Author's personal copy
Social Science Contributions to Public Health: Overview
Jeannine Coreil, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Karen E Dyer, School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
! 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
This article is an updated version of the previous edition article by Jeannine Coreil, volume 6, pp. 101–114, ! 2008, Elsevier Inc.
History social and behavioral sciences. The most important challenges
for improving health in the twenty-first century involve social,
Public health has always been concerned with the ways in cultural, and behavioral change. Our knowledge about how
which social conditions influence the health and well-being social and behavioral factors affect health has grown enor-
of communities and human populations. The disciplines of mously, but achieving the individual and societal changes
public health and the social sciences emerged in the latter needed to reach public health goals is no easy task. Political
part of the nineteenth century along with a recognition of the and economic barriers deeply rooted in the social order
needs of the poor and marginalized groups and the association constrain what is practically feasible. Nevertheless, new
between living conditions and health. However, it was not until emerging approaches to structural change offer possibilities
the mid-twentieth century that professionally trained social for surmounting these obstacles and producing higher levels
scientists became actively involved in public health programs, of global community health.
and by the 1980s, accredited schools of public health in the Table 1 highlights important milestones in the history of
United States were required to provide formal training in the social science contributions to public health. In the
Table 1 Important milestones in the history of social sciences in public health
Period Event Significance
Greco-Roman and Islamic Organized efforts to protect the health of vulnerable Emergence of social welfare values in society; use of
populations preventive practices for both physical and mental health
Nineteenth century European social theorists define medicine/public health as Social factors identified as fundamental causes of health
‘social science’ and illness: political advocacy for social reform
Nineteenth century Snow and Farr in Britain, Panus in Denmark, and others Use of social science methods for epidemiological
investigation
Late nineteenth century Sanitary movement Organized efforts to improve lifestyle, living, and working
conditions of urban poor within industrializing nations
1948 WHO defines ‘health’ to include mental and social well- Set stage for addressing psychosocial factors in health
being and illness
1950s Anthropological and sociological research on community Recognition of the role of cultural factors in public health
health interventions; first planned culture change projects to
improve health; and conceptualization of the sick-role
1955 Medical Sociology Section of the American Sociological Medical sociology attains subdisciplinary status
Association established
1958 Publication of the health belief model Launched the health behavior change paradigm for public
health intervention
1964 US Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health Beginning of movement to reduce health behavior risks to
public health
1967 Society for Medical Anthropology formed Established to promote the study of health, disease,
illness, treatment, and care
1978 Health Psychology Section of American Psychological The field of health behavior research and intervention is
Association established professionally recognized
1978 Alma Ata Conference on Primary Health Care Set long-term global agenda to develop comprehensive,
community-based approaches to promote basic health
1980s Behavioral and Social Science Council of the US Formalization of social and behavioral sciences as integral
Association of Schools of Public Health established component of public health training programs in the
United States
1986 Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, WHO Identified fundamental social prerequisites for ensuring
health and well-being
2005 Bangkok Charter for Health Promotion, WHO Reaffirmed social prerequisites and highlighted role of
economic development in health promotion
2008 WHO Commission on the Social Determinants of Health Released final commissioned report on strategies to
achieve improved and more equal health worldwide
2011 Rio Political Declaration on Social Determinants of Health, Expressed global political commitment for the use of
WHO a social determinants of health approach to addressing
health inequities
International Encyclopedia of Public Health, 2nd edition, Volume 6 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-803678-5.00419-7 599
International Encyclopedia of Public Health, Second Edition, 2, 2017, 599–611
, Author's personal copy
600 Social Science Contributions to Public Health: Overview
nineteenth century, social theorists in Europe called atten- The 1950s: Seminal Developments
tion to the unequal distribution of infectious disease among
The post–World War II era ushered in a period of tremen-
the poor and working classes, citing unhealthy living condi-
dous growth and development for the social and behavioral
tions of crowded urban slums, inadequate diet, and physi-
sciences in public health. There were two main thrusts of this
cally taxing labor as contributing to the poor health of the
groundbreaking era, one focused on healthcare moderniza-
disadvantaged. Many important figures contributed to
tion in developing countries, and the other focused on
a broad discourse that framed public health issues as socially
population-based screening for medical conditions. It was
produced, some with an overt political agenda such as Marx
an era of great optimism about the potential for social engi-
and Engels, others with a more epidemiological approach
neering of health development and the application of social
such as Snow, Panum, and Farr, some as activist physicians
science methods to understanding and improving the health
such as Villermé and Guérin, and still others with a more
of populations (e.g., Paul, 1956). In the international arena,
sociological orientation such as Virchow and Durkheim.
