Traditionalism and mental health in the South Pacific: a re-examination of an old hypothesis.
Nineteenth-century theory held that mental disorder was rare in stable, traditional rural societies. Today most societies are rapidly changing, but Tonga still fits that model and the evidence suggests that the psychoses are genuinely infrequent there. It is proposed that both the theory and the evidence deserve further examination.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008019:Life Style; D008297:Male; D001523:Mental Disorders / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D012924:Social Conditions; D014058:Tonga