Postnatal Depression: A Cultural Analysis

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Cultural Anthropological Perspectives of Postnatal Depression In contrast to the biomedical model that focuses on the individual (e.g. personality) and her immediate world (e.g. spouse and family), the anthropological investigation of postnatal depression centres on a more holistic cultural framework. Here, culture is defined as “that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society” (Hemingway and Brereton, 2009,p 27). Culture is learned and shared. It has force and power (Boland et al 2013,p 76). Culture is a “silent language”, in the sense that it is often transparent in shaping the individual experience and behaviour within a society …show more content…
Instead, they are more interested in the relationship between postnatal depression, cultural change and entailed disappearance of traditional postpartum customs (Yount & Smith, 2012). Central to their theories is the observation that postnatal depression is rare or absent in primitive and non-industrialised societies. As sophisticated rite of passage and postpartum customs are preserved in these societies, it is theorised that cultural practices protect recently delivered women from postnatal depression (Villegas et al., 2011, p 278). Fitzgerald also hypothesised that the cultural changes within modem societies, such as delayed childbearing, smaller families, and changing roles of women, may adversely impact on the experience of childbirth and childbearing, which in term translate into what biomedical professions called postnatal depression (Alfayumi‐Zeadna et al., 2014 p …show more content…
In another study using the EPDS, Okano also found that 3.1% of the subjects were high scorers, a rate substantially lower than the corresponding figures reported in the west (Hemingway and Brereton, 2009, 27). A recent study also showed that Arab community’s women had a low rate of postpartum depression (Boland, Cherry & Dickson, 2013, 76). Last but not least, Pillsbury reported that postnatal depression was not evident among Chinese women in PR China and Taiwan. When these findings are juxtaposed with the 10% to 20% prevalence reported in the west, it seems to indicate that postnatal depression is not a universal condition. This led some researchers to put forward the
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