1
Q
Jean Jacque Rousseau two types of inequality?
A
1) Physical/natural inequality: differences in health, bodily strength, and mind; will always be present; someone will always be better at hunting, doing math, seeing long distances, playing basketball
2) Social inequality: established or at least authorized by the consent of men; different privileges than others (e.g., more rich, more honored, more powerful, position to get obedience); result of privileges and uneven access to resources that result in social skills
EXTRA
- argued that private property creates social inequality and that this inequality ultimately leads to social conflict
- How to address social ills/social inequalities? Stripped away parts of society that result from private property (e.g., competition, isolation, aggression, hierarchical, organization) then we would have social equality
2
Q
Social Equality
A
Condition where there are no differences in wealth, power, prestige, or status based on non-natural conventions
3
Q
What is social stratification?
A
Refers to a system by which a society ranks categories of people in a hierarchy.
OR
Systematic inequalities between groups of people that arise as intended or unintended consequences of social processes and relationships
In U.S., it’s perfectly clear that some groups have greater status, power, and wealth than other groups
4
Q
Noble Savage?
A
Idealized outsider, or “other” who has not been “corrupted” by civilization, and therefore symbolizes humanity’s innate goodness
5
Q
Thomas Malthus’ theory on overpopulation and the role of inequality?
A
- Viewed inequality favorably, but only as a means for controlling population growth
- Thought that a more equal distribution of resources would increase the world’s population to unsustainable levels and ultimately bring about mass starvation and conflict
EXTRA:
-Said human population grows geometrically (multiplicatively/really fast)
- Ability to produce food increases only arithmetically/slow
- Result: rising population and use of resources will lead to mass starvation and conflict
- Lowers population and cycle continues until population and food supply are in balance
- Argued humans are “inherently good” (born good)
- Malthusian Crisis: Limitation is he did not account for development of technology
6
Q
Four types of equality?
A
Ontological Equality
Equality of Opportunity
Equality of Condition
Equality of Outcome
7
Q
Ontological Equality
A
The notion that everyone is created equal by birth (in eyes of God)
- ontology = dealing with the nature of being
- E.g. Declaration of Independence: “all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights”
8
Q
Equality of Opportunity
A
Idea that everyone has an equal chance to achieve wealth, social prestige, and power because the rules of the game are same for everyone
- this standard is closely associated with modern capitalist society (based on notion of fairness/meritocracy)
- Meritocracy: system where advancement is based on achievement or ability
- Unequal opportunity stifles meritocracy
- cornerstone of arguments made by civil rights activists in U.S. in 1960s
- inequality is acceptable so long as everyone has same opportunities for advancement
- judged by the same standards
9
Q
Equality of Condition
A
a) that everyone should have an equal starting point from which to pursue his/her goals
b) starting point has been unequal
c) starting point needs to be adjusted to offset disadvantage
- takes into account the reality that many people start off with privileges/advantages (men, upper-middle class, white)
- equality of opportunity helps to offset the disadvantage experienced by marginalized groups (women, poor, racial/ethnic minorities) to change starting positions
- E.g. Affirmative action involves preferential selection to increase representation of women and minorities in the area of employment, education, and business from which they have been historically excluded
10
Q
Equality of Outcome
A
Everyone in a society should end up with the same “rewards” regardless of starting point, opportunities, or contributions
- contribute best of your ability and we all receive same reward
- distribution of resources (Marxism/Communism)
- Scottish Enlightenment: incentives to work harder disappear
- Only incentive is altruistic: giving to society for the sake of its progress and not merely own betterment
11
Q
5 forms/systems of stratification?
