Cultural Consonance in Food Consumption and Nutrient Intake in Southern Brazil.

Culture influences food consumption and nutrient intake. In this paper we present a new approach in research, examining how knowledge and understanding of food is encoded in cultural models. The degree to which individuals match these shared models in their own consumption patterns is then measured, using the concept of cultural consonance. In research conducted in urban Brazil, the configuration of cultural models of food, and the association of cultural consonance in food with nutrient intake, are moderated by socioeconomic status. The theory and method employed here offers a new approach to the study of culture, food, and nutrient intake.

What You Know, What You Do, and How You Feel: Cultural Competence, Cultural Consonance, and Psychological Distress.

Describing the link between culture (as a phenomenon pertaining to social aggregates) and the beliefs and behaviors of individuals has eluded satisfactory resolution; however, contemporary cognitive culture theory offers hope. In this theory, culture is conceptualized as cognitive models describing specific domains of life that are shared by members of a social group. It is sharing that gives culture its aggregate properties. There are two aspects to these cultural models at the level of the individual. Persons have their own representations of the world that correspond incompletely to the shared model-this is their 'cultural competence.' Persons are also variable in the degree to which they can put cultural models into practice in their own lives-this is their 'cultural consonance.' Low cultural consonance is a stressful experience and has been linked to higher psychological distress. The relationship of cultural competence per se and psychological distress is less clear. In the research reported here, cultural competence and cultural consonance are measured on the same sample and their associations with psychological distress are examined using multiple regression analysis. Results indicate that, with respect to psychological distress, while it is good to know the cultural model, it is better to put it into practice.

Culture as a mediator of gene-environment interaction: Cultural consonance, childhood adversity, a 2A serotonin receptor polymorphism, and depression in urban Brazil.

Research on gene-environment interaction was facilitated by breakthroughs in molecular biology in the late 20th century, especially in the study of mental health. There is a reliable interaction between candidate genes for depression and childhood adversity in relation to mental health outcomes. The aim of this paper is to explore the role of culture in this process in an urban community in Brazil. The specific cultural factor examined is cultural consonance, or the degree to which individuals are able to successfully incorporate salient cultural models into their own beliefs and behaviors. It was hypothesized that cultural consonance in family life would mediate the interaction of genotype and childhood adversity. In a study of 402 adult Brazilians from diverse socioeconomic backgrounds, conducted from 2011 to 2014, the interaction of reported childhood adversity and a polymorphism in the 2A serotonin receptor was associated with higher depressive symptoms. Further analysis showed that the gene-environment interaction was mediated by cultural consonance in family life, and that these effects were more pronounced in lower social class neighborhoods. The findings reinforce the role of the serotonergic system in the regulation of stress response and learning and memory, and how these processes in turn interact with environmental events and circumstances. Furthermore, these results suggest that gene-environment interaction models should incorporate a wider range of environmental experience and more complex pathways to better understand how genes and the environment combine to influence mental health outcomes.

The interaction of cultural consonance and a polymorphism in the 2A serotonin receptor in relation to depression in Brazil: failure to replicate previous findings.

OBJECTIVES: To replicate a previously identified gene-environment interaction between a genetic polymorphism in the serotonin 2A receptor and cultural consonance in family life in relation to depressive symptoms (Dressler et al., 2009). METHODS: A sample of 402 individuals in a sample drawn from four different economic strata in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil was interviewed and genotyped. RESULTS: Cultural consonance in family life has an inverse association with depressive symptoms (beta = -0.439, P < 0.001) and with high depressive symptoms (OR = 2.36, P < 0.001), but the interaction with genotype was not statistically significant. CONCLUSION: The previously identified gene-environment interaction was not replicated. Limitations of the study are discussed. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 28:936-940, 2016. © 2016Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Culture and the Immune System: Cultural Consonance in Social Support and C-reactive Protein in Urban Brazil.

In this article, we examine the distribution of a marker of immune system stimulation-C-reactive protein-in urban Brazil. Social relationships are associated with immunostimulation, and we argue that cultural dimensions of social support, assessed by cultural consonance, are important in this process. Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate shared cultural models. A measure of cultural consonance in social support, based on a cultural consensus analysis regarding sources and patterns of social support in Brazil, was developed. In a survey of 258 persons, the association of cultural consonance in social support and C-reactive protein was examined, controlling for age, sex, body mass index, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, depressive symptoms, and a social network index. Lower cultural consonance in social support was associated with higher C-reactive protein. Implications of these results for future research are discussed.

