Health and Inequality, Vol. 4: v. 4 (Major Themes in Health and Social Welfare) - Tapa dura

Some groups of people are healthier than others. Overwhelmingly, for almost all kinds of morbidity and mortality, groups at the bottom of the social scale are less healthy than those at the top. But this simple observation describes a complex phenomenon that has become a major focus of research, teaching, intervention, and public policy and has led to recognition of the stark power of social determinants of population health. Why are poorer, less educated, lower-class groups less healthy than others? If inequalities in health are largely due to the social inequalities among people and their feelings about their position in relation to other people, then policies that encourage a more egalitarian society may be needed to close the health gap. The theme of Volume IV is the social and political ecology of health and the biology and psychology of human sensitivity to the social environment. An essential work of reference for both scholars and practitioners hoping to understand (and mitigate or remove) inequalities in health.