A
Estate System
Caste System
Class System
Status Hierarchy System
Elite-Mass System
12
Q
Estate System
A
- Politically based system of stratification characterized by limited social mobility
- Basis: political (land gave you political voice)
- Strata: clergy, nobility, commoners
- Social Mobility: Very limited (e.g. commoner buys a title (duke, earl, lady, lord) and becomes nobility. Greater access to resources
- Social production: Very high
- Historical example: Feudal Europe and pre-Civil War American South
13
Q
Caste System
A
- Based on hereditary notions of religious and theological purity and generally offers no prospects for social mobility
- Basis: religious/hereditary
- Strata: Brahmin/Priests; Kshatriyan/Warrior; Vaishya/Traders; Shundra/Workers
- Social Mobility: Very little, little to none between ranks
- Example: change rank through marriage; endogamy vs. exogamy
- Social Reproduction: Very high
14
Q
Class System
A
- Economically based hierarchical system characterized by cohesive, oppositional groups and somewhat loose social mobility
- Strata: different theoretical perspective (income, wealth, power, prestige, lifestyle, consumption patterns, attitudes, education) (Classical: bourgeoisie, proletariat)
- Basis of stratification: economics
- Social Mobility: possible but not probable
- Social Reproduction: high
15
Q
Status Hierarchy System
A
- Based on social prestige
- Basis: Prestige
- Prestige linked to occupation, lifestyle, or membership in certain organizations, but sociologists have most often studied occupational status
- Social Mobility: likely to very high
- Social Reproduction: Somewhat likely
16
Q
Elite-mass System
A
- Has a governing elite – a few leaders who broadly hold the power of society
- Basis: skill and talent
- Meritocracy: society where status and mobility are based on individual attributes, ability, and achievement
- Social Mobility: Very high (in theory)
- Social Reproduction: Somewhat likely
- Vilfredo Pareto thought the masses were better off in such a system because the most skilled and talented people would reach the governing elite
- C. Wright Mills viewed this system as dangerous and detrimental, as it consolidates power in hands of few, who will not act according to their interests, as opposed to the interests of the masses
17
Q
Social Prestige Ranking of U.S. Occupations?
A
CHECK CHART in Ch. 7 PPT (Stratification)
18
Q
Social classes in the U.S.?
A
Lower class
Working class
Middle class
Upper-middle class
Upper class
19
Q
Social Mobility?
A
The movement between different positions within a system of social stratification in any given society
- education, occupation, marriage (class position reproduced based on parental wealth)
- horizontal or vertical
- individual or group level
20
Q
Types of social mobility?
A
NOT SURE.
Horizontal and vertical.
Individual or group.
21
Q
Do Americans tend to accurately predict social class mobility?
A
No.
22
Q
Two reasons why Americans don’t accurately gauge social mobility?
A
(Mobility overestimates shaped 2 things)
1) Exposure to genetic determinants of social class: faux science article (Social Darwinism) suggesting genetic constraints to economic advancement increased accuracy in class mobility estimates
2) Need to protect the self: heightening the self-relevance of class mobility increased overestimates
23
Q
What is the free rider problem?
A
Notion that when more than one person is responsible for getting something done, the incentive is for each to dodge responsibility and hope others will pull the extra weight
24
Q
What is the petit bourgeoisie?
A
Self-employed, small business owner
25
Bourgeoisie
Employing class
26
What is the lumpen proletariat?
Unorganized and unpolitical lower orders of society who are not interested in revolutionary advancement
27
Proletariat
Working class
28
What is socioeconomic status?
- Refers to an individual’s position in a stratified social order
- Income, education, occupation (wealth)
29
Social construction of sex?
Same as Sex?
Sex
Refers to a person’s biological status and is typically categorized as male, female, or intersex (genitals, gonads, sex chromosomes)
30
Intersex?
Hermaphrodite
Atypical combinations of features that usually distinguish male from female
1 in 1,000 are intersexed or hermaphroditic
parents rush to have “corrective” surgery without child’s consent to “fix” child-fear of being different)
Socially constructed category that reflects real biological variation
think of sex spectrum and color spectrum - different wavelengths (physical) = different colors (social) (red, blue, orange, yellow)
decision to distinguish: orange vs. red-orange: made only when we need it -- like when we’re asking for a particular paint color
sometimes social necessity leads us to make color distinctions that otherwise would seem incorrect or irrational
31
Social construction of gender?
Society and culture create gender roles, and these roles are prescribed as ideal or appropriate behavior for a person of that specific gender
32
Gender?
