CULTURE AND HUMAN WELL-BEING
(Run by Aaron Parkhurst and Alison Macdonald)
WHERE AND WHEN: Commences January 2013
FIRST MEETING: TBA
MOODLE DETAILS: http://moodle.ucl.ac.uk/course/view.php?id=12057
This group is an informal meeting of research students and staff who have an interest in Medical Anthropological discourse. We specifically aim to explore new and upcoming trends in Medical Ethnographical Methodology, Fieldwork, and Philosophies, and we also hope to use the friendly format to present our own thoughts and papers in Anthropological inquiry. Our wide range of research interests include, among other topics, the cultural adaptations of pathologies, both physical and psychological, the psycho-therapeutic process, individual and social self-reflection and personal agency, indigenous, Western, and cross-cultural health care systems, illness narratives, and general perceptions of self-hood and well-being. The group has also been active in public engagement, participating regularly in discussions on Bioethics and emerging technologies in medicine. We have participated in think-tanks and symposiums sponsored by the House of Lords. Members of the group have also had the opportunity to speak on medical anthropology at public events around London, and write comment and opinion pieces for bioethics groups and science publications. We also held a symposium this summer on technologies of the 21st Century Body which has resulted in a special edition of The New Bioethics. We hope to hold a follow-up workshop in the new year. Current debates have centred on issues regarding therapy vs. enhancement, organ trafficking, the commodification of the body, and the difficult role of the anthropologist in the medical arena. We hope the group is able to continue being active in the local scientific and medical community, and we look forward to having you join us.
For more information contact Aaron (ucsab01@ucl.ac.uk) and/or Alison (alison.macdonald@ucl.ac.uk)
