S04-02 The ethnopsychiatric logic and methodology in the context of migration

Abstract

In today's world of globalization and immigration, mental health workers are required to adapt their practice and develop new skills in order to treat immigrant populations. Ethnopsychiatry is a field created by Georges Devereux at the beginning of the 20th century. Devereux's unique psychoanalytic approach resides in reference to the relationship existing between psychic troubles and social norms in a given cultural context. During his multiple stays predominantly among North American Mohave Indians, Devereux structured knowledge and created concepts including anxiety observer counter-transference, schizophrenia as an “ethnic disorder”, the ethnic personality etc. Since the early 80's, the French psychologist and psychoanalyst Tobie Nathan, Devereux's student and follower, further developed his master's theories. He conceptualized a methodology with implementation in the French immigrant population. He thus shaped contemporary Ethnopsychiatry, as currently practiced in the Georges Devereux center, (Paris 8 University) in France and in many other clinics internationally. The ethnopsychiatric setting conceived by Tobie Nathan imparts a crucial and authentic role to cultural diversity. Tobie Nathan proposes to study with equal respect and seriousness theories and practices related to unhappiness and disease, irrespective of culture or civilization. Ethnopsychiatric setting helps to overcome the deleterious consequences of the split existing between the two cultural referents (host and origin) in which our patients live. During the presentation, principles of Ethnopsychiatric practice will be introduced accompanied by a case report of an Ethiopian patient from the Beer-Yaacov Mental Health Center Ethnopsychiatric clinic for illustrative purposes.