Refers to attitudes, feelings, and behaviors that a given culture associates with a person’s biological sex
Defined by culture/society
Socialized gender roles
Gender in flux over the life course
There’s gender normative and gender non-conforming
33
Gender Roles
Sets of behavioral norms assumed to accompany one’s status as a male or female
Evidence shows that gender roles have more to do with social status than biology
34
Biological Determinism?
All human behavior is inborn, determined by genes and biology
Assumption: born male parts, will act “male”
35
Social construction of sexuality?
| Same as “sexuality”?
Refers to desire, sexual preference, sexual identity, and behavior
Sexual practices vary across time and place
Sexuality is socially constructed
Shaped by unequal distribution of power
Argue women don’t really choose heterosexuality but have it imposed on them by male-dominated society
36
The Kinsey Scale?
Alfred Kinsey: human sexuality far more diverse than was commonly assumed
Studies: people were not exclusively heterosexual or homosexual; fall along a wide spectrum
0 Exclusively heterosexual
1 Predominantly heterosexual, only incidentally homosexual
2 Predominantly heterosexual, but more than incidentally homosexual
3 Equally heterosexual and homosexual
4 Predominantly homosexual, but more than incidentally heterosexual
5 Predominantly homosexual, but only incidentally heterosexual
6 Exclusively homosexual
X Asexual, non-sexual
37
Types of gender?
Transgender
Transexual
Genderqueer
Cisgender
38
Transgender
Gender identity different than assigned sex
39
Transsexual
Desires medical assistance to transition
40
Genderqueer
People whose identities are not exclusively masculine or feminine, but may, for example, be bigender, pangender, or agender
41
Cisgender
Gender identity same as assigned sex
42
Types of sex?
Male
Female
Intersex (hermaphrodite)
43
Gender binary?
Belief in only two distinct and opposite sexes (male and female)
44
Main critique of the book Men are from Mars, Women Are From Venus?
Author got PhD from Columbia Pacific University in CA, distance learning program that is defunct and unaccredited (has not met acceptable standards)
Oversimplified explanation: Different biological organisms behave differently (retreat to cave vs. sharing emotions)
Rooted in biology, but grossly exaggerated
45
Biological Reductionism?
Can be explained by analyzing the simplest, most basic physical mechanisms that are in operation during the phenomenon
The practice of oversimplifying a complex idea or issue to the point of minimizing or distorting it.
46
Essentialism?
Notion that a label has a fixed essence (naturally evolved dispositions)
EXTRA:
Universal/shared by all at all times
E.g. Women’s essence is universal (mothering, nurturing, emotionally responsive, and non-competitive)
Not possible to act contrary to essence
Homogenize women, strength gender binary justify domination of subordinate gender/women
47
Critique of Essentialism?
1) They ignore historical and cultural variability of gender and sexuality
2) They generalize from the average, ignoring variations within gender groups
3) No evidence directly supports their major claims
4) Their explanations for gender differences ignore the role of power
48
Theoretical Approaches to Gender?
Structural functionalism theory
Psychoanalytic theory
Conflict theory
Microinteractionist theory
Black Feminist theory
Postmodern theory
-Assessing theory: how useful each one is for explaining people’s experiences and behavior
49
Main idea of structural functionalism theory on understanding gender?
Assumption: gender differences exist to fulfill necessary and different functions in society
Sex Role Theory: (Talcott Parsons)
- men = breadwinners; women = wives/mothers
- nuclear family = ideal arrangement in modern societies
Gender differences result in inequalities, but the gender division makes society work
Limitation:
- other structures could fulfill the same function/structures change throughout history
- presumes that social structure benefits everyone
- ignores negative aspects of social structures
50
Main idea of psychoanalytic theory on understanding gender?
Assumption: biological differences between men and women dictate how they behave
Psychoanalytic theory of gender:
- (Sigmund Freud, 1856-1939) - differences in biology/psychology result in different sex roles
- gender develops through family socialization
Limitation:
- heavy reliance on biological determinism
- overly individualistic (minimizes societal influence)
51
Main idea of conflict theory on understanding gender?
