ABSTRACT
This book is about the application of social science concepts to health and health care. Social science is of central importance in understanding both the individual and the society in which they live. It also helps us to look critically at some of the things that we frequently take for granted, for example, the family, social roles, social inequalities and the determinants of good health. In the context of this book, social science is used to look critically at some ‘taken-for-granted’ assumptions about health, illness, disease and medical care. Is good health, for example, something that is in our own hands, determined by the choices we make, or is it determined by social forces? Is medicine scientific, objective, rational and always the best option available or does it, at times, operate in the interests of certain groups, such as the health professionals who provide the service, or organisations associated with, and supportive of, health care, for example, the drugs and medical technology industries? Rarely will a ‘correct’ answer be found within social science, rather, a range of interpretations and perspectives will be demonstrated. Social science sometimes even questions the very existence of objective knowledge or reality.
