Medicine as Culture
Illness, Disease and the Body
- Deborah Lupton - University of New South Wales, Australia
The Third Edition has been updated to cover new and emerging areas of interest including: the role of computerized communication technologies in providing access to medical information; new medical technologies and how they contribute to people's understandings of their bodies and selfhood; how bioethical issues and dilemmas are negotiated in clinical settings; the changing role of nurses in healthcare provision; and new research in neuroscience on the plasticity of the brain and the notion of 'brain types' and how this research contributes to novel understandings of the brain in lay and medical cultures.
An excellent Medical Sociology text, with a chapter on Bodies, Pain and Suffering. This has been added as a recommended text,
Deborah Lupton illustrates very well the power imbalances between people's conceptualisation of health, ill-health and their bodies and the dominant bio-medical approaches. It also illustrates the many shortcomings of these power imbalances. She explores a very important health topic, yet a disregarded one -specially in the field of global health. I will add this book to my list of recommended readings, as I think that Deborah Lupton does a great job at building bridges between disciplines and health knowledges.
a great overview of medicine and the body from sociological point of view
My students have always liked this book - v accessible and so its great to have a new edition
This is a great book to help students to really think about the impact of medicine on health and well being. Stimulating and thought provoking the students who I have introduced this book to have found it valuable in supporting their understanding of the sociology of health.
Thought provoking and interesting text. Would be highly recommended for any course which examines the holistic approach to care. I found the style very accessible but would suggest it is most suited to wider background reading at final year undergraduate or postgraduate level.
Excellent material related to the current issues influencing public health.
This is an excellent, thought-provoking book that basically acts as an introduction to sociology and anthropology for health students who may never have explored these subjects previously. I would recommend it to dissertation students who expressed an interest in these areas, but it probably wouldn't be appropriate as part of the core reading for our course.
Medicine as culture provides a useful overview of the sociology of medicine that reflects contemporary debates from a range of academic disciplines to inform the understanding of those working and studying in health professions.
Superb cultural analysis of illness and corporeality in contemporary society.
