Chapter 1- introduction: the scope of medical anthropology

Chapter 1- Introduction: the scope of medical anthropology – Medical anthro: – How people in diff cultures explain the causes of ill health , types of treatment they believe in and whom they turn to when ill – Anthropology – “ The study of man” (several branches) 1) Physical Anthropology – Human biology – Study of evolution of humans – Concerned with explaining the causes of present diversity of human populations 1) Material Anthropology – Deals with art and artifacts of humankind, present and past 1) Social and Cultural Anthropology – Comparative study of present day human societies and their cultural systems (2 diff approaches) o Social: – Emphasizes social dimensions of human life – People are social animals, organized into groups that regulate and perpetuate themselves o Cultural: – System’s of symbols, ideas and meanings that comprise a culture and of which social organization is just an expression – Keesing and Strathern o SOCIETY; total social system whose members share a common language and cultural tradition – Boundaries of societies are vague; people organize themselves into various groups, hierarchies and roles within a given society THE CONCEPT OF CULTURE: – Taylor’s definition of culture o Complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, morals, law, custom and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society – Keensing and Stathern o Systems of shared ideas, systems of concepts and rules and meanings that underlie and are expressed in the ways that human beings live – From these definitions o Culture is the set of guidelines that individuals inherit as members of a particular society. o Provides them with a way of transmitting these guidelines to the next generation o Can be seen as an inherited “ lens” through which the individual perceives and understands the world that he inhabits and learns how to live within it – Enculturation: slowly acquires the cultural ‘ lens’ of that society – Edward T. Hall o 3 different levels of culture – Tertiary level culture – Explicit manifest culture; visible to the outsider – Ex: social rituals, traditional dress, national cuisine and festive occasions, – Secondary level culture – Underlying rules and assumptions are known to the members of the group but rarely shared with outsiders – Primary level culture – Rules are known to all, obeyed by all but seldom if ever stated – Deeper levels are most hidden, stable and resistant to change – Leach o All societies have more than one culture within their borders o Ex: social stratification into social classes castes or ranks and each stratum is marked by its own distinctive cultural attribution – Acculturation: o Incorporate some of the cultural attributes of the larger society but others will not. – Subcultures: o People form a group apart, wit their own concepts, rules and social organizations o Ex: Doctors, lawyers, (career cultures) – People acquire a very diff. perspective on life form those who are outside the profession – Complex societies are never homogenous, many different views of the world coexisting. – Culture is therefore a fluid concept o Most societies are undergoing change and adaptation – Biculturalism: o Individuals, families and even communities can occupy 2 or more cultures of subcultures. o Very true for immigrants The Context of Culture – Many influences on health related beliefs and behaviors; 1. Individual Factors 2. Educational Factors 3. Socio-economic Factors 4. Environmental Factors Misuses of the concept of culture – Cant make broad generalizations about the members of any human group