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Acts of violence in a traditional western Ethiopian society in transition
Author(s) -
Jacobsson L.
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
acta psychiatrica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.849
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1600-0447
pISSN - 0001-690X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-0447.1985.tb02554.x
Subject(s) - feudalism , homicide , incidence (geometry) , suicide prevention , rural society , poison control , injury prevention , socioeconomics , rural area , human factors and ergonomics , period (music) , criminology , medicine , psychiatry , geography , demography , psychology , sociology , political science , medical emergency , law , physics , optics , politics , acoustics
The present study describes 316 consecutive cases of deliberately inflicted injuries attending a general hospital in western Ethiopia. One third of the cases concerned economic conflicts about land, cattle, etc., one third interpersonal conflicts in the family, between neighbours, etc., and one third were alcoholically intoxicated people who had been in a fight for no apparent reason. The incidence of homicide was estimated to be at least 5–12 per 100,000 inhabitants per year, which is somewhat high. The role of psychiatric disorders seems to be very limited. The most serious conflicts occurred in rural areas and were economic in nature. As this investigation was made during the imperial, feudal period, it allows a comparison to be made with the new conditions after the revolutionary changes in the economic system.