Key Concepts in Medical Sociology.(Book review)

KEY CONCEPTS IN MEDICAL SOCIOLOGY Jonathan Gabe, Mike Bury and Mary Ann Elston (eds) London: Sage Publications 2004: 256 pp PB GBP18.99 ISBN 0-7619-7442-3

This book joins several others in the Sage 'Key Concepts' series. Currently this includes 'Key Concepts in Social Research' and 'Key Concepts in Gender Studies' and will also include contributions in areas such as social theory and leisure studies. The idea behind this series is to provide 'students with accessible and authoritative knowledge of the essential topics in a variety of disciplines'. In the field of the sociology of health and illness (or medical sociology), a book of 'key concepts' is, as the editors of this volume note: 'a somewhat different and unusual form' (p.ix). It is neither a textbook nor a dictionary but rather an attempt to provide 'highly focused essays on particular topics'.

In this book, 50 key concepts are elaborated by 23 contributors, and a significant credit to the editors and the contributors is the high level of consistency maintained in the form of the contributions. All provide historical background, an account of the concept's development as well as reflections on the current and future significance of the concept. Where relevant, empirical illustrations and evidence are cited. All entries are thoroughly cross-referenced, which certainly enhances the potential usefulness of the book, especially for students or novices to the field.

The concepts are organised under five themes in separate sections of the book. The first, 'Social Patterning of Health', contains 11 entries which fall within a fairly standard range of factors associated with health status. Here are summarised empirical descriptions and evidence of associations between, for example, gender, life events, and place. Part 2, 'Experience of Illness', contains 13 entries which encompass an historically inclusive range of theoretical and analytic approaches to the sociology of health and illness from North American and European perspectives. We see authoritative exegeses of 'classic' concepts such as the sick role and medicalisation, as well as more contemporary concerns such as those regarding risk and embodiment. The third part, under the overall heading of 'Health, Knowledge and Practice' ...