Key Theories from Critical Medical Anthropology for Public Health Research. Part I: Starting with Foucault: cultures of medicine and meanings of illness
Keywords:
social anthropology, medical anthropology, social theory, qualitative research, public health, illness, explanatory models, structural violence, identity, biopower, Foucault.Abstract
This article summarizes four significant theoretical concepts from the field of Critical Medical Anthropology in two parts: in the first part, biopower/discipline and explanatory models; in the second, structural violence, and identity politics and biological citizenship. The four subjects reviewed here have been chosen for their importance to our understanding of human behaviors related to health and illness, as well as for the impact that they can have on theory, research, and practice in the field of public health. These critical theories can provide new ways of thinking about professional roles, medical decisions, disease diagnosis and etiology, treatment adherence, prevention messaging, and all sorts of health-related behaviors and systems of understanding. They can also help public health researchers shed light on the human beliefs and activities that shape patterns of disease within and across populations. Whether a research question is being formulated or research findings are being analyzed, the critical social theories outlined here can foster a more holistic understanding of the human element in any public health project.
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