Health and Society

What it is about

You engage with sociological perspectives on health and illness: historical development, social construction of illness, Medicalization, professionalization, diversity, disability, health promotion and global health issues. In the end you will be able to explain the social determinants of health, critically assess health policy discourses, and consider gender- and diversity-sensitive aspects in prevention and health promotion.

What you will be able to do

• understand social conditions and social determinants of health
• grasp sociological approaches to health and illness
• discuss processes of the social construction of health problems
• critically appraise health discourses and dynamics of medicalization
• identify social inequalities in health issues
• know gender- and diversity-sensitive aspects in prevention and health promotion
• understand resource-based approaches according to the salutogenic model

What the module consists of

• VorlesungPresentation of weekly topics and introduction to the core texts
• Übung (student-led)Deepening of lecture content through group work, discussions and interactive formats

Teaching method

• Blended LearningCombination of in-person lectures and online materials for knowledge transfer
• Student-led ExercisesStudents prepare in small groups exercises and moderate interactive sessions for in-depth study
• Kleingruppenarbeit und DiskussionenPromotion of critical engagement with texts and application to case studies