Sponsor
Portland State University. Department of Sociology
First Advisor
Johanna Brenner
Term of Graduation
Fall 2000
Date of Publication
12-27-2000
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (M.S.) in Sociology
Department
Sociology
Language
English
Subjects
African American women -- Health and hygiene, Content analysis (Communication), Journal of the American Medical Association, American Journal of Public Health, New England Journal of Medicine
DOI
10.15760/etd.3037
Physical Description
1 online resource (vii, 97 pages)
Abstract
According to the National Vital Statistics Report (1998), Black women age 45-64 are ten times more likely than white women of the same age to die from diseases of the heart. They are five times more likely to die from diabetes. The goal of this study was to examine how articles published in leading medical journals between 1989 and 1998 accounted for such differences in health outcomes among Black and white women.
The explanatory content of the articles was analyzed and coded according to four types of attributions: genetic/biological, cultural/behavioral, structural/socioeconomic and alternative. Each type of explanation derives from different assumptions and operates with different models for understanding why health outcomes vary among groups. Alternative explanations are those that focus on the direct effect of race/gender oppression on Black women's health. Genetic/biological attributions occurred less frequently than structural/socioeconomic and cultural behavioral but were more likely to occur than alternative attributions, which were the least often employed. While alternative attributions are considered in some of the articles about Black women's health and mortality, they are overall rarely employed. The finding that explanations that most directly explore the impact of racism and sexism on Black women's health occur least often has important implications. Articles published in these three journals inform medical practitioners and affect the ability of such practitioners to adequately address the needs of Black women in their care.
Rights
In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Persistent Identifier
http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/17810
Recommended Citation
Burkett, Tonia Marie, "Black Women's Health: a Content Analysis of the Journal of the American Medical Association, the American Journal of Public Health, and the New England Journal of Medicine (1989-1998)" (2000). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 3042.
https://doi.org/10.15760/etd.3037
Comments
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