Chinese traditional cultural belief of medical students and its relationship with depression / 南方医科大学学报

To study the cultural beliefs of medical students and its relationship with depression.A questionnaire survey was conducted among 977 medical students using the Chinese Traditional Culture Belief Scale (CTCBS) and Nine Item-Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9).The total score of medical students' cultural belief was 48.34± 7.31, and 54.4% of them had clear cultural belief. Cultural belief did not differ significantly among the medical students with different genders, places of residence or economic status, but those with ideals and beliefs had significantly higher cultural belief than those without (48.87±7.40 47.09±6.95, < 0.001). Cultural belief was negatively correlated to depression among the medical students (=-0.215, < 0.001), and those with a high-level cultural belief had lower levels of depression (6.09±3.88 7.42 ± 3.82 9.00 ± 4.90, < 0.001). The total and all the dimensions scores of CTCBS of the students without depressive symptoms were significantly higher than those in students with depressive symptoms. The medical students with lower cultural beliefs had a higher positive rate for depression screening (37.8% 18.8% 12.2%).Medical students have a high level of cultural beliefs. Strong culture beliefs are beneficial to relieve depression symptoms and reduce the incidence rate of depression. Chinese traditional culture education should be strengthened in the quality education of medical students.

Oral health beliefs and cultural specificity in multicultural families / 대한구강보건학회지

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the oral health beliefs and cultural specificity of multicultural families. METHODS: Subjects were 179 adults from multicultural families living in Gwangjin-gu, Seoul. The surveys and interviews were performed between June and November 2014 in the subjects' native languages (English, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean). The surveys were conducted using a self-administration method and a face-to-face interviewing method with the assistance of translators. RESULTS: Perceived barrier of oral health belief scores were higher in Vietnamese and Korean spouses than those from other countries (P<0.05). Cultural specificity scores were highest among the Japanese and lowest among the Vietnamese (P<0.01). CONCLUSIONS: Multicultural families showed different oral health beliefs and cultural specificities. Therefore, future oral health care programs for multicultural families should consider cultural differences and adaptations.