The Pharmaceutical Studies Reader is an engaging survey of the field that brings together provocative, multi-disciplinary scholarship examining the interplay of medical science, clinical practice, consumerism, and the healthcare marketplace.
- Draws on anthropological, historical, and sociological approaches to explore the social life of pharmaceuticals with special emphasis on their production, circulation, and consumption
- Covers topics such as the role of drugs in shaping taxonomies of disease, the evolution of prescribing habits, ethical dimensions of pharmaceuticals, clinical trials, and drug research and marketing in the age of globalization
- Offers a compelling, contextually-rich treatment of the topic that exposes readers to a variety of approaches, ideas, and frameworks
- Provides an accessible introduction for readers with no previous background in this area
The Pharmaceutical Studies Reader is an engaging examination of this new and growing field, bringing together provocative, multi-disciplinary articles to look at the interplay of medical science, clinical practice, consumerism, and the healthcare marketplace. Ranging far beyond simple discussion of patients, symptoms, and pills, this reader offers important insights into contemporary cultures of health and illness and the social life of pharmaceuticals.
Drawing on anthropological, historical, and sociological research, it delves into the production, circulation, and consumption of pharmaceuticals. The coverage here is broad and compelling with discussion of topics such as the advent of oral contraceptives, taxonomies of disease, the evolution of prescribing habits, the ethical dimension of pharmaceuticals, clinical trials, and drug production in the age of globalization. Placing a strong focus on context, this collection exposes readers to a variety of approaches, ideas, and frameworks and provides them with an appreciation and understanding of the complex roles pharmaceuticals play in society today.