anthropologists in the 1930s and 1940s had begun working
Often referred to as nineteenth-century ‘social medicine,’
on projects aimed at improving the health and diet of tradi-
the contributions of this period are significant for establish-
tional populations (Firth, 1934; Richards, 1939; Malinowski,
ing the idea that public health is a social science and that
1945). Diet and nutrition were an important focus of these
social structures and change generate population-level health
activities, exemplified by the hiring of Ruth Benedict, Mar-
effects. Social reform to improve health is rooted in the early
garet Mead, and others by the US National Research Coun-
work of advocates such as Virchow and Chadwick. The late
cil’s Committee on Food Habits. Beginning in 1950,
nineteenth century saw the rise of the Sanitary Movement,
a number of anthropologists were appointed to key positions
with organized efforts to improve standards of hygiene,
with international health organizations, including Cora
living, and working conditions. However, the turn of the
DuBois at the World Health Organization, Edward Wellin
century ushered in the bacteriological era, and attention
at the Rockefeller Foundation, Benjamin Paul at the Harvard
shifted to the discovery and control of biological pathogens
School of Public Health, and George Foster and others at the
in the early decades of the twentieth century.
Institute for Inter-American Affairs, forerunner of the
The growth of social and behavioral science applications
US Agency for International Development. As Coreil writes:
in public health was strengthened by the redefinition of
health in 1948 by the newly formed World Health Organiza-
tion (WHO) as “a state of complete physical, mental and The appointment of anthropologists to institutional posts paralleled
social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or the rapid expansion of public health programs worldwide as modern
infirmity.” Since that time, WHO and other national and medicine was introduced on a large scale in many areas. The primary
international organizations have affirmed the importance role of anthropologists was seen as that of identifying significant
cultural barriers to the acceptance of new public health programs.
of psychosocial well-being as an integral component of Coreil (1990: p. 5).
health. This expanded conceptualization of health required
the expertise of many disciplines to formulate policies and
design programs to improve health conditions around the
globe. The scope of health promotion again expanded in Many of the important development projects of this era
1986 with the adoption of the Ottawa Charter for Health are described in the classic volume edited by Benjamin Paul,
Promotion, which identified fundamental prerequisites for Health, Culture and Community (1955). These studies defined
a healthy society, including peace, shelter, education, food, culture as a barrier to desirable health practice and introduced
income, a stable ecosystem, sustainable resources, social the role of social scientist as a culture broker whose expertise
justice, and equity. This broad agenda set the stage for an could be applied to facilitate directed change. In particular,
even greater role for social science in public health. The the focus was on diffusion of health technology to solve prob-
need for comprehensive, multisector approaches to global lems of ‘underdevelopment’ by overcoming resistance to
health promotion was reaffirmed and further outlined in change grounded in traditional values, institutions, and prac-
2005 through the Bangkok Charter for Health Promotion. tices. The conceptualization of culture as a barrier to good
Many observers have noted that the AIDS epidemic that health became firmly rooted in social science thinking
became global in the 1980s had a significant impact on the throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, and it
position of social and behavioral research in public health: persists to the current day in various reformulations such as
It was the first modern pandemic that could not be ‘cultural awareness’ and ‘cultural diversity.’ However, critics
controlled primarily through environmental and technolog- also have challenged this perspective as reflecting ethnocentric
ical means such as sanitation and vaccines. Controlling the and neocolonial ideas of progress through culture change.
spread of HIV required changing social norms and values, Concurrent to the above developments, the 1950s brought
as well as individual behavior, and social scientists have risen forward within industrialized countries such as the United
to the challenge in large numbers. Anthropologists, sociolo- States focused attention to mobilizing large numbers of people
gists, psychologists, and other social and behavioral scientists to take part in various public health campaigns. Here again,
have made important contributions to understanding HIV officials encountered resistance to citizen participation and
risk behavior and to designing interventions to promote safer turned to social science expertise for solutions. In this case,
sex and reduce transmission from intravenous drug use. social psychologists took the lead in developing approaches
Important conceptual and methodologic advances have to analyzing the problem and formulating interventions based
accompanied this expanded role. on emergent models of individual behavior change. The
International Encyclopedia of Public Health, Second Edition, 2, 2017, 599–611
Social Science Contributions to Public Health: Overview
Jeannine Coreil, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL, USA
Karen E Dyer, School of Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA
! 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
This article is an updated version of the previous edition article by Jeannine Coreil, volume 6, pp. 101–114, ! 2008, Elsevier Inc.
