'I have some faith and at the same time I don't believe' - Cognitive Polyphasia and Cultural Change in India

Issues of community and health are tightly linked to local cultures and to the system of traditional representations about health and illness. These s ystems, however, are rarely static, but are in constant flux through econom ic and technological developments-what is often called 'modernisation'-that entail new representations becoming part of everyday thinking. In this pro cess the novel often plays the role of an icon of modernity in situations t hat evoke the idea of progress, while the traditional prevails in more stat ic social structures such as the family. This co-existence of rarely compat ible representations is called cognitive polyphasia. The present interview- study investigates the way 39 residents of the North-Indian city of Patna c ope with contradictions implied by traditional and Western psychiatric noti ons of mental illness, their aetiology and treatment. It is shown that each of the two ways of thinking is situated and used in specific social settin gs. Some implications of cognitive polyphasia for community development are discussed. Copyright (C) 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.