WEEK 2: defining health, disciplinarity, how to conduct health research (CH 1, 2)

Question 1

what is health studies?

Answer 1

health studies addresses health, illness and medicine through a social science interdisciplinary lens

explores social, political, cultural and economic dimensions of health

Question 2

health studies use …

Answer 2

quantitative data and qualitative data

Question 3

quantitative data

Answer 3

• health records
• census data
• survey questionnaires

Question 4

qualitative data

Answer 4

• interviews
• focus groups
• observation techniques
• document analysis
• this is preferred as this data provides in-depth and person sensitive perspectives (human thoughts and feelings)

Question 5

what is health?

Answer 5

health is a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing , not just the absence of disease or infirmity (WHO, 1948)

Question 6

what is health influenced by?

Answer 6

social, political, cultural and economic factors

Question 7

what is health related to?

Answer 7

overall well-being, quality of life and individual and community understandings of what it means to be healthy

Question 8

health sub-disciplines

Answer 8

health geography, medicinal anthropology, health psychology, health economics

Question 9

health geography

Answer 9

the study of how space and place affect and represent health and health care

Question 10

medicinal anthropology

Answer 10

the study of the bio-cultural and ecological aspects of health and health care

Question 11

health psychology

Answer 11

the study of the cognitive and behavioural aspects of health and health care

Question 12

health economics

Answer 12

the study of different ways of allocating resources for health with different outcomes

Question 13

what does it mean to be critical

Answer 13

requires you to reflect on information, use judgement skills, and engage in higher levels of thinking (analysis, interpretation, inference, evaluation, and explanation to formulate reliable decisions)

Question 14

humility and reflexivity

Answer 14

part of being critical
- acknowledging one’s position within the social and cultural world of the subjects and issues studied

Question 15

concerns and criticism of critical research

Answer 15

No longer radical, repetitive, over-theorizes, and lacks a solid political following

Question 16

what is discplinarity?

Answer 16

refers to the idea that different academic disciplines have unique approaches, methods and tools for examining and understanding a subject or topic

Question 17

disciplinary approaches to health studies

Answer 17

sociology, psychology, geography, ethics

Question 18

describe health sociology

Answer 18

how social structures, institutions and relationships influence health and illness

explores topics like healthcare disparities, SDH and the impact of social norms and values on health

Question 19

describe health psychology

Answer 19

How people’s thoughts and behaviours influence their health

can explore psychological factors contributing to health behaviours, mental health issues, and coping mechanisms

Question 20

describe health geography

Answer 20

plays a role in studying the physical environment’s impact on health

• issues like access to healthcare facilities
• geography of disease
• environmental factors that affect well-being

Question 21

describe health ethics

Answer 21

Morals in health studies and health care

Question 22

multidisciplinarity

Answer 22

Advantage: Diverse perspectives, specialized knowledge, and depth of exploration.

Disadvantage: Limited integration, potential for disconnection, and lack of synthesis.

Question 23

interdisciplinarity

Answer 23

Advantage: Overlapping knowledge, problem-solving capabilities, and enhanced insights.

Disadvantage: Theoretical and methodological challenges and the challenge of synthesis.

Question 24

transdisciplinarity

Answer 24

Advantage: Comprehensive perspective, shared conceptual framework, and overarching framework.

Disadvantage: Requires strong communication, challenges for disciplinary experts, and complexity of collaboration.

Question 25

what were the disciplinary boundaries crossed?

Answer 25

• ages and stages project in the UK
• blogs, photovoice projects, and docufilms
• consumer/survivor movement
• online resources and intiatives (TimeSlips project in USA)

Question 26

What is the Ages and stages project in the UK?

Answer 26

Theatre groups collaborate with researchers to create plays and performances that explore the experiences of aging, age-related diagnoses (dementia), and other health-related topics.

Question 27

What are examples of blogs, photovoice projects, and documentary films in health research?

Answer 27

These creative projects combine approaches from the social sciences to document and convey the stories and journeys of individuals dealing with health-related challenges.

Question 28

What is the consumer/survivor movement in mental health?

Answer 28

It involves individuals with mental health-related issues and diagnoses who take a critical approach to mainstream psychiatry and mental health care.

They contribute their knowledge and experiences to projects aimed at critically addressing mental health care and advocating for change.

Question 29

What is an example of an online resource and initiative in health research?

Answer 29

The TimeSlips project in the United States reframes health issues through creative storytelling and provides alternative perspectives on conditions like dementia.

These projects aim to disseminate information and engage audiences beyond academic settings.

Question 30

developing a research question

Answer 30

• clear and focussed
• not too broad and not too narrow
• not too easy to answer (not too difficult to answer)
• researchable
• analytical rather than descriptive