Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Beyond Rhetoric In Debates About The Ethics Of Marketing Prescription Medicines To Consumers: The Importance Of Vulnerability In People, Situations And Relationships, Stacy M. Carter, Gabrielle N. Samuel, Ian Kerridge, Richard Day, Rachel A. Ankeny, Christopher F. Jordens, Paul Komesaroff

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This article examines community responses to the marketing of prescription medicines. Historically, debates about such marketing have focused on alleged unscrupulousness of pharmaceutical companies and on the quality of information provided. Six focus groups were conducted in Sydney, Australia, three with older and three with younger community members. Analysis examined interactions between group members, the positions participants took up, conflicting arguments, and explanations for variation. Participants argued specifically rather than generally about consumer marketing of medicines. Neither the moral purpose of corporations nor the quality of information in advertisements was particularly important. Instead, pharmaceutical marketing was assessed in relation to …

How We Make Knowledge About Climate Change, Noel Castree

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Book review - A VAST MACHINE: Computer Models, Climate Data, and the Politics of Global Warming. Paul N. Edwards. xxviii + 518 pp. The MIT Press, 2010. $32.95.

"I Don't Eat A Hamburger And Large Chips Every Day!" A Qualitative Study Of The Impact Of Public Health Messages About Obesity On Obese Adults, Sophie Lewis, Samantha L. Thomas, Jim Hyde, David Castle, R. Warwick Blood, Paul A. Komesaroff

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background We are a society that is fixated on the health consequences of 'being fat'. Public health agencies play an important role in 'alerting' people about the risks that obesity poses both to individuals and to the broader society. Quantitative studies suggest people comprehend the physical health risks involved but underestimate their own risk because they do not recognise that they are obese. Methods This qualitative study seeks to expand on existing research by exploring obese individuals' perceptions of public health messages about risk, how they apply these messages to themselves and how their personal and social contexts and experiences …

"The Solution Needs To Be Complex." Obese Adults' Attitudes About The Effectiveness Of Individual And Population Based Interventions For Obesity, Samantha L. Thomas, Sophie Lewis, Jim Hyde, David Castle, Paul Komesaroff

Faculty of Social Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Background: Previous studies of public perceptions of obesity interventions have been quantitative and based on general population surveys. This study aims to explore the opinions and attitudes of obese individuals towards population and individual interventions for obesity in Australia.

Methods: Qualitative methods using in-depth semi-structured telephone interviews with a community sample of obese adults (Body Mass Index ≥30). Theoretical, purposive and strategic recruitment techniques were used to ensure a broad sample of obese individuals with different types of experiences with their obesity. Participants were asked about their attitudes towards three population based interventions (regulation, media campaigns, and public …