A person who has a specialized domain of knowledge about a particular culture, and acts as a go-between, often mediating between different cultural groups. A role originally termed by anthropologists and increasingly used in health care settings to better serve diverse communities. Fadiman hires May Ying as a cultural broker to help her conduct interviews with the Lee family.

A methodological position that one should not view or judge another culture by one’s own standards but rather view it on its own terms. Fadiman uses this approach to better understand the cultural beliefs and practices of her Hmong research participants and the medical staff at MCMC.

A malevolent spirit. The Hmong have many cultural taboos and folktales about dabs, who often are responsible for illnesses and soul loss. Shamans engage in spiritual battles with dabs and try to appease them with animal sacrifices.