Assumption: male dominated, capitalists benefit from systems that subordinate women
Focus:
- imbalance of gender power in societies, consciousness raising, women struggle to gain access to power
- men stand to lose a great deal if gender inequality disappears
- E.g. More unpaid work or pay to have their homes kept up and children cared for
Limitation:
- Enlightenment fallacy: enlightenment not equal to action
- Overemphasis of revolutionary change vs. incremental change
52
Main idea of black feminist theory on understanding gender?
Assumption: gender doesn’t function in a vacuum, no single category of women or men
Focus: Some women are more privileged than some men (white vs. black), AND some women more privileged than some men (white, middle class, heterosexual privilege)
Intersectionality: (Kimberly Crenshaw, Patricia Hill Collins, Bell Hooks):
-member of one minority group may have certain disadvantages, but being a member of multiple minority groups amplifies those disadvantages even more
Limitation:
- Hard to move from theory to practice
- How many axes to include/not include
53
Main idea of postmodern theory on understanding gender?
Assumption:
- questions the whole notion of “woman” as a separate, stable category
- question the value and appropriateness of Western scholars applying their cultural logic to the study of non-Western societies
- School/job application
- Check a box to tell someone your sex or your race
- Why do we want to differentiate between groups of people unless we want to treat them differently?
Limitation:
- deliberately restricts and/or makes it hard to uncover knowledge
- excessive relativism cripples judgement calls
54
Social Feminists Theory
Assumption: all social relations, including worker-owner relations, stem from unequal gender relations
Focus: power imbalance, consciousness raising, struggle for power
Social Constructionists argument:
- meanings of gender in society are constructed by that society
- society assigns the meanings to gender and then we hold people accountable to those meanings which result in power struggles
Limitation:
- Enlightenment fallacy
- Overemphasis of revolutionary change vs. incremental change
55
Feminism?
An intellectual, consciousness-raising movement based on idea that women and men should be accorded equal opportunities and respect
Gender roles can be oppressive to both men and women
-gender: organizing principle of life/structures social relations; gender: structure based on unequal power relations
56
Waves of feminism?
First Wave
-1800s-1920: until when American women won the right to vote
-Based on expanding basic legal rights for women and gaining voting rights for women (suffrage movement)
Second Wave
-1960s and 1970s
- Equal access to employment and education, concerns about reproductive rights, domestic violence, marital rape, family
- largely white, middle class
Third Wave
-1990s - to current
- Issues of diversity and the variety of identities that women can possess
- Addresses essentialist definitions of femininity
- Intersectionality
57
Gender inequalities?
(also part of “feminism” flash card) Gender roles can be oppressive to both men and women (gender: organizing principle of life/structures social relations; gender: structure based on unequal power relations)
In schools
Studies: gender inequality is rampant in schools
Boys and girls are treated differently by teachers
Different expectations for their behavior and performance
The textbooks and other materials used in schools often to reinforce gender stereotypes
In workplace
Women still face many challenges in working world today: Unequal pay, sexual harassment, sexism, tracking to certain kinds of jobs, the “feminization” of jobs, the glass ceiling
58
Hegemonic masculinity?
Condition in which men are dominant and privileged and this dominance and privilege in invisible
Claims and sustains power by manipulating value system
Golden Rule: “He who has the gold, makes the rules”
59
Hypermasculinity
The exaggeration of male stereotypical behavior, such as an emphasis on physical strength, aggression, and sexually
60
Patriarchy?
Near universal system that involves the subordination of femininity to masculinity. (E.g. social hierarchy)
Males hold primary power, predominate in roles of political leadership, moral authority, social privilege, and control property
61
Male privilege?
Concept for examining social, economic, and political advantages or rights that are made available to men solely on the basis of their sex
62
Glass ceiling?
An unofficially acknowledged barrier to advancement in a profession, especially affecting women and members of minorities.
63
Pink collar?
Worker that performs jobs in the service industry.
In contrast, blue-collar workers are working-class people who perform skilled or unskilled manual labor,
and white-collar workers typically perform professional, managerial, or administrative work in an office environment.
64
What is the glass elevator?
Men take elevator, women take stairs
65
Gender and the Media?
Challenging standard of beauty (feminism, consciousness raising, critiques of consumerism and media, commercials and media, female empowerment, turning the tables)
Critique of motives of “accept all bodies” commercials
66
Race?
