Alexandra Howson – författare

Till vardags tänker man kanske inte alltid så mycket på den egna kroppen och inte nödvändigtvis på andras kroppar heller. Man har ju en kropp, är ju en kropp, hur skulle det annars vara? Men råkar man till exempel sitta och hosta och snora på en fullsatt buss ? eller sitta bredvid någon som gör det ? blir den oreflekterade kroppsligheten plötsligt påtaglig och besvärlig. Och en påminnelse om att våra kroppsliga uttryck också har en social dimension, är en del av ett ständigt pågående mellanmänskligt samspel. "I Kroppen i samhället" belyser Alexandra Howson den gemensamma kroppslighetens vardagliga och strukturella villkor, det forskningsfält som kallas kroppssociologi. Kroppssocio­login ställer frågor som: Under vilka omständigheter och i vilken grad har vi kontroll över våra egna kroppar? Vilket intresse har staten av att påverka och reglera våra krop­par? Hur viktig är kroppen för att utveckla ett vuxet jag? Hur påverkar bilder av kroppen våra upplevelser av oss själva och andra? Howson försöker besvara sådana frågor med hjälp av relevant sociologisk och historisk forskning och en rad konkreta exempel. Hon diskuterar bland annat vårt förhållande till tatueringar, klädstilar, övervikt, menstruation, hygienfrågor, träningsmetoder och åldrande. Och visar att vår kroppslighet är mer central än vi kanske tror. Alexandra Howson har varit lektor i sociologi i Aberdeen och Edinburgh.

This collection offers a uniquely comprehensive guide to the sociology of the body. With a strong historical scope and conceptual framework, it provides an indispensable reference for undergraduate and postgraduate students, and a robust source for scholars working in the area. The central focus is on understanding sociology through the body; what is often described as re-reading sociology in a 'more corporeal light'. This is an interdisciplinary process, drawing on history, feminism, cultural history, art history, anthropology, social psychology, philosophy, medical sociology and media and communications, as well as sociology. While this has been primarily a Western practice, The Body seeks to broaden the perspective to include references that draw on alternative cultural assumptions, beliefs and practices (including Japan, and South America.)

There is currently a lively debate ongoing in society about the nature of trust and the conditions necessary to establish and sustain it. Given the role of trust in bridging uncertainty, it is perhaps not surprising that as our consciousness of risk has increased, the role and nature of trust in social practices has come under growing scrutiny. These developments are particularly relevant to health because participation in health practices is arguably based on and engendered through trust. There is thus a need for empirically based research, which intelligently unravels this complexity to support all stakeholders in the health arena. This multidisciplinary volume of work addresses this gap by contributing substantively to the exploration of trust in the experience, practice and organization of health. It offers an overview of recent scholarship, based on empirical research, which explores the significance of trust in relation to key health-related issues. At the same time, this text examines conceptual themes in relation to trust more generally, including the relationship between trust and auditing, consent, expert knowledges and social capital.

There is currently a lively debate ongoing in society about the nature of trust and the conditions necessary to establish and sustain it. Given the role of trust in bridging uncertainty, it is perhaps not surprising that as our consciousness of risk has increased, the role and nature of trust in social practices has come under growing scrutiny. These developments are particularly relevant to health because participation in health practices is arguably based on and engendered through trust. There is thus a need for empirically based research, which intelligently unravels this complexity to support all stakeholders in the health arena. This multidisciplinary volume of work addresses this gap by contributing substantively to the exploration of trust in the experience, practice and organization of health. It offers an overview of recent scholarship, based on empirical research, which explores the significance of trust in relation to key health-related issues. At the same time, this text examines conceptual themes in relation to trust more generally, including the relationship between trust and auditing, consent, expert knowledges and social capital.

In everyday life we are not, for the most part, actively conscious of our bodies or the bodies of others – we simply take them for granted. This new edition of a lively introduction to the sociology of the body examines what certain aspects of our bodies, such as the size, shape, smell and demeanour, reveal about the social organization of everyday life and how the body is crucial to the way we engage with the world and the people around us.The human body is endowed with varied forms of social significance which sociology has addressed by asking questions such as: To what degree do individuals have control over their own bodies? What interest does the state have in regulating the human body? How significant is the body to the development and performance of the self in everyday life? What images of the body influence people’s expectations of themselves and others? Written in a clear and comprehensible way, The Body in Society introduces students to the key conceptual frameworks that help us to understand the social significance of the human body. This second edition has been thoroughly updated to take into account recent theories and debates and also includes enhanced pedagogical features. Using familiar examples from everyday life, such as diet and exercise regimes, personal hygiene, dress, displays of emotion, and control over bodily functions, coupled with examples from popular culture, the text has strong contemporary relevance and will strike a chord with all who read it.This book will be essential reading for students taking courses on the body in sociology, anthropology, gender studies and cultural studies.

In everyday life we are not, for the most part, actively conscious of our bodies or the bodies of others – we simply take them for granted. This new edition of a lively introduction to the sociology of the body examines what certain aspects of our bodies, such as the size, shape, smell and demeanour, reveal about the social organization of everyday life and how the body is crucial to the way we engage with the world and the people around us.The human body is endowed with varied forms of social significance which sociology has addressed by asking questions such as: To what degree do individuals have control over their own bodies? What interest does the state have in regulating the human body? How significant is the body to the development and performance of the self in everyday life? What images of the body influence people’s expectations of themselves and others? Written in a clear and comprehensible way, The Body in Society introduces students to the key conceptual frameworks that help us to understand the social significance of the human body. This second edition has been thoroughly updated to take into account recent theories and debates and also includes enhanced pedagogical features. Using familiar examples from everyday life, such as diet and exercise regimes, personal hygiene, dress, displays of emotion, and control over bodily functions, coupled with examples from popular culture, the text has strong contemporary relevance and will strike a chord with all who read it.This book will be essential reading for students taking courses on the body in sociology, anthropology, gender studies and cultural studies.

Embodying Gender provides students and academics with a critical overview of body concepts in both sociology and in feminism.

Previously, sociologists have attempted to gender the body and feminists have attempted to embody gender but Alexandra Howson's accessible new text draws these two literatures together, pointing to ways of integrating feminist perspectives on the body into sociological theory.

Surveying all the key concepts in the field, this book introduces us to an extensive range of 'narratives of embodiment' and presents a full analysis of the most important texts in new feminist theories of the body.

Key questions covered include:

oWhat can sociology say about the body?

oWhat impact has the body made on sociology?

oWhat conceptual frameworks are used to address the body? How do these relate to issues of gender and embodied experience?

oHow do feminist conceptual tools sit within sociological analysis?

Written in a clear, accessible style, Embodying Gender is an invaluable text for undergraduate students, postgraduates and academics in the fields of women's and gender studies and sociology, and is particularly relevant to those specialising in sociology of the body, feminist theory and social theory.