Weeks 1-5 Flashcards
Sociology is
scientific study of social behaviour in context and the relationship between society and human action;
study of individuals, groups and societies
What can sociology focus on? (3)
- individuals
- groups
- societies
author of the term “sociological imagination”?
Wright Mills
Sociological imagination is…
Way of thinking about the social world, approaching phenomena as new, asking lots of questions in order to see them from many angles and understand in relation to the wider society; way of approaching social phenomena and individual practices
Individuals in sociology:
are always studied in social context - how do they behave in a social environment and how their behavior changes in accordance with it
SOCIOLOGY STUDIES GROUPS (2):
- how groups behave
- how groups differ from other groups
Groups are…
diverse, NOT homogenous
Sociology studies how societies…
are organised
Societies are organised in:
social institutions (family, religion, education, work, healthcare system)
What is the task of social institutions?
to create social roles and expectations to guide human behaviour.
Socialization -
process of learning values and norms in a society, starts as soon as the person is born
What medical sociology focuses on? (3)
- the experience of a disease is a social experience
- people’s cultural values shape their health beliefs and behavior
- health could be influenced by social forces
“Disease as a social experience”:
patient’s social life changes as a result of the disease, thus disease becomes a part of the patient’s social life;
not a fixed social experience: diff ppl may experience the same condition differently, it depends on the patient’s life circumstances & social context
“Socio-cultural values shape our behavior & health behavior”
(cultural beliefs)
cultural beliefs become ppl’s second nature and can interrupt treating process
“Social values influence health”
(socioeconomic background)
socio-economic background is associated with ill health and high mortality;
working class ppl have lower access to resources, their socio-economic standing shapes their behavior
empathy -
showing understanding of your patient’s feelings and perspective
Why is medical sociology useful f/ medical practitioners?
It helps to understand patients more holistically & facilitate communication & treatment
Diversity -
Sum of social, cultural and identity-based human attributes represented within a group
Skills & behaviors f/ working effectively & appropriately in diverse groups (9)
- deep listening f/ understanding
- be non-judgmental to accept other’s perspective
- show empathy to understand & provide support
- shared decision making f/ inclusion & fairness
- be open-minded to learn about others & self-reflect
- self-reflect to tackle biases & microaggressions
- show respect, interest & give value
- take responsibility to complete tasks & ensure the smooth fn of the group
- ensure Ψ safety f/ all members of the group to freely express their opinion, concerns, develop from mistakes
Lay health beliefs
Beliefs ordinary ppl w/out medical training have about health & illness
What else, apart from health beliefs, influence human behaviour?
Social influences
Lay beliefs about being healthy by Herzlich, 1973 - ? (3)
- reserve of health
- health as equilibrium
- health as vacuum
Reserve of H -?
having strength to resist disease
Ex: person feels strong to resist disease even when they have symptoms
Health (H) as equilibrium - ?
balance inside the body & mind (general physical & Ψ well-being) and b/w an individual & social world
Ex: person feels well-balanced physically & Ψly AND not in conflict w/ anyone even though there is a condition present
H in a vacuum - ?
absence of a condition means being healthy
Ex: person w/ no diagnosed conditions understands that they are healthy even when feeling unwell&
H as function (Bexter, 2010) - ?
the ability to do things in everyday life
the ability to achieve personal goals
Ex: a person has a condition but feels healthy b/c can still do things they want
H beliefs can influence illness behavior, also there are many factors that influence ppl’s illness behavior, which are? (3)
- H literacy: some patients know more than others, it can help identify potential symptoms
- Triggers: 1) pressure from others, 2) restricting nature of symptoms. Ex: regardless of a person’s beliefs, they may seek help when symptoms interfere w/ their lifestyle
- Referral system lay ppl use: family members, community
Triggers that influence ppl’s illness behavior (2):
1) pressure from others
2) restricting nature of symptoms.
