SOC 109 Health and Society
Health and health-care related issues are at the forefront of economic, social, and political discussions in the United States and around the world today. In this course, we will study health/illness and medical practice through a sociological perspective. Rather than understanding health and illness simply as biological phenomena or individual medical problems, a sociological perspective addresses how health/illness are shaped and defined by social, economic, cultural, political and socio-historical forces. Topics will include: social epidemiology, the social construction of health/illness, the role of patients and health care providers, the experience of illness, and how social factors such as gender, race, and social class shape both health/illness and health care.
Cross Listed Courses
BIOL 109 & SOC 109