“A Sinking Heart”: Beliefs of Distress in the Punjabi Community
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“A SINKING HEART”: BELIEFS OF DISTRESS IN THE PUNJABI COMMUNITY Sukhjinder Kaur Ruprai A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the University of East London for the Doctoral Degree in Clinical Psychology May 2016 “When the mind is cleaned with the jewel of spiritual wisdom, it does not become dirty again.” - Guru Granth Sahib Ji i ABSTRACT As the challenge of providing culturally appropriate care in the NHS becomes more apparent there is more research being invested into looking at the relationship between mental health and culture. Due to migration numbers, there is particular growing interest in the mental health of South Asians who significantly underutilise mental health services. There are several known barriers to access including stigma and shame, fear of breaching confidentiality, and perceiving Western services as being culturally incompetent. The term ‘South Asian’ is often used to refer to individuals who originate from countries of the Indian subcontinent: India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Maldives, and Bhutan. Current literature assumes that all needs of the South Asian community are the same. Hence this term is problematic; used to represent a range of beliefs, practices, religions, and cultures. This study focused specifically on the Punjabi Sikh community in the UK and sought to explore beliefs about psychological wellbeing and an understanding of mental health issues. Eight Punjabi Sikh members of the community were interviewed; participants were a non-clinical population and had not accessed mental health services prior to this research. A thematic analysis was conducted and three themes were identified; ‘We are Warriors!’, ‘The Importance of Family Expectations’, and ‘Understanding Mental Health Issues’. Findings suggested that the Punjabi Sikh community may not perceive mental health services as being relevant to them as they believe they do not suffer from ‘ill mental health’. Psychological wellbeing was believed to be an integral part of a Punjabi Sikh lifestyle that Punjabi people already practise. This community is also likely to be strongly influenced by their Sikh history and believe they are capable of managing hardships without the input of external services. The research concludes with some methodological considerations and implications for clinical practice. ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Firstly, I would like to thank those who participated in this study, I am grateful to you all for giving me your time and sharing your experiences with me. I hope your stories will help in increasing awareness of mental health issues in the Punjabi community. A big thank you to Dr Claire Higgins for all your guidance, encouragement, and support. Your enthusiasm for my research kept me going until the end! I would like to dedicate this thesis to my Granddad who unfortunately did not get to see me complete this course. A big thank you to my family and friends for supporting me throughout the doctorate, I could not have completed this journey without your faith and words of encouragement, a special thank you to my sister Sandeep who helped me endlessly. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Acknowledgements iii Contents iv Tables List v Appendices List vi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1 1.1. Terminology 1 1.2. BME and Healthcare 2 1.3. Punjabi Sikhs: A Cultural and Historical View 5 1.4. Acculturation and Assimilation 10 1.5. Western Mental Health and Alternative Approaches 13 1.6. Literature Review 17 1.7. Research on Punjabi Sikhs 21 1.8. South Asian Research 25 1.9. Limitations of Literature Review 32 1.10. Rationale for Current Research 33 CHAPTER TWO: METHODOLOGY 36 2.1. Epistemology 36 2.2. Methodology 37 2.3. Research Design 40 2.4. Data Analysis 45 2.5. The Process of Thematic Analysis 45 2.6. Reliability and Validity 47 2.7. Researcher Reflexivity 47 CHAPTER THREE: RESULTS 52 3.1. “We are Warriors!” 52 3.2. The Importance of Family Expectations 61 3.3. Understanding Mental Health Issues 68 CHAPTER FOUR: DISCUSSION 81 4.1. Research Questions 81 4.2. Discussion of Themes 81 4.3. Implications and Recommendations 92 4.4. Critical Review: Evaluation of Current Research 98 4.5. Further Methodological Considerations 100 4.6. Reflexivity 103 4.7. Conclusion 105 REFERENCES 107 APPENDICES 143 iv TABLES LIST Table 1: Sample Demographic Information 44 Table 2: Themes and Subthemes 52 v APPENDICES LIST Appendix A: Literature Search Terms 143 Appendix B: Pilot Interview Reflections 147 Appendix C: UEL Ethical Approval 149 Appendix D: UEL Amendments Letter 151 Appendix E: Risk Assessment 152 Appendix F: Registration Letter 154 Appendix G: Participant Information Sheet 155 Appendix H: