Concepts of Mental Retardation in Pakistan: Toward Cross-cultural and Historical Perspectives

This paper reviews concepts of mental retardation in Pakistan against an historical Asian and Islamic background, and discusses some hazards of Western cultural hegemony in this field. Evidence is presented from official documents, attitude surveys, a service development project and experiences in teacher training and family counselling. Families presenting their ‘different’ child usually offer comments on appearance, behaviour, capacity to learn, developmental progress and etiology. Since most family relationships and structures in Pakistan differ substantially from norms in Western countries, Western notions of ‘independent living’ and ‘self-advocacy’ are of questionable relevance. The socio-cultural construction of mental retardation is considered in the light of Pakistan's high national rate of non-literacy.