ABSTRACT

An individual's health is substantially influenced by his or her social situation. The chance of developing any given disease is affected by income, occupation, neighbourhood, upbringing and a multitude of other factors. In the United Kingdom, during the twentieth century, the measure used to explore the relationship between health and social factors was social class. The registrar general's classification of social class was in use for nearly a century, together with another official measure called socio-economic status. Outside the field of official statistics, a very diverse approach has been taken to characterizing an individual in social terms; indeed, different academic disciplines vary greatly in their approach. The pattern of deprivation generally highlights foci of deprivation in inner cities in London and the north and relatively high levels of poverty in coastal areas. Governments are the principal architects of a country's social environment. They determine education, taxation, employment, housing, urban planning and healthcare policy.