Deck 15: D: Health,aging,and Disabilities

Question 1

Develop an essay that critically examines your educational institution's accommodation to persons with disabilities.In your response,draw on the post-structuralist critique of the "normal" body.

Answer 1

Students should show knowledge of what a disability is and how it could affect a post-secondary student.
Responses will vary and should involve some concrete examples of institutional accommodations,such as building accessibility.

Question 2

Critically analyze the statement "the wealthier one is,the healthier they will be" using the sociological perspective and supporting research.

Answer 2

Answers will vary,but should include research from the text supporting the relationship between higher class standing and better health,such as the following:
Of Canadians who live in the lowest income bracket,only 47 percent rate their health as very good or excellent,while more than 70 percent of Canadians in the highest income bracket rate their health as very good or excellent.In spite of this,in a 25-year review (1978-2003)of health care utilization in Canada,Curtis and MacMinn found that people in Canada with lower socioeconomic status (SES)were less likely to visit a physician compared to others,and that this trend was stable over time.
Other research has found that people on social assistance were far more likely to be ill than people who were not.Canada's poor have significantly higher rates of poor health and chronic conditions on 38 of 39 health measures,with rates as much as 7.2 times more than those of the nonpoor group.Wilson found that people on social assistance have higher rates of diabetes,heart disease,chronic bronchitis,arthritis and rheumatism,mood disorders and anxiety disorders.Additionally,Canadians living in low-income neighbourhoods have higher rates of hypertension,diabetes,smoking,and other cardiac risk factors,while children in low-income areas are more likely to be obese.So perhaps it follows that Canadians living in the least-affluent neighbourhoods are more likely to have a heart attack than those in more-affluent areas,according to the Canadian Institute for Health.People who are poor are also more likely to be hospitalized for injuries.
In Canada,individuals who live in households with combined incomes of less than $20 000 are almost three times more likely to experience self-reported poor health than are people with the highest incomes.A study published in the International Journal of Behavioral Medicine (2007)investigated the relationship between income and self-rated health over a two-year period and what role,if any,stressors (e.g. ,problems at work,financial pressures)have in helping to explain the relationship.The report found that,compared with those in the highest income group,people in the lowest and second-lowest income groups had significantly higher odds of experiencing a decline in health.The study concluded that a small but important portion of the relationship between lower income and the decline in self-rated health was associated with these stressors.
Page Reference: 388-389
Skill: Conceptual/Applied

Question 3

The last few years have seen an increase in the number of children being diagnosed with conditions such as attention deficit disorder,oppositional defiance disorder,and conduct disorder.Construct an essay comparing how sociologists from different theoretical perspectives on health care (functionalism,conflict theory,symbolic interactionism,and post-structuralism)would view this trend.Which theoretical perspective would view this trend most favourably? Which theoretical perspective do you think is most persuasive for explaining this trend?

Answer 3

Answers will vary,but should include discussions of medicalization,the impact of labelling,and Foucault's concept of biopower.

Question 4

Discuss some of the issues facing seniors today.What policies might be put in place to address them?

Question 5

Explore the ways in which popular culture depicts what is means to "age," drawing on three different contemporary television programs.Pay attention to gender differences in your essay.

Question 6

From your perspective,what are the two most important issues facing seniors in Canada today,and why?

Question 7

Analyze your own experience(s)with the Canadian health care system,or the experience(s)of someone you know,from a theoretical perspective (functionalism,conflict,feminist,symbolic interactionist,post-structuralist)and explain why you chose this particular perspective.

Question 8

Select two sociological approaches to aging (functionalism,conflict,symbolic interactionism,feminism,post-structuralist)and compare and contrast them.Give at least one example for each approach in your answer.

Question 9

Select two sociological approaches to disability (functionalism,conflict,symbolic interactionism,feminism,post-structuralist)and compare and contrast them.Give at least one example for each approach in your answer.

Question 10

Imagine that your mother recently retired after 35 years working as an accountant.She has been feeling bored,old,and "at loose ends." She asks your advice for what she should do now that she isn't working every day.How would functionalists and symbolic interactionalists answer her question? How would feminists and post-structuralists explain the feelings your mother has experienced since retirement? Which theoretical perspective do you think would provide the best advice?