Presentation Information
[SY-41-03]Critical Psychology and Psychiatry and the Integration of Cultural Healing Practices: Toward a Pluralistic Framework for Mental Health
*Roy Moodley (University of Toronto(Canada))
Keywords:
critical psychology and psychiatry,cultural healing practices,decolonial mental health
This paper presents a critical examination of Euro-American psychology and psychiatry, interrogating the dominant biomedical model in mental health for its reductionist assumptions, universalizing tendencies, and frequent disregard for socio-cultural determinants of distress. Advocating for a more holistic and culturally sensitive approach, the paper situates psychological suffering within the lived experiences of culturally diverse communities, emphasizing the need for contextually grounded understandings of mental health. Drawing on interdisciplinary insights from transcultural psychiatry, cross-cultural psychology, and postcolonial studies, the paper highlights how culturally rooted healing practices offer alternative ontologies of suffering and recovery—challenging Western-centric conceptions of pathology. In contrast to the individualistic focus of mainstream psychology, many Global South healing traditions prioritize interconnectedness, collective healing, and meaning-making, addressing trauma, identity, and belonging in ways often overlooked by conventional psychological and psychiatric frameworks. The paper concludes by proposing a pluralistic model for mental health practice—one that integrates diverse epistemologies, fosters epistemic justice, and promotes cultural humility. Ultimately, it calls for decolonial reforms in psychological and psychiatric practice, urging a shift toward an inclusive, ecologically situated approach to healing.