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Folk healing: a description and synthesis
The American Journal of Psychiatry
|November 1, 1981
Summary
Folk healing systems are diverse cultural approaches to illness. Understanding these practices, including faith healing, rootwork, curanderismo, and espiritismo, helps physicians better serve patients by integrating traditional beliefs with modern medicine.
Area of Science:
- Medical Anthropology
- Sociology of Health and Illness
- Cultural Psychiatry
Background:
- Societies worldwide utilize folk healing systems for physical and mental health.
- These systems represent diverse cultural adaptations to illness and well-being.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review and describe various folk healing systems prevalent in the United States.
- To highlight the importance of understanding these beliefs for effective patient care.
Main Methods:
- Literature review and synthesis of existing research on folk healing practices.
- Descriptive analysis of specific cultural healing traditions within the U.S.
Main Results:
- Identified key folk healing systems: fundamentalist Christian faith healing, rootwork (Southeastern U.S.), curanderismo (Mexican-Americans), and espiritismo (Puerto Ricans in the U.S.).
- Observed that many adherents of folk healing also seek conventional medical care.
Conclusions:
- Physicians should be aware of and respect patients' folk healing beliefs.
- Integrating knowledge of folk healing into medical practice can enhance patient outcomes and healthcare delivery.