This book is an invaluable collection of foundational and cutting-edge readings from leading scholars in the rapidly evolving field of health communication. This innovative anthology shows that health care and health communication often takes place at home, at work, at school, in recreational and social settings - not just in doctors' offices and hospitals. Editor Linda C. Lederman has compiled essays that - through a wide range of theoretical and methodological approaches - explore the following diverse topics:
- Historical background of health communication
- Development of patient-doctor communication as a key focus of research
- Prevalence of health promotion and other persuasive messages in public and individual health
- The importance of social support offered within and outside the traditional medical experience
- The growing importance of media literacy, especially in the rapidly evolving information age
- Increasingly important link between health communication and the organisations that help create it
- The future of health communication
Other topics covered include the impact of socio-political and organisational structures on health communication, the impact of the internet and narrative as a meaningful conceptual approach to understanding health and illness. Individual chapter introductions highlight the key points of each chapter and discussion questions are designed to encourage critical thinking and follow each article.