Undergraduate Course: Sociology of Medicine (STIS10013)
Course Outline
| School | School of Social and Political Science |
College | College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 3 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Available to all students |
| SCQF Credits | 20 |
ECTS Credits | 10 |
| Summary | In the Sociology of Medicine (SoM) we explore the complex ways medicine is shaped by, and in turn, shapes us and the world we live in. For example, we ask if medicine can be conceived as a "system of knowledge", a "form of power" or an example of "professional practice". The question that runs throughout the course is whether there is occurring a wider transformation from medicalisation to biomedicalization that has changed what medicine is. This course focuses on some of the ideas that have emerged from sociological studies of medicine, health, disease, and illness. In the first part of the course, we look at the nature of medical professions, everyday medical work, biographical disruption and the "sick role" exploring how social, economic, cultural and technological changes have empowered patient subjectivity and patient activism. In the second half of the course, we will explore key contemporary issues in biomedicine such as health consumerism, genetics, the increasing presence of pharmaceuticals, the existence of medically created "everyday cyborgs" before ending with a question about what medical treatment is and how ideas about "normal bodies" produce ableism and disability discrimination. Health and illness affect all of us in some way or other, and we encourage students to bring their own experiences, particular interests and personal insights to the course. |
| Course description |
The course is designed to provide a broad overview of the sociology of medicine. Topics covered include, the nature and role of professional organisation in medicine; critical analyses of the medicalization and (bio)medicalization of society; social dynamics that shape experiences of health, illness and disease; micro and macro factors that influence the interactions between patients and medical professionals; patient organisations, health social movements and the shifting roles, identities and expertise of patients; the social impact of geneticisation, pharmaceuticalisation and cyborgisation for patients, professionals, and policy-making. The course will combine insights from sociological work on medicine, health, disease, and illness, and applied research and case studies on contemporary topics and controversies. Students will engage with and analyse a range of different materials from media representations of patients through to texts of doctor-patient interactions and health-related policy documentation and are encouraged to be reflexive and creative throughout.
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Information for Visiting Students
| Pre-requisites | Visiting students should have at least 4 humanities or social science courses at grade B or above (or be predicted to obtain this). We will only consider University/College level courses. |
| High Demand Course? |
Yes |
Course Delivery Information
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| Academic year 2026/27, Available to all students (SV1)
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Quota: None |
| Course Start |
Semester 2 |
Timetable |
Timetable |
| Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info) |
Total Hours:
200
(
Lecture Hours 22,
Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4,
Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours
174 )
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| Assessment (Further Info) |
Written Exam
0 %,
Coursework
100 %,
Practical Exam
0 %
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| Additional Information (Assessment) |
short summative essay (1500 words) constituting 30% of the final mark.«br /»
A long summative essay (3500 words) constituting 70% of the final mark. |
| Feedback |
Students will receive detailed written feedback on both summative assignments. We will expect regular contributions and presentations from students, both online and in the classroom. During lectures and tutorials students will receive regular oral feedback. |
| No Exam Information |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Understand the historical context, key theoretical insights, and practical application of sociological studies of medicine.
- Develop a critical understanding of Western scientific medicine as a profession, institution, system of knowledge, form of power, and therapeutic practice.
- Understand how Western scientific medicine has evolved and transformed, including issues such as how and why biomedicine has come to dominate understandings of disease, the processes of medicalization, demedicalization and biomedicalization, and shifting challenges to medical power including health consumerism and the rise of patient experts.
- Apply complex concepts and critical thinking to key contemporary issues and policy challenges pertaining to biomedicine.
- Interpret, evaluate, and use a wide range of different types of data, empirical material and arguments relating to the social dimensions of medicine, health, disease, and illness.
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Reading List
Awofeso, N. (2004). What's new about the "new public health"? American Journal of Public Health, 94(5), 705-9.
Conrad, P. (1992). Medicalization and Social Control. Annual Review of Sociology, 18, 209-232.
Nettleton, S. (2021) The Sociology of Health and Illness, Polity Press, Cambridge.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Not entered |
| Keywords | Not entered |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Prof Gill Haddow
Tel:
Email: Gill.Haddow@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mr Ewen Miller
Tel: (0131 6)50 3925
Email: Ewen.Miller@ed.ac.uk |
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