It seems that
there is a disparity of health between white Americans and black Americans,
where black Americans are, on average, less healthy in almost every department
than white Americans. The Dressler reading discusses five theoretical models
that could act as explanations for the disparity in health.
·
Racial-genetic
model:
o
In
essence, white Americans are healthier than black Americans because black
Americans are genetically more prone to low birth weight and high blood
pressure.
·
Health-behavior
model:
o
This
model is based on the idea that white American and black American health
behaviors, like smoking, exercise and eating, are different. The health
disparity is caused by the difference in behaviors between white Americans and
black Americans.
·
Socioeconomic
status model:
o
The
disparity in health between black Americans and white Americans is caused by
the disparity in socioeconomic status (i.e. income level, social class,
education, etc.)
·
Psychosocial
stress model:
o
Summed
up, stress caused from the racism that black Americans endure causes their
health to diminish to a lower average level to white Americans.
·
Structural-constructivist
model:
o
People
of the same culture come to value similar aspirations, such as becoming wealthy
or enjoying a peaceful existence. In our case, we also have a socially constructed
concept of race. Sometimes, the social construction of race interferes with
some people’s aspirations and this causes the health disparity. I would imagine
the phenomenon would be much more subtle, but an example would be a black man wanting
to obtain the prestigious status of USA president, but believing that he can
never achieve his goal because there have only ever been white presidents (the
year that the example takes place in is 1998)
Now, the reading
makes mention of why most of these models are flawed, but, for what it’s worth,
which one gives the most likely explanation for the health disparity between
black Americans and white Americans?
Previous to the
article, I believed that socioeconomic status was the main contributor to the
disparity. I had thought that the lower levels of socioeconomic status
contributed to lower health because money was a bigger issue and when one’s
strapped for cash, the cheaper alternatives usually outweigh the healthier
choices.
It is impossible to narrow the cause of health disparities down to just one thing. I think all five of the models play a roll in discovering the causes of health disparities between races. But, if I had to pick one, I think that the socioeconomic status model gives the most likely explanation for these disparities. I feel like the health-behavior model, and the psychosocial model can both be add-ons to the socioeconomic model. Things like eating and exercise vary with status. In general, someone of lower status is likely to have a poorer diet than that of someone with a higher status. It is harder to eat healthy when you don’t have the means to support a healthy diet. It is possible that people with higher status exercise more. They have easier access to gyms and trainers that keep them healthier. Tying the psychosocial model to the socioeconomic model, people of lower income tend to be more stressed, although this does not include racism. So if they are saying that there is a disparity in status and that is causing the health disparity, stress goes along with socioeconomic status. That is much of what we talked about last week.
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