HLTA03H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Intersectionality, Syphilis, Whitehall Study
8 Feb 2019
School
Department
Course
Professor
Gil Chapter 5: Identity, Intersectionality, and Health
Social Identity and Health
- River story to talk about disparities in health across society – health is influenced by “upstream”
factors like environment, social inequalities, poverty, sexism, racism, behavioural patterns
- Downstream contributors, e.g. health care services, are important in promoting wellbeing but
their role is more when people are already sick, not before they get sick
- Social identity has a role in determining health – this is our sense of sense in relation to society
as a whole and its broader social structures; definition isn’t agreed upon but some components
of social identity include age, race, and gender
o People from different social backgrounds are more susceptible to risks from upstream
factors; the way they respond and experience illness varies according to social identity
- Zygmunt Bauman – says social identity isn’t fixed, it’s the product of structures of identification
– societal structures that shape our individual experience and our identity, though are
experiences are inherently different from anyone else
o Sense of self is built around structures we collectively encounter – e.g. gender, sexuality
o Our experience with the structures feels unique, different from other people
o We’re bound as a society through our desire to have unique identities
- Structures of identification (social identities) relate to health on 2 levels
o Societal structures regarding gender, class, race, and sexuality pose health risks for
people in unequal and complex ways; e.g. women more likely than men to experience
domestic violence – physical harm and emotional/mental health issues
o The way people experience and respond to health and illness varies according to their
social identity – e.g. gay men respond differently to domestic violence than women do
- 3 primary structures of identification – class, gender, ethnicity
- Ways to measure health status and health disparities
o Rate of mortality – number of deaths over period of time across a specific population
▪ Childhood mortality – number of deaths among kids over a period of time
▪ Annual childhood mortality rate declined in Canada but mortality rate due to
suicide among kids increased
▪ Gives information about rate of change in a pop but you have to figure out the
factors causing it; most commonly used measure of health/wellbeing in society
o Morbidity – prevalence and/or incidence of disease in a specific population
▪ Prevalence of morbidity/comorbidity in kids/teens higher among low SES
▪ Lets you track future incidence of condition in a pop and you can also see if an
intervention if effective in preventing new cases in that pop
Social Class
- Social class (SES) – reflection or measure of each person’s position in a society’s economy
- Factors considered to determine social class can vary – can use household income, education,
occupation but use all 3 to rank people in relation to their position in the market economy
- Social gradient – ranking according to social class
- Health status and outcomes vary as a result of social inequalities associated with income,
education, and occupation
- Black Report – overall health had increased but there was also an increase in inequities in
individual health status; thought it was due to ineffective health services but it was due to
difference in social class/SES; most privileged people did better on health measures
Document Summary
River story to talk about disparities in health across society health is influenced by upstream factors like environment, social inequalities, poverty, sexism, racism, behavioural patterns. Downstream contributors, e. g. health care services, are important in promoting wellbeing but their role is more when people are already sick, not before they get sick. Zygmunt bauman says social identity isn"t fixed, it"s the product of structures of identification. 3 primary structures of identification class, gender, ethnicity. Lets you track future incidence of condition in a pop and you can also see if an intervention if effective in preventing new cases in that pop. Social class (ses) reflection or measure of each person"s position in a society"s economy. Factors considered to determine social class can vary can use household income, education, occupation but use all 3 to rank people in relation to their position in the market economy. Social gradient ranking according to social class.
