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Health, Illness and Bodies in Contemporary Society Part 1: Medicine and Social Control

Module description

What is illness? Who defines “health”? How do social processes affect disease and health in collectivities and in individuals? How did lack of health become associated with deviation? What are the values that underpin medical practice today?
Building on insights from medical anthropology, medical sociology and health psychology, this module critically explores ideas of health and illness as well as health practices. In the first part of the module we will discuss topics such as experiences of illness, and the construction and understanding of illness by those who are affected by it as well as those who are treating it. We will then explore the logic of biomedicine and processes of medicalization, followed by the effects of the market on the delivery of healthcare. In the second part we will turn our attention to social differences in health, particularly in terms of gender, age and different cultural backgrounds.

There are two Parts to ‘Health, Illness and Bodies in Contemporary Society’. These two 15 credit courses can be taken separately (so, either Part 1 or Part 2) or together (both Parts). Their interdisciplinary approach makes it suitable for students in sociology, anthropology, psychology, medicine/health sciences and other social science disciplines.

Module aims - intentions of the module

This module ‘Medicine and Social Control’ aims to unpack and critically analyse current academic theories on health, illness and medicine, taking an inter-disciplinary approach including medical sociology, medical anthropology and health psychology. It asks how and why 'health' has become a key social value and form of social control within contemporary Western society. It considers whether our lives have become ‘medicalized’, or taken over by medical professionals and solutions. It examines why health inequalities in class and gender persist. It also considers how and why medicine has become the ultimate ‘profession’, and how medical power is being challenged by new social forces. It also pays attention to the lived experience of being ill and how living a ‘healthy lifestyle’ has become a moral marker of goodness. It also considers how theories of health and illness drive health policy-making in the political and health-care systems.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. demonstrate knowledge of, analyse and engage critically with, a range of theories, models and policies in relation to contemporary accounts of health, illness and medicine;
• 2. relate these perspectives accurately and critically to empirical studies and findings from interdisciplinary sources;

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. demonstrate in writing and orally competence in using major theoretical perspectives and concepts in sociology and anthropology and their application to social life ;
• 4. demonstrate in writing and orally an ability to analyse empirical materials from sociology/anthropology and critically engage with materials involving complex reasoning;

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. develop an ability to engage in complex arguments verbally and in small groups;
• 6. demonstrate in writing an ability to analyse, critically engage with, and report accurately on existing written material whilst articulating it within a structured and cogent argument;
• 7. demonstrate an appreciation of the interpersonal skills (e.g. empathy, ethical thinking) required to analyse and produce high quality research within the arena of health and illness
• 8. demonstrate the ability to work independently, within a limited time frame, and without access to external sources, to complete a specified task.

Syllabus plan

Whilst the module’s precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover some or all of the following topics:

1. Ideas of Health and Illness
2. Experiences of Illness
3. Biomedicine and its Objects
4. Medicalization
5. Healthcare and the Market
6. Mental Health
7. Inequality and Structural Violence
8. ‘Women’s Health’ and the Politics of Reproduction
9. Longevity and the End of Life
10. Culture, Healthcare, and Medical Pluralism
11. Care 

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

Helman C. 1990: Culture, Health and Illness. 4th ed. Oxford: Butterworth-Heinemann.
Janzen J. 2002: The Social Fabric of Health. Boston: McGraw Hill.
Singer, M., & Baer, H. (2012). Introducing medical anthropology : A discipline in action (2nd ed.). Lanham, Md. ; Plymouth: Altamira Press.
Pool R & Geissler W. 2005: Medical Anthropology. London: Open University.
Johnson TM & Sargent CF. (eds) 1990: Medical Anthropology: a Handbook of Theory and Method. Greenwood.
Good B.J. 7 al. (eds) 2010: A Reader in Medical Anthropology. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell.
Bury, M & Gabe, J. (eds.) 2004. The sociology of health and illness: A Reader. London: Routledge Nichter M & Lock M. (eds) 2002: New Horizons in Medical Anthropology. London: Routledge.

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

ELE http://vle.exeter.ac.uk/

Journals: Social Science and Medicine, Medical Anthropology, Sociology of Health and Illness, Health

Key words search

Sociology, anthropology, health, illness, medicine, public health, risk