Notions of Spirits as Agents of Mental Illness among the Akan of Ghana PDF
Preview Notions of Spirits as Agents of Mental Illness among the Akan of Ghana
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by VCU Scholars Compass Virginia Commonwealth University VCU Scholars Compass Theses and Dissertations Graduate School 2013 Notions of Spirits as Agents of Mental Illness among the Akan of Ghana: A Cultural- psychological Exploration Annabella Opare-Henaku Virginia Commonwealth University Follow this and additional works at:http://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd Part of theCounseling Psychology Commons © The Author Downloaded from http://scholarscompass.vcu.edu/etd/3302 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at VCU Scholars Compass. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of VCU Scholars Compass. For more information, please [email protected]. ©ANNABELLA OPARE-HENAKU 2013 All Rights Reserved Notions of spirits as agents of mental illness among the Akan of Ghana: A cultural-psychological exploration A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University. by Annabella Opare-Henaku M. Phil. in Health Promotion, University of Bergen, Norway, November, 2006 B. A. Psychology, University of Ghana, May, 2003 Director: Shawn O. Utsey Professor of Psychology & Chair of African-American Studies Virginia Commonwealth University Richmond, Virginia May, 2013 ii Acknowledgment The author wishes to express gratitude to the following people for their contributions toward the successful completion of this program. I owe a depth of gratitude to my husband, Robert Osei- Tutu, for the sacrifices he made in order for me to complete this program. I would like to thank my family for not allowing geographical distance to prevent them from being emotionally present with me over the course of these five years. I would like to thank Dr. Ustey for his direction and guidance during the course of my study. I am thankful to my dissertation committee members, Dr. Faye Belgrave, Dr. Vivian Dzokoto, Dr. Kathy Ingram, and Dr. Micah McCreary for their interest and valuable feedback which enriched the work. I would also like to thank Lionel Sakyi for his timely assistance with the data collection. Many thanks go to Jemimah Opare-Henaku and Zumreta Dudic for their assistance with the project. My thanks go to my cohort, Chelsea Greer, Brad Antonides, David Guion, and Stephen Trapp for their support throughout these years. I would also like to thank Dr. Suzanne Tete for her moral support. Last but not the least, I am thankful for the support I received from the University of Ghana, Legon, to complete this program. iii Dedication To my daughter Nana Akyaa Osei-Tutu iv Table of Contents List of Figures ................................................................................................................................vi Abstract…….. ...............................................................................................................................vii Introduction… ..................................................................................................................................1 The Akan People of Ghana…..............................................................................................3 Background to the Study .....................................................................................................4 Statement of the Problem.....................................................................................................5 Literature Review.............................................................................................................................7 Theoretical Framework........................................................................................................7 Conceptual Framework: The Akan Worldview.................................................................16 Related Studies...................................................................................................................18 Aims of the Study..............................................................................................................25 Methods..........................................................................................................................................26 Grounded Theory…….......................................................................................................26 Rationale for the Study......................................................................................................27 The Study Setting...............................................................................................................28 Participants….....................................................................................................................29 Role of the Researcher.......................................................................................................30 Role of the Research Assistant..........................................................................................31 Procedure...........................................................................................................................32 Data Analyses....................................................................................................................34 Validity and Reliability .....................................................................................................37 Results............................................................................................................................................41 Definition of Mental Illness...............................................................................................41 Local Labels for Mental Illness.........................................................................................41 Abᴐdam/Adambᴐ...................................................................................................41 v Ogyefo/W’bᴐgye ....................................................................................................41 Adwenemuka. ……................................................................................................41 Bᴐdam ani te…………..........................................................................................41 Gyimigyimi ............................................................................................................41 Development, Forms, and Behavioral Markers.................................................................46 Mental illness in children.......................................................................................46 Mental illness in adults…………………..............................................................46 Causes of Mental Illness....................................................................................................52 Problems of living..................................................................................................52 Biological/environmental.......................................................................................52 Spiritual..................................................................................................................52 Spiritual indulgences ................................................................................52 Curses .......................................................................................................52 Punishment from the Supreme Being.…...................................................52 Punishment from oracle.............................................................................52 . Wicked spirits............................................................................................52 Substance abuse.………........................................................................................52 Multiple causes......................................................................................................52 Care and Treatment............................................................................................................64 Choice of treatment................................................................................................64 Generational Differences...................................................................................................76 Discussion......................................................................................................................................78 Akan Conceptions of Mental Illness..................................................................................78 Mental Illness: A Mechanism of Spiritual Retribution......................................................87 Response to the Mentally Ill..............................................................................................88 Implications....................................................................................................................................92 Cultural Context and Mental Illness……..........................................................................92 Conclusion.....................................................................................................................................96 vi Future Direction….............................................................................................................96 References......................................................................................................................................98 Appendices...................................................................................................................................105 Appendix 1: Demographic Information……...................................................................105 Appendix 2: Initial Interview Guide………………………………................................106 Appendix 3: Sample of Questions Generated During the Interviews..............................107 Appendix 4: Sample Forward-Backward Translation….................................................108 Vita……………...........................................................................................................................109 vii List of Figures 1. The Analytic Process…………………….……………………………………………………35
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