Traditional Epidemiology
Traditional epidemiology is the practice of diagnosing illness using traditional and cultural methods. Often in modern epidemiology, the cause of illness is attributed to viruses, bacteria, carcinogens, and pathogens. However, in traditional epidemiology, the cause of illness is attributed to factors such as the evil eye, envy, hate, and jealousy (Spector 9e, 78).
Most commonly in traditional epidemiology, illness is associated with the evil eye. The evil eye is the belief that a person with negative intentions can project harm by staring at the property of another person or the person themself. The evil eye is one of the oldest and most widespread superstition and has roots in numerous countries around the world. While some see the evil eye as superstition, others see it as religion and there are slight variations in the belief across the globe. These variations include how the evil eye is cast, who can cast it, who can receive it, and the degree of the power it has (Spector 9e 78).
But the common beliefs of the evil eye as outlined by Rachel Spector are:
Power comes from the eye or mouth and strikes the victim
The injury is sudden
The person who casts the evil eye may not be aware of this power
The afflicted person may or may not know the source of the evil eye
The injury caused by the evil eye can be reversed with rituals or symbols
This belief helps explain sickness and misfortune (Dundees, 1992; Maloney, 1976,p. Vii; Radford, 2013)
Other agents of disease include soul loss, spirit possession, spells, and hexes, and prevention is a ritual of protecting oneself from these agents.
Illness is also commonly attributed to people who have the ability to make other people ill. Examples are witches and voodoo practitioners, hence the arising of scapegoating. Prevention of this would be to avoid people who represent illness. Other agents to be avoided are envy, hatred, and jealousy.
Traditional practices that are used to protected health are as follows by Rachel Spector:
The use of protective objects
The use of substances that are ingested, eliminated from the diet, and are worn or hung in the home
The practices of religion, which include burning candles and prayer
Spector, Rachel E. Cultural Diversity in Health and Illness. 9th ed., Pearson
Education, 2000.
By: Sreenidhi Saripalli
