Abstract

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Title:: Traditional Chinese View on Body: Validity of Chinese Patients’ Somatization

Abstract:: In Chinese tradition, body does not merely mean a collection of organs and tissues but serves as a dynamic field which interacts with outside nature and society, playing biological, psychological and mental functions. The shape and action of body are not only the results of physical activity and organs’ function, but also reflect the internal psychological states and emotions. Hence, body becomes the intermediary of interpersonal communication. This kind of body view matches traditional knowledge of diseases and diagnosing habitus and thus constitutes the validity of the somatization of Chinese patients. In this sense, somatization should be accepted as a normal way of expressing personally recognized diseases rather than an improper one.