SOCI243-25S1 (C) Semester One 2025

Sociology of Health and Wellbeing

15 points

Details:
Start Date: Monday, 17 February 2025
End Date: Sunday, 22 June 2025
Withdrawal Dates
Last Day to withdraw from this course:
  • Without financial penalty (full fee refund): Sunday, 2 March 2025
  • Without academic penalty (including no fee refund): Sunday, 11 May 2025

Description

This course explores the social aspects of health and wellbeing, examining the connection between social structures and health outcomes. Focusing on health institutions, people’s experiences within the health system, and different ways of constructing health and illness, we will look at inequalities and health, culture and health, mental health, doctor-patient relationships, and health advocacy, amongst other topics. Students gain a broad understanding of the Aotearoa New Zealand health scene. Students will also have an opportunity to think about health and wellbeing in relation to their own lives and, through community service learning, to apply classroom learning about health and wellbeing issues to real-time situations.

Learning Outcomes

  • By the end of this course, we will be able to:
  • discuss patterns of health inequalities in Aotearoa New Zealand (and beyond), recognising how
    social class, race/ethnicity, gender/sex, and other sociodemographic factors shape health and
    illness over the life course;
  • become familiar with a range of sociological theories related to health, illness and medicine;
  • critically reflect on the place and role of medicine and public health in contemporary society and
    everyday life (*think about health and illness in relation to our own lives);
  • discuss the relationship between social organisation and health outcomes;
  • apply classroom learning about health-related issues to real-time situations in our society
    through community service learning
    • University Graduate Attributes

      This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attributes specified below:

      Critically competent in a core academic discipline of their award

      Students know and can critically evaluate and, where applicable, apply this knowledge to topics/issues within their majoring subject.

      Employable, innovative and enterprising

      Students will develop key skills and attributes sought by employers that can be used in a range of applications.

      Biculturally competent and confident

      Students will be aware of and understand the nature of biculturalism in Aotearoa New Zealand, and its relevance to their area of study and/or their degree.

      Engaged with the community

      Students will have observed and understood a culture within a community by reflecting on their own performance and experiences within that community.

      Globally aware

      Students will comprehend the influence of global conditions on their discipline and will be competent in engaging with global and multi-cultural contexts.

Prerequisites

Any 15 points at 100 level from ANTH or SOCI, or
any 60 points at 100 level from the Schedule V of the BA.

Restrictions

SOCI343

Timetable 2025

Students must attend one activity from each section.

Workshop A
Activity Day Time Location Weeks
01 Tuesday 09:00 - 11:00 F1 Lectorial
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun
Workshop B
Activity Day Time Location Weeks
01 Wednesday 14:00 - 15:00 Rata 222 & 223 Drawing Office
17 Feb - 6 Apr
28 Apr - 1 Jun

Course Coordinator

Shinya Uekusa

Assessment

Assessment Due Date Percentage  Description
Seminar participation 10% Throughout semester
Service Learning (20 hours) 15% Throughout semester
Group project presentation: Sociological analysis of health inequality 5% Due Week 7
Group project paper: Sociological analysis of health inequality 20% Due Week 7
Reflection paper 10% Interactions with health professionals - Due week 8
Final project paper 40% Due week 12

Textbooks / Resources

Recommended Reading

Dew K., Scott, A. & Kirkman, A. Springer Nature; Social, Political and Cultural Dimensions of Health ; 2016 (E-version of this book is available at: https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-319-31508-9).

William C. Cockerham. Wiley Blackwell; The Wiley Blackwell Companion to Medical Sociology ; 2021 (E-version of this book is available at: http://ezproxy.canterbury.ac.nz/login?url=http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/book/10. 1002/9781119633808).

Indicative Fees

Domestic fee $894.00

International fee $4,100.00

* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.

Minimum enrolments

This course will not be offered if fewer than 15 people apply to enrol.

For further information see Language, Social and Political Sciences .

All SOCI243 Occurrences

  • SOCI243-25S1 (C) Semester One 2025