ABSTRACT
This chapter reviews the major theories and findings of medical sociology concerning the process of seeking medical care and the utilization of health care services. It defines illness behavior and describes how sociodemographic variables influence the utilization of professional health care. Self-care is the most common response to symptoms of illness by people throughout the world. Self-care includes taking preventive measures, self-treatment of symptoms, and managing diagnosed chronic conditions. The findings for age and gender have been consistent: use of health services is greater for females than for males and is greatest for the elderly. Past research has found that social networks of family and friends often have an important role in whether or not a person visits a physician for care. Many years ago, preventive medicine was largely a white middle-class concept that provided a patient with an elaborate structure of routine prenatal and postnatal care, pediatric services, dental care, immunizations, and screening for the presence of disease.
