Biomedical subjects

C S Goldin

Publications and source records attributed to C S Goldin.

3 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1995

Murphy's contributions to disability studies: an inquiry into ourselves.

Robert Murphy's career, culminating in the study of disability, gives evidence of deep commitment to understanding the human condition in adversity. His life-long interest in the psychological, sociological and cultural significance of behavior; his work on alienation, developed through fieldwork in small scale societies in South America and Africa; his fascination with the estrangement that arises from the conflict between our need to integrate and to be autonomous; and his own experience of a progressive debilitating disease provided him with rich insights for his interpretation of disability. This paper examines Murphy's contributions to our understanding of the meanings and implications of disability, for those who personally experience it, and for the 'others' in their lives.

Anthropology, Cultural↗

PubMed1994

Stigmatization and AIDS: critical issues in public health.

From Goffman's classic sociological work on stigma to Sontag's popular works on metaphors, stigma has captured academic and general public interest. The severity of the AIDS pandemic has transformed our lives profoundly, and the stigma experienced by persons with AIDS has grave consequences for public health efforts. Fears of the consequences of open discourse and self-identification have created a silence that threatens all of us. Using analyses of Western imagery and African ethnographic accounts, this paper explores the differences between AIDS in America and in Africa with respect to epidemiology, socio-economic and cultural illness patterns, and experiences of stigmatization. Several research questions are posed to stimulate discussion of future ethnographic work on illness and stigma in Africa. The paper concludes with a discussion of the impact on public health of four types of AIDS stigmatization: theologically-based blame, liberal concern for the health of those not afflicted, risk group problem and civil rights problem. From the point of view of enlightened management of public health, the civil rights issue poses the most serious threat. The tension between the rights of the individual, who is at risk of exposure and condemnation because of stigma, and the rights of the rest of society, interferes with the development of large-scale, effective public health programs.

Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome↗

PubMed1990

Stigma, biomedical efficacy, and institutional control.

This paper explores the role of biomedical efficacy in the rehabilitation of the disabled. Ethnographic data are presented from two studies, one concerned with the prevocationally blind, the other with the institutionalized chronically mentally ill. A comparison of rehabilitation for these two groups suggests that when disabilities do not respond well to biomedical interventions, inconsistent and contradictory interpretations and policies about etiology, therapy, and post-treatment prognosis are likely to flourish. These conflicts may, in turn, increase pressure on rehabilitation institutions to maintain control over their clients. This paper addresses these issues in order to stimulate discussion about the relationship of different kinds of disability to stigma and rehabilitation.

Behavior Control↗