TheoreTical PersPecTives on Medicine and socieTy

In this chapter, the major fields of scholarship and research in the humanities and social sciences that have examined the social role of scientific medicine in western societies are reviewed for the theoretical developments which have occurred since the mid-20th century. Particular attention is paid to the emergence of social constructionism as a dominant perspective appropriate for engaging in inquiries into the sociocultural dimensions of medicine, health and illness. The chapter begins with a discussion of the concept of discourse, an important theoretical and methodological concept that has been adopted throughout many of the social sciences and humanities. Then follows a detailed account of the sociological tradition and the three major theoretical perspectives that have been used to analyse medicine, health and illness: functionalism; political economy; and social constructionism. The insights offered by the fields of anthropology, history, cultural and media studies and studies of science, technology and space in terms of what they have to offer for the analysis of medicine and embodiment are then explored.