commit and act in Sierra Leone

Stewart, C., Ebert, B. and Bockarie, H. (2017) commit and act in Sierra Leone. In: White, R. G., Jain, S., Orr, D. M.R. and Read, U. M. (eds.) The Palgrave Handbook of Sociocultural Perspectives on Global Mental Health. Series: Palgrave handbooks. Palgrave Macmillan: London, pp. 657-678. ISBN 9781137395092 (doi: 10.1057/978-1-137-39510-8_31)

Abstract

This chapter outlines the work of an international non-governmental organization (NGO) called commit and act and its efforts to alleviate suffering and to promote mental health, valued living and empowerment of local people in Sierra Leone. The chapter begins with a summary of Sierra Leone and some of the main issues facing the country. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy: An experiential approach to behavior change. New York: Guilford Press; ACT) is presented as a psychotherapy rooted in a philosophical framework called ‘functional contextualism’, which offers broadly applicable behavioral principles and therapeutic techniques that may be applied to a variety of issues across diverse cultural settings. The development of commit and act and examples of how ACT has been applied by local therapists in Sierra Leone are presented. Finally, the impact of commit and act in Sierra Leone and the advantages of adopting a functional contextual approach when conducting cross-cultural work in psychosocial settings are discussed.

• Item Type: Book Sections
• Status: Published
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Stewart, Dr Corinna
• Authors: Stewart, C., Ebert, B., and Bockarie, H.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > Mental Health and Wellbeing
• Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan
• ISBN: 9781137395092
• Published Online: 04 February 2017

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