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Bicultural harmonization and prevention of demoralization: clinical, therapeutic, and programmatic implications

This article examines how bicultural harmonization was achieved in a society exposed to acculturative stress for almost two centuries and discusses the implications of the historical experience of this bicultural society to clinical practice, cultural psychotherapy, and program development for bicultural populations. The setting being studied is Goa, a former Portuguese state on the western coast of India. Two cultural sub-groups, Hindus and Christians, continued to interact despite attempts to eliminate their bicultural exchange. The result was the formation of a vibrant hybrid culture, the Indo-Portuguese culture of Goa, and the minimization or prevention of demoralization. The findings highlight the importance of encouraging bicultural individuals to borrow values and norms from both cultures, switch between them in response to cultural cues, adapt themselves to both, synthesize norms of both, and apply those norms judiciously to particular situations. Programs designed to relieve distress and demoralization in bicultural individuals should aim at the promotion of harmonization rather than total assimilation.