SOCI 216 - Medical Sociology

FC SSCI CD

4 credits
This course introduces students to key concepts and theories in the subfield of medical sociology. Topics covered include: social determinants of health; medical racism; health disparities; stress; health behaviors; the profession of medicine; mental health; medicalization; the framing of sickness as deviance; illness narratives; and landmark healthcare legislation in the United States. Particular attention is paid to social inequality in health and medicine, highlighting how a person’s ability to prioritize wellness, survive illness, and find success in prominent healthcare professions reflects privilege and imbalanced distributions of power along lines of race, socioeconomic status, and gender.

Prerequisites: one “Introduction to Sociology” course.