Sj. Williams et M. Calnan, THE LIMITS OF MEDICALIZATION - MODERN MEDICINE AND THE LAY POPULACE IN LATE MODERNITY, Social science & medicine, 42(12), 1996, pp. 1609-1620
Citations number
85
Categorie Soggetti
Social Sciences, Biomedical","Public, Environmental & Occupation Heath
Taking as its point of departure the medicalization thesis and its lim
itations, this paper provides a critical discussion of certain more re
cent theoretical perspectives on life in contemporary society, and the
ir relevance for understanding the relationship between modern medicin
e and the lay populace. In particular, attention is paid to the contou
rs and existential parameters of life in 'late' modernity in terms of
the following four key themes: (i) modernity as a 'reflexive' social o
rder; (ii) 'risk' and the dialectic of scientific and social rationali
ty; (iii) the 'mediation' of contemporary experience; and (iv) lay 're
-skilling' and the 'life political' agenda. On the basis of this, it i
s argued that far from being simply passive and dependent, a 'critical
distance' is beginning to emerge between modern medicine-and the lay
populace; a situation which resonates with broader social trends and c
urrents within society at large. Copyright (C) 1996 Elsevier Science L
td.