SOC 451Health, Disease & Society

3 credits · Sociology · Penn State

This course provides an introduction to the concepts, measurement and study of inquality across spatial scales and in diverse contexts. SOC 451 Health, Disease & Society (3) (GS) Health is not simply a matter of biology, but involves a number of factors that are social, cultural, political, geographic, and economic in nature. This course will focus on the critical role social factors play in determining or influencing the health of individuals, groups, and the larger society. The emphasis in the course is on the social patterning of health and disease with focusing on variation by age, gender, race/ethnicity, disability status, socioeconomic status (income, education, occupation) and neighborhood/community. There will be selected coverage of the "sociology of medicine" with some discussion of medical power and knowledge, the organizational structure of health care, and the experience of illness and such issues such as stigma.