Social Model Of Health

The idea that health is influenced by more than genetic and biological features has long been beyond dispute. How individuals are socialised, their living and working environments, their opportunities (educational, economic, service access etc.), and broader factors, such as historical events, all impact on a person’s health status (Link & Phelan, 1995). The 1990s saw widespread acknowledgment and a call for action to address these broader sociological determinants. Dahlgren and Whitehead’s (1991) Social Model of Health attempts to “map the relationship between the individual, their environment, and disease (cited in Walker & John, 2011, pg.9).” The Model’s rainbow of determinants shows how various health influences are layered around the individual

The concept of ideology is widely debated in politics, the social sciences, and the media. Ideological forces are often viewed through a negative lens though they are fundamental to the development and cohesion of societies. (Do I need to unpack this more? I am not sure how to explain it concisely. When people discuss ideology it is usually not their own ideology they are discussing. In America they do not talk about neoliberalism because it is so interwoven into the fabric of their lives. They do not see it, it is just accepted as truth. So when you hear Americans discussing ideology they are usually talking about socialism or communism – obviously those are viewed in a negative light when looking at it from a neoliberal value base. Hence most debate about ideology is critical. In reality there are no right or wrong ideologies there is only difference.) In its most basic terms, ideologies are “the fundamental beliefs of a group and its members” (van Dijk, 2003, pg.7) Ideological frameworks guide individual and societal understandings of events, regulate and monitor social practices, and establish what is accepted as reality in any given society (van Dijk, 2003; ). This is reinforced through the discourses of prevailing structures of regulation, mass media, religion, and education. The notion of discourse refers

It was these movements that paved the way for an emerging ideology, neoliberalism, which promised individual autonomy, greater choice, personal responsibility, and meritocratic advancement (McGregor, 2001; Sample, 2002; Fraser, 2013). At the macro level, neoliberalism promotes free trade, privatization, less state interference, and deregulation. The neoliberal ideal places the market in a position of paramount importance and endorses the belief that all human activity should be brought under its scope of influence (Sample 2002; McGregor 2001). Correspondingly, efficiency is viewed as the most important function of the economic system. Neoliberal enthusiasts feel that the most efficient way to allocate resources is by releasing private enterprise from Government imposed regulation and distributing them through mechanisms of the market. Deregulation is championed as the most appropriate solution, the reason being that economic growth benefits everyone. (Thorsen & Lie, ; Martinez & Garcia, ) While privatisation is promoted in the name of greater efficiency, practice has shown that the most common outcome is the further concentration of wealth and resources in the elite. Combine this with the