Courses Related to International Health...

The intention of this course listing is to enable interested students to have a wide choice of courses for studying the many social, cultural, economic, epidemiologic, public health and biological perspectives that are a necessary part of the interdisciplinary field of international health.

AFRO-AMERICA STUDIES

• 9,10. An Introduction to Afro-American Studies
  Introduction to modern history and culture of black populations of Africa, the United States, and the Caribbean with current events an ever-present concern. The role of political and economic forces in shaping literacy, and ideology will be stressed. Various approaches to the study of what is fundamentally an interdisciplinary fieldÑamong them art, psychology, folklore, history, semantics, literature, sociology, anthropology, and economicsÑwill also be discussed.

ANTHROPOLOGY

• 20. Culture and Human Behavior
  This course deals with that subfield of anthropology usually called "psychological anthropology." The interest is in behavioral differences between populations, the relations of these differences to social and cultural environments and the development in the individual of psychological dispositions and abilities within these different environmental contexts. The focus will be on four major issues in the field, including socialization and child development, adolescence, the psychology of gender, and emotions in a cross-cultural perspective.
  
• 23. Culture and Health
  Will focus on definitions of health and illness within their cultural contexts. Some of the topics will include charismatic medicine, cross-cultural perspectives on health behavior, folk medicine, and international medical systems.
  
• 102. AIDS in International Perspective
  Communities around the world have been affected in different ways by the HIV-AIDS pandemic. This course is concerned with cross-cultural variation in knowledge, perceptions, and treatment of sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS in the world.
  
• 105. Peoples and Cultures of Southeast Asia
  This course is an introduction to the anthropological study of Southeast Asia. Emphasis is placed on understanding the diversity of cultures and societies through both space and time.
  
• 111. Africa in Anthropological Perspective
  A comparative and historical examination of contemporary Africa. The course combines detailed study of particular cultures and societies with theoretical discussion of patterns of change. Topics include traditional and changing patterns of domestic life, religion, gender relations, and the impact of colonialism and development.
• 135. Economic and Social Development
  Anthropological perspectives on economic development and cultural change in non-Western societies will be discussed.
• 204. Ideology of Development
  This course will relate different development theories and their relationship to field application. Through the analysis of project preparation and implementation we will question goals and objectives of Western and indigenous notions of progress and change within a social and economic context. Using Third World countries as case studies we will concentrate on related issues, such as the meaning of development.
• 205. Anthropological Demography
  A seminar devoted to the investigation of the interface of anthropology (especially sociocultural anthropology) and demography. A wide variety of demographic topics (fertility, mortality, marriage, migration) are considered, and the links between anthropological and demographic writings on and approaches to these areas are probed.

