Please enable JavaScript.
Coggle requires JavaScript to display documents.
PSY 352 Cultural Psychology Study Unit 3 Chap 13 - Physical health…
PSY 352 Cultural Psychology Study Unit 3 Chap 13 - Physical health
Biological variability of humans.
Human biology varies across culture. There are two categories of explanation for this biological explanation:
Innate bio differences
- Subjected to different selection pressures over different generation resulting in the human genome diverging.
Acquired bio differences
- different cultural experiences within their lifetime influences biological development.
Genetic variation Across populations
Genetic variations largely due to
geographical and cultural factors
over many generations.
However,
as a species
compared with other species humans are
less genetically distinct
from each other, but different populations of humans do differ from each other in many of their genes.
Example of genetic variability of humans
One such example is skin colour
Equatorial humans are darker skin.
Dark skin prevents over absorption
of UVR and prevents the breakdown of folic acid
Northern European people are yellowish pinkish in skin clour
This is attributed to the synthesizing of Vitamin D which occurs in the presence of UV Rays. Equitorial people have more melanin in their skin which prevents excessive UVR. However, Northern people have lesser melanin to compensate for the lack of UV Ray
Exceptions in which skin colour diverges from the UVR projection
Inuit of Greenland have dark skin as their diet consists of fish and sea mammal (rich in vitamin D)
certain Vietnamese/ Filipinos are fair skin as they migrated to higher latitudes
Cultural influences on the genotype
Example: Lactose intolerant
Lactose persistence has developed in areas precisely where cows have been domesticated over generations (i.e. dairy farming).
Conversely, areas with no history of dairy farming resulted in individuals having insufficient lactose enzymes.
Culture-gene co-evolution
This is an example of how cultural influences affects genetics.
Other examples include dietary practices (i.e. starch intake)
Indirect influences of culture on genes
Cultural influences can also indirectly affect genetics.
Example west-African cultural practices which led to the proliferation of malaria resulted in a haemoglobin mutation which made one more resistant to malaria.
Genetic foundation for cultural trends
Large scale studies have suggested that collectivist cultural trends are genetically based
It was discovered that people from collectivist cultures have genes such as 5HTTLR, A118G and MAOA which are associated with enhanced social sensitivity.
Critique on the study of genetic foundations to culture
The relationship of these three genes are only weakly correlated with social sensitivity
This study was conducted in the west.
Westernised data
Most of the research into this has been from western sources and they often presented contrasting of opposite effects of genes across culture.
For example:
Studies concluded that a genetic variant associated with increased emotional support-seeking amongst western is linked to decreased emotional support-seeking amongst Koreans.
Likewise, a genetic variant associated with decreased emotional suppression amongst westerners was liked to increased emotional suppression amongst Japanese.
It should be noted that these studies also included individuals who shared similar genetic linage but the diffrent cultural environment (i.e. Koreans who grew up in the western background, their results were more inclined towards western projection)
Acquired Physical variation across cultures
There are physical variations that exist independently of genetics.
For example
, Moken children
have better visual acuity than European children. Due to Maximum pupil constriction.
This ability acquired through practise as Mokens are sea nomad is very accustomed to diving.
Obesity and diet
Although there is good evidence that genetics are predictors for body-weight, it is possible that certain
weigh-relevant genes are more common in one culture
than in another.
This difference in obesity rates across culture has been attributed to many cultural factors (i.e. lifestyle, food staple, portions, etc)
French Paradox
Several studies have revealed that the cultural diet may not necessarily be directly associated with obesity.
French diet has more fat and sugar content compared to an American diet but French have a long lifespan and lower rates of heart disease/ obesity.
In response, researchers suggest that this may be due to several factors including:
significantly lesser meal portions by the French
the French wine drinking habit.
Their attitudes towards eating (French view eating as more leisurely while Americans are more nutrition cognizant)
Attitude towards food
Studies revealed that females have a more negative attitude towards food (especially American women) as compared to males.
Culture and height
Cultural dietary habits can impact the average height of the people in a culture.
Although genes do play a key role and are able to explain height differences in a culture, genes cannot explain height differences across cultre and across history.
Height and Wealth
Studies have shown that, currently, Dutchmen is taller than American men. However, in 1865, American men were taller than Dutchmen.
The research suggested that the dramatic change in average height can be associated with wealth related to dietary factors. (i.e. dutch people were facing an economic downturn in 1865 but experience a prosperous econmy now)
In gist:
Wealth results in a healthier diet
which is
crucial
for children and adolescences who undergo
growth spurts
in their development.
This is also supported in a study which compared between North Koreans and South Koreans' average height. South Korean were significantly taller.
Culture and sleep
Examples of how culture affects sleep
Sleeping pattern
Certain cultures adhere to a single length sleeping pattern (i.e. sleeping 8hrs straight)
other cultures, particularly subsistence societies practice a two-sleep period punctuated by a period of wake in the middle of the night.
The two-phase sleep period was also more common before electric lighting
Sleep duration
Sleep duration for Japanese and Koreans are 1.5 hrs shorter than American.
Whereas Dutchmen have a sleep duration which is 1.5hrs longer then Americans.
