Pandemics, past and present: The role of biological anthropology in interdisciplinary pandemic studies

Abstract

Biological anthropologists are ideally suited for the study of pandemics given their strengths in human biology, health, culture, and behavior, yet pandemics have historically not been a major focus of research. The COVID‐19 pandemic has reinforced the need to understand pandemic causes and unequal consequences at multiple levels. Insights from past pandemics can strengthen the knowledge base and inform the study of current and future pandemics through an anthropological lens. In this paper, we discuss the distinctive social and epidemiological features of pandemics, as well as the ways in which biological anthropologists have previously studied infectious diseases, epidemics, and pandemics. We then review interdisciplinary research on three pandemics–1918 influenza, 2009 influenza, and COVID‐19–focusing on persistent social inequalities in morbidity and mortality related to sex and gender; race, ethnicity, and Indigeneity; and pre‐existing health and disability. Following this review of the current state of pandemic research on these topics, we conclude with a discussion of ways biological anthropologists can contribute to this field moving forward. Biological anthropologists can add rich historical and cross‐cultural depth to the study of pandemics, provide insights into the biosocial complexities of pandemics using the theory of syndemics, investigate the social and health impacts of stress and stigma, and address important methodological and ethical issues. As COVID‐19 is unlikely to be the last global pandemic, stronger involvement of biological anthropology in pandemic studies and public health policy and research is vital.

Risk perception, adaptation, and resilience during the COVID-19 pandemic in Southeast Alaska Natives

“…There is a general lack of quantitative epidemiological data on the experiences of specifically Indigenous populations apart from aggregate national populations during pandemics, and this dearth can lead to volatile and misleading conclusions about variation within and between populations ( Alves et al, 2022 ). Others have pointed out that high-level population research conflates Indigenous data with those of the larger population ( Chatwood et al, 2012 ), which leads to homogenization of racial, ethnic, nationality, and linguistic categories ( Dimka et al, 2022 ).…”

Biocultural perspectives of infectious diseases and demographic evolution: Tuberculosis and its comorbidities through history

“…17 Recently, Dimka and colleagues have outlined many ways in which biological and biocultural anthropology can contribute to holistic pandemic studies, specifically. 18 One of the earliest and most compelling biocultural analyses was about an infectious disease.…”

“…There has been some notable work that has applied a biocultural framework to infectious diseases studies such as early work linking biology and culture to disease patterns in ancient Nubia, 13 the biosocial integration in the anthropology of infectious diseases, 14 discussions of syphilis in antiquity, 15,16 application of the socioecological model to the AIDS pandemic, 1 and recent applications of biocultural theory to increased vulnerabilities to COVID‐19 among gender and sexual minorities 17 . Recently, Dimka and colleagues have outlined many ways in which biological and biocultural anthropology can contribute to holistic pandemic studies, specifically 18 . One of the earliest and most compelling biocultural analyses was about an infectious disease.…”

Contextualizing pandemics: Respiratory survivorship before, during, and after the 1918 influenza pandemic in Newfoundland

“…Pandemics are typically more severe and geographically extensive than localized outbreaks and tend to be caused by novel pathogens and affect more than one country, continent, or the whole world relatively simultaneously (Dimka et al, 2022). They are regularly occurring phenomena through history, although the definition of a pandemic is not standard across fields (e.g., Doshi, 2011).…”