WEEK 19 and 20: HEALTH DISABILITY AND HOMELESSNESS Flashcards
Social Determinants of Health
Sociologists focus on the social causes of disease and illness, rather than individual symptoms
Sociologists of health look to identify larger social causes of health outcomes and as such, seek larger social solutions to these problems
SDH for Indigenous Peoples
Racism and discrimination tied to colonialism
Food insecurity
Conditions on and off reserved
Job opportunities
Education
Social class
The thrifty gene hypothesis
Proposed that indigenous peoples were genetically predisposed to type 2 diabetes due to the foodways (eating habits) of their ancestors
Key Takeaway of the Social Model of Disability
disability is an economic outcome, not a bodily problem
Impairment vs Disability
Impairment
muscular dystrophy
Individual characteristics of the body
Disability
Physical barriers
Exterior barriers and individual experiences
Solutions for improving urban life
Improvements to infrastructure
Gentrification - revitalizing neighborhoods
Incumbent upgrading - improving transportation, affordable housing, green space
Gentrification
The process where the character of a poor urban area is changed by wealthier people moving in, improving housing and attracting new business
Often displacing current inhabitants in the process
Gemeinshacft vs Gesellschaft (F. Tonnies)
Funtionalism
Gemeinshafct: a close-knit community where strong personal bonds unite members
Pre-industrial societies that used agricultural means of production(tight-knit, strong, natural social relationships)
Gesellschaft: a community that is large and impersonal, with little commitment to the group or consensus in values
Rational forms of social relationships
Conflict Theorists on Cities
Cities are capitalist machines, sites of mass economic inequality
Internationally, coreporations urbanize previously rural areas in search of cheap labour
Poor populations are increasingly displaced due to gentrification
Money dictates how cities are designed
Symbolic interactionists on cities
Cities can make us individualistic and divide us
However, they can bring marginalized communities together
Key takeaways of Kim et Al (2033)
homelessness and stigma
Determined there is a stigma of homelessness, where people attribute undesirable characteristics to people experiencing homelessness
They are unhygienic, socially deviant, sexually aggressive, threatening, violent
Topics of interest for sociologists studying housing (Patillo, 2023)
how are the housing market finances for prospective buyers?
How do inequalities in property values affect wealth stratification?
What happens to people who cannot afford prevailing house prices?
