation has been identified as a predictor of posttraumatic stress disorder, it may also have some protective aspect. The study uses experience sampling methods to assess acute dissociation reactions during conflict, and to investigate these reactions as predictors of subsequent posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS) and posttraumatic growth (PTG). During the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict, Israeli civilians (n = 96) exposed to rocket fire gave twice-daily experience sampling method (ESM) reports of dissociation symptoms for 30 days via mobile phone. PTSS and PTG were assessed two months later. A mixed effects random intercepts and slopes model estimated acute dissociation reactions. Individual slope coefficients for acute dissociative reactivity were entered as predictors of subsequent PTSS and PTG in regression analyses investigating linear and curvilinear associations. Exposure to sirens elicited acute dissociation reactions. Dissociative reactivity gradually reduced over the conflict. Higher acute dissociative reactivity during conflict predicted PTSS in a curvilinear manner (inverted U) and PTG in a positive linear manner two months later. The current study provides an important and novel contribution to the field by using ESM methods to assess peritraumatic dissociation, and in demonstrating that peritraumatic dissociation may be both adaptive and maladaptive, which has implications for risk assessment and clinical practice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talya Greene
- Department of Community Mental Health, University of Haifa, 199 Aba Houshy Ave, Haifa, 3498838, Israel.
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Bhavsar V, Ventriglio A, Bhugra D. Dissociative trance and spirit possession: Challenges for cultures in transition. Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2016; 70:551-559. [PMID: 27485275 DOI: 10.1111/pcn.12425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2016] [Revised: 07/29/2016] [Accepted: 07/29/2016] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The cross-cultural validity of dissociative possession and trance disorders is a matter of some debate, limiting research and meaningful interpretation of prevalence data. Intimate to these concerns is the status of spirit possession categories studied in the social sciences, particularly anthropology. These two categories are phenomenologically related and display similar epidemiological associations. In India, dissociative and conversion disorders are fairly common in clinical settings. There is no doubt that there are true cultural variations in possession and trance disorders. A new framework may enable clinicians to better understand possession states and spirit possession.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vishal Bhavsar
- Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
| | - Antonio Ventriglio
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, University of Foggia, Foggia, Italy
| | - Dinesh Bhugra
- Health Services and Population Research, Institute of Psychiatry, London, UK
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François Dengah HJ. Religious Dissociation and Economic Appraisal in Brazil. JOURNAL OF RELIGION AND HEALTH 2016; 55:522-534. [PMID: 25687180 DOI: 10.1007/s10943-015-0015-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
Research on the association between religion and health often neglects to provide an explicit theoretical mechanism of influence between faith and well-being. This research posits that dissociative behaviors, such as glossolalia, may provide a biological pathway that influences both physiological and psychological health. This paper argues that religious dissociation acts as a moderator between economic stressors and psychobiological appraisal. Brazil, with its economic inequality and preponderance of religious dissociative rituals, provides an ideal context to examine religious dissociation as a moderator of stress. Utilizing data from a cross section of Brazilian faiths, this paper examines: (1) Whether individuals with low socioeconomic status preferentially participate and experience religious dissociative states and (2) whether dissociative states are correlated with greater psychological appraisal of status.
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Affiliation(s)
- H J François Dengah
- Department of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology, Utah State University, Logan, UT, 84322-0730, USA.
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Dana Lynn C. Hearth and Campfire Influences on Arterial Blood Pressure: Defraying the Costs of the Social Brain through Fireside Relaxation. EVOLUTIONARY PSYCHOLOGY 2014. [DOI: 10.1177/147470491401200509] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of fire in human evolutionary history is widely acknowledged but the extent not fully explored. Fires involve flickering light, crackling sounds, warmth, and a distinctive smell. For early humans, fire likely extended the day, provided heat, helped with hunting, warded off predators and insects, illuminated dark places, and facilitated cooking. Campfires also may have provided social nexus and relaxation effects that could have enhanced prosocial behavior. According to this hypothesis, calmer, more tolerant people would have benefited in the social milieu via fireside interactions relative to individuals less susceptible to relaxation response. Using a randomized crossover design that disaggregated fire's sensory properties, pre-posttest blood pressure measures were compared among 226 adults across three studies with respect to viewing simulated muted-fire, fire-with-sound, and control conditions, in addition to tests for interactions with hypnotizability, absorption, and prosociality. Results indicated consistent blood pressure decreases in the fire-with-sound condition, particularly with a longer duration of stimulus, and enhancing effects of absorption and prosociality. Findings confirm that hearth and campfires induce relaxation as part of a multisensory, absorptive, and social experience. Enhancements to relaxation capacities in the human social brain likely took place via feedback involving these and other variables.
