Gender, Health and Healing

What do we mean by 'gender' and how does this relate to health? How is 'biology' best understood? What does a focus on the division of labour bring to our understanding of health work? Is (gender) 'equity' in health possible? How have developments such as the resurgence of emotions and the new genetics affected these and other social relations at the turn of the century? These are just some of the questions addressed in Gender, Health and Healing in which a whole range of issues are brought together and connected to emerging concerns in contemporary life such as the new genetics and transformations in biomedical knowledge and practices. It offers a challenging assessment of gender relations and embodied practices across the public/private divide, using health and healing as paradigmatic examples. This thought-provoking volume lies at the intersection of gender studies, the sociology of health and healing, health policy, the critical analysis of scientific knowledge and the current debates around the body, health and emotions. Bringing together new and leading scholars in the field, it provides a unique critical overview of contemporary debates in health care for an interdisciplinary readership.

Gillian Bendelow, Mick Carpenter, Caroline Vautier and Simon Williams are all members of the Centre for Research in Health, Medicine and Society, University of Warwick.

Introduction: Overcoming Divisions Reflections On Tradition, Change and Critical Continuity, Gillian Bendelow, Mick Carpenter, Vautier Caroline, Simon Williams; Part 1 Biology 'Revisited' and Human Reproduction:Old Problems, New Dilemmas?; Chapter 1 Corporeal Reflections On the Biological, Simon J. Williams; Chapter 2 Anchoring the Head, Lynda Birke; Chapter 3 Building Genethics From Below, Hilary Rose; Chapter 4 Why Turn to Speculative Fiction?, Joan Haran; Part 2 Gender (in)Equality and (Emotional) Division of Labour: The 'two Adams' revisited?; Chapter 5 What About the Girl Next Door?, Celia Davies; Chapter 6 Reflections On Women's Unpaid Health Work, Gillian Lewando Hundt; Chapter 7 Shouldering the Burden, Anne Murcott; Chapter 8 The Archaeology of Psychiatric Disorder, Joan Busfield; Chapter 9 Experiences of ADHD, Gillian Bendelow, Geraldine Brady; Part 3 Health Care in Transition: Ferment and change?; Chapter 10 Gender Equity in Health, Lesley Doyal; Chapter 11 Children, Healing, Suffering and Voluntary Consent, Priscilla Alderson; Chapter 12 Integrated Medicine, Ursula Sharma; Chapter 13 Medical Uncertainty Revisited, Renée C. Fox; Chapter 14 Resisting 'Fatal Unclutteredness', Virginia Olesen; Chapter 15 Concluding Comments, Meg Stacey;