ABSTRACT
This chapter looks at how the social context affects the relationship between health and political engagement. It examines two interconnected aspects of the social context, the social network and social identity, as possible mediating variables affecting how health and political engagement are connected. The chapter investigates the idea that personal health and political engagement are affected by social networks and collective identities. It assumes that social networks are an especially important channel for mobilization among people with health problems, which in turn constitute a collective identity that has consequences for political engagement. The chapter examines the role of social ties and identities as factors that may be particularly relevant in motivating and mobilizing people whose health puts them at a disadvantage. Turning to collective identity, the chapter explores the impact of the social environment on health.
