Inclusion: The Politics of Difference in Medical Research (Chicago Studies in Practices of Meaning) - Hardcover

Epstein, Steven

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0226213099 ISBN 13: 9780226213095

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 2007

Synopsis

With Inclusion, Steven Epstein argues that strategies to achieve diversity in medical research mask deeper problems, ones that might require a different approach and different solutions.

Formal concern with this issue, Epstein shows, is a fairly recent phenomenon. Until the mid-1980s, scientists often studied groups of white, middle-aged men—and assumed that conclusions drawn from studying them would apply to the rest of the population. But struggles involving advocacy groups, experts, and Congress led to reforms that forced researchers to diversify the population from which they drew for clinical research. While the prominence of these inclusive practices has offered hope to traditionally underserved groups, Epstein argues that it has drawn attention away from the tremendous inequalities in health that are rooted not in biology but in society.

“Epstein’s use of theory to demonstrate how public policies in the health profession are shaped makes this book relevant for many academic disciplines. . . . Highly recommended.”—Choice

“A masterful comprehensive overview of a wide terrain.”—Troy Duster, Biosocieties

About this title

About the Author:

Steven Epstein is professor of sociology and director of the Science Studies Program at the University of California, San Diego. He is the author ofImpure Science: AIDS, Activism, and the Politics of Knowledge and coauthor ofLearning by Heart: AIDS and Schoolchildren in America's Communities.

Review:

“In this fascinating book, Steven Epstein explains how beginning in the 1980s a variety of social movements prevailed in changing inclusion criteria of unrepresented research subjects in clinical trials in the United States. In a relatively short period of time, medical researchers were expected to include more women, racial and ethnic minorities, children, and elderly as research subjects. Epstein pays close attention to the historical precedents of the arguments used in favor and against this change in thinking about what kind of differences matter in biomedical research, its consequences for research, and its far-reaching implications for identity politics. The result is a convincing, widely-accessible, and well-written account of the legal, political, social, and scientific aspects of this change in policy and thinking.”--Stefan Timmermans, author of Postmortem  (Stefan Timmermans 2006-09-25)

"Epstein's use of theory to demonstrate how public policies in the health profession are shaped makes this book relevant for many academic disciplines. . . . Highly recommended." (Choice)

"Inclusion offers a balanced analysis of the positive and negative effects of institutional changes on groups that are traditionally underrepresented in biomedical research and on biomedical research in general. . . . The lessons learned from this book may help researchers and policymakers who are involved in biomedical research rethink their conceptualization of human subgroups for analysis." (Elisa J. Gordon New England Journal of Medicine)

"A delightful read. Epstein's writing is accessible without oversimplifying, making the book a real option in both undergraduate and graduate courses. . . . Inclusion is exemplary not only for the compelling account it provides, nor just for the reams of compelling evidence Epstein incorporates, but also for its deftness in marrying together different disciplinary perspectives of Science Studies, Sociology, History, and Politics, to name a few. . . . A pleasure to read from beginning to end." (2007 Robert K. Merton Professional Award ASA)

"A masterful comprehensive overview of a wide terrain." (Troy Duster Biosocieties)

"Epstein's book bursts with theoretical insights. . . . Inclusion also vividly and concretely illustrates how power operates through state and scientific classificatory processes. . . . It will be of interest to many--scholars in science studies, critical studies of race and gender, social movement studies, political sociology, and social theory, as well as medical professionals and health policy advocates and experts." (Deborah B. Gould American Journal of Sociology)

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 2007
• ISBN 10: 0226213099
• ISBN 13: 9780226213095
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 424