DEBOLEZA - CULTURALLY DETERMINED BEHAVIOR IN ISTRIA

Deboleza is a behavioural construct among the inhabitants of Istria (a peninsula in the Adriatic Sea which belongs mainly to Croatia); it ha s peculiar social, ethno-psychological and historical characteristics because it is a relatively small region which has been the intersectio n of various cultures and civilizations. In this research the concept is analysed from the psychomedical point of view. As deboleza does not have the status of an illness, it functions as a culture-bound syndro me which, because of its emotional expressions, belongs to the 'shame' family. This interesting construct should be thoroughly studied not o nly in a peculiar and dynamic Croatian culture and in Croatian psychia try, but also within European culture and psychiatry.