Ex: regardless of a person’s beliefs, they may seek help when symptoms interfere w/ their lifestyle
Self-treatment is… (+/-)?
encouraged
CAM - ?
Complementary Alternative Medicine, used more widely now, lots of followers & practitioners, ppl tend to stop believing in biomedicine. Some exs: yoga, meditation, aromatherapy
Lay H beliefs about causes of illness by Helman (2007) -? (4)
- individual site
- natural site
- social site
- supernatural site
individual site -
disease is attributed to the individual and their actions
natural site -
diseases related to environmental factors such as pollution, humidity, cold
social site -
diseases are believed to be inflicted by others due to conflict or jealousy
Ex: evil eye
supernatural site -
diseases inflicted by supernatural entities
Ex: gods, spirits of ancestors
Where are all these sites/beliefs are likely to be observed?
Individual & natural - in western industrialized societies (biomedicine is a part of ppl’s lives)
social & supernatural - in developing countries and tribal societies.
Schematic process of lay beliefs influencing illness behavior
Triggers that affect illness behavior - ? (5)
- occurrence of interpersonal crisis (death of a family member)
- symptoms interfere w/ social and interpersonal relations (can’t attend a party due to illness restrictions)
- sanctioning - pressure from others (spouse exerts pressure to visit GP)
- symptoms interfere w/ vocational / physical activity (can’t be productive at work due to a disease)
- temporalisation of symptoms (patient places deadline, if symptoms persist they may seek medical help)
Characteristics of a chronic illness? (4)
- long-term condition
- can last during life time
- has impact on patient’s life
- largely a contemporary phenomenon due to aging societies: ppl live longer but are more likely to develop a chronic condition
impairment -
abnormalities in the functioning of the body
Ex: diabetes, heart disease, any medical condition or malfunction
disability -
inability to perform an activity in a manner considered normal for a human being
Ex: walking w/ support
handicap -
a social disadvantage that results from the inability to fulfill a role that is normal
Ex: disadvantage due to inability to have full-time employment
Disadvantage & deprivation as meaning of chronic illness (5):
- difficulties to manage symptoms
- difficulties to manage treatment (medication, diet, lifestyle change)
- adjust to a new life w/ sick role
- Ψ distress & dependence
- change in lifestyle & social isolation
Ψ changes in chronic illness (3):
- uncertainty
- family relations
- biographical disruption
Forms of uncertainty in chronic illness - ? (3)
- uncertainty about the cause (why me? / why now?)
- uncertainty about functionality (will I be able to do things now?)
- uncertainty about prognosis (what will happen to me?)
Feelings of uncertainty are stronger when a patient has more social obligations to fulfil
What happens to family relations in chronic illness? (4)
- reallocation of tasks
- feeling as a burden to family
- withdrawal from family life
- marital breakdown is common
forms of biographical disruption:
- patients’ daily life is disrupted
- patient may lose what they feel the most impt context of their life (career, family) => chronic stress => lack of adherence
The significance of resources:
managing chronic illness relates to access to resources, such as (5):
- healthcare
- proper housing
- shopping
- Ψ support
- social networks
According to Talcott Parsons, society is presented
as and hospital is what?
society is presented social harmony & stability and health & hospital are micro-societies
to achieve stability, doctors & patients have to adopt a specific social role
According to Talcott Parsons, doctor’s role is (3):
- use their knowledge
- treat patients
- fair treatment
According to Talcott Parsons, patient’s role is (4):
- nobody blames them
- they are excused to be withdrawn from social activities
- they are expected to seek help
- they are expected to return to social activities
According to Talcott Parsons, the purpose of sick role is:
to return to normal social roles => social stability
sick role f/ acute conditions:
adopt sick role and get better
sick role f/ chronic conditions:
adopt sick role and improve condition / quality of life
Problems of sick role, according to Talcott Parsons (3):
- patients get well too quickly & don’t enter sick role at all
- patients may have lethal disease and either not have a chance to enter sick role, or have chance to enter it but not complete it
- patients may not be legitimate to adopt sick role, if society doesn’t care about their life quality improvement due to stigmatization of their condition
According to Michael Bury, biographical disruption has 2 main types:
- disruption of what patient takes f/ granted (routine)
Ex: daily routine schedule - disruption of patient’s biography (structure of identity)
Ex: family, education, career
How do patients respond to disruption?
