Lecture 17Outline of Last Lecture I. OverviewII. Global IndicatorsIII. QuestionsIV. Why?V. AssumptionsVI. Understanding PovertyVII. CausesVIII. Optimism?IX. SummaryOutline of Current Lecture X. What Does It Mean To Be Sick?XI. The Medical ProfessionXII. Discrepancies in HealthCurrent LectureI. What Does It Mean To Be Sick?a. “Sick Role” -- Talcott Parsonsi. Rights1. don’t have to perform normal social rocles2. not held accountable for his/her conditionSOC 100 1st Editionii. Obligations1. trying to get well2. seek competent helpb. Problems With “Sick Role”i. places emphasis on individuals rather than social context1. ignores whether a person has access to health care2. individuals are held responsible for their own illnessesc. Illness as a Social Constructi. what it means to be sick/healthy has changed throughout history and differs from one place to an-other1. Alcoholism and Addiction, Obesity, Autismd. Social Construction of Autismi. Biological Explanations for Increase in Diagnosisii. Social Explanations1. increase in medical research (expertise)2. circulation of knowledge 3. [policy making]4. access to resourcese. Mental Illness and Role of Expertsi. diagnostic and statistical manual (DSM) provides a categorization of mental disorders and their defini-tionsii. changes in this manual influenced mental illness and how to treat itf. Influences on Medical Expertisei. Politics: DSM and Homosexuality1. being homosexual was a mental illnessii. Corporations: DSM and Drug Companies1. mental illness was thought to be treated through talk therapy and prescription drugs a. primary means was that it opened the door for drug companies to become ex-tremely influential on how we think aboutmental illnessII. The Medical Professionf. as experts, doctors have a great amount of social and polit-ical power and prestigeii. they off universally valued product aka health and longetivityiii. strictly regulated by “profession”1. 190 doctors/100,000 individualsg. Professionsii. oriented toward peers, not clients1. specialized training2. standards of conduct prescribed by peers3. intamcy and objectivity4. props and scriptsh. The Power of Professionsii. controlling the demand for their servicesiii. self regulationiv. medicalization1. problems or issues not traditionally seen as medical come to be framed as sucha. child birthi. Influences on the Professionii. Captialism (Drug Companies)1. pay for the research, the academuc confer-ences, continuing educationiii. Regulationiv. Technologyv. CompetitionIII. Discepancies in Healthf. Health Disparitiesii. well-established differences in health outcomes based on socioeconmic status1. race2. classg. Social Determinants Theoryii. social status can determine a person’s health1. psychoscoial explanations2. materialist explanations3. Fundamental
View Full Document
Unlocking...