Cultural Factors That Affect Mental Disorders - Essay Example

Brain fag is seen predominantly in male African students and a Nigerian study in 2002 revealed that proficiency in English is a risk factor for this illness (Wikimedia Foundation, Inc.).

According to McGill Cultural Consultation Service of the Jewish General Hospital identified the following cultural factors related to Psychosocial Environment and Levels of Functioning: social stressors such as the current political situation in the country of origin and in the host country, social supports such as the identification of most important current and past sources of support for the individual and the family, and the levels of functioning and disability (McGill University).

Since this topic has been prevalent, psychiatric clinicians have attempted to create methods in ascertaining the cultural factors that affect mental disorders. Currently, practitioners use the Cultural Formulation model. It consists of five components; assessing cultural identities, cultural explanation of the illness, cultural factors related to the psychosocial environment and levels of functioning, cultural elements of the clinician-patient relationship, and the overall impact of culture on diagnosis and care (Roberto Lewis-Fernandez).