History social and behavioral sciences. The most important challenges
for improving health in the twenty-first century involve social,
Public health has always been concerned with the ways in cultural, and behavioral change. Our knowledge about how
which social conditions influence the health and well-being social and behavioral factors affect health has grown enor-
of communities and human populations. The disciplines of mously, but achieving the individual and societal changes
public health and the social sciences emerged in the latter needed to reach public health goals is no easy task. Political
part of the nineteenth century along with a recognition of the and economic barriers deeply rooted in the social order
needs of the poor and marginalized groups and the association constrain what is practically feasible. Nevertheless, new
between living conditions and health. However, it was not until emerging approaches to structural change offer possibilities
the mid-twentieth century that professionally trained social for surmounting these obstacles and producing higher levels
scientists became actively involved in public health programs, of global community health.
and by the 1980s, accredited schools of public health in the Table 1 highlights important milestones in the history of
United States were required to provide formal training in the social science contributions to public health. In the
Table 1 Important milestones in the history of social sciences in public health
Period Event Significance
Greco-Roman and Islamic Organized efforts to protect the health of vulnerable Emergence of social welfare values in society; use of
populations preventive practices for both physical and mental health
Nineteenth century European social theorists define medicine/public health as Social factors identified as fundamental causes of health
‘social science’ and illness: political advocacy for social reform
Nineteenth century Snow and Farr in Britain, Panus in Denmark, and others Use of social science methods for epidemiological
investigation
Late nineteenth century Sanitary movement Organized efforts to improve lifestyle, living, and working
conditions of urban poor within industrializing nations
1948 WHO defines ‘health’ to include mental and social well- Set stage for addressing psychosocial factors in health
being and illness
1950s Anthropological and sociological research on community Recognition of the role of cultural factors in public health
health interventions; first planned culture change projects to
improve health; and conceptualization of the sick-role
1955 Medical Sociology Section of the American Sociological Medical sociology attains subdisciplinary status
Association established
1958 Publication of the health belief model Launched the health behavior change paradigm for public
health intervention
1964 US Surgeon General’s Report on Smoking and Health Beginning of movement to reduce health behavior risks to
public health
1967 Society for Medical Anthropology formed Established to promote the study of health, disease,
illness, treatment, and care
1978 Health Psychology Section of American Psychological The field of health behavior research and intervention is
Association established professionally recognized
1978 Alma Ata Conference on Primary Health Care Set long-term global agenda to develop comprehensive,
community-based approaches to promote basic health
1980s Behavioral and Social Science Council of the US Formalization of social and behavioral sciences as integral
Association of Schools of Public Health established component of public health training programs in the
United States
1986 Ottawa Charter for Health Promotion, WHO Identified fundamental social prerequisites for ensuring
health and well-being
2005 Bangkok Charter for Health Promotion, WHO Reaffirmed social prerequisites and highlighted role of
economic development in health promotion
2008 WHO Commission on the Social Determinants of Health Released final commissioned report on strategies to
achieve improved and more equal health worldwide
2011 Rio Political Declaration on Social Determinants of Health, Expressed global political commitment for the use of
WHO a social determinants of health approach to addressing
health inequities
International Encyclopedia of Public Health, 2nd edition, Volume 6 http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-803678-5.00419-7 599
International Encyclopedia of Public Health, Second Edition, 2, 2017, 599–611
, Author's personal copy
600 Social Science Contributions to Public Health: Overview
nineteenth century, social theorists in Europe called atten- The 1950s: Seminal Developments
tion to the unequal distribution of infectious disease among
The post–World War II era ushered in a period of tremen-
the poor and working classes, citing unhealthy living condi-
dous growth and development for the social and behavioral
tions of crowded urban slums, inadequate diet, and physi-
sciences in public health. There were two main thrusts of this
cally taxing labor as contributing to the poor health of the
groundbreaking era, one focused on healthcare moderniza-
disadvantaged. Many important figures contributed to
tion in developing countries, and the other focused on
a broad discourse that framed public health issues as socially
population-based screening for medical conditions. It was
produced, some with an overt political agenda such as Marx
an era of great optimism about the potential for social engi-
and Engels, others with a more epidemiological approach
neering of health development and the application of social
such as Snow, Panum, and Farr, some as activist physicians
science methods to understanding and improving the health
such as Villermé and Guérin, and still others with a more
of populations (e.g., Paul, 1956). In the international arena,
sociological orientation such as Virchow and Durkheim.
