Health Education and Behavior, Reaction Paper Example

Burke, Joseph, Pasick and Barker suggest that using the social context approaches to understand patient behavior is helping health care policymakers to address disparities within multicultural societies within the United States. Instead of using the social psychological or social ecological model, however, the authors (Burke et al. 56S) that the social context approach should be implemented to understand health related behavior.

Based on the assumption the authors make (Burke et al., 61S) that the relationship between the individual and social context is multidirectional, the main take-away of the article is that indeed effective communication through society’s channels regarding health care choices can have an impact on disparities of disadvantaged and underserved groups’ health related outcomes. However, this statement also indicates that health care providers also need to understand the cultural and social context of these groups, before they would be able to set up a communication plan for health promotion. Assessing the “habitus” of these groups would be the first step towards understanding the reasons behind health disparities.

The authors are right that the behavioral theory needs to be moved from the individual level focus, revealing patterns of beliefs, behaviors and barriers. The cultural and social forces that influence one’s behavior are indeed extremely important. While the authors focus on one particular group: underserved women in the community, this group can consist of various sub-groups, based on social class, education, economic status and ethnic background. All the above aspects influence health choices on the individual level. While Burke et al. provide a framework for approaching and understanding health disparities, the major focus of awareness and prevention programs should be to find and eliminate barriers, originated from the social context of the individual.

References

Burke, N., Rena, G., Pasicjk, R., and Barker, J.  “Theorizing Social Context: Rethinking Behavioral Theory” Health Education & Behavior, Vol. 36 (Suppl. 1): 55S-70S (October 2009)