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Unit 10 Health and Social Care Distinction
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A completed coursework unit at Distinction level.
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IntroductionAs a part of Unit 10: Sociological Perspectives, I am required to explore the various
sociological perspectives and approaches, as well as how that impacts the treatment
of individuals in society. Furthermore, I will also be researching sociological findings
and learning how to apply the research to practical scenarios to promote best
practice. Throughout this unit, I will gain knowledge of various perspectives and
concepts which I will learn to apply to a health and social care setting whilst also
understanding various models, such as the Biomedical model of health, and taking
them into consideration whilst writing my report. I will be developing my
understanding of differing social groups and cultures and looking at them in relation
to recent changes in health and social care to examine the effects of various
sociological perspectives on health and social care practice.
Learning Aim A requires me to understand how various sociological concepts and
perspectives are applied to health and social care. For Learning Aim B, I will be
examining how sociological approaches support understanding of models and
concepts of health, such as the biomedical model of health. Learning Aim C requires
examination of how social inequalities, demographic changes, and patterns/trends
affect the delivery of health and social care services.
Learning Aim A | Understand how sociological concepts and perspectives are
applied to the study of health and social care
A.P1 | Explain how sociological perspectives are applied to the understanding
of health and social care.
According to sociologists, society can be defined as “a large group of interacting
people in a defined territory, sharing a common culture” (Sociology Dictionary, 2018).
Across the world, there are many varying societies with differing beliefs or cultures
that impact their lifestyle, often interactions between one society will involve a variety
of customs such as kissing on the cheek as a greeting for a variety of societies in
France and Spain. Many sociologists will take the definition of a society further by
arguing that “society is also the social structure and interactions of that group of
people” (WikiBooks, 2019) as society is also often characterised by the interactions
and structures within it. Societies can usually be identified through observing specific
interactions and customs that are unique to them and will therefore not be present in
other societies.
There is frequently a debate over whether behaviours and characteristics displayed
by an individual are caused by their genetic makeup (nature) or their environment
and upbringing (nurture). Conditions and disorders caused by genetic
predispositions or mutations in an individual's genetics can result in differing
behavioural characteristics, however, environmental factors such as an individual's
upbringing may have an impact on their interaction within a society as well as their
behavioural traits. Furthermore, a combination of both genetic and external factors
can impact an individual's ability to interact and immerse themselves within a society
which can result in social isolation and rejection which can have detrimental impact
on the health and wellbeing of individuals.
Across the globe, many individuals are often brought up away from society and
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,therefore will not adhere to societal norms and behaviours if they are reintegrated
due to experiencing different socialisation and being brought up without standards or
customs to follow. Individuals that live away from society may do so for a variety of
reasons, for example they may: be neglected, live off the grid, be travellers or part of
tribes or be social rejects. An individual may be a social reject if they have been
“deliberately excluded” (The Free Dictionary, 2019) from a society, either by
individuals or the collective group which can “influence emotion, cognition and even
physical health” (APA, 2018).
Examples of individuals that have been brought up away from society include feral
children who are children that “through either accident or deliberate isolation, have
grown up with limited human contact” (Britannica, 2019). Feral children are often
seen as untamed due to their lack of human contact which can result in a lack of
self-control and poor socialisation abilities. In 1724, a feral child was identified in
Hanover and was called Wild Peter, “he climbed trees with ease, lived off plants and
seemed incapable of speech” (Frietha.K, 2008). Wild Peter displayed similar
mannerisms to those of a forest animal which suggested that he had never
experienced primary or secondary socialisation and had learnt his behaviours
through observing whatever animals he was exposed to. Peter was eventually taken
to England to the court of King George I where he was studied vigorously, however
never learnt to verbally communicate more than three words.
Attempts to civilise Peter over his time in England were vastly unsuccessful which
can now be explained by a recent likely diagnosis of a genetic disorder called Pitt-
Hopkins which causes severe developmental delays and an inability to develop
speech. Many years later, Peter was sold to a farmer in Hertfordshire who made him
wear a dog collar and attempted to control his behaviours. Upon Peters death, he
was buried with a headstone that was treasured by their locals and frequently had
flowers displayed upon it due to their fondness of Peter. Despite Peters poor social
skills being partially explainable by his queried genetic disorder, his upbringing in the
wild would have severely prevented and delayed his development, resulting in a feral
child.
Another example of a famous feral child is Genie, a child who was left in isolation for
over 13 years and was abused by her father. Under the command of her father,
“Genie was kept in a small room deprived of care, food, sunlight, human contact,
learning, and love” (Vintage News, 2018) which resulted in her having extremely
poor social and cognitive abilities. She quickly became a Psychology research
project due the severity of her condition, however, her abilities never fully developed
due to the extreme trauma she experienced. Genie’s condition and delayed
development has been explained as being due to the trauma she experienced
combined with her lack of human contact preventing her from being able to
experience society and develop the skills necessary to gain independence.
Socialisation is “a continuing process whereby an individual acquires a personal
identity and learns the norms, values, behavior, and social skills appropriate to his or
her social position.” (Dictionary, 2018). There are two types of socialisation: primary
and secondary, both of which help an individual to develop the necessary social
skills and understanding of society. Primary socialisation is the process of learning
about societal norms, values and behaviours through family contact, typically with a
primary carer and/or close relatives. Secondary socialisation is learnt through a
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,wider society, for example a child learning about norms through their peers at school
would be secondary socialisation.