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Snodgrass JG, Dengah HJF, Lacy MG, Fagan J. A formal anthropological view of motivation models of problematic MMO play: achievement, social, and immersion factors in the context of culture. Transcult Psychiatry 2013; 50:235-62. [PMID: 23690445 DOI: 10.1177/1363461513487666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Yee (2006) found three motivational factors-achievement, social, and immersion-underlying play in massively multiplayer online role-playing games ("MMORPGs" or "MMOs" for short). Subsequent work has suggested that these factors foster problematic or addictive forms of play in online worlds. In the current study, we used an online survey of respondents (N = 252), constructed and also interpreted in reference to ethnography and interviews, to examine problematic play in the World of Warcraft (WoW; Blizzard Entertainment, 2004-2013). We relied on tools from psychological anthropology to reconceptualize each of Yee's three motivational factors in order to test for the possible role of culture in problematic MMO play: (a) For achievement, we examined how "cultural consonance" with normative understandings of success might structure problematic forms of play; (b) for social, we analyzed the possibility that developing overvalued virtual relationships that are cutoff from offline social interactions might further exacerbate problematic play; and (c) in relation to immersion, we examined how "dissociative" blurring of actual- and virtual-world identities and experiences might contribute to problematic patterns. Our results confirmed that compared to Yee's original motivational factors, these culturally sensitive measures better predict problematic forms of play, pointing to the important role of sociocultural factors in structuring online play.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey G Snodgrass
- Department of Anthropology, Colorado State University, Fort Collins 80523-1787, USA.
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Snodgrass JG, Lacy MG, Francois Dengah H, Fagan J. Enhancing one life rather than living two: Playing MMOs with offline friends. COMPUTERS IN HUMAN BEHAVIOR 2011. [DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2011.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Abstract
Videogame players commonly report reaching deeply "immersive" states of consciousness, in some cases growing to feel like they actually are their characters and really in the game, with such fantastic characters and places potentially only loosely connected to offline selves and realities. In the current investigation, we use interview and survey data to examine the effects of such "dissociative" experiences on players of the popular online videogame, World of Warcraft (WoW). Of particular interest are ways in which WoW players' emotional identification with in-game second selves can lead either to better mental well-being, through relaxation and satisfying positive stress, or, alternatively, to risky addiction-like experiences. Combining universalizing and context-dependent perspectives, we suggest that WoW and similar games can be thought of as new "technologies of absorption"--contemporary practices that can induce dissociative states in which players attribute dimensions of self and experience to in-game characters, with potential psychological benefit or harm. We present our research as an empirically grounded exploration of the mental health benefits and risks associated with dissociation in common everyday contexts. We believe that studies such as ours may enrich existing theories of the health dynamics of dissociation, relying, as they often do, on data drawn either from Western clinical contexts involving pathological disintegrated personality disorders or from non-Western ethnographic contexts involving spiritual trance.
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Abstract
Approaches to trance and possession in anthropology have tended to use outmoded models drawn from psychodynamic theory or treated such dissociative phenomena as purely discursive processes of attributing action and experience to agencies other than the self. Within psychology and psychiatry, understanding of dissociative disorders has been hindered by polemical "either/or" arguments: either dissociative disorders are real, spontaneous alterations in brain states that reflect basic neurobiological phenomena, or they are imaginary, socially constructed role performances dictated by interpersonal expectations, power dynamics and cultural scripts. In this paper, we outline an approach to dissociative phenomena, including trance, possession and spiritual and healing practices, that integrates the neuropsychological notions of underlying mechanism with sociocultural processes of the narrative construction and social presentation of the self. This integrative model, grounded in a cultural neuroscience, can advance ethnographic studies of dissociation and inform clinical approaches to dissociation through careful consideration of the impact of social context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca Seligman
- Department of Anthropology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA.
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