Maree Sugai
Tohoku University of Community Service and Science, Japan
Title: The role of cultural context in the depressive disorder of hikikomori in rural Japan
Biography
Biography: Maree Sugai
Abstract
Presentation identifies areas of disparity in the treatment available and types of treatment most widely used for depressive disorders in urban and rural Japan. The original paper focused on acute social withdrawal (ASW) hikikomori, as it presents culture-specifically, and examined the socio-economic and cultural constructs that the author claims contribute to the specific manifestation and the lengthy average duration of ASW in Japan, which is 3 years and 3 months. The paper investigated the social work and community interventions currently available for depressed people in Japan. The comparison between urban and rural treatment for ASW included qualitative research conducted among families and recovering people in two contrasting social environments and points to the differences in outcome for hikikomori youth in rural Japan compared with those in Tokyo. The paper highlights the strong need for family inclusion in health care for ASW sufferers, and illuminates the private pain and social stigma that the families of hikikomori sufferers experience in the context of their urban or rural socio-cultural circumstances.
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