15175: Laleau: Haitian psychology

[Bob Corbett <corbetre@webster.edu>]

From: NLaleau@aol.com
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I don't know if there's a specific Haitian psychology. I think a
cluster of
traits have crystallized in Haiti; some very noticeable ones are survival
mechanisms that keep people alive ... some are old aspects of African
cultures,
such as flexibility and improvisation in the face of adversity
("combinaison").
Some traits people particularly dislike look to me like aspects of Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder that have gotten embedded in the culture. I do
think
there is a Haitian identity issue--I have traveled a lot and known people
from
all over the world, and very few ethnic groups seem to discuss their
identity
as much as Haitians do. Some that do seem to discuss ethnic identity a lot
are
Italians and Jews, in my unscientific observations.