Concentrations

Degree Program Details:

Social and Behavioral Sciences students may wish to plan a course of study concentrating in a particular are of inquiry. Concentrations may be chosen by the student in consultation with the faculty advisor. Concentrations that have sufficient faculty interest and support within the SBS Program are:

Social Determinants of Health

Coordinated by Dave Grembowski, PhD, MA

Population health entails the nature of the distribution of health status and health-related quality of life throughout a population. Determinants of health involve a wide variety of interacting influences that are intrinsic to individuals and groups and extrinsic or environmental in the largest sense. These influences include but are not limited to prosperity, political contexts, policies, the distribution of power and wealth, the social-physical environment, health systems and services, genetic and biological, and historico-cultural processes.

We concentrate on extrinsic determinants that involve social influences and the interaction of individuals with the environment. Social determinants of health refer to both the specific features of and pathways by which societal conditions affect health and that potentially can be altered by informed action.

We are also concerned with the promotion of equity in health or the absence of systematic health disparities in one or more aspects of health status across socially, demographically, or geographically defined population groups. As defined by the Department of Health and Human Services, "health disparities are differences in the incidence, prevalence, mortality, and burden of diseases and other adverse health conditions that exist among specific population groups in the United States." Disparities connote differences, while inequities connote systematic and unjust differences. Sometimes the term "inequalities" is used. This concentration focuses on all three: inequalities as evidenced by disparities and the pursuit of justness in taking actions to remove disparities that will, in turn, promote equity in health.

Health disparities also imply knowledge and ability to work with communities and special populations at risk. Community partnerships, particularly when they reach out to nontraditional partners, can be among the most effective tools for improving health in communities. Thus this concentration includes knowledge and skills in community empowerment and community-based participatory research. The second goal of Healthy People 2010 is to eliminate health disparities among segments of the population, including differences that occur by gender, race or ethnicity, education or income, disability, geographic location, or sexual orientation. These groups within communities are of special importance in this concentration.

Students in this concentration would take all required MPH courses and courses relevant to this concentration, including the following:

  • ANTH 535 (11-2, max. 7) Research Issues in Demography and Population Studies
  • ECON 543 (3) Population Economics
  • EPI 546 (3) Psychosocial Epidemiology
  • EPI 590 (3) Social Determinants of Health Research Methods
  • GEOG 580 (3) Medical Geography
  • HSERV 510 (3) Society and Health
  • HSERV 513 (3) Population Health, Social Determinants, and Health Disparities
  • HSERV 533 (2) Population, Health, and Development
  • HSERV 573 (1) Community Development for Health Seminar
  • HSERV 580 (3) Society, Chronic Illness, and Disability
  • SOC 513 (3) Demography and Ecology
  • SOC 535 (3) Research Issues in Demography and Population Studies

Other courses may also be included in this concentration upon application. In addition, the SBS program is in the process of developing two new courses: one on community-based participatory research and another on public health issues for gays, lesbians, bisexual, and transgendered persons. These courses will add significantly to this concentration. The Department of Epidemiology is also developing a journal club on social epidemiology and workshops in this area. The University has also recently applied for a Center on Population Health and Health Disparities that would be a key resource for students in this area.

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Health Behavior and Health Promotion

Coordinated by Hendrika Meischke, PhD, MPH

Health promotion is the process of enabling people and communities to increase control over and to improve health. It encompasses a variety of strategies, including health education and health communication

A concentration in health behavior and health promotion permits students to apply social and behavioral science theories and methods to the study and practice of public health education. The concentration offers specialized instruction in program planning and evaluation, applied learning theory, health communication, health behavior, intervention methods, instructional design, and group process. Students interested in the health behavior and health promotion concentration take a particular sequence of courses and work with faculty from multiple disciplines through courses, thesis, and practicum.

Students interested in this concentration take the required MPH courses and additional courses in health education/health promotion. A sample of courses includes:

  • HSERV 507 - Communication for Health Promotion: Theory and Application(3)
  • HSERV 522 - Health Program Evaluation (3)
  • HSERV 523 - Advanced Health Services Research Methods I (4)
  • HSERV 560 - Adult Learning: Theory and Practice (3)
  • HSERV 561 - Introduction to Health Promotion Planning (3)
  • HSERV 581 - Strategies of Health Promotion (4)
  • HSERV 582 - Theoretical Perspectives on Health Behavior Change (3/4)
  • HSERV 588 - Community Approaches to Health Promotion (3)

Examples of other elective courses related to the design and evaluation of health promotion programs and available to students in the health behavior and health promotion concentration include:

  • CMU 502 - Mass Communication Process and Effects (5)
  • EDC&I 583 - Message Design (3)
  • NURS 552 - Health Promotion (2/3)
  • UCONJ 501 - International Health (1)

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Community Collaboration

Coordinated by Sharyne Shiu-Thornton, PhD, MA

In development...

Qualitative Methods

Coordinated by James Pfeiffer, PhD, MPH, MA and Helene Starks, PhD, MPH

In development...