ANT 1101 Lecture Notes - Medical Anthropology, Medicalization, Biological Pathway
14 Nov 2012
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Document Summary
The field of medical anthropology examines the ways in which culture and society are organized around or impacted by issues of health, health care and related issues. The western biomedical model defines medicine as the science and the act of healing. Science is defined as an intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behaviour of the physical and natural world through observation and experience. Medical system: a community"s ideas and practices relating to illness and health. Indigenization: process of adapting to its local social and cultural environment. Popularization: when aspects of scientific medicine filter down in the popular sector. Biomedicine: a branch of medical science that"s applies biological and other natural-science principles to clinical practice. Critical medical anthropology: a theoretical approach with medical anthropology that uses a critical theoretical framework and focuses on the political economy of health and health care.
