SOC 030 Lecture Notes - Lecture 3: Homo Economicus, Public Health, Microeconomics
The Constrained Choices Model
The Need and Development of the Constrained Choices Model
-Chloe Bird and Patricia Rieker, 2008
-Women get sicker but men die quicker
-Women experience a higher rate of chronic disease
-Women live longer than men
-To understand differences in men and women’s health outcomes, we have to look beyond
unequal access to resources and discrimination
-Why do men and women make different choices which may in turn affect their health?
-While Bird and Rieker’s theoretical model focuses on health outcomes, their model can be
applied to accessing resources generally
Rational Choice Theory
-Used in microeconomics to model individual decision making
-Focuses on the intentional, goal oriented behavior of individual actors
-Assumes individuals are rational
-Individuals have preferences and make choices according to their preferences
-Individuals make choices in a rational way to obtain the things they want
-Social phenomenon is the outcome of rational choices made by individuals
Constrained Choices: Going Beyond Rational Choice Theory
-Choices are constrained and value laden therefore individuals do not always behave “rationally”.
-While Individuals may be rational in their reasoning, they may not have an effective option for
achieving their objective.
-Example: working out
-Individual choice is important- but how might individual choices be constrained by decisions and
actions taken by families, employers, communities, and governmental policies?
-Draws a connection between social structure and individual choice
-Bird and Rieker define “ constrained choices” as:
-“.... the many ways in which pg 54”
Social Policy:
-Governments make choices on
-How to allocate resources
-Public health and healthcare
-Welfare
-Education
-Labor laws
Communities
-“... social networks of relationships with family, friends, and acquaintances at home and at work
and the physical environment in which one lives” pg 66
-An individual’s community context influences their available choices
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
The need and development of the constrained choices model. Women get sicker but men die quicker. Women experience a higher rate of chronic disease. To understand differences in men and women"s health outcomes, we have to look beyond unequal access to resources and discrimination. While bird and rieker"s theoretical model focuses on health outcomes, their model can be applied to accessing resources generally. Used in microeconomics to model individual decision making. Focuses on the intentional, goal oriented behavior of individual actors. Individuals have preferences and make choices according to their preferences. Individuals make choices in a rational way to obtain the things they want. Social phenomenon is the outcome of rational choices made by individuals. Choices are constrained and value laden therefore individuals do not always behave rationally . While individuals may be rational in their reasoning, they may not have an effective option for achieving their objective. Draws a connection between social structure and individual choice.