Participant Consent Form 159 Appendix I: Demographic Questionnaire 160 Appendix J: Recruitment Poster 161 Appendix K: Recruitment Poster Punjabi 162 Appendix L: Interview Schedule 163 Appendix M: Transcription Convention 165 Appendix N: Coded Interview Excerpt 166 Appendix O: List of Codes 169 Appendix P: Thematic Map 1 175 Appendix Q: Thematic Map 2 176 Appendix R: Thematic Map 3 177 Appendix S: Braun & Clarke’s 15-point Checklist 178 Appendix T: Interview 2 Journal Extract 179 Appendix U: Analysis Journal Extract 181 vi CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION This chapter begins by defining a number of terms used throughout the study; this will help orientate the reader to the language being used. A description outlining some of the issues faced by Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) communities when accessing mental health services are then explored. Before examining the particular barriers faced by the South Asian population, the researcher presents an overview of the cultural beliefs and values held specifically by the Punjabi Sikh community, with a closer look at the Sikh religion and theories of acculturation. Following this the researcher considers both Western and alternative understandings of mental health issues. The chapter concludes with the rationale and aims of the current study and highlights the need to provide culturally sensitive practice to the Punjabi Sikh community. 1.1. Terminology ‘Race’ is a social construct used to define a group of individuals who share distinct physical characteristics (Owens & King, 1999). However, the term ‘race’ becomes problematic when certain social groups are treated as superior and have access to power and resources that are not available to other groups (Department of Health & Human Services, 1999). ‘Ethnicity’ refers to a common heritage shared by a particular group (Zenner, 1996) and gives people a sense of belonging (Fernando, 1991). ‘Culture’ is “the shared history, practices, beliefs, and values of a racial, regional, and religious group of people” (D’Ardenne & Mahtani, 1999). The term is viewed as dynamic and used to describe differences between groups of people. The researcher later deconstructs the concept of culture, which is influenced by language and context, and may not represent a shared set of values and beliefs. In the UK, the term ‘BME’ is used to describe people of non-white descent (Institute of Race Relations, 2015). This term can be used to refer to White minorities too, however for the purpose of this research the term will refer to the 1 definition from Race Relations. The term ‘Western’ commonly refers to people from the United Kingdom, United States of America, Australia, New Zealand, and Europe. The term implies people of Western culture are the dominant White majority and is often portrayed as the ideal when compared to other cultures (Patel, Bennett, Dennis, Dosanjh, Miller, Mahtani, & Nadirshaw, 2000, p. 33). ‘Mental health’ can be described as “a state of wellbeing in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively…and is able to make a contribution to her or his community” (World Health Organisation, WHO, 2014). ‘Mental illness’ on the other hand refers to different clinical presentations characterised by “a combination of abnormal thoughts, perceptions, emotions, behaviour, and relationships with others” (WHO, 2015). Most research takes this position and is aligned with the medical model of illness. The researcher challenges this medical view and believes psychiatric diagnoses should be abandoned and that clinicians should work with presenting ‘symptoms’ within the context of the individual (see the work of Bentall, 2006). “Psychological Wellbeing is usually conceptualised as some combination of the affective states such as happiness and functioning with optimum effectiveness in individual and social life” (Deci & Ryan, 2008). The authors that coined this term are Canadian and the researcher acknowledges ‘psychological wellbeing’ may be constructed differently in different contexts. The researcher adopted this broad term hoping to encapsulate a range of cultures without being reductive. 1.2. BME and Healthcare In the UK, a range of research findings in healthcare settings indicate that people from BME communities encounter disadvantages and discrimination when seeking the healthcare that they are entitled to (Mir, Nocon, Ahmad, & Jones, 2001; Alexander, 1999; Butt & Mirza, 1996). According to the Office of National Statistics (ONS) (2012), BME groups comprise 15.8% of the total UK population, and are more likely to be unemployed and live in under-developed geographical areas. As 2 a result, they are often under-represented and discriminated against in healthcare (Daker-White, Beattie, & Means, 2002; Social Exclusion Unit, 2000). ‘Inside Outside: Improving Mental Health Services