Sleeping with parents
Most cultures in the world have children co-sleeping with the parents.
Whereas, in the west, Children often sleep separate from their parents.
Challenges of Sleep study
It is difficult to examine sleep directly and unobtrusively as sleep often occurs in private.
As such, most sleep studies rely on self-reports
The drawback of self-reports
A limitation of this method is that people might
reflect
more about
what they think
about they should be sleeping as opposed to
how much they are actually
sleeping.
Heine Cross-cultural sleep study
In a week-long study which required participants to biometrically record sleep patterns/duration with a watch, Heine discovered certain findings.
It was confirmed that Japanese students slept 1.2hrs lesser then Canadian students.
Asian-Canadians and European-Canadians slept similar durations indicating that sleep is affected by local cultural norms and not heritage
Despite having longer sleep, Canadians described themselves as feeling tired during the day.
Culture and health
Socioeconomic status (SES) and health
Studies reveal a strong
correlation between economic status and mortality rate.
The higher the income the more likely it is for one to live longer.
Status differences in health extend beyond industrialised societies and also implicate tribal culture
Possible factors for the relationship between SES and health
Physical factors
Health care: Poor people are unable to pay for adequate health care.
However, this does not explain why differences in health persist amongst welfare states where medical benefits are easily accessible across all SES.
Additionally, the differences in health trend were consistent throughout the SES spectrum (the gap in health differences amongst the rich were consistent between gaps amongst the poor people), indicating that wealth
may not be the main reason.
Job: Poor people are more likely to work in a dangerous job
.
i.e. rich people have white-collar jobs and poor people have blue-collar jobs.
However, research findings consisting of British civil servant reflected consistent SES-health trend gaps despite all the participants being officer workers.
Habits: Poor people are more likely to participate in cultural context that encourage unhealthy habits
i.e. drinking and smoking
However, studies reveal that even when these habits are controlled, there still remain a clear relationship between SES and health trend
Cognitive resources
Poverty appears to lead to cognitive deficits which undermine decision making and can result in harmful health outcome.
example, poverty leads people to be risk adverse and focus on the near future only.
Psycho-social variable
Personality differences.
That is, poor people, experiences growing up in lower SES neighbourhood (i.e. exposure to delinquency and crime).
This then evokes hostility and pessimism which increases vulnerability to health risks
Stress
When people are facing severe chronic stressors in their lives, their risk of illness often increases.
Researchers noted that there are higher levels of stress among lower SES people.
Two primary ways in which stress affects health
Chronically stressed people are more likely to engage in health-compromising behaviours.
Stress directly weakens the immune system.
Stress and control over environment
The best-supported explanation for why low SES people tend to have worse health outcomes is that
they feel less control in more aspects of their lives.
Low levels of control are more generally associated with poor physical health and increased likelihood of illness.
People with higher SES reported more control than people in lower SES.
Feeling poor can matter as much as actually being poor.
Studies revealed a steady relationship between life expectancy and Gdp until the average GDP of 30,000.
Beyond the GDP of 30, 000 there is little relationship between GDP and life expectancy.
Researchers suggest that the relation between income and health above this cutoff is largely due to the
feeling of poorness, that is, one's income relative to those around does not reflect wealth
. (i.e. income inequality)
GINI Coefficient and life expectancy
This position has been supported in several studies which compared a nation's inequality gap (through GINI Coefficient) and the nation's average life expectancy.
It was discovered that Nations with low inequality reflected higher life expectancy (i.e. Japan)
In linking this to health trends, researchers suggest that
feelings of deprivations can lead to stress and other vulnerabilities.
Ethnicity and health
In addition to SES, other factors maybe contributing to poor health outcomes
Study on health outcomes between African-Americans and European-Americans.
In this study, even though participants were from the same SES, certain health problems were more pronounced for African-American.
Genetics or ethnicity
To understand if such pronounced medical effects were genetically rooted, researchers compared genetic makeup between African-American and west-Africans from Africa. It was noted that West Africans shared the same disease rates as that of European American.
This led researchers to suggest the cultural roots of such health outcome. Namely, African-American faced discrimination which led to stress and the development of poor health outcomes.
Epidemiological Paradox
Not all minorities experience poor health outcomes.
Latinos presented better health outcomes than European-Americans.
Researchers suggested that it may be du
e to a healthier lifestyle (i.e. lesser drinking/smoking) and strong social and emotional support from the community
as well as the high social value placed on social activities i.e. childbearing. All of which promotes healthier well being
Medicine and health
Culture also shapes the psychological experiences of doctors and therefore it shapes how doctors think about health.
Causes of illness and infection
Modern western societies attribute illness to biological/psychological sources
Non-western societies may emphasis supernatural causes instead.
View on health
French had a metaphor for the body which encapsulated a holistic balanced-focused view on health. that is, a person is ill as a result of nutrition or psychological imbalances and is advised to take vitamins and go to spas.
American had a more mechanistic view and suggest that the body requires active maintenance and repair.
Consequences of such views
As a result of such differing views, American doctors are more likely to prescribe surgery and drugs.
Study on doctors understanding as being culturally influenced
It was discovered that doctors are more likely to agree with laypeople of the same origin than with doctors from different origins