How culture shapes the body: cultural consonance and body mass in urban Brazil.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this article is to develop a model of how culture shapes the body, based on two studies conducted in urban Brazil. METHODS: Research was conducted in 1991 and 2001 in four socioeconomically distinct neighborhoods. First, cultural domain analyses were conducted with samples of key informants. The cultural domains investigated included lifestyle, social support, family life, national identity, and food. Cultural consensus analysis was used to confirm shared knowledge in each domain and to derive measures of cultural consonance. Cultural consonance assesses how closely an individual matches the cultural consensus model for each domain. Second, body composition, cultural consonance, and related variables were assessed in community surveys. Multiple regression analysis was used to examine the association of cultural consonance and body composition, controlling for standard covariates and competing explanatory variables. RESULTS: In 1991, in a survey of 260 individuals, cultural consonance had a curvilinear association with the body mass index that differed for men and women, controlling for sociodemographic and dietary variables. In 2001, in a survey of 267 individuals, cultural consonance had a linear association with abdominal circumference that differed for men and women, controlling for sociodemographic and dietary variables. In general, as cultural consonance increases, body mass index and abdominal circumference decline, more strongly for women than men. CONCLUSIONS: As individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, more closely approximate shared cultural models in socially salient domains, body composition also more closely approximates the cultural prototype of the body.

Does perceived stress mediate the effect of cultural consonance on depression?

The importance of appraisal in the stress process is unquestioned. Experience in the social environment that impacts outcomes such as depression are thought to have these effects because they are appraised as a threat to the individual and overwhelm the individual's capacity to cope. In terms of the nature of social experience that is associated with depression, several recent studies have examined the impact of cultural consonance. Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate the prototypes for belief and behavior encoded in shared cultural models. Low cultural consonance is associated with more depressive symptoms both cross-sectionally and longitudinally. In this paper we ask the question: does perceived stress mediate the effects of cultural consonance on depression? Data are drawn from a longitudinal study of depressive symptoms in the urban community of Ribeirão Preto, Brazil. A sample of 210 individuals was followed for 2 years. Cultural consonance was assessed in four cultural domains, using a mixed-methods research design that integrated techniques of cultural domain analysis with social survey research. Perceived stress was measured with Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale. When cultural consonance was examined separately for each domain, perceived stress partially mediated the impact of cultural consonance in family life and cultural consonance in lifestyle on depressive symptoms. When generalized cultural consonance (combining consonance in all four domains) was examined, there was no evidence of mediation. These results raise questions about how culturally salient experience rises to the level of conscious reflection.

Cultural consonance, a 5HT2A receptor polymorphism, and depressive symptoms: a longitudinal study of gene x culture interaction in urban Brazil.

In this study in urban Brazil we examine, as a predictor of depressive symptoms, the interaction between a single nucleotide polymorphism in the 2A receptor in the serotonin system (-1438G/A) and cultural consonance in family life, a measure of the degree to which an individual perceives her family as corresponding to a widely shared cultural model of the prototypical family. A community sample of 144 adults was followed over a 2-year-period. Cultural consonance in family life was assessed by linking individuals' perceptions of their own families with a shared cultural model of the family derived from cultural consensus analysis. The -1438G/A polymorphism in the 2A serotonin receptor was genotyped using a standard protocol for DNA extracted from leukocytes. Covariates included age, sex, socioeconomic status, and stressful life events. Cultural consonance in family life was prospectively associated with depressive symptoms. In addition, the interaction between genotype and cultural consonance in family life was significant. For individuals with the A/A variant of the -1438G/A polymorphism of the 2A receptor gene, the effect of cultural consonance in family life on depressive symptoms over a 2-year-period was larger (beta = -0.533, P < 0.01) than those effects for individuals with either the G/A (beta = -0.280, P < 0.10) or G/G (beta = -0.272, P < 0.05) variants. These results are consistent with a process in which genotype moderates the effects of culturally meaningful social experience on depressive symptoms.

Cultural consonance and adult body composition in urban Brazil.

In previous research in Brazil, we found socioeconomic and gender differences in body mass and percent body fat, consistent with a model in which individuals in higher socioeconomic strata, especially women, could achieve a cultural ideal of body size and shape. In this article, using new data, we examine these processes more precisely using measures of cultural consonance. Cultural consonance refers to the degree to which individuals approximate, in their own beliefs and behaviors, the shared prototypes for belief and behavior encoded in cultural models. We have found higher cultural consonance in several domains to be associated with health outcomes. Furthermore, there tends to be a general consistency in cultural consonance across domains. Here we suggest that measures of body composition can be considered indicators of individuals' success in achieving cultural ideals of the body, and that cultural consonance in several domains will be associated with body composition. Using waist circumference as an outcome, smaller waist size was associated with higher cultural consonance in lifestyle (beta = -0.311, P < 0.01) and higher cultural consonance in the consumption of high prestige foods (beta = -0.260, P < 0.01) for women (n = 161), but not for men (n = 106), controlling for age, family income, tobacco use, and dietary intake of protein and carbohydrates. Similar results were obtained using the body mass index and weight as outcomes, while there were no associations with height. These results help to illuminate the cultural mediation of body composition.

