Objectification, standardization, and commodification in health care: A conceptual readjustment

Historically, medical sociologists have used the interrelated concepts of objectification, commodification, and standardization to point to the pathologies of modern medicine, such as the depersonalization of care and the effects of bureaucratic control. More recent work in science studies, economic...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Social science & medicine (1982) 2009-07, Vol.69 (1), p.21-27
Main Authors: Timmermans, Stefan, Almeling, Rene
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Biological and medical sciences
Biomedicine
Bureaucracy
Clinical psychology
Commodification
Concept Formation
Critical sociology
Critical theory
Health care
Health Care Services
Humans
Medical practice
Medical sciences
Medical Technology
Medicine
Miscellaneous
Models, Theoretical
Objectification, standardization, commodification
Professional-Patient Relations
Public health. Hygiene
Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine
Social Processes
Social research
Sociological analysis
Sociology
Sociology, Medical
Standardization
Theory
Theory Critical sociology Medical practice Objectification
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Historically, medical sociologists have used the interrelated concepts of objectification, commodification, and standardization to point to the pathologies of modern medicine, such as the depersonalization of care and the effects of bureaucratic control. More recent work in science studies, economic sociology, and sociology of health and illness, however, has begun to explore how the social processes of objectification, commodification, and standardization produce a wide variety of biomedical achievements. We provide a theoretical synthesis of this emerging body of scholarship centered upon the intended and unintended consequences of objectification, commodification, and standardization to improve health. We then outline a research agenda that would result from a more comprehensive assessment of how these processes manifest themselves in clinical care.
ISSN:0277-9536
1873-5347
DOI:10.1016/j.socscimed.2009.04.020