Community Dental Health

cover art

Cover Date:
June 2016
Print ISSN:
0265 539X
Vol:
33
Issue:
2

Inequalities in oral health: the role of sociology

Abstract: This paper seeks to identify an important point of contact between the literature on inequalities in oral health and the sociology of power. The paper begins by exploring the problem of social inequalities in oral health from the point of view of human freedom. It then goes on to briefly consider why inequalities in oral health matter before providing a brief overview of current approaches to reducing inequalities in oral health. After this the paper briefly introduces the problem of power in sociology before going on to outline why the problem of power matters in the problem of inequalities in oral health. Here the paper discusses how two key principles associated with the social bond have become central to how we think about health related inequalities. These principles are the principle of treating
everyone the same (the principle of autonomy) and the related principle of allowing everyone to pursue their own goals (the principle of intimacy). These principles are outlined and subsequently discussed in detail with application to debates about interventions to reduce oral health related inequalities including that of water fluoridation. The paper highlights how the ‘Childsmile’ programme in Scotland appears to successfully negotiate the tensions inherent in attempting to do something about inequalities in oral health. It then concludes by highlighting some of the tensions that remain in attempting to alleviate oral health related inequalities.

Key words: inequality, oral health, sociology, freedom, Scotland

doi:10.1922/CDH_3716Gibson05

Article Price
£15.00
Institution Article Price
£
Page Start
156
Page End
160
Authors
B. Gibson, M. Blake, S. Baker

Articles from this issue

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  • Pg. Start
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  1. Editorial - Prevention of dental caries through the use of fluoride – the WHO approach
  2. 66
  3. 68

  1. Fluoride and Oral Health
  2. 69
  3. 99

  1. Child oral health in migrant families: A cross-sectional study of caries in 1-4 year old children from migrant backgrounds residing in Melbourne, Australia
  2. 100
  3. 106

  1. Choosing a measure of Health Related Quality of Life
  2. 107
  3. 115

  1. Feasibility, utility and impact of a national dental epidemiological survey of three-year-old children in England 2013
  2. 116
  3. 120

  1. Dental anxiety, concomitant factors and change in prevalence over 50 years
  2. 121
  3. 126

  1. A bi-level intervention to improve oral hygiene of older and disabled adults in low-income housing: results of a pilot study
  2. 127
  3. 132

  1. Association between child caries and maternal health-related behaviours
  2. 133
  3. 137

  1. Caries and costs: an evaluation of a school-based fluoride varnish programme for adolescents in a Swedish region
  2. 138
  3. 144

  1. Examiner reliability in fluorosis scoring: a comparison of photographic and clinical methods
  2. 145
  3. 150

  1. The mouth as a site of structural inequalities; an introduction
  2. 151
  3. 151

  1. The mouth and dis/ability
  2. 152
  3. 155

  1. Inequalities in oral health: the role of sociology
  2. 156
  3. 160

  1. The mouth as a site of structural inequalities; the experience of Aboriginal Australians
  2. 161
  3. 163

  1. Do ‘poor areas’ get the services they deserve? The role of dental services in structural inequalities in oral health
  2. 164
  3. 167

  1. Overcoming structural inequalities in oral health: the role of dental curricula
  2. 168
  3. 172