An Introduction to the Sociology of Health and Illness

Praise for second edition:

Kevin White guides us through the many reasons for the centrality of health showing clearly that health and illness are the products not just of our biology but of the society into which we are born. He expertly draws on the works of Parsons, Marx, Foucault and feminist writers to provide an authoritative analysis of the social nature of health.

This book provides an accessible and highly readable introduction to the Sociology of Health and Illness through the inclusion of key theorists, concepts, and theories with reference to contemporary health concerns and recent relevant research. I would recommend this book to students on Public Health, Epidemiology, Health Studies and Sociology programmes.

In the modern world the causes and consequences of illness have become increasingly complex and contested with corresponding changes in health-care delivery and the training of medical professionals. In this heavily revised third edition, Kevin White provides an assured and comprehensive overview of the sociological study of health and illness. Less an Introduction and more a Cornucopia covering sociological perspectives as well as debates about and commentaries on developments in medical knowledge, disease, treatment and medical institutions.

Essential reading for both students and scholars.

Kevin White is Reader in Sociology at the Australian National University, Canberra. He has held appointments at Flinders University, Wollongong University and Victoria University, Wellington New Zealand. He has published widely in the sociology of health and in the social history of medicine. At ANU he lectures the large introductory class, Introduction to Social Psychology, The Sociology of Health and Illness, Classical Social theory and Qualitative Methods.

Introduction The Social Construction of Medical Knowledge The Development of the Sociology of Health Postmodernity, Epidemiology and Neo-Liberalism Materialist Approaches to the Sociology of Health Parson, American Sociology of Medicine and the Sick Role Foucault and the Sociology of Medical Knowledge Health, Gender and Feminism Race, Ethnicity and Health Conclusion