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CULTURE AND PAIN

Private and Public Pain. CULTURE AND PAIN. Cultural Understanding of Pain. Not all social or cultural groups may respond to pain in exactly the same way How people perceive and respond to pain, both in themselves and in others, can be influenced by their cultural and social background

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CULTURE AND PAIN

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  1. Private and Public Pain CULTURE AND PAIN

  2. Cultural Understanding of Pain Not all social or cultural groups may respond to pain in exactly the same way How people perceive and respond to pain, both in themselves and in others, can be influenced by their cultural and social background How and whether, people communicate their pain to health professionals and to others can be influenced by social and cultural factors

  3. Pain Perspectives Physiological perspective Pain can be thought of a type of signaling device for drawing attention to tissue damage or to physiological malfunction. Pain arises when a nerve or nerve ending is affected by a noxious stimulus, either from within the body or from outside it.

  4. Pain Perspectives Physiological Perspective Pain is culture-free, in the sense of there being a universal biological reaction to a specific type of stimulus (i.e., sharp objects, hot/cold phenomena). However, the 2 forms of reaction can be differentiated into: INVOLUNTARY: Instinctive such as pulling away from the sharp object VOLUNTARY: Removing the source of pain and taking action to treat the symptom (e.g. medicines) or asking another person for help in relieving the symptom

  5. Private Pain Perspective Pain is felt by a person and signals it to other people, verbally or non-verbally Pain remains private because there is no outward clue or sign that the person is experiencing pain, even when it is severe It can be cultural – CHEYENNE INDIANS: Pain is a ritual from boyhood to manhood FILIPINOS: Painful episodes among boys to become men (i.e., baptism of fire and blood) Pain Perspectives

  6. Public Pain Perspective Public pain depends on the person’s interpretation of the significance of the pain; whether it is seen as “normal” or “abnormal” pain. Examples: Dysmenorrhea or Heart pain Normal Pain: Cultural prescription of relief Abnormal Pain: Biomedical intervention Pain Perspectives

  7. Physical Pain Perspective Physical pain is a particularly vivid and emotionally laden symptom, it can only be understood in a cultural context by seeing it as part of the wider spectrum of – MISFORTUNE Form of punishment Moral transgressions Witchcraft Pain Perspectives

  8. Social Aspects of Pain Permissible pain behavior within a society are learned in childhood and infancy (e.g. avoidance of hot and cold, excessive sports for girls, spanking) Individual sufferers are encouraged to turn their private pain into public pain within a ritual context of healing (e.g., Chinese mourning rituals or help groups for cancer or HIV positives)

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