BIO MED COMMUNITY HEALTH

• 32. Introduction to Public Health
  An overview of the U.S. Public Health System, with an emphasis on the core functions of public health, interaction of its elements, issues that cause strain to the system, and the influences of health care policy. Presents a comprehensive overview of the environmental and behavior factors associated with health promotion and disease prevention. An introductory course emphasizing discussion of public health within the U.S. as it currently exists and operates.
• 34. Health and Human Reproduction: Anthopological Perspectives
  A broad overview of health and human reproduction, focusing specifically on cross-cultural perspectives and international approaches to maternal and child health.
• 54. Modes of Analysis in Medical Anthropology
  Introduction to medical anthropology research methods: ethnographic and qualitative methods, interviewing, life history, and other approaches.
• 112. Nutritional Problems in the Developing World
  The objective of this course is to acquaint the student with research issues related to the topic of undernutrition in the developing world. The course takes a multidisciplinary approach, considering the biological, economic, and cultural determinants of undernturition as presented by the current literature. A major focus is identifying the root causes of undernutrition, he functional significance of undernutrition, and appropriate policy levers available to decrease undernutrition. Students explore the reasons why more progress has not been made in lowering undernutrition in the past 20 years.
• 132. Social-Science Research in Health Care
  Emphasizes application of social science research methods and skills to current health care policy issues. Topics include survey design, implementation, and analysis and interpretation. Students analyze a large sample survey using statistical software packages. Intended Intended as a junior-level course in preparation for the senior research projects of concentrators in Community Health.
• 168. Sec 5. Conceptual issues in Health Policy: Occupational & Environmental Health
  The purpose of this course is to explore how health policy has evolved during the 20th century. We seek to learn how scientific information has been interpreted and used by groups in society. The goal of this study is for students to gain a better understanding of the forces at work in the development of health policy and for students to consider issues which they may face upon graduation from Brown.
• 168. Sec 8. Nutritional Problems in the Developing World
  Aims to acquaint students with research issues related to undernutrition in the developing world. Takes a multidisciplinary approach, considering the biological, economic, and cultural determinants of undernutrition, as presented by the current literature. A major focus is identifying the root causes of undernutrition, the functional significance of undernutrition, and appropriate policy measures to decrease undernutrition. Frequent writing assignments.
• 168. Sec. 10 Turning Points in the Development of Medical Thought
  Explores changing perceptions of the body and its functions, specifically reproduction, infectious disease, and mental health, with reference to early sources.
• 168. Sec. 11 Comparative Health Care Systems
  Aims to provide a comparative analysis of health systems in order to understand the strengths and weaknesses of individual systems. Questions considered include: What are the priorities of various systems and how have they been determined? What type of incremental change could make health care systems more effective? What about the special problems of developing nations?
• 212. Introduction to Methods in Epidemiologic Research
  Introduces basic principles and methods for epidemiologic research. Students learn to interpret critically epidemiologic literature; estimate measures of disease frequency and measures of effect; evaluate study designs; and evaluate bias, including confounding, misclassification, selection and information bias. Requirements include weekly problem sets, quizzes, and design of a study proposal.

BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE

• 3. Principles of Nutrition
  Introduces the basic principles of human nutrition, the application of these principles to the specific needs of humans and the role of nutrition in chronic diseases. The first part of the course provides an overview of the nutrients and their use by the human body. The second half examines the role of nutrients in specific functions and disease states of the body.
• 53. Principles of Immunology
  Introduction to the field of experimental molecular and cellular immunology and immunochemistry, using a problem-solving approach. Lecture topics include: organization and function of the immune system; antigen recognition molecules; interactions among cells involved in the immune response; and regulation of immunity. Methods for analyzing the immune response will be presented, together with the applications to medically relevant problems, such as vaccines, transplantation, autoimmunity, cancer and AIDS. Weekly discussion groups will review course material.
• 54. Biology of Emerging Microbial Diseases
  This course examines aspects of the biochemistry, cell and molecular biology of emerging disease agents. Emphasis will be placed on the microbial (protozoal) life cycles, mechanisms of infection, and the interplay between parasite and host biology. An overall theme will be the biology of protozoal diseases originating in less developed countries, which are poised to account for major public health dilemmas in the U.S.
• 85. Biological and Social Context of Human Disease
  This course uses an interdisciplinary approach to explore how culture shapes the scientific questions we ask about disease, our interpretation of scientific findings, and the strategies that we develop for intervention in the disease process. Case studies of microbial infections and chronic conditions such as cancer are used to illustrate the centrality of context to understanding disease.
• 156. Virology
  This course emphasizes the understanding of molecular mechanisms of viral pathogenesis. It will begin with a general introduction to the field of virology and then focus on the molecular biology of specific viruses that are associated with human disease.
• 160. Development of Vaccines to Infectious Diseases
  Analysis of the immune responses which are important in the development of the vaccines to prevent infection and/or pathology of infectious diseases. Part I of the course will be a survey of relevant topics including the immune system, infectious organisms, vaccination strategies, and epidemiology. Modern approaches to identification and production of vaccines against specific viral, bacterial, and parasitic infections will be studies in Part II using research articles. Part III will include a hypothetical research proposal on a course topic by each student.

ECONOMICS

• 125 Political Economy
  Introduction to the formal methods of political economy. Examine important applications such as social choice, interest groups and collective action, models of voting, elections and policy cycles, distributive politics, the political economy of economic reform, and economic and political integration.
• 136. Health Economies (Bio Med Community Health 136)
  Major issues in health and medicine using the theoretