ABSTRACT

Since the early 1970s ethnic inequalities in health have become an increasing focus of research in Britain. Recently there have been national surveys of variations in morbidity rates by ethnic group (Rudat 1994; Nazroo 1997a; Nazroo 1997b) and the tradition of analysing differences in mortality rates by country of birth has continued (e.g. Harding and Maxwell 1997; Wild and McKeigue 1997). The growth of this body of research reflects, at least in part, a public policy concern with the health of and quality of healthcare provided for ethnic minority groups. Both commissioners of research and those who carry it out intend that it should lead to policy developments that improve health and healthcare provision for ethnic minority groups, but in practice this may not be the case. This is not only because research can be poorly disseminated, or because it may provide unpalatable messages to those concerned with public finance. The research itself may contribute to the racialization of health issues by identifying the health disadvantage of ethnic minority groups as inherent to their ethnicity-a consequence of their cultural and genetic ‘weaknesses’, rather than a consequence of the disadvantages they face as a result of the ways in which their ethnicity or race is perceived by others.