anthropologists in the 1930s and 1940s had begun working
Often referred to as nineteenth-century ‘social medicine,’
on projects aimed at improving the health and diet of tradi-
the contributions of this period are significant for establish-
tional populations (Firth, 1934; Richards, 1939; Malinowski,
ing the idea that public health is a social science and that
1945). Diet and nutrition were an important focus of these
social structures and change generate population-level health
activities, exemplified by the hiring of Ruth Benedict, Mar-
effects. Social reform to improve health is rooted in the early
garet Mead, and others by the US National Research Coun-
work of advocates such as Virchow and Chadwick. The late
cil’s Committee on Food Habits. Beginning in 1950,
nineteenth century saw the rise of the Sanitary Movement,
a number of anthropologists were appointed to key positions
with organized efforts to improve standards of hygiene,
with international health organizations, including Cora
living, and working conditions. However, the turn of the
DuBois at the World Health Organization, Edward Wellin
century ushered in the bacteriological era, and attention
at the Rockefeller Foundation, Benjamin Paul at the Harvard
shifted to the discovery and control of biological pathogens
School of Public Health, and George Foster and others at the
in the early decades of the twentieth century.
Institute for Inter-American Affairs, forerunner of the
The growth of social and behavioral science applications
US Agency for International Development. As Coreil writes:
in public health was strengthened by the redefinition of
health in 1948 by the newly formed World Health Organiza-
tion (WHO) as “a state of complete physical, mental and The appointment of anthropologists to institutional posts paralleled
social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or the rapid expansion of public health programs worldwide as modern
infirmity.” Since that time, WHO and other national and medicine was introduced on a large scale in many areas. The primary
international organizations have affirmed the importance role of anthropologists was seen as that of identifying significant
cultural barriers to the acceptance of new public health programs.
of psychosocial well-being as an integral component of Coreil (1990: p. 5).
health. This expanded conceptualization of health required
the expertise of many disciplines to formulate policies and
design programs to improve health conditions around the
globe. The scope of health promotion again expanded in Many of the important development projects of this era
1986 with the adoption of the Ottawa Charter for Health are described in the classic volume edited by Benjamin Paul,
Promotion, which identified fundamental prerequisites for Health, Culture and Community (1955). These studies defined
a healthy society, including peace, shelter, education, food, culture as a barrier to desirable health practice and introduced
income, a stable ecosystem, sustainable resources, social the role of social scientist as a culture broker whose expertise
justice, and equity. This broad agenda set the stage for an could be applied to facilitate directed change. In particular,
even greater role for social science in public health. The the focus was on diffusion of health technology to solve prob-
need for comprehensive, multisector approaches to global lems of ‘underdevelopment’ by overcoming resistance to
health promotion was reaffirmed and further outlined in change grounded in traditional values, institutions, and prac-
2005 through the Bangkok Charter for Health Promotion. tices. The conceptualization of culture as a barrier to good
Many observers have noted that the AIDS epidemic that health became firmly rooted in social science thinking
became global in the 1980s had a significant impact on the throughout the latter half of the twentieth century, and it
position of social and behavioral research in public health: persists to the current day in various reformulations such as
It was the first modern pandemic that could not be ‘cultural awareness’ and ‘cultural diversity.’ However, critics
controlled primarily through environmental and technolog- also have challenged this perspective as reflecting ethnocentric
ical means such as sanitation and vaccines. Controlling the and neocolonial ideas of progress through culture change.
spread of HIV required changing social norms and values, Concurrent to the above developments, the 1950s brought
as well as individual behavior, and social scientists have risen forward within industrialized countries such as the United
to the challenge in large numbers. Anthropologists, sociolo- States focused attention to mobilizing large numbers of people
gists, psychologists, and other social and behavioral scientists to take part in various public health campaigns. Here again,
have made important contributions to understanding HIV officials encountered resistance to citizen participation and
risk behavior and to designing interventions to promote safer turned to social science expertise for solutions. In this case,
sex and reduce transmission from intravenous drug use. social psychologists took the lead in developing approaches
Important conceptual and methodologic advances have to analyzing the problem and formulating interventions based
accompanied this expanded role. on emergent models of individual behavior change. The
International Encyclopedia of Public Health, Second Edition, 2, 2017, 599–611
