By tracking the distribution of disease and pinpointing relevant risk factors, social epidemiology reveals how social problems are intrinsically linked to the health of populations. The practice also takes into account the psychosocial, biological, and medical determinants of disease and health, encouraging a rich and multidisciplinary approach to analyzing and solving complex contemporary social issues. This book provides a clear and comprehensive set of tools for practice. Julie Cwikel begins with an overview of the historical roots of public health and social medicine and shows how they formed the theoretical basis for current social epidemiological methods. Cwikel then explains the theoretical and programmatic tools social epidemiologists use in their research, program planning, and evaluation. In conclusion, Cwikel demonstrates how the SOCEPID model can be applied to a range of topics, including chronic illness, obesity, violence prevention, occupational health, sexually transmitted diseases (especially HIV), environmental hazards, and addressing the needs of vulnerable populations such as immigrants and trafficked women. With compelling authority, Cwikel shows readers how the exciting and growing field of social epidemiology is both practical and activist, drawing on cutting-edge empirical findings to conduct policymaking research and promote health at both the personal and population levels.

Social epidemiology is the study of how social interactions—social norms, laws, institutions, conventia, social conditions and behavior—affect the health of populations. This practical, comprehensive introduction to methods in social epidemiology is written by experts in the field. It is perfectly timed for the growth in interest among those in public health, community health, preventive medicine, sociology, political science, social work, and other areas of social research. Topics covered are: Introduction: Advancing Methods in Social Epidemiology The History of Methods of Social Epidemilogy to 1965 Indicators of Socioeconomic Position Measuring and Analyzing 'Race' Racism and Racial Discrimination Measuring Poverty Measuring Health Inequalities A Conceptual Framework for Measuring Segregation and its Association with Population Outcomes Measures of Residential Community Contexts Using Census Data to Approximate Neighborhood Effects Community-based Participatory Research: Rationale and Relevance for Social Epidemiology Network Methods in Social Epidemiology Identifying Social Interactions: A Review, Multilevel Studies Experimental Social Epidemiology: Controlled Community Trials Propensity Score Matching Methods for Social Epidemiology Natural Experiments and Instrumental Variable Analyses in Social Epidemiology and Using Causal Diagrams to Understand Common Problems in Social Epidemiology. "Publication of this highly informative textbook clearly reflects the coming of age of many social epidemiology methods, the importance of which rests on their potential contribution to significantly improving the effectiveness of the population-based approach to prevention. This book should be of great interest not only to more advanced epidemiology students but also to epidemiologists in general, particularly those concerned with health policy and the translation of epidemiologic findings into public health practice. The cause of achieving a ‘more complete’ epidemiology envisaged by the editors has been significantly advanced by this excellent textbook." —Moyses Szklo, professor of epidemiology and editor-in-chief, American Journal of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins University "Social epidemiology is a comparatively new field of inquiry that seeks to describe and explain the social and geographic distribution of health and of the determinants of health. This book considers the major methodological challenges facing this important field. Its chapters, written by experts in a variety of disciplines, are most often authoritative, typically provocative, and often debatable, but always worth reading." —Stephen W. Raudenbush, Lewis-Sebring Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Chicago "The roadmap for a new generation of social epidemiologists. The publication of this treatise is a significant event in the history of the discipline." —Ichiro Kawachi, professor of social epidemiology, Department of Society, Human Development, and Health, Harvard University "Methods in Social Epidemiology not only illuminates the difficult questions that future generations of social epidemiologists must ask, it also identifies the paths they must boldly travel in the pursuit of answers, if this exciting interdisciplinary science is to realize its full potential. This beautifully edited volume appears at just the right moment to exert a profound influence on the field." —Sherman A. James, Susan B. King Professor of Public Policy Studies, professor of Community and Family Medicine, professor of African-American Studies, Duke University

Social epidemiology is the study of how the social world influences -- and in many cases defines -- the fundamental determinants of health. This link was substantiated in the first edition of Social Epidemiology, and the generation of research that followed has fundamentally changed the way we understand epidemiology and public health. This much-awaited second edition elevates the field again, first by codifying the last decade of research, then by extending it to examine how public policies impact health. The new edition includes: · 11 fully updated chapters, including entries on the links between health and discrimination, income inequality, social networks, and emotion · Four all-new chapters on the role of policies in shaping health, including how to translate evidence into action with multi-level interventions · Updated references, detailing the best research over the last two decades The result is a bold, brilliant text that will serve the new world of epidemiology in which scientists both observe health and design interventions to improve it. Social Epidemiology again sets an intellectual agenda and provides an essential foundation for those interested in social determinants of health around the world.

