Reflexive Modernity and the Sociology of Health
Book Title
Medical Sociology on the Move: Revised Edition including New Directions in Theory
Files
Editors
Cockerham, WC
Description
The analysis and explanation of increasingly complex social phenomena represents one of the foremost challenges of sociological theory. This is particularly important in the sociology of health because definitions of health, mechanisms of disease, the nature of clinical medicine, and the structure of health care delivery are all undergoing fundamental transformations in late modernity. In this chapter, we draw upon the insights of Ulrich Beck (1992, 1994, 1999) to demonstrate the requisite elements of a health sociology “on the move” that can engage the multidimensional and dynamic health-related phenomena of late modernity. We employ Beck’s conceptualization of reflexive modernization to analyze critical developments in the relationship between sociological theory, medicine, and the contemporary landscape of health and illness. Connecting these various developments helps us make sense of a contemporary health landscape that can often feel fractured and chaotic, but which is systematically curated by fundamental social forces
First Page
225
Last Page
243
ISBN
9783031924569
Publication Date
6-2025
Publisher
Springer
Keywords
sociology, health
Disciplines
Medicine and Health
Recommended Citation
Wasserman JA, Hinote BP. Reflexive modernity and the sociology of health. In: Cockerham WC. Medical sociology on the move: Revised edition including new directions in theory. Cham: Springer, 2025. p.225-243.