Third ISA Forum of Sociology (July 10-14, 2016)

190

Exploring the Nexus of Health, Religion/Spirituality and Healing

RC15 Sociology of Health (host committee)

Language: English

The variability of health, illness, and medicine in different socio-cultural contexts is well known and acknowledged in sociology, but what is less known is the relationship between health and the various modes of healing adopted by human groups, especially those in non-western societies. Until recently, non-biomedical forms of healing had been relatively confined to non-western societies.
However, the ubiquitous forms of non-western healing practices in western societies (referred to as alternative medicine or holistic medicine) today suggest their increasing popularity and appeal as an important alternative to biomedicine. 
Within the context of dwindling economic fortunes, invasive biomedicines, and the need for wholeness, it is appropriate to examine the complex and often misunderstood relationship between health, religion/spirituality and the healing process. 
In this session, we will explore this grey area of health and medicine. We invite theoretical and/or empirical papers that focus on any aspect of the following areas: 

• interrogation of the key concepts of healing, curing, religion/spirituality and sickness/illness; 
• theorization of the body in relation to illness and healing; 
• esoteric and metaphoric language in the healing process; 
• the socio-economic dimension of alternative medicine; 
• gender differentials in healing practices; 
• religion/spirituality and chronic diseases.

Posters: