Sociocultural dimensions of tuberculosis: an overview of key concepts

Abstract

Abstract:Biomedical innovations are unlikely to provide effective and ethical TB control measures without complementary social science research. However, a strong interest in interdisciplinary work is often undermined by differences in language and concepts specific to each disciplinary approach. Accordingly, biological and social scientists need to learn how to communicate with each other. This article will outline key concepts relating to tuberculosis from medical anthropology and health sociology. Distilling these concepts in an introductory framework is intended to make this material accessible for researchers in laboratory, clinical and fieldwork settings, as well as to encourage more social scientists to engage with tuberculosis research among target groups critical for successful programmatic interventions. For pedagogical purposes, the relevant concepts are grouped into three categories, (1) structures and settings, which includes overarching themes such as syndemics, local biologies, medicalisation, structural violence and surveillance, (2) practices and processes, encompassing gender, stigma, taboo, and victim blaming, and (3) experience and enculturation, which includes illness narratives, biographical disruption and dynamic nominalism. By helping to navigate this literature, we hope to foster more cross-disciplinary conversations between qualitative and quantitative researchers. Tuberculosis, a quintessential social disease, will be controlled more effectively using a multi-stranded research approach. | P a g e Keywords:Gender, Stigma, Surveillance, Syndemics, Social determinants Abstract in FrenchLes innovations du domaine biomédical ont peu de chances de fournir des mesures de lutte contre la tuberculose (TB) à la fois efficaces et éthiques sans recherché complémentaire en sciences sociales. Cependant, le grand intérêt vis-à-vis du travail interdisciplinaire est souvent entravé par des différences de langage et de concepts spécifiques à chaque approche disciplinaire. Les chercheurs en biologie et en sciences sociales doivent apprendre à communiquer entre eux. Cet article va exposer les concepts clés relatifs à la TB en anthropologie médicale et sciences sociales. Distiller ces concepts dans un cadre conceptuel introductif vise à rendre ce matériel accessible aux chercheurs dans les laboratoires, en clinique et sur le terrain, ainsi qu'à encourager davantage de chercheurs en sciences sociales à s'engager dans la recherche sur la TB au sein des groupes cibles cruciaux en termes de succès des interventions. Pour des raisons pédagogiques, les concepts pertinents sont groupés en trois catégories: 1) structures et contextes qui incluent des thèmes transversaux comme les syndémies, la biologie locale, la médicalisation, la violence structurelle et la surveillance; 2) les pratiques et processus incluant le genre, la stigmatisation, les tabous et la culpabilisation des victimes; et 3) l'expérience et l'inculturation qui incluent les récits de maladies, la rupture biographique et le nominalisme dynamique. En...

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