Negotiation
Negotiation
Kind of introspection: patients renegotiate w/ their new ill self
Patients respond to disruption through (3):
- coping - cognitive processes (compare w/ other patients whose condition is worse)
- strategy - action taken by the patient (start a new hobby, participate in patient groups)
- style - the way the patient deals with/ their condition (use humour to take full control of their condition)
label - ?
name that represents something
2 types of labels
- scientific (diagnoisis)
- social (ppl’s understanding of a situation/behaviour)
the aim of labels -
give meaning to smth, gain control over smth they don’t understand
what is stigma?
label in action: discrimination, underestimation, etc
label can lead to what?
stigma
can draw boundaries b/w the labelled and the labelling
when does condition become stigmatising?
First, it’s labelled & then becomes stigmatising when it dissociates the possessor from other ppl in any way or makes the possessor feel shame
According to Goffman, 1968, stigma can do what?
It may spoil sufferer’s identity, may result in self-fulfilling prophecy
Research shows that living w/ a stigmatising condition leads on (4):
- low self-esteem
- low self-efficacy
- patients less likely to seek medical help
- patients less likely adhere to therapy
Stigma reduction (5):
- educate patients on how to deal w/ stigma
- inform the public about the nature, causes, and epidemiology of diseases
- inform the public what stigma is and what it does to ppl
- educate ppl from a young age
- train healthcare professionals to address stigmatising behaviour
Importance of cultural beliefs (CB) (4):
- ppl immersed in them for a long p/d of time => CB become like second nature
- help understand the unknown => sense of safety
- CB are shared => sense of belonging in a community
- CB shape ppl’s identity - who they are in a community / society
By valuing patient’s CB, the doctor:
values patient’s culture, their social identity
Cultural Competence
Having knowledge in how patient’s socio-cultural background affects his/her understanding of health and disease management and taking informed actions f/ patient’s benefit
Primary deviance -
condition is present but has not officially been labelled yet => social reactions are not activated
secondary deviance -
there is a condition AND official labelling => social reactions
Mechanism of Labelling:
Types of stigma (3):
- enacted
- felt
- courtesy
enacted stigma -
actual discrimination
felt stigma -
internalised negative feelings regarding one’s self
courtesy stigma -
stigma by association (discrimination against relative / relative feels shame and guilt)
situations of stigmatisation (3)
- discredited
- obtrusiveness
- discreditable
discredited stigma -
others know and stigmatise
obtrusiveness -
diff environments elicit different degrees of stigmatisation
discreditable -
others do not know and the sufferer is afraid (for ex, to disclose one’s HIV status)
Responses to stigma (3):
- change the body
- place emphasis other part of self
- present their experience as inspiring
Doctor should show understanding of the patient’s life situation and the cause of adherence b4 giving any medical info - why?
in order not to sound judgemental, gain patient’s trust
Who is the author of «decline in certainties» concept?
Giddens, 1991
Contemporary society - decline of certainties:
social institutions which gave us a clear worldview have either been lost or lost their importance => ppl look within themselves as the source of identity & meaning => and ppl rely on their bodies to find meaning. Contemporary developments in science & technology offer us much greater possibilities to control & shape our bodies
embodiment
embodying / internalising culltural values -
body project -
Process of turning the cultural values into body image: ppl understand body as smth unfinished that can be worked upon
why do ppl re-make their body in order to construct their new self?
to be socially accepted
The schematic process of embodiment
the body:
not merely physical but also social product
For changing body project values:
- change the ideal body img in society: not thin, but healthy & diverse
- educate new values from early age => ppl embody diff values
