A new paradigm in public health research
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A new paradigm: Research for health and for life?
RESEARCH IN SOCIAL MEDICINE AND PUBLIC HEALTH:
1. Development is about people.
2. Each research project in these areas has to be judged by the
criterion of whether it serves the purposes of development --and
this purpose is the wellbeing of people who, for centuries or
decades, have been marginalized.
3. The question that researchers are NOT asking is WHY a given
problem is given consideration for being researched.
4. Social and health problems require that we look at them from
three perspectives:
- scientifically (to find out what CAN be done);
- Ethically (to find out what SHOULD be done); and
- politically and ideologically (to determine what MUST be done).
5.
- Science is (or purports to be) objective.
- Ethics is normative.
- Politics is pragmatic (.notice is taken of the difference
between politics and 'politiquing').
6.
- Science advances by observation and logical deduction.
- Ethics advances by reaching consensus through dialogue and re-
flection.
- Politics advances promoting a consciousness-raising dialogue.
7. Research in social medicine and public health must always be
carried out with a scientific, an ethical AND a social/political
perspective and thus get involved in studying the factors that
dis-empower and empower marginalized populations and people.
Why? Because if we do not agree on the causes/determinants of
dis-empowerment of people it is impossible for us to agree on
what actions we need to put forward and pursued.
8. "We find what we look for"
9. Therefore, for researchers to pursue/go after research funds
available in public health is to follow the ideology of those
who make these funds available. They are thus bound to 'find
what the funders are looking for'.
Claudio Schuftan
Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
mailto:claudio@hcmc.netnam.vn