Cult Med Psychiatry
June 1, 2010
Marjolein Van Duijl, Ellert Nijenhuis, Ivan H. Komproe et al.
118 citations
In Uganda, people diagnosed with spirit possession by traditional healers report more severe dissociative symptoms and more potentially traumatizing events than a matched nonpossessed group. Both psychoform and somatoform dissociation were significantly associated with these events. However, participants did not subjectively link their dissociative symptoms to past trauma, consistent with local cultural interpretations. Spirit possession may function as a culture-specific expression of dissociation related to potential traumatizing events.
Transcultural psychiatry
June 1, 2005
Marjolein Van Duijl, Etzel Cardeña, Joop T V M De Jong
62 citations
Dissociative amnesia and depersonalization are recognized in Uganda as results of trauma and are useful categories, but dissociative fugue does not match local concepts and is confused with spirit possession, alcoholic fugues, or dementia. Dissociative identity disorder is consistently interpreted as a possession trance disorder by local healers. The DSM-IV classification of dissociative disorders receives only partial support for cross-cultural validity in Uganda.
Eur J Psychotraumatol
November 19, 2015
Tobias Hecker, Lars Braitmayer, Marjolein Van Duijl
50 citations
Spirit possession is often linked to traumatic experiences, but the evidence for this relationship is inconsistent and methodologically limited. The review examines current global mental health research on trauma exposure and possession phenomena, finding that while some studies suggest a connection, many lack rigorous assessment of trauma and possession, and cultural factors are frequently overlooked. The authors call for more culturally sensitive and methodologically sound research to clarify the nature of this relationship.
International journal of mental health systems
January 1, 2014
Marjolein Van Duijl, Wim Kleijn, Joop De Jong
41 citations
In southwestern Uganda, spirit possession is a common way people express distress linked to traumatic experiences. Among 119 patients referred by traditional healers, two-thirds initially sought medical help for physical symptoms, which later developed into dissociative possession symptoms. After an average of two help-seeking steps, 99% found satisfactory explanations and effective healing from traditional healers. Healing sessions involved summoning possessing agents to identify underlying problems, such as neglect of rituals, family responsibilities, the call to become a healer, witchcraft, grief, and land conflicts. The findings suggest that traditional healing can restore connections across social and spiritual worlds without necessarily addressing individual traumatic experiences directly.
Social psychiatry and psychiatric epidemiology
September 1, 2013
Marjolein Van Duijl, Wim Kleijn, Joop De Jong
30 citations
Spirit possession is a common way Ugandans express distress. This study examined how local possession symptoms align with DSM-IV and proposed DSM-5 diagnostic criteria. Using interviews and a symptom checklist with 119 possessed patients, researchers identified two symptom dimensions: passive (e.g., feeling influenced by outside powers, strange dreams, hearing voices) and active (e.g., shaking, talking in a spirit's voice). Local symptoms matched DSM-IV possession trance disorder and DSM-5 dissociative identity disorder criteria, but passive-influence experiences were not well captured. The authors argue that these experiences should be more explicitly described in DSM-5 criteria and question the proposed merging of possession trance disorder into dissociative identity disorder.