1.4 Social and cultural influences

The culture (or cultures) of any given society has a powerful influence on children’s mental health and wellbeing. In some African cultures, it is believed that witchcraft is the cause of some medical conditions, for example epilepsy (Tedam, 2014). Meanwhile in Western countries, such as the UK, mental health conditions are still stigmatised, which is evident when people use diagnostic terms like schizophrenia in derogatory terms. Across the globe, there is gender inequality, and because of this inequality, girls often miss out on an education. In the USA, where there have been a number of mass shootings in schools, the so-called ‘gun society’ has had an impact on children’s mental health (Currie, 2013).