Culture and Psychopathology: Cross-Cultural Perspectives and Practice

Each week the chosen texts will aim to link theory to practice, examining cultural

discourses around norms, race and ethnicity, mental illness, and cross-cultural

practice and research, amongst other topics. Relevant theoretical issues and

practical dilemmas concerning universalism versus relativism, power, difference,

intersectionality and racism will be explored. Each week students will be required

to familiarize themselves with 2-3 texts and take part in a discussion of the ideas

explored in each seminar topic. Classes will involve student presentations, close

critical reading of the texts, and structured discussion. Students will be able to

explore particular topics in more depth through their presentation and essay. This

Seminar course requires a commitment to reading the minimum assigned materials

and interrogating the potential biases of existing perspectives on the topic areas.

WEEK 1: Introduction to the course: Social Constructionism (45mins).

Burr, V. (2003), What is Social Constructionism? In Social Constructionism, 2nd Ed.,

(pp.1-16) London: Routledge.

WEEK 2: Discourse – Representation, Power and (available) Identities

Hall, S. (1997), Foucault: Power, Knowledge and Discourse, in S. Hall (ed.)

Representation: Cultural Representation and Signifying Practices, London: Sage.

Hall, S. (1997), The Spectacle of the ‘Other’, in S. Hall (ed.) Representation: Cultural

Representation and Signifying Practices, London: Sage.

WEEK 3: Race, Racism, and Privilege

Combs, G. (2019), White Privilege: What's a Family Therapist to Do?, Journal of

Marital and Family Therapy, 45(1): 61-75

Rustin, M. (1991), Psychoanalysis, racism and anti-racism, in M. Rustin, The Good

Society and the Inner World, pp.57-84 London: Verso.

WEEK 4: Culture and Attachment

Krause, I. B. (2014). The Complexity of Cultural Competence, pp.109-126 in

Thinking Space: Promoting Thinking about Race, Culture, and Diversity in

Psychotherapy and Beyond (Ed. Lowe, F.), London: Karnac.

Rothbaum, F. & Morelli, G. (2005). Attachment and culture: bridging relativism

and universalism. In: Friedlmeier, W. et al, eds. Culture and Development. The

importance of cross cultural research for the social sciences. pp.99-123, Hove:

Psychology Press

WEEK 5: Family, Kinship and Genograms

Hardy, K. V. & Laszloffy T. A. (1995) The Cultural Genogram: Key to training

culturally competent family therapists. Journal of Marital and Family Therapy, 21

(3), 227-237.

Perelberg, R. J. (1992), Familiar and Unfamiliar Types of Family Structure:

Towards a Conceptual Framework, in Kareem, J. and Littlewood, R. Intercultural

Therapy (1992), Oxford: Blackwell. pp.112-132

Watts-Jones, D. (1997), Towards an African-American Genogram. Family Process

36(4): 375-383

WEEK 6: Intersectionality and Marginalisation

Frazier, K. E. (2012). Reclaiming the Person: Intersectionality and Dynamic Social

Categories Through a Psychological Lens, in Integrative Psychological and

Behavioural Science, Vol. 46, pp.380-386.

Holland, S. (1990). Psychotherapy, oppression and social action: gender, race, and

class in black women’s depression, in Perelberg, R. J. and Miller, A. C. (Eds.) (1990),

Gender and Power in Families pp. 256-269

Roberts, D. (2014). Complicating the triangle of race, class and state: the insights

of black feminists, in Journal of Ethnic and Racial Studies, 2014 Vol.37, No.10,

London: Routledge, pp.1776–1782.

WEEK 7: Refugees and Violence

James, K. (2010) Domestic Violence Within Refugee Families: Intersecting

Patriarchal Culture and the Refugee Experience. In The Australian and New

Zealand Journal of Famiy Therapy Volume 31, Number 3, pp.275-284.

De Haene, L. & Rober, P. (2016), Looking for a Home: An exploration of Jacques

Derrida’s notion of hospitality in family therapy practice with refugees. In

Systemic Therapy as Transformative Practice (2016) Ed. Imelda McCarthy and Gail

Simon, pp.94-110, Farnhill: Everything is Connected Press.

WEEK 8: Cultural & Relational Reflexivity

Krause, I.-B. (2012). Culture and the reflexive subject in systemic psychotherapy.

In I.B.Krause (Ed.), Culture and Reflexivity in Systemic Psychotherapy: Mutual

Perspectives, (pp.1-35). London: Karnac.

Watts-Jones, D. (2010). Location of Self: Opening the Door to Dialogue on

Intersectionality in the Therapy Process, Family Process, Vol. 49, No. 3, pp.405-420.