For example, a child may experience primary socialisation with their family where
they may learn about polite behaviours such as shaking someone’s hand upon
greeting them and driving on the left hand side of the road. Identity is “understanding
a person has of themselves” (Mindful Hypnosis, 2018) and can be influenced by and
individuals behaviours and role in society. Many individuals may struggle with their
identity if they have feelings of insecurity due to lacking a strong role in society or
their identity not conforming with their core values/beliefs or their societies norms.
For example, someone questioning their sexuality in a Christian family may feel
conflicted and struggle with their identity due to being torn between being truthful
with themselves and adhering to their societies normal and accepted behaviours.
Values learnt through socialisation can be defined as “the moral principles and
beliefs or accepted standards of a person or social group” (Collins, 2019), they
typically vary between societies due to differing beliefs/cultures. Values can often
influence an individual's idea of norms, roles and statuses in society, for example a
Jehovah's Witness would hold the value that ingesting blood is unacceptable due to
it being written in the Bible which would then result in them not accepting blood
transfusions and possibly having a lower opinion of a Christian that would accept
and ingest blood due to them holding different core values.
Societal norms are “unwritten rules about how to behave” (Simply Psychology, 2008)
that provide individuals with an idea of what behaviour is seen as acceptable by a
society. Social norms provide sociologists with more information and understanding
of the influence of society on behaviour and conformity in particular as they are often
seen as natural behaviour but individuals would not disrupt them and act differently
to the social norm. An example of a societal norm is calling teachers and respected
professionals by their title and surname, such as Mr Smith, however with age this
norm changes and often in Sixth Form education, many individuals will call teachers
by their first name as it is a changed societal norm. Across human lifespan and
throughout all six life stages, societal norms will change and result in different
behaviours being displayed by each age group in certain situations. Furthermore,
social norms will also differ in different settings, countries and time periods due to a
different perceived expectation. Differing cultures will have different social norms, for
example an Indian family may be unlikely to send their relative to live in a residential
home due to their belief and norm that they are expected to care for their extended
family, however a British family may have different norms so will therefore act
according to their own norms and beliefs.
In many societies, there are statuses which are often “based on the expectations we
have of someone” (Medley-Rath.S , 2015), such as a Doctor or a Mother. Typically,
individuals in societies will look up to other individuals of higher statuses due to them
having the desired characteristics and life which often makes them a role model to
various individuals. Statuses often act as a hierarchy in societies, with individuals at
the top often being seen as the most honourable or prestigious. Statuses can be
either ascribed - “assigned to individuals at birth without reference to any innate
abilities” (Britannica, 2019) or achieved which requires skills and knowledge to move
up statuses. “Ascribed status is typically based on sex, age, race, family
relationships, or birth, while achieved status may be based on education,
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, occupation, marital status, accomplishments, or other factors.” (Britannica, 2019).
In many North American Tribes, statuses are ascribed rather than achieved; for
example a child in a Tribe will become chief if the elder dies, rather than having to
develop the skills required to control a Tribe. However, in many Western societies,
status is achieved through moving up the social ladder via gaining academic or
social experience. For example, in health and social care, a Doctor may have a
higher status than a Nurse due to their more extensive educational qualifications,
combined with their more weighted responsibilities in health and social care,
however, a Nurse may gain more status through working for many years to become
a Matron or Ward Sister.
The role of an individual in society is defined as the “behaviour expected of an
individual who occupies a given social position or status” (Britannica, 2019) and is
typically based on an individual's skills or abilities. Social roles can change according
to each social group and individual belongs to as they may not exhibit the same
behaviours and characteristics in all of their roles or within all of their social groups.
Expectations in roles can include both physical tasks, such as a Doctor administering
medication, as well as qualities such as being respectful and caring. Many
individuals in societies may have a variety of roles, for example a woman may be a:
mother, girlfriend, sister, daughter, and Doctor, however the individual will typically
exhibit behaviours associated with each role in a different setting. If an individual has
multiple roles, they may experience role conflict where they are unsure of which role
to take on in a scenario, such as if a teacher’s child becomes injured at school, they
will experience social conflict as they will be unsure whether to act as a mother or a
teacher in response to the situation.
Social class “refers to divisions in
society based on economic and
social status” (Thompson.K, 2016),
however many individuals will have
differing perspectives on what
defines and makes up social class.
Society in the UK is split into three
classes: lower, middle and upper;
lower class individuals are typically
involved in manual work and have
low educational levels of
achievement, middle class
individuals often have low levels of
manual work and have higher educational achievements and upper class individuals
are typically seen as elite and controlling of society. Social class can often prevent
individuals from accessing health and social care services due to their fear of
judgement or lack of funds to pay for private healthcare, this results in lower class
individuals having poorer health and wellbeing. Due to lower class individuals often
having poorer health, the NHS has since put more funding into areas with high
percentages of ill health and poverty to try and combat the health crisis and
subsequently be able to effectively promote the health and wellbeing of all
individuals across the UK, no matter what their social class is.
When an individual is in lower class, they are likely to have less access to health and
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