To date, much of the empirical work in social epidemiology has demonstrated the existence of health inequalities along a number of axes of social differentiation. However, this research, in isolation, will not inform effective solutions to health inequalities. Rethinking Social Epidemiology provides an expanded vision of social epidemiology as a science of change, one that seeks to better address key questions related to both the causes of social inequalities in health (problem-focused research) as well as the implementation of interventions to alleviate conditions of marginalization and poverty (solution-focused research). This book is ideally suited for emerging and practicing social epidemiologists as well as graduate students and health professionals in related disciplines.

An introduction to state-of-the-art modeling and simulation approaches for social and economic determinants of population health New Horizons in Modeling and Simulation for Social Epidemiology and Public Health offers a comprehensive introduction to modeling and simulation that addresses the many complex research questions in social epidemiology and public health. This book highlights a variety of practical applications and illustrative examples with a focus on modeling and simulation approaches for the social and economic determinants of population health. The book contains classic case examples in agent-based modeling (ABM) as well as essential information on ABM applications to public health including for infectious disease modeling, obesity, and tobacco control. This book also surveys applications of microsimulation (MSM) including of tax-benefit policies to project impacts of the social determinants of health. Specifically, this book: Provides an overview of the social determinants of health and the public health significance of addressing the social determinants of health Gives a conceptual foundation for the application of ABM and MSM to study the social determinants of health Offers methodological introductions to both ABM and MSM approaches with illustrative examples Includes cutting-edge systematic reviews of empirical applications of ABM and MSM in the social sciences, social epidemiology, and public health Discusses future directions for empirical research using ABM and MSM, including integrating aspects of both ABM and MSM and implications for public health policies Written for a broad audience of policy analysts, public planners, and researchers and practitioners in public health and public policy including social epidemiologists, New Horizons in Modeling and Simulation for Social Epidemiology and Public Health offers a fundamental guide to the social determinants of health and state-of-the-art applications of ABM and MSM to studying the social and economic determinants of population health.

This concise, conceptually rich, and accessible book is a rallying cry for a return to the study and discussion of epidemiologic theory: what it is, why it matters, how it has changed over time, and its implications for improving population health and promoting health equity. By tracing its history and contours from ancient societies on through the development of--and debates within--contemporary epidemiology worldwide, Dr. Krieger shows how epidemiologic theory has long shaped epidemiologic practice, knowledge, and the politics of public health.

