In a broad sense, sociology is the scientific study of social aggregations (from a to the world), the entities through which humans move throughout their lives. A related trend in the discipline, emerging since the late 1970s, attempts to make it a more "applied" discipline, applicable in areas such as non-profit organizations and nursing homes. The results of sociological research aid educators, lawmakers, administrators, and others interested in resolving social problems and formulating , through sub-disciplinary areas such as , , methodological , and .
Sociological methods, theories, and concepts compel the sociologist to explore levels of reality that go beyond the rules governing human behavior. This specific approach to reality is known as the .
The Sick Role (Parsons, 1951)
The model of the sick role was designed by Talcott Parsons in 1951. It was the first theoretical concept that openly questioned medical sociology. Parsons described the sick role as a temporary, medically accepted, of out of the ordinary form of behaviour. He saw this unusual behaviour as a risk to social order, as people of the modern day were not complying with the usual patterns of the work-orientated modern society.
Sociologists conceptualize social roles as the expected behaviors of a group of people, these include rights and obligations. People are often given a position in society known as a status. Usually, this status is held by the individual and commonly called a position. Once this position is held, the person has to perform a role, known as a behavior.
These concepts were utilized by Parsons to create a theoretical outlook based on individuals who are sick, hence the ‘sick role’. Parsons divided the model into two categories, the rights and the obligations. The sick individual has two rights; being exempt from normal social roles. Depending on the severity of the illness, will be
dependent upon the length of time they are excused from their every day responsibilities. Within society, legitimation by the physician (doctor) is required in order for the sick person to be considered justifiably ill. Society is protected by this legitimation as sick individuals may attempt to remain in the sick role longer than social expectations allow, which may result in secondary gains, for example sick pay; this is known as malingering, (Cockerham, 2001). The sick individual is not accountable for their state of health. Illness is usually thought to be beyond the individuals own control. Depending on the severity of the illness, will power and motivation is often needed in order for the sick person to become better.
The individual is obliged to try and get well. The sick person recognizes that being ill must only be on a temporary basis and should try to regain their health, as being sick for long periods is looked upon within society as undesirable. Throughout illness, the sick person should seek professional help from the physician (doctor). The sick person is also expected to co-operate with the physician and obey their recommendations in order to get well.
The sick role shows a good understanding of how society perceives sickness in terns of how long the individual may take off work or may be absent from school. The model does not take into account chronic illnesses for example arthritis whereby the individual may be off work for a lengthy period whereby it is no fault of their own. Also depending on the access of health care one has. Private health care waiting lists are a lot smaller compared to that of the NHS, therefore the benefits of private health care are that the sick individual will be seen to far quicker than an individual who does not have this access.
Medicalisation.
Throughout the development of medicine, medicalisation has brought with it mixed views on how it has helped health but also the detriment effects it has had within hospitals and society whereby infection and disease has not only been prevented as such but also created from the development of medicine. It has been found that over 10% of hospital patients contract some form of infection whilst in hospital, (Taylor and Field, 2003).
Medicine developed significantly during the 20th century as people looked at medicine in a more scientific way. Biomedicine became an essential part of medical science. At the early stages of medical development, medicine was looked upon as an art, then later looked upon as a science (Lyng 1990). Gordon (1988) has stated that clinical appraisal has traditionally been classed under the term of 'art', but modern medicine is situated between 'art' and 'science'.
McKeown (1976) was the first person who questioned the social overvaluation of medicine. He believed that medicine had a minor effect on public health and that the changes within the environment explain the disappearance of various infections and the decrease in mortality. Not everyone agrees with McKeown, as Sontag, (1982) believed that penicillin is one of the most important discoveries to man. It has helped develop antibiotics which have led to cures of disease and infection.
Medicalization is expanding because of the development of medicine and technology. New treatments to cure disease which were formerly incurable are developed continuously - also for illnesses, which formerly were trivial. New techniques are fast insisted on as routines, for all the people without any question. (Niiniluoto 2003)
Reference List.
Cockerham, W.C. (2001) Medical Sociology, 8th Edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.
Gordon DR. (1988) Clinical science and clinical expertise: changing boundaries between art and science in medicine. Biomedicine examined. Kluwer Academic Publishers
Lyng S. (1990) Holistic health and biomedical medicine. A counter-system analysis. State University of New York Press, New York.
Sontag S. (1982) Illness as metaphor. Penguin Books, Harmondsworth.
Taylor S. and Field S. (2003) Sociology of Health and Heath Care. Blackwell Publishing Ltd.
