Developing a middle-range theory to explain how cash transfers work to tackle the social determinants of health: A realist case study

2020 ◽  
Vol 130 ◽  
pp. 104920
Author(s):  
Ebenezer Owusu-Addo ◽  
Andre M.N. Renzaho ◽  
Ben J. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
Middle Range Theory ◽  
Middle Range ◽  
The Social ◽  
Range Theory

Cash transfers and the social determinants of health: Towards an initial realist program theory

Evaluation ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 25 (2) ◽  
pp. 224-244 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ebenezer Owusu-Addo ◽  
Andre M. N. Renzaho ◽  
Ben J. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
News Media ◽  
Media Framing ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Cash Transfer ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
Program Theory ◽  
Middle Income ◽  
The Social

Cash transfers are a widely adopted social policy initiative for addressing poverty and vulnerability. Cash transfers’ exponential growth in low- and middle-income countries provides a unique opportunity to advance our understanding of how they work to impact the social determinants of health. This article reports on a realist qualitative approach to developing an initial program theory about the role of cash transfers in tackling the social determinants of health. A set of 12 initial hypotheses regarding how cash transfers might work to address the social determinants of health were developed from the data. Cash transfer key mechanisms of change found in the study included political will and leadership and news media framing at the macro level, collaboration and intersectoral working at the meso level, and household motivation, empowerment, choice making, awareness raising and risk-taking behaviour at the micro level. This study has developed initial hypotheses that can be tested and refined in future studies using a realist approach.

scholarly journals Confidentiality considerations for use of social-spatial data on the social determinants of health: Sexual and reproductive health case study

2016 ◽  
Vol 166 ◽  
pp. 49-56 ◽  
Author(s):  
Danielle F. Haley ◽  
Stephen A. Matthews ◽  
Hannah L.F. Cooper ◽  
Regine Haardörfer ◽  
Adaora A. Adimora ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Health ◽  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Spatial Data ◽  
Sexual And Reproductive Health ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
The Social

Justice, Evidence, and Interdisciplinary Health Inequalities Research

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas B. King
Keyword(s):  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Health Inequalities ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Economic Resources ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
Counterfactual Reasoning ◽  
Normative Judgment ◽  
Scientific Investigations ◽  
The Social

This chapter examines the interplay between normative judgments and empirical research. Using a case study of recent work on the social determinants of health, the author argues that three domains that are normally thought of as conceptually and disciplinarily independent—epistemology, scientific methodology, and normative judgment—are in fact closely intertwined. When considering issues related to health inequalities and social justice, keeping these domains separate leads to poor science, poor theorizing, and, ultimately, poor policy choices. The author identifies three problems with the claim that in order to reduce health inequalities and improve population health, we are morally compelled to address the social determinants of health, through interventions that redistribute social or economic resources in a more fair or just manner. The problems are (1) assuming that data are the neutral products of objective scientific investigations; (2) misunderstanding causality and counterfactual reasoning; and (3) blind belief in the consonance of the good.

scholarly journals Cash transfers and the social determinants of health: a conceptual framework

2018 ◽  
Vol 34 (6) ◽  
pp. e106-e118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ebenezer Owusu-Addo ◽  
Andre M N Renzaho ◽  
Ben J Smith
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Framework ◽  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Health Inequities ◽  
Cash Transfers ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Policy Makers ◽  
The Social ◽  
Evidence Review

Abstract Cash transfers (CTs) can play a significant role in tackling the social determinants of health (SDoH), but to date there is a lack of conceptual framework for understanding CTs linkages to the SDoH. This article proposes a framework that identifies the linkages between CTs and SDoH, discusses its implications, and argues for active involvement of health promoters in CT design, implementation and evaluation. The development of the framework followed two stages: evidence review and stakeholder involvement. The evidence review entailed a systematic literature search to identify published and unpublished impact evaluation studies of CTs in sub-Saharan Africa. Critical reflection on the evidence synthesized from the literature formed the basis for the development of the framework. Interviews with CT policy makers, managers and development partners were also carried out to help refine the framework. Interviews were audio-recorded and transcripts were analysed using thematic framework analysis. The study finds that there is limited recognition of SDoH in CT policy making and implementation. The evidence reviewed, however, points to strong impacts of CTs on SDoH. The framework thus conceptualizes how CTs work to influence a broad range of SDoH and health inequities. It also highlights how CT architecture and contexts may influence program impacts. The proposed framework can be used by policy makers to guide CT design, adaptation and operations, and by program managers and researchers to inform CTs’ evaluations, respectively. The framework suggests that to optimize CT impact on SDoH and reduce health inequities, health promoters should be actively engaged in terms of the programs design, implementation and evaluation.

Addressing the Social Determinants of Health

2019 ◽  
Vol 101 (4) ◽  
pp. 357-395 ◽  
Author(s):  
Saty Satya-Murti ◽  
Jennifer Gutierrez
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Los Angeles ◽  
Social Determinants Of Health ◽  
Social Determinants ◽  
Social Activism ◽  
Determinants Of Health ◽  
Medical Attention ◽  
Community Center ◽  
Early Twentieth Century ◽  
The Social

The Los Angeles Plaza Community Center (PCC), an early twentieth-century Los Angeles community center and clinic, published El Mexicano, a quarterly newsletter, from 1913 to 1925. The newsletter’s reports reveal how the PCC combined walk-in medical visits with broader efforts to address the overall wellness of its attendees. Available records, some with occasional clinical details, reveal the general spectrum of illnesses treated over a twelve-year span. Placed in today’s context, the medical care given at this center was simple and minimal. The social support it provided, however, was multifaceted. The center’s caring extended beyond providing medical attention to helping with education, nutrition, employment, transportation, and moral support. Thus, the social determinants of health (SDH), a prominent concern of present-day public health, was a concept already realized and practiced by these early twentieth-century Los Angeles Plaza community leaders. Such practices, although not yet nominally identified as SDH, had their beginnings in the late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century social activism movement aiming to mitigate the social ills and inequities of emerging industrial nations. The PCC was one of the pioneers in this effort. Its concerns and successes in this area were sophisticated enough to be comparable to our current intentions and aspirations.

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