This particular topic struck a chord with me during the lecture, as it is one that draws pretty close to home and I’d love to hear other people’s views too.
I had a close family friend of mine give birth to a lovely baby boy a number of years back and watching him grow, I noticed early on that there was something different about him. His attention span was very low. He’d be excited about a new toy car for but a few seconds before losing complete interest. He’d always shout to get his voice heard, was overly hyperactive and would not sit still and ‘behave’ as the rest of the children did. This led to him being labelled as ‘naughty’, ‘rude’, & ‘disobedient’ to name a few. Once he began nursery/preschool, it was quickly noted that there was something wrong and teachers advised his parents to seek medical advice. They disregarded this suggestion and instead felt that the issue lay with his teachers and accused them of their inability to discipline him properly and deal with his ‘naturally boisterous’ nature. It was only a number of years later when his learning began to suffer as a result and significant effort and pressure was put on his parents that they reluctantly had him seen and inevitably diagnosed with ADHD.
This is not the only example I can give, and it raises a few questions for me.
Why do deviant illnesses like this seem to have a much higher prevalence (also noted by Prof Greenhalgh of being true at the summer camp she worked in America) amongst young males of AfroCarribean or African American decent, or even just generally amongst minority populations? Also, why is it a label that is almost stigmatised in these same communities? Since the recognition of ADHD as a medical disorder, there don’t seem to be any culturally specific studies in this regard. In my opinion, what is classified as a psychopathological illness really does depend upon the accepted patterns of behaviour, attitudes, expectations, etc and this varies considerably from culture to culture. What is considered acceptable in one culture may be classified as deviant in another. These fundamental differences will determine people’s perception and whether they seek health care, and even when they do if forced to, to what extent they will actually adhere to medical treatment.