A group of people who share a set of characteristics -- usually physical ones -- and are so to share common bloodline
Social construct that changes over time and across different contexts (racial information)
Humans are 99.9 genetically identical
Still used to classify people
Basis for differential treatment of individuals or groups of people
Race as a social category, based on real or perceived biological differences between groups of people
More meaningful to us on a social level than it is on a biological level
67
Racism?
The belief that members of separate races possess different and unequal human traits
68
Social construction of race?
Imposed (usually based on physical differences) hierarchical, exclusive, and unequal
69
Ethnicity?
Voluntary, self-defined, nonhierarchical, fluid, cultural, and not so closely linked with power differences
An ethnic identity becomes racialized when falls under a forced label, racial marker, or “otherness.
70
Nationality?
The status of belonging to a particular nation
Legal relationship between a person and a state
Nationality affords the state jurisdiction over the person and affords the person the protection of the state
71
Racial Projects?
Omi and Winant
Simultaneously an interpretation, representation, or explanation of racial dynamics, and an effort to reorganize and redistribute resources along particular racial lines
72
Racial Formation?
An analytical tool in sociology, which is used to look at race as a socially constructed identity, where the content and importance of racial categories are determined by social, economic, and political forces
73
Racialization?
The formation of a new racial identity in which new ideological boundaries of differences are drawn around a formerly unnoticed group of people
74
Mestizo?
(in Latin America) a man of mixed race, especially the offspring of a Spaniard and an American Indian
75
Types of scientific racism?
Social Darwinism
Phrenology
Eugenics
One-drop Rule
EXTRA:
-Scientific Racism: theories of race that characterize a period of intense investigation into the origins, explanations, and classifications of race
-Many historical efforts to explain race were biased due to ethnocentrism (judgement of other groups by one’s own standards and values)
- 19th century: a number of scientists and thinkers researched and attempted to “explain” racial differences
- However, what they were really doing was “explaining” white superiority
Types: Social Darwinism, phrenology?, eugenics, one-drop rule
76
One-drop rule?
The belief that “one-drop” of black blood makes a person black
Evolved from U.S. laws forbidding miscegenation
Application of this rule kept the white population “pure” and lumped anyone with black blood into one category
77
Miscegenation?
Technical term for an interracial/multiracial marriage
Miscegenation was illegal throughout some states until 1967 when U.S.S.C. unanimously rules in Loving vs. Virginia that anti-miscegenation laws are unconstitutional
With this ruling, these laws were invalidated in the remaining 16 states that still had them at the time
78
Eugenics?
(The science of genetic lines and the inheritable traits they pass on from generation to generation) claimed that traits could be traced through bloodlines and bred into populations (for positive traits) or out of them (for negative traits)
Became popular in early 20th century
79
U.S. History of eugenics?
Influenced immigration policy in early 20th century as undesirable populations were kept out of the country so as not to pollute the “native” (i.e. white) population
80
Symbolic ethnicity?
Ethnicity that is individualistic in nature and without real social cost for the individual
Selectively used, not identity must assume all the time
81
Segregation?
The legal or social practice of separating people on the basis of their race or ethnicity
Was official policy in the U.S., particularly in the South, until 1960s
Despite being illegal for over 40 years, there’s still ample evidence of segregation in American society today, particularly in schools, housing, and prisons
82
Institutional racism?
Refers to social and political institutions and social dynamics that may seem race-neutral but actually disadvantage minority groups and limit access to resources
Not racism by individuals or informal social groups
Racism through institutions
Reflected in disparities regarding criminal justice, employment, housing, health care, political power, and education
Implicit, unnoticed, often overlooked
83
Structural racism?
A system in which public policies, institutional practices, cultural representations, and other norms work in various, often reinforcing ways to perpetuate racial group inequity
History and culture that have allowed privileges associated with “whiteness” and disadvantages associated with “color” to endure and adapt over time
Not something that a few people or institutions choose to practice
Instead it has been a feature of social, economic, and political systems in which we all exist
Seen in all same areas as institutional racism, but also in public discourse and media representations about race
84
4 tenants of colorblind racism?