Social epidemiology is the study of how social interactions—social norms, laws, institutions, conventia, social conditions and behavior—affect the health of populations. This practical, comprehensive introduction to methods in social epidemiology is written by experts in the field. It is perfectly timed for the growth in interest among those in public health, community health, preventive medicine, sociology, political science, social work, and other areas of social research. Topics covered are: Introduction: Advancing Methods in Social Epidemiology The History of Methods of Social Epidemilogy to 1965 Indicators of Socioeconomic Position Measuring and Analyzing 'Race' Racism and Racial Discrimination Measuring Poverty Measuring Health Inequalities A Conceptual Framework for Measuring Segregation and its Association with Population Outcomes Measures of Residential Community Contexts Using Census Data to Approximate Neighborhood Effects Community-based Participatory Research: Rationale and Relevance for Social Epidemiology Network Methods in Social Epidemiology Identifying Social Interactions: A Review, Multilevel Studies Experimental Social Epidemiology: Controlled Community Trials Propensity Score Matching Methods for Social Epidemiology Natural Experiments and Instrumental Variable Analyses in Social Epidemiology and Using Causal Diagrams to Understand Common Problems in Social Epidemiology. "Publication of this highly informative textbook clearly reflects the coming of age of many social epidemiology methods, the importance of which rests on their potential contribution to significantly improving the effectiveness of the population-based approach to prevention. This book should be of great interest not only to more advanced epidemiology students but also to epidemiologists in general, particularly those concerned with health policy and the translation of epidemiologic findings into public health practice. The cause of achieving a ‘more complete’ epidemiology envisaged by the editors has been significantly advanced by this excellent textbook." —Moyses Szklo, professor of epidemiology and editor-in-chief, American Journal of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins University "Social epidemiology is a comparatively new field of inquiry that seeks to describe and explain the social and geographic distribution of health and of the determinants of health. This book considers the major methodological challenges facing this important field. Its chapters, written by experts in a variety of disciplines, are most often authoritative, typically provocative, and often debatable, but always worth reading." —Stephen W. Raudenbush, Lewis-Sebring Distinguished Service Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Chicago "The roadmap for a new generation of social epidemiologists. The publication of this treatise is a significant event in the history of the discipline." —Ichiro Kawachi, professor of social epidemiology, Department of Society, Human Development, and Health, Harvard University "Methods in Social Epidemiology not only illuminates the difficult questions that future generations of social epidemiologists must ask, it also identifies the paths they must boldly travel in the pursuit of answers, if this exciting interdisciplinary science is to realize its full potential. This beautifully edited volume appears at just the right moment to exert a profound influence on the field." —Sherman A. James, Susan B. King Professor of Public Policy Studies, professor of Community and Family Medicine, professor of African-American Studies, Duke University

Social factors affect health. Social epidemiologists have shown not only the harmful effects of stress and the helpful ones of social support but also the importance of the wider physical and social environment. This raises two questions for health promotion research. How can we better understand the social determinants of health and disease? How can healthy public policy transform present knowledge into action? This book gives some of the most recent, relevant and reliable answers to both. The first part of the book focuses on healthy public policy: expanding health policy from a concern solely with illness and health care to multisectoral policies to create environments that promote health. the other four parts examine important issues in health promotion: social and behavioural factors, appropriate settings, special populations and community intervention.

This book assembles a wide range of explanatory perspectives on social inequalities in health. Everywhere in the world, those with less advantage die younger and suffer more illness than the wealthy. Decades of research have documented this reality and yet we lack a comprehensive understanding of the mechanisms through which social circumstances ultimately influence the biological processes that lead to disease. Explanations have been proposed from various disciplines – economics, psychology, behavioral science, geography, and neuroscience – and each sheds light on parts of the overall process. But very few texts assemble these insights into an overall explanatory paradigm. Through a review of concepts and theories from a wide range of disciplines, the author outlines how these may be woven together to offer a more complete picture of how social influences 'get under the skin' to affect health and disease. As well as understanding individual health, the book assembles explanations for social disparities in health. It concludes with a proposal for a set of explanatory models that cross disciplinary boundaries. Topics explored include: Social Inequalities in Health Explanation and Causal Models for Social Epidemiology Social and Economic Theories to Explain Patterns of Disease Biological Pathways Linking Social Determinants to Health Theoretical Models of Health Behavior Work Environment and Health Social Networks, Social Support and Health Positive Influences on Health: Coping and Control The Relationship Between Personality and Health Understanding Health Determinants: Explanatory Theories for Social Epidemiology is a textbook for graduate students in epidemiology, health sciences, health policy, and psychology, as well as social science students who are studying health. It will also be of interest to general readers, and can serve as a reference for researchers in epidemiology and the health sciences who are planning studies of the social determinants of health. The book reviews theories that could be tested in such studies.

To date, much of the empirical work in social epidemiology has demonstrated the existence of health inequalities along a number of axes of social differentiation. However, this research, in isolation, will not inform effective solutions to health inequalities. Rethinking Social Epidemiology provides an expanded vision of social epidemiology as a science of change, one that seeks to better address key questions related to both the causes of social inequalities in health (problem-focused research) as well as the implementation of interventions to alleviate conditions of marginalization and poverty (solution-focused research). This book is ideally suited for emerging and practicing social epidemiologists as well as graduate students and health professionals in related disciplines.