[Transcultural aspects of depression]

Abstract

For many decades it was assumed that depressive disorders are mainly a problem of Western societies. However, a World Bank report published in 1993 revealed that Major Depression is already the fifth leading contributor to the Global Burden of Disease (GBD) among women in developmentally disadvantaged countries. The core symptoms of depression are disorders of affect, conduct and somatic complaints. In Western societies, the key symptom of depression is regarded to be a disorder of affect. However, in other cultural settings, different symptoms may be more central for depression. Nowadays mental health specialists have regular contact with patients from different cultural backgrounds. In order to achieve optimal results in diagnosing and treating mental disorders, it is important to consider the cultural background of a patient and her or his explanatory model of the disease. Transcultural psychiatry and psychotherapy aims at developing culture-sensitive concepts for treatment and mental health services and tries to increase insight in culture-related psychopathology and epidemiology.