Experiencing and Explaining Disease examines the different accounts of disease causation produced by research in epidemiology, biology and sociology, and the different meanings attached to states of illness by doctors, patients and the media. It explores the ways in which prevailing social norms affect the status of the sick person, and seeks explanations for the stigmatisation that discriminates against people with certain conditions, while others are considered 'innocent victims' of disease. These themes are developed in five case studies of highly contrasting conditions: rheumatoid arthritis, HIV and AIDS, asthma, schizophrenia and chronic pain. These case studies illustrate the complex difficulties for lay people and professionals in explaining and managing the disease and the physical, social and emotional dimensions of the illness experience.

This book will be an invaluable text for students of health studies, social work, social policy, the social sciences, medicine, nursing and other health professionals, and for a wide range of lay people, including patients and carers.