Making Sense of Illness: The Social Psychology of Health and Disease Book

What are people's beliefs about health? What do they do when they feel ill? Why do they go to the doctor? How do they live with chronic disease? This lucid introduction to the social psychology of health and illness addresses these and other questions about how people make sense of illness in everyday life, either alone or with the help of others.Alan Radley reviews findings from medical sociology, health psychology and medical anthropology to demonstrate the relevance of social and psychological explanations to questions about disease and its treatment. He also presents a critical account of related issues - stress, health promotion and gender differences.Topics covered include: · illness, the patient and society · ideas about health and staying healthy · recognizing symptoms and falling ill · the healing relationship: patients, nurses and doctors Relating to the reader's own experience, Making Sense of Illness provides a comprehensive introduction to relevant research and a critical commentary on explanations of health and illness in social life. It will be essential reading for students of psychology, sociology and health studies.Read More