PHE1SDH Final: Exam revision
Exam revision
What is health?
Topics
- health defined
- social determinates of health
- structural and intermediary determinants
- social model
- barriers to health care
- upstream/downstream (causes of causes)
- allostatic load
- social factors
Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely he absence of disease or infirmity
(WHO)
- Genetic factors and individuals behavioural factors and social factors determine our health
- social determinants of health are conditions/circumstances in which we are born, grow, live, work and age, and the
wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life // these forces and systems include economic
policies and systems, development agenda, social norms, social policies and political systems.
commission for social determinants - structural determinants (socioeconomic and political context) & intermediary
determinates (material circumstances)
Underlying/fundamental causes of health refer to upstream causes
- change need to be made where the problem begins not where the problem is effecting
Exposure to workplace hazards can be explored through the social model of health because it is the responsibility of
social structures such as governments to develop protective policies for workers
low perceived self-efficacy of health care workers, lack of training and role modelling is a barrier to health care
From the upstream/downstream (causes of causes) example the factory should dispose of their waste materials in a
safer way, not in the town's water supply
the social determinants of health are conditions/circumstances in which we are born, live, work and age and the
wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life
Allostatic load is a multicomponent construct that reflects physiological changes across different biological systems
in response to chronic social and environmental stress
Personal health behaviour can be constrained by economic, social, and political factors in which the individual lives
Health inequality refers to the fact that certain social conditions put people at risk of illness, but many groups and
individuals are unable to limit their exposure to these risk factors because of social structures outside their control
Social factors play a powerful role in shaping health across a wide range of health indicators, settings and
populations
Improving social factors is important but so too is ensuring an equitable distribution of those factors, meaning
distributing opportunities equitably - equitable distribution of the opportunity to have an education, a job or access
to healthcare
Health as a social construct
Topics
- biomedical model
- the social model
- Structure and agency
- Sociological imagination
- inverse class (social) gradient
Agency & Structural
agency- is the individuals behaviour/ individuals choice, 'free will' e.g. Anorexic girl starves herself
structural - recurring patterns of society, social focus, social control e.g. Models, social media, expectations, the way
beauty if portrayed
can't have one without the other
Structure has a big role in the choices an individual makes
The biomedical model of health is based on the assumption that each disease or ailment has a specific cause that
physically affects the body
life expectancy increased for most countries during the 20th century due to improved living and working conditions
Health is experienced and understood differently by different groups and individuals based on a wide range of social
and interpersonal characteristics
Sociological imagination is made up for four elements/sensibilities
- historical
- cultural
- structural
- critical
inverse class (social) gradient is the decrease in incidence and prevalence of illness and disease with increasing class
position
The sociological imagination approach to health issues includes a historical dimension. The history of an issue may
provide important insight into why the issue is a current concern, how society's approach to the issue has evolved
over time, why people view the issue the way they do now, and what ways of addressing the issue might be effective
and acceptable under current conditions
The social production and distribution of health and illness incorporates the unequal social distribution of health,
whereby some social groups suffer higher rates of morbidity and mortality than others
The biomedical model centres on the treatment of disease and changing the behaviour of individuals with respect to
health, while the social model focuses on broader societal issues that may give rise to health inequalities
structure Vs agency is a key debate in sociology over the extent to which human behaviour is determined by social
structure
Document Summary
Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely he absence of disease or infirmity (who) Genetic factors and individuals behavioural factors and social factors determine our health. Underlying/fundamental causes of health refer to upstream causes. Change need to be made where the problem begins not where the problem is effecting. Allostatic load is a multicomponent construct that reflects physiological changes across different biological systems in response to chronic social and environmental stress. Personal health behaviour can be constrained by economic, social, and political factors in which the individual lives. Health inequality refers to the fact that certain social conditions put people at risk of illness, but many groups and individuals are unable to limit their exposure to these risk factors because of social structures outside their control. Social factors play a powerful role in shaping health across a wide range of health indicators, settings and populations.