1) Abstract Liberalism
2) Naturalization of personal preferences
3) Cultural Racism
4) Minimization
85
Abstract Liberalism
Assumption: dominant group assumes every racial group has gained equal access to education, housing, and employment
Sees discrimination toward minorities as individual act, not institutional or structural
Overlooks historical, institutional, and structural discrimination
Dominant group emphasizes the “pull yourself up by the bootstrap”
Ex: “People of color should work hard to reach their goal without special support, such as the Affirmative Action program
86
Naturalization of Personal Preferences
Assumption: everyone is at liberty to choose in a free society and inequality stems from personal preferences
The dominant group sees racial inequalities as natural occurrences and the result of personal preferences
Dominate groups claims that the residential segregation and preferences result from a normal social process, and nothing has to do with discrimination against others
Ex: “Blacks in the inner city choose to live near Blacks, so they choose to go to bad schools”
87
Cultural Racism
Assumption: Advantaged group thinks disadvantaged group is poor because they have “inferior culture” and have failed to adopt “normal” culture
Cultural racism criticizes minority groups for their dysfunctional cultural and family values
Used to explain lower socioeconomic standing of minority groups
These condemnations strongly connect to the previous two frames where the bootstrap concept and personal preferences are rationalized by the dominant group
Ex: “Blacks and Latinos are poor because they are lazy and don’t work hard”
88
Minimization
Assumption: Dominant groups views minorities as “hypersensitive” and “too race conscious”
The dominant group perceives that racism is no longer prevalent or no longer exists after the struggles of the Civil Rights Movement
Minimization allows the dominant group to deny the racial inequality claimed by minorities
Minimization talk “qualified” the dominant group to become the oppressed against whom minority groups like to play the race card
Ex: “If people all could be more color-blind, society would be more peaceful and better off”
89
Social construction of illness?
What is means to be sick (or healthy) has changed throughout history and differs from one place to another
Ex: Alcoholism: Old view: moral failing, sin of excess; New View: tendencies, biochemical, runs in families
90
Biomedical Model?
A model of illness that excludes psychological and social factors and includes only biologic factors in an attempt to understand a person’s medical illness or disorder
Then: very important during the period of widespread acute, infections and diseases
Now: Still important today, but now chronic diseases are the largest killer
91
Upstream vs. downstream causes of illness?
-Upstream: refers to macro factors that compromise social structural influences on health and health systems, government policies, and the social, physical, economic, and environmental factors that determine health
Social determinants are the social and environmental conditions in which people live and work
Ex: social disadvantage, risk exposure, social inequalities
- Downstream: includes physiological and biological factors
- Midstream: Including health behaviors and psychosocial factors
92
Social determinants of disease?
Social Determinants of Health
The circumstances in which people are born, grow up, live, work, and age, as well as the systems put in place to deal with illness
Social determinants theory states that social status can determine a person’s health
Includes health-related knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, or behaviors
Medical care and healthcare systems are not very important in predicting outcomes like mortality rates, life expectancy, and quality of life. Important for morbidity.
Way more important factors include: nutrition, clean water, lifestyle, choices, and social position
When biomedical knowledge technology allows for humans to avoid disease and delay death, then social factors become more important for population health (survive vs. maintain health)
93
Why are social factors important in the shift from infectious diseases to chronic diseases?
Important because as society changes, so do the social factors
Infectious Disease: disorders caused by organisms -- such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, or parasites (E.g. tuberculosis, smallpox, malaria, measles, bubonic plague
Chronic diseases: diseases lasting more than 3 months (chronic) and incidence increases with age (E.g. heart disease, stroke, cancer, type 2 diabetes, obesity, arthritis. Most common, costly, and preventable of all health problems)
```
How did we shift from infectious diseases to chronic diseases?
-Answer to question:
Industrialization/Modernization
Sanitation
Standard of living
Public health
Medicine
Vaccines
Antibiotics
```
94
Health Inequality?
Means that some people die younger or have poorer health based on where they live, their genetics, the job they do, or how much their parents have earned
95
Morbidity vs. mortality?
