Culture and Recovery: The Importance of Local Context

1
Culture and Recovery The Importance of Local
Context

• Cynthia S. Robins, Ph.D.
• Westat
• Rockville, Maryland
• Supported by the Center for the Study of Issues
  in Public Mental Health
• NIMH Grant 2P50MH51359

2
What cultural features of a locality merit
assessment?

• Infrastructure services and supports
• Attitudes awareness and acceptance of mental
  health disorders
• Community connected-ness

3
Infrastructure

• Reliable, affordable public transportation?
• Adequate supply of affordable housing?
• Mental health services?
• Psychiatry, counseling, case management
• Crisis services

4
Attitudes

• What are the predominant views about mental
  illness?
• About people living with a serious mental
  illness?
• Family
• Characters
• Outsiders

5
Community

• Does a community exist into which consumers can
  be integrated?
• Locality versus cultural value
• Connection among members
• Integrity of the social group
• Mutual responsibility

6
Concept of the Individual

• ...The independent, autonomous and thus
  (essentially) non-social moral being, as found
  primarily in our modern (common-sense) ideology
  of man and society.
• Louis Dumont
• On the Modern Concept of the Individual

7
What does individualism look like?

• Cortez, CO
• Public park
• Closed houses
• Dinner seating
• Self-service grocery
• Lunch cars
• Most of the Eastern Seaboard...

8
Integration into ...?

• Cortez Kiva Empowerment Center
• Dedicated consumer space
• Mutual support
• Networks
• Connected-ness

9
Ghetto or Community?

• Policies of Assertive Community Treatment
• Consumer gathering as negative
• Scattered housing
• Serve at home, not at office
• Independence or Isolation?