Undergraduate - UnitATS3735 - Sociology of health and illness

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2012 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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6 points, SCA Band 1, 0.125 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered, or view unit timetables.

Level	Undergraduate
Faculty	Faculty of Arts
Offered	Not offered in 2012
Coordinator(s)	Dr Vaughn Higgins

Notes

Previously coded SCY3806

Synopsis

This unit introduces students to sociological understandings of health and illness. The first section looks at the social production and patterning of health and illness, and provides a critique of the contemporary focus on health promotion. The middle section engages with recent sociological analyses of issues related to gender, the body, the illness experience and mental illness. The third section provides an understanding of the social organisation of health care with a focus on the role of scientific medicine. The ways in which both occupational groupings and patients have sought to challenge medical dominance are also examined.

Assessment

Assignment one (1000 words): 25%
Assignment two (1500 words): 35%
Examination (2 hours): 40%

Chief examiner(s)

Dr Vaughn Higgins

Contact hours

2 hours (1 x 1 hour lecture and 1 x 1 hour tutorial) per week

This unit applies to the following area(s) of study

Sociology

Prerequisites

Two second-year sociology units

Prohibitions

ATS2735, GSC2206, GSC3216, SCY2806, SCY3806