Deboleza is a behavioural construct among the inhabitants of Istria (a peninsula in the Adriatic Sea which belongs mainly to Croatia); it has peculiar social, ethno-psychological and historical characteristics because it is a relatively small region which has been the intersection of various cultures and civilizations. In this research the concept is analysed from the psychomedical point of view. As deboleza does not have the status of an illness, it functions as a culture-bound syndrome which, because of its emotional expressions, belongs to the ‘shame’ family. This interesting construct should be thoroughly studied not only in a peculiar and dynamic Croatian culture and in Croatian psychiatry, but also within European culture and psychiatry.