psychiatry-mental-health-2017-posters-abstracts

Page 61

conferenceseries

.com

Volume 20, Issue 7 (Suppl)

J Psychiatry

ISSN: 2378-5756 JOP, an open access journal

Psychiatry and Mental Health 2017

November 20-21, 2017

November 20-21, 2017 Melbourne, Australia

International Conference on

Psychiatry and Mental Health

The social aspect of mental illness among orthodox Christians of the Tigrinya ethnic group in Eritrea

Erimias Biniam Firre

Chiang Mai University, Thailand

his study is situated within the sociocultural and religious context of orthodox Christians of the Tigrinya ethnic group

who inhabit in the central and southern plateau of Eritrea. With this ethnic group being ethno-linguistically and socio-

culturally dominant and religiously conservative in comparison with the remaining eight ethno-linguistic groups and other

Christian denominations in the country, this research project takes a closer look at how members of the traditionally and

religiously bound orthodox Christians of the Tigrinya ethnic group conceptualize or construct the notion of mental illness from

socio-cultural and religious worldview. More importantly, efforts will be made to explore the impacts of tightly held kinship

systems, socio-cultural and religious beliefs and practices of this ethnic group on the treatment seeking behavior and treatment

preference of orthodox Christians towards mental illness and the bearers of the illness. Therefore, contrary to the dominant

etiological conceptualization and diagnostic formulation of the biomedical model towards mental illness and the sufferers,

this study argues that socio-cultural and religious beliefs or traditionally bound illness ideologies immensely determine the

perception, treatment seeking behavior and treatment preference of orthodox Christians of the Tigrinya ethnic group in Eritrea.

Thus, this research inquires how such socio-cultural practices and religious beliefs specifically interrelate with the way orthodox

Christians of the Tigrinya ethnic perceive and treat mental illness. As a key objective, this study attempts to investigate the

interconnection between mental illness and socio-cultural practices and religious beliefs and treatment preferences, explore the

various ways where socio-cultural practices and religious beliefs impact mentally ill persons and their families. Ultimately, via

comparative and inductive approaches, this research project is expected to address cross-cutting themes and establish significant

links between socio-cultural and religious factors and perception, treatment seeking behavior and treatment preference of

orthodox Christians of the aforementioned ethnic group.

J Psychiatry 2017, 20:7 (Suppl)

DOI: 10.4172/2378-5756-C1-030