5.1 Sociological Approaches to Chronic Illness

Question 1

What is a chronic illness?

Answer 1

A long-term condition which has a profound effect on a person’s life. They can be controlled but not cured

Question 2

Describe a sociological approach to chronic illness

Answer 2

Focussing on how chronic illnesses impacts on social interaction and role performance.

Question 3

What is an illness narrative?

Answer 3

The story-telling and accounting practices that occur in the face of illness

Question 4

What is illness work?

Answer 4

The social and psychological effort needed to cope with uncertainty before getting a diagnosis.
The additional work needed to manage symptoms in the long-term to maintain optimum health.

Question 5

Give 3 positives of the Expert Patient Programme

Answer 5

Learn coping and condition management skills
Reduces hospital admissions
Patient-centered

Question 6

Give 2 negatives of the Expert Patient Programme

Answer 6

Responsibility is placed on the ill patients

Little understanding of the efficiency savings

Question 7

What is everyday life work?

Answer 7

Coping and strategic management

Question 8

What is coping?

Answer 8

The cognitive process involved in dealing with illness

Question 9

What is meant by ‘strategy’ with regard to everyday life work?

Answer 9

The actions and processes involved in managing the condition and its impact

Question 10

What is meant by ‘normalisation’ of a condition?

Answer 10

Try to keep pre-illness lifestyle and identity OR redesignate your illness life as your ‘normal’ life.

Question 11

What is meant by ‘emotional work’?

Answer 11

Work to protect the emotional well-being of others. Have to consciously do normal activities to seem normal. Downplay symptoms to friends and family who worry.

Question 12

What is ‘biographical work’?

Answer 12

Former self-image and view of the future is altered dramatically and another view of the future is not yet developed. Have to work to remain positive and try to see a future for themselves

Question 13

What is ‘identity work’?

Answer 13

Some conditions carry public connotations. This affects how people see themselves and how others see them. Their illness can become their identity.

Question 14

What is stigma?

Answer 14

Negatively defined condition, attribute, trait or behaviour conferring ‘deviant’ status

Question 15

What is discreditable stigma?

Answer 15

Nothing physically seen but when people find out the person is treated differently eg. mental health

Question 16

What is discredited stigma?

Answer 16

Physically visible characteristic or well-known stigma which sets the patient apart from society

Question 17

What is enacted stigma?

Answer 17

Real experience of prejudice

Question 18

What is felt stigma?

Answer 18

Fear of enacted stigma. Feeling of shame about condition

Question 19

What is the medical definition of disability?

Answer 19

A deviation from the medical norm. Disability is due to a direct consequence of the condition and the patient needs medical help to cure the disability.

Question 20

What is the socal definition of disability?

Answer 20

Problems are a product of the environment and a failure of the environment to adjust. Disability is a form of social oppression. Political and social action is needed to cure disability.

Question 21

Give 2 disadvantages of the social definition of disability

Answer 21

Overly drawn view of society

Body is left out

Question 22

Give 2 disadvantages of the medical definition of disability

Answer 22

Lack of recognition of social factors

Uses stigmatising language

Question 23

What is the International Classification of Impairments, Disabilities or Handicaps (ICIDH)?

Answer 23

Classification system to try and classify the consequences of a disease. It works on the basis that a disease leads to an impairment which leads to a disability and therefore a handicap

Question 24

Give 2 disadvantages of the ICIDH

Answer 24

It implies that disabilities are inevitable from a disease
‘Handicapped’ is no longer a politically correct term
The relationship between the severity of the condition and the severity of the handicap is not made clear.

Question 25

What is the International Classification of Functions, Disability and Health (ICF)?

Answer 25

WHO’s framework for measuring disability at a personal and population level. Tries to combine social and medical definitions.

Question 26

What is the ICF model based on?

Answer 26

Body impairment
Limitation of activities
Restriction of social participation