INTRODUCTION TO THE SOCIAL AND BEHAVIORAL SCIENCES

KINGSUK SARKAR, MD,ASST. PROF.

DEP. OF COMMUNITY MEDICINE,DSMCH

• Health: A “state of complete physical, mental and social well being

and not merely an absence of disease or infirmity”.

Health has Social Dimensions :1. Social wel l being2. Social health

For understanding social component of health , knowledge of social & behavioral science essential!!!

SOCIAL FACTORS IN HEALTH, DISEASE & DISABILITY

Various factors such as:• Age• Sex• Literacy status• Income level• Occupation• Day to day habits• Marital status

• Health seeking behavior• Way of life• Aggregation & dispersal of population• Migration• Urbanization• Industrialization• Globalization• Topography

• Initiation• Perpetuation• Distribution of Natural History of a

Disease

• Man is a social animal• Not under strict laboratory control• Successful application of medicine to

individuals & groups require more than just technical or biological know-how

• Shifting from “germ theory” of disease to “multiple causation”

• Most health problems are as much sociological as biological

Health is affected by four sets of variables:

i. Individual predispositionsii. Ecological predispositionsiii. Current circumstancesiv. Opportunities.

Specialist in Community Health

Specialist in EpidemiologistClinical Medicine

SOCIAL COMPONENT OF HEALTH & DISEASE

“ILLNESS BEHAVIOR” OF PEOPLE

• Different people react in different ways to the same disease process /regimen of treatment.

• (? Role of) education, religion, social class, occupation

• Efficient use of medical care

• Study of medical institutions

Role of community health• Existing problems:• Low rate of use by people of health services• Failure by them to secure health benefitsEg:-Non acceptance of immunization, -Non popularity of family planning program,-MCH program,-Water & Sanitation program,-Improvement of dietary patterns & Infant

feeding practices

Over all resistance of the people is felt by the authority on the fields designed to improve the standard of living….

“The Basic Problem” .. Social scientists are dealing with in India as well as in other

developing countries.

- Mental health- Hospital organization- Social class difference in disease- Rehabilitation- Professional roles & responsibilities

Fields of interests of social scienti sts in Western Countries

COMMUNITY

HEALTH PROBLEMS SOCIAL

PROBLEMS

Role of Clinical Medicine• Control of acute & communicable diseases• Advent of chronic “modern diseases”• Role of psychological stress reactions• Along with provision of medical care, changes

in behavior & habits needed• Present medical sciences insufficient to train

the physician to cope with “socio-cultural” aspects of medicine

• Both Medical & social knowledge needed

Role of Epidemiology• Study of disease with relationship toI. Social statusII. IncomeIII. OccupationIV. HousingV. OvercrowdingVI. Social customs VII. Habits & behaviorEg. Coronary heart ds, duodenal ulcer,

schizophrenia, subnormal intelligence, suicide

Social & behavioral sciences• Social sciences are those disciplines that deals

with the scientific examination of human behavior.

• (Also) Study of the people in the society and how individuals relate to one another and to the group.

• This discipline consists of sociology, social psychology, economics, political science and social anthropology.

• Sociology, social psychology and social & cultural anthropology are considered as behavioral sciences.

ECONOMICS: - It deals with human relationship in the context of

production, distribution, consumption & ownership of the scarce resources, goods and services.

- Also concerned with the allocation of money for program

- Concerned with the economic health of the people

- Health Economics : application of principles of economics in the field of health.

POLITICAL SCIENCE:

- Study of laws & institutions making the laws

- Functioning of the legislative, judicial & Executive wings of the state

-(Institutions: Panchayat, Zilla Parishad, Municipal Council, Assembly, Parliament)

SOCIOLOGY:

• Socios = society; logos= people• Study of the human behavior & human

relationships( behavior of social groups, social life)

• Study of society, social interactions , cultural factors, societal institutions & organizations.

• Analyzes the social processes determining the group behavior.

SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY:

- Branch of psychology

- Deals with the psychology of individuals living in human society/groups.

- Analyzes the mental processes determining the group behavior

- Based on perception, thought, opinion, attitude & general motivation

ANTHROPOLOGY:- Anthropos =man; logos= science- Study of man in his environment.- 3 divisions; physical , social, cultural

a) Physical Anthropology:- Study of human evolution, racial differences,

inheritance of body traits, growth & decay of humans

b) Social Anthropology: - Study of human development & various

types of social lifec) Cultural Anthropology:- Study of human culture ( thinking, feeling &

action) from the primitive times which pass on to the generations

• Medical Anthropology- deals with the cultural component of health and disease.

Other branches of social sciences,

• HISTORY:

-record of the events of the past which gave rise to variety of social problems; often challenging survival & well being of populations over generations.

• GEOGRAPHY:

-Explains the lifestyle of people living in different areas like mountains, plains, deserts, forests, coasts.

- Sociology explains the relationship between the geographic determinants & social life.

Sociology needs support of all above mentioned subjects

Sociology cannot live in isolation

- Study & understanding of humanities( behavioral sciences) is essential to understand-

1. an individual2. Structure of a community, group, society3. Function & interrelationship between men4. Ways of life

Behavioral sciences….. Why should medical students study????

• Enhances skill & competence of the student• Helps to elicit correct history• Inculcates the art & skill of interview &

communication• Helps to access the communication needs• Aids to formulate health education program• To understand the role of socioeconomic

factors in the natural history of disease• To enhance client satisfaction & doctor-

patient relationship

-IBBs-Lite: Integrated Bio-behavioral Survey-Lite

-Behavioral Surveillance Survey: used for HIV/AIDS