Learning Outcomes:
Learning competences / objectives ("what the student is expected to know and be able to do at the end of the module")
By the end of the course students should be able to,
● demonstrate an awareness of the problems of conceptualising health and illness and the implications of such problems;
● show an appreciation of some key theoretical approaches within sociology to the study of health, illness and health care;
● understand the relationship between states of health and social forces;
and compare and contrast sociological and anthropological perspectives of health and illness.
● Understand data and data sources viz-a-viz the measures (and utility of such measures) of socio-economic position.
● Develop a broad perspective on the social determinants of health, including social capital and cohesion, psychosocial and life-course approaches.
● Have a 'tool box' approach to research, ie, a basic working knowledge of some key Qualitative Methodologies, the use of mixed methods approaches, as well as a critical understanding of both quantitative and qualitative underlying theoretical principles of research.
● Understand the conceptual and methodological challenges of using quantitative and qualitative methodologies (and mixed methods) to investigate social determinants of health.
● Gain an appreciation of underlying theoretical and philosophical underpinnings of research methodologies including mixed methods, ie positivism (hypothetical-deductive models), and (inductive models) interpretivism (hermeneutics) and combinations- Critical Realism.
● Critically appraise research viz-a-viz role of social determinants of health that generate health inequalities and inequities.
● Analyse the policy implications of research on health inequalities and inequities.
Syllabus content. Brief overview of syllabus using bullet points.
Indicative Module Content:
This course is designed to focus on several key sociological ideas, which inform debates and research in public health.
1. It will discuss the role of sociology in health care ranging from sociological and anthropological concepts of health and illness from basic inception of health through health experiences, the role of social structure/s and on key social institutions.
2. It will discuss health variations and strategies that attempt to deal with social and health inequalities. This will look at research approaches and will discuss the inclusion of ethnographic fieldwork as well as look at the uses and limitations of respective research methods in this area.
3. It will introduce social capital. It will look at where ideas about social capital and will link these to pragmatic strategies by Western governments to democratise health.
4. The course will look at an additional theoretical approach (critical Realism) and will introduce the work of Roy Bhaskar and the relevance of this for Public Health.
5. Lectures and seminars shall include the following,
● Outline of Course: Introduction to Sociology.
● Introduction: Towards and understanding of Health and illness.
● Concepts of health and illness
● Medical Knowledge and the rise of modern medicine.
● Changing Patterns of health and Illness (social epidemiology) Globalisation.
● Religion, ethnicity Identity and health and illness. (Including hard to reach communities - The All Ireland Traveller Health Study)
● Social Inequalities / Health Inequalities.
● Health and social capital.
● Methodology and methodologies (Including qualitative methods in public health research (including ethnography). Research methods, positivism, hermeneutics - postmodernism- CR)
● Health, Realism and Critical Realism,
● Formal and informal medicine: Biomedicine CAM and Folk medicine
● The role of Social Sciences in pandemic preparation (EU PREPARE RESEARCH) http://prepare.ucd.ie/
Module level timetable - indicate the timing of the teaching sessions from the previous teaching year:
9:00-11:00, Thursdays, semester 2 (over 12 weeks)