CulturalRacialGender in Health Psychology

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Cultural/Racial/Gender in Health Psychology
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Sex Differences in Pain

• Berkley (1997)
• Compared to men, females have
• lower thresholds
• greater ability to discriminate
• Higher pain ratings
• Less tolerance of noxious stimuli

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Ethnic Differences in Pain

• Edwards et al (2001)
• Greater sensitivity to experimental pain stimuli
  among African Americans compared to European
  Americans
• Some ethnic group may have language barriers that
  influence the success with which the patients
  convey their pain
• Greater stress due to acculturation or lower SES

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Socioeconomic Status

• Fewer medical services for the poor
• Services that are available
• Inadequate
• Preventative services socioeconomic disparity

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Cultural Differences

• Burnam et al (1984)
• Anglos reported more infrequent symptoms
• Mexicans more likely to report symptoms that
  occurred frequently

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New England Project

• Community intervention to overcome barriers to
  BSE and increase their quality frequency
• Barriers
• Anxiety about breast cancer
• Forgetting
• Not thinking they are doing them right
• 8K participated
• Intervention vs Control Group

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New England Project

• 1st year (intervention)
• 60 minute video offered to groups of women in all
  sites (work, community, churches, homes, clinics)
• Tremendous use of mass media
• 2nd year (overcome obstacles)
• Menstruating women told to practice day after
  their period ends by receiving a tampon container
  and message pad with project logo

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New England Project

• 2nd year continued
• Self-reward cards
• Television spots reminding them of proper
  technique
• Radio spots 80 of breast lumps are
  non-cancerous
• 12-15 vs 5

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Acculturation

• Four models of acculturation
• Integration or Biculturalism
• Strong identification with both groups
• Assimilation
• Strong identification with only dominant culture
• Separation
• Strong identification with only the ethnic group
• Marginalization
• No identification with either group

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Treatment

• Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM)
• Used to treat more people than any form of
  medicine
• Example acupuncture
• Body is treated as a whole every single part of
  the body is considered to be connected to other
  parts of the body

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Treatment

• TCM
• Tao
• All life universe began from a single source
• Has two opposing forces
• Yin and yang
• Yin
• Shady side of a hill
• Darkness, the moon, cold and female
• Yang
• Sunny side of the hill
• Light, the sun, hot, and male

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Treatment

• TCM
• Yin organs are more vital than yang organs
• Heart, liver, pancreas, kidney, and lungs
• Yang organs
• Gallbladder, small intestine, large intestine,
  and bladder
• Healthy person has a balanced amount of yin and
  yang
• Sick persons forces are out of balance

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Treatment

• Ayurveda (Traditional Indian Medicine)
• Yoga
• Herbal supplements
• Five elements for the basis of the universe
• Earth---the solid state
• Water---the liquid state
• Air---the gaseous state
• Fire---power to change the state of any substance
• Ether---source of all matter

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Treatment

• Curanderismo
• Mexican American folk-healing system
• Two sources of illness
• Natural and supernatural
• 3 levels of treatment depending on illness
• Materialcuranderos use things found in house
• Spiritualcuranderos enter trance and play the
  role of medium
• Mentalrelies on power held by curandero

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Complementary and Alternative Medicine

• Acupuncture
• Aromatherapy
• Ayurveda
• Chiropractic
• Dietary supplements
• Electromagnetic fields
• Homeopathic medicinehighly diluted quantities of
  medicinal substances are given to cure symptoms
• Massage
• Naturopathic medicinea healing power that
  establishes, maintains, and restores health
  nutrition, lifestyle counseling, dietary
  supplements, exercise, homeopathy
• Qi gongTCM method that combines movement,
  meditation, and regulation of breathing to
  enhance flow of qi in the body
• Reikispiritual energy is channeled to heal the
  body
• Therapeutic touch

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CAM

• National Center for Complementary and Alternative
  Medicine
• In 2004, 36 in North America had used some form
  of CAM
• Research/Clinical Application?

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Behavioral Medicine Approaches

• Stress-Management
• Time-Management
• Expressive Writing
• Biofeedback