ABSTRACT

This volume provides a comparative European overview focusing upon the main areas of social construction as it relates to health and illness. This includes an emphasis upon lay beliefs and the different way understandings of health can impact upon health behaviour. The contributors also examine health knowledge and the interaction and comparison between lay and professional knowledge systems. The book will be of particular interest to those studying, researching and working in the fields of health and the sociology of health and the body.

chapter |3 pages

Introduction