A prospective study of cultural consonance and depressive symptoms in urban Brazil.

Cultural consonance refers to the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate the prototypes for belief and behavior encoded in shared cultural models. In previous cross-sectional studies, lower cultural consonance in several cultural domains was associated with worse health outcomes, including greater psychological distress. The current paper extends these findings in three ways. First, the effect of cultural consonance on depressive symptoms is tested in a prospective study. Second, it is hypothesized that the effect of cultural consonance in a specific cultural domain will depend on the degree of cultural consensus within that domain: the higher the cultural consensus, the greater the effect of change in cultural consonance in that domain on depressive symptoms. Third, it is hypothesized that cultural consonance will have an inverse effect on depressive symptoms independent of the occurrence of stressful life events (a well-known risk factor for depression). We tested these hypotheses in a study conducted in urban Brazil, and found that change in cultural consonance (assessed as a general construct) was associated with depressive symptoms at a 2-year follow-up. Furthermore, cultural consonance in the domains in which there was highest cultural consensus--the domains of family life and lifestyle--was more strongly associated with depressive symptoms at follow-up than cultural consonance in domains with lower cultural consensus. Finally, all of these effects were independent of stressful life events. These results lend further support to the importance of cultural consonance in relation to human health.

Cultural consonance and psychological distress: examining the associations in multiple cultural domains.

Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals, in their own beliefs and behaviors, approximate widely shared cultural models. In previous research in Brazil and the United States we found that higher cultural consonance in the cultural domains of lifestyle and social support was associated with lower psychological distress. The aim of this paper is to expand on these results in two ways. First, the measurement of cultural consonance has been improved through a closer link of cultural domain analyses and survey research. Second, the number of domains in which cultural consonance has been examined has been expanded to include-along with lifestyle and social support-family life, national identity, and food. We found that cultural consonance in these five domains can be conceptualized as two latent variables of generalized cultural consonance, and that this generalized cultural consonance is associated with lower psychological distress. These results continue to support the usefulness of cultural consonance as a theoretical construct in the explanation of human social suffering.

Cultural consonance and arterial blood pressure in urban Brazil.

In previous research in Brazil, we tested the hypothesis that cultural consonance is associated with arterial blood pressure. Cultural consonance is the degree to which individuals are able to approximate in their own behaviors the prototypes for behavior encoded in shared cultural models. Individuals who had higher cultural consonance in the domains of lifestyle and social support had lower blood pressures. The aim of the current research was to replicate and extend these findings. First, a more extensive cultural domain analysis was carried out, improving the description of cultural models. Second, more sensitive measures of cultural consonance were developed. Third, data were collected in the same community studied previously. The following findings emerged: (a) cultural domain analysis (using a mix of quantitative and qualitative techniques) indicated that cultural models for these domains are widely shared within the community; (b) the associations of cultural consonance in these domains with arterial blood pressure were replicated; and, (c) the pattern of the associations differed slightly from that observed in earlier research. This pattern of associations can be understood in terms of macrosocial influences over the past ten years. The results support the importance of long-term fieldwork in anthropology.

Culture, skin color, and arterial blood pressure in Brazil.

Populations of African descent in North and South America have higher mean blood pressures and higher rates of hypertension than populations of European descent or populations in Africa. Within populations of African descent, darker skinned persons have higher blood pressures than lighter skinned persons. Whether examined within or between populations, there is an interaction between skin color and socioeconomic status (SES) in relation to blood pressure, with persons with dark skin color and low SES having the highest blood pressures. This interaction was examined in Brazil using a measure of a cultural dimension of SES called "cultural consonance in lifestyle." This measure was derived using cultural consensus analysis linked with social survey data. It was found that darker skinned Brazilians with lower cultural consonance in lifestyle had adjusted systolic blood pressures 16.2 mm Hg higher than darker skinned Brazilians with higher cultural consonance (P <.01); the corresponding difference in adjusted diastolic blood pressure was 9.7 mm Hg (P <.04). The differences for lighter skinned Brazilians were 6.4 mm Hg (P <.02) and 1.0 mm Hg (not significant), respectively. These results could be due either to an interaction of genetic predisposition and SES, or the result of a socially and culturally-mediated process. Given that cultural consonance in lifestyle measures the ability of the person to live up to cultural norms, and given the existence of racial stratification in Brazil, it is argued that a social and cultural mediation of the relationship is more plausible. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 11:49-59, 1999. Copyright 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.