Self report in clinical and epidemiological studies with non-English speakers: the challenge of language and culture

被引:113
作者
Hunt, SM [1 ]
Bhopal, R [1 ]
机构
[1] Univ Edinburgh, Sch Med, Div Community Hlth Sci, Edinburgh EH8 9AG, Midlothian, Scotland
关键词
D O I
10.1136/jech.2003.010074
中图分类号
R1 [预防医学、卫生学];
学科分类号
1004 ; 120402 ;
摘要
Internationally, there is a drive for equality in health care for ethnic groups. To achieve equality, produce sound policies, and provide appropriately targeted services good quality data are essential. Where data are based upon self report, especially from non-English speakers, there are major barriers to the accumulation of reliable and valid information. When data collection instruments designed for English speakers are simply translated into ethnic minority languages, measurement error can result from inadequate translation procedures, inappropriate content, insensitivity of items, and the failure of researchers to make themselves familiar with cultural norms and beliefs. More attention should be paid to conceptual and cultural factors especially in epidemiological and clinical studies where self report is used to gather data. More interdisciplinary collaboration is necessary as well as a modification of customary methods of data collection and the assumptions behind them. The essence of such modifications entails participatory research with members of the linguistic communities concerned.
引用
收藏
页码:618 / 622
页数:5
相关论文
共 29 条
[1]  
Airhihenbuwa C.O., 1995, HLTH CULTURE W PARAD
[2]  
Baker Philip., 2000, Multilingual capital: The languages of London's schoolchildren and their relevance to economic, social and educational policies
[3]   Women, older persons, and ethnic minorities: factors associated with their inclusion in randomised trials of statins 1990 to 2001 [J].
Bartlett, C ;
Davey, P ;
Dieppe, P ;
Doyal, L ;
Ebrahim, S ;
Egger, M .
HEART, 2003, 89 (03) :327-328
[4]   Translating health status questionnaires and evaluating their quality:: The IQOLA project approach [J].
Bullinger, M ;
Alonso, J ;
Apolone, G ;
Leplège, A ;
Sullivan, M ;
Wood-Dauphinee, S ;
Gandek, B ;
Wagner, A ;
Aaronson, N ;
Bech, P ;
Fukuhara, S ;
Kaasa, S ;
Ware, JE .
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL EPIDEMIOLOGY, 1998, 51 (11) :913-923
[5]  
CARRHILL R, 1996, LOST OPPORTUNITIES L
[6]  
CICOUREL AV, 1982, AM SOCIOL, V17, P11
[7]   Children as informal interpreters in GP consultations: pragmatics and ideology [J].
Cohen, S ;
Moran-Ellis, J ;
Smaje, C .
SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH & ILLNESS, 1999, 21 (02) :163-186
[8]   When nurses double as interpreters: a study of Spanish-speaking patients in a US primary care setting [J].
Elderkin-Thompson, V ;
Silver, RC ;
Waitzkin, H .
SOCIAL SCIENCE & MEDICINE, 2001, 52 (09) :1343-1358
[9]   Culture, relativism and the expression of mental distress: South Asian women in Britain [J].
Fenton, S ;
SadiqSangster, A .
SOCIOLOGY OF HEALTH & ILLNESS, 1996, 18 (01) :66-85
[10]  
FISCHBACHER C, JOINT C INT EP ASS S