Stress among black women in a South African township: The protective role of religion

Copeland‐Linder, Nikeea

doi:10.1002/jcop.20116

Cited by 27 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 47 publications

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“…Prayer is a means of dealing with psychosocial syndromes in numerous-if not most-societies (e.g. for depression among Caribbean immigrants in UK [57], for stress among South African township black women [58], for scantu (fright) in Sicily [59], for alcohol use, major depression, and PTSD among Navajo [60], and throughout Latin America for susto [19] and nervios [23]. The largely positive role of prayer and religiosity in mental health is well established (for a review see [61]).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnomedicine and ethnobotany of fright, a Caribbean culture-bound psychiatric syndrome

Quinlan

2010

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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Background"Fright" is an English-speaking Caribbean idiom for an illness, or ethnomedical syndrome, of persistent distress. A parallel ethnopsychiatric idiom exists in the French Antilles as sésisma. Fright is distinct from susto among Hispanics, though both develop in the wake of traumatic events. West Indian ethnophysiology (ethnoanatomy) theorizes that an overload of stressful emotions (fear, panic, anguish or worry) causes a cold humoral state in which blood coagulates causing prolonged distress and increased risks of other humorally cold illnesses.MethodsQualitative data on local explanatory models and treatment of fright were collected using participant-observation, informal key informant interviews and a village health survey. Ethnobotanical and epidemiological data come from freelist (or "free-list") tasks, analyzed for salience, with nearly all adults (N = 112) of an eastern village in Dominica, and a village survey on medicinal plant recognition and use (N = 106).ResultsAlong with prayer and exercise, three herbs are salient fright treatments: Gossypium barbadense L., Lippia micromera Schauer, and, Plectranthus [Coleus] amboinicus [Loureiro] Sprengel. The survey indicated that 27% of village adults had medicated themselves for fright. Logistic regression of fright suffering onto demographic variables of age, education, gender, parental status and wealth measured in consumer goods found age to be the only significant predictor of having had fright. The probability of having (and medicating for) fright thus increases with every year.ConclusionsWhile sufferers are often uncomfortable recalling personal fright experiences, reporting use of medicinal plants is less problematic. Inquiry on fright medical ethnobotany (or phytotherapies) serves as a proxy measurement for fright occurrence. Cross-cultural and ethnopharmacology literature on the medicinal plants suggests probable efficacy in accord with Dominican ethnomedical notions of fright. Further, the cultural salience and beliefs about these medicines may give these medications extra psychoneuroimmune (i.e. mind-body) benefits, or placebo-like effects, for this stress-related folk illness.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethnomedicine and ethnobotany of fright, a Caribbean culture-bound psychiatric syndrome

Quinlan

2010

J Ethnobiology Ethnomedicine

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“…The findings suggest that prayer may, indeed, help older people cope more effectively with the stressors that arise in life. Although other investigators have come to a similar conclusion (e.g., Copeland-Linder, 2006), an effort was made to contribute to the literature in three potentially important ways. First, an attempt was made to expand the scope of inquiry by seeing whether prayer helps older individuals cope more effectively with traumatic events that have arisen across the life course.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lifetime Trauma, Prayer, and Psychological Distress in Late Life

Krause

2009

International Journal for the Psychology of Religion

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The purpose of this study is to see whether prayer helps older people cope more effectively with the adverse effects of lifetime trauma. Data from a nationwide survey of older adults reveal that the size of the relationship between traumatic events and depressive symptoms is reduced for older people who believe that only God knows when it is best to answer a prayer, and when they believe that only God knows the best way to answer it. The findings further reveal that these beliefs about prayer outcomes are especially likely to offset the effects of traumatic events that arose during childhood.

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“…However, largely due to the epidemic of HIV/AIDS, more attention has been given to religion in and across Africa with regard to its impact on adolescent and adult sexual behavior (e.g., Gyimah, 2007; Takyi, 2003). Previous research has indicated that religiosity has the potential for buffering stress among South African women (Copeland-Linder, 2006), but little research on youth development has been explored. A longitudinal study of South African youth and parents found that “More than 73 percent of mothers indicated that religion is very important in the household” (Barbarin & Richter, 2001).…”

Section: Religion and South African Youth Developmentmentioning

confidence: 99%

“You Must Know Where You Come From”

Brittian

Lewin

Norris

2013

Journal of Adolescent Research

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This study examined South African youths' perceptions of religion during a period of social and economic transition. In-depth interviews were conducted with 55 Black South African youth (age 18) living in the Johannesburg-Soweto metropolitan area. Data were analyzed in a manner consistent with grounded theory methodology and structural coding. Beliefs about the function of religion were captured by the following themes: provides support, connection to the past, moral compass, promotes healthy development, and intersections between African traditional practices and Christian beliefs. Themes are discussed and directions for future research are presented. In addition, applications of the current research and implications for promoting youths' resilience are offered.

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Stress among black women in a South African township: The protective role of religion

Cited by 27 publications

References 47 publications

Ethnomedicine and ethnobotany of fright, a Caribbean culture-bound psychiatric syndrome

Ethnomedicine and ethnobotany of fright, a Caribbean culture-bound psychiatric syndrome

Lifetime Trauma, Prayer, and Psychological Distress in Late Life

“You Must Know Where You Come From”

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