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19.7: Key Terms

  • Page ID
    172395
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    anxiety disorders
    feelings of worry and fearfulness that last for months at a time
    commodification
    the changing of something not generally thought of as a commodity into something that can be bought and sold in a marketplace
    contested illnesses
    illnesses that are questioned or considered questionable by some medical professionals
    demedicalization
    the social process that normalizes “sick” behavior
    disability
    a reduction in one’s ability to perform everyday tasks; the World Health Organization notes that this is a social limitation
    epidemiology
    the study of the incidence, distribution, and possible control of diseases
    impairment
    the physical limitations a less-able person faces
    individual mandate
    a government rule that requires everyone to have insurance coverage or they will have to pay a penalty
    legitimation
    the act of a physician certifying that an illness is genuine
    medical sociology
    the systematic study of how humans manage issues of health and illness, disease and disorders, and healthcare for both the sick and the healthy
    medicalization
    the process by which aspects of life that were considered bad or deviant are redefined as sickness and needing medical attention to remedy
    medicalization of deviance
    the process that changes “bad” behavior into “sick” behavior
    mood disorders
    long-term, debilitating illnesses like depression and bipolar disorder
    morbidity
    the incidence of disease
    mortality
    the number of deaths in a given time or place
    personality disorders
    disorders that cause people to behave in ways that are seen as abnormal to society but seem normal to them
    private healthcare
    health insurance that a person buys from a private company; private healthcare can either be employer-sponsored or direct-purchase
    public healthcare
    health insurance that is funded or provided by the government
    sick role
    the pattern of expectations that define appropriate behavior for the sick and for those who take care of them
    social epidemiology
    the study of the causes and distribution of diseases
    socialized medicine
    when the government owns and runs the entire healthcare system
    stereotype interchangeability
    stereotypes that don’t change and that get recycled for application to a new subordinate group
    stigmatization
    the act of spoiling someone's identity; they are labeled as different, discriminated against, and sometimes even shunned due to an illness or disability
    stigmatization of illness
    illnesses that are discriminated against and whose sufferers are looked down upon or even shunned by society
    underinsured
    people who spend at least 10 percent of their income on healthcare costs that are not covered by insurance
    universal healthcare
    a system that guarantees healthcare coverage for everyone

    19.7: Key Terms is shared under a not declared license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by LibreTexts.

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