The Political and Social Contexts of Health: Politics of Sex in Medicine

by Vicente Navarro (Editor)

Overview

This analysis of the political and social forces that shape the well-being and quality of life of populations in developed capitalist countries is written by scholars based in several different countries. The book shows how the varying political traditions in the developed world - social democratic, Christian democratic, conservative, and liberal traditions - have affected populations' health and quality of life in the western democracies. The contributors also analyze the public and social policies derived from each of these political traditions that have affected levels of social inequality (through changes in the welfare states and labor markets) and on health and quality of life.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781351862790
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	11/25/2020
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	246
File size:	22 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Vincente Navarro

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. The Importance of the Political and the Social in Explaining Mortality Differentials among the Countries of the OECD, 1950-1998 Vicente Navarro, Carme Borrell, Joan Benach, Carles Muntaner, Agueda Quiroga, Maica Rodríguez-Sanz, Nuria Vergés, Jordi Gumá, and M. Isabel Pasarín

 3. Do Social Policies and Political Context Matter for Health in the United Kingdom? Tim Doran and Margaret Whitehead

 4. Individual and Contextual Determinants of Inequalities in Health: The Italian Case Giuseppe Costa, Antonio Caiazzo, Chiara Marinacci, and Teresa Spadea

 5. Regional Differences in Trends in Life Expectancy and the Influence of the Political and Socioeconomic Contexts in Germany Uwe Helmert, Waldemar Streich, and Dieter Borgers

 6. Power Relations and Premature Mortality in Spain’s Autonomous Communities Maica Rodríguez-Sanz, Carme Borrell, Rosa Urbanos, M. Isabel Pasarín, Ana Rico, Marta Fraile, Xavier Ramos, and Vicente Navarro

 7. Social Differentials in the Decline of Infant Mortality in Sweden in the Twentieth Century: The Impact of Politics and Policy Bo Burström

 8. Summary and Conclusions of the Study Vicente Navarro, Margaret Whitehead, Tim Doran, Bo Burström, Uwe Helmert, Giuseppe Costa, and Carme Borrell

 Contributors

 Index 

What People are Saying About This

Mervyn Susser

Over the past four decades in public health at the Johns Hopkins University, Vicente Navarro has established himself as a leading authority on the relation of health and health services to societal factors. One may say, more specifically, that with respect to political factors his authority is unchallenged; his work in this area is unique in public health.

As editor of this volume, Professor Navarro brings together an array of experienced authors. Two or more authors assemble and analyze the relevant and available data for each of five European countries. Navarro himself leads with an analysis of the overall data for the OECD countries as an entity. The work aims to analyze the mortality effects 'of power relations and solidarity and civic behavior on the social inequalities measured by income equalities and determined by labor market and employment policies as welfare state policies.' The assembled material has obvious value for scholars in several related fields.
—Sergievsky Professor of Epidemiology, Emeritus, Columbia University, New York

Walter Korpi

Do political contexts and social policies matter for life expectancy and infant mortality? Here an international team of experts provides fruitful perspectives, informative analyses, and food for thought on this central but often neglected question.
—Professor of Social Policy, Stockholm University

Göran Therborn

Inequality endangers your health. Few social science findings are as important as the conclusion of these investigations, made in several countries.
—Professor and Director, Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study in the Social Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden

Richard Wilkinson

Is politics the key to population health? And if so, how? At last we have a book that asks all the right questions. For anyone with a serious interest in health policy, this is where to start.
—Professor, Division of Epidemiology and Public Health,University of Nottingham Medical School, England

Editorial Reviews

3 Stars from Doody

Reviewer: Ross M. Mullner, PhD, MPH (University of Illinois at Chicago)
Description: This book includes research papers from the International Network on Social Inequalities and Health (INIH). The INIH includes scholars and research centers in the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, Spain and Sweden. The papers in this book were funded by Division of Employment and Social Affairs of the European Commission.
Purpose: According to the editors, "The objective of the study ... is to analyze the causes of the growth of social inequalities in the developed capitalist countries and its consequences for the health of their populations, and to make recommendations on how to improve the health of these populations through public policies aimed at reducing the adverse effects of such increased inequalities on the well-being of the populations."
Audience: The audience for this book includes graduate students in public health, public policy, political science, and sociology. The authors of the chapters in this book are all authorities on the various subjects they write about.
Features: The eight chapters cover the relationship between the economic and political systems of the United Kingdom, Italy, Germany, Spain, and Sweden upon infant mortality and life expectancy.
Assessment: This is a well written and thought provoking book. It makes the important point that most public health practitioners only focus on individuals and not the broader cultural, economic, and political systems of societies, which are very import in the overall health of individuals.

Doody's Review Service