Morbidity refers to an incidence of ill health in a population. Mortality refers to the incidence of death or the number of deaths in a population.
Morbidity refers to the state of being diseased or unhealthy within a population. Mortality is the term used for the number of people who died within a population.
96
Association between social inequality and health?
There is a persistent association that exists between SES and health status
SES embodies an array of resources, such as money, knowledge, prestige, power, and beneficial social connections that protect health no matter what mechanisms are relevant at any given time
Despite advances in screening techniques, vaccinations, or any other piece of health technology or knowledge, the underlying fact is that those from low SES communities lack resources to protect and/or improve their health
97
How does race impact health?
There are numerous health discrepancies between races in the U.S. with whites having the best outcomes overall
The starkest differences can be found between whites and blacks
This is true even of the lifespan in general, which is typically longer for whites than blacks or other minorities (whites = 79, blacks = 75.3)
While some of the discrepancy is due to differences in socioeconomic status, there are still significant differences between whites and blacks with the same income and education level, which implies that racism plays a role in people’s overall health
98
Professor Lopez’ research on acculturation and diet among Latino immigrants in the U.S.?
Latino/as: largest and one of the fastest growing ethnic minority groups in the U.S.
Latino/as face higher rates of obesity and diabetes
Vegetable consumption is critical in preventing chronic diseases
Reducing health disparities is part of national public health goals
99
How does gender impact health?
The World Health Organization recognizes that gender is an important determinant of health in two dimensions:
1) Gender inequality leads to health risks for women and girls globally
2) Addressing gender norms and roles leads to a better understanding of how the social construction of identity and unbalanced power relations between men and women affect the risks
Some of the sociocultural factors that prevent women and girls to benefit from quality health services and attaining the best possible level of health include: unequal power relationships between men and women; social norms that decrease education and paid employment opportunities; an exclusive focus on women’s reproductive roles; potential or actual experience of physical, sexual, and emotional violence
Women live longer than men, which can be attributed in part to the types of illnesses each sex is more susceptible to as well as to how willing sex is to seek medical care
Men in U.S. suffer more severe chronic conditions, have higher death rates, and die younger than women
Men in U.S. are more likely to adopt beliefs and behaviors that increase their risks and less likely to engage in behavior slinked with health and longevity
- Recent figures indicate 35% of women worldwide have experienced either intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime
- Women are more susceptible to depression and anxiety than men
- Self-inflicted injuries are the leading cause of death among adolescent girls in high and upper-middle income countries
100
How does class impact health?
After 10 years men who held lower ranks/lower status had much higher rates of common illnesses and ailments (heart disease, diabetes, and stress) and higher mortality rates
Men in the lower ranks had more risk factors like obesity, higher levels of stress, and low levels of physical activity (at risk of risk: obesity and diabetes)
Men in lowest ranks were more than twice as likely as men in the highest rank to suffer from cardiovascular disease
Limitation: did not account for personality difference skill set
101
How do neighborhoods impact health?
The neighborhood a child grows up in affects their earnings in adulthood and their likelihood of moving up the income distribution, and that low-income boys are particularly vulnerable to these effects
The neighborhoods we live in shape our behaviors and influence our health in other important ways as well such as access to resources
102
Why is healthcare so expensive in U.S.?
U.S. health care system uses a market model instead of nonprofit model
Other industrialized nations use a non profit model
103
Four main types of health-care coverage in U.S.?
1) Free-for-service - multiple visits and tendency to over treat
2) Health maintenance organizations (HMOs) - same cost per patient regardless of number of visits, tendency to undertreat
3) Medicare - for elderly and young disabled
4) Medicaid - for those with limited financial resources
104
Mental health disparities?
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) provides standard categorization of mental disorders and their definitions (changes in this manual, particularly from its second to third editions, have strongly influenced how mental illness is understood and treated
There has been a significant increase in the use of pharmaceuticals to treat mental illness. Some negative aspects of this change include: -Devaluation of the benefits to talk therapy
- Overprescribing or mis-prescribing of pharmaceuticals
- Stigma attached to taking medication for mental illness
- Increasing power of pharmaceutical companies, which have benefited from the growth of the diagnostic approach
Sociology
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