Explanatory models of depression in Greek-born and Italian-born immigrants living in Australia: Implications for service delivery and clinical practice

Abstract

Introduction: The current study examined cultural differences in explanatory models of depression in a community‐based sample of mid to older aged Greek‐born and Italian‐born immigrants living in Melbourne, Australia. Methods: Participants took part in a 1‐h face‐to‐face interview with a bilingual interviewer. During this interview, information related to the participant's explanatory model of depression were examined, including causes, important symptoms, course and development, consequences and treatment. Results: Overall, participants followed a “social” based as opposed to a “disease” based model to describe depression. The Italian‐born participants were also found to hold concurrent beliefs for the course and treatment of depression. Discussion: The clinical and service implications of these results are discussed.

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Becoming a patient-illness representations of depression of Anglo-Australian and Sri Lankan patients through the lens of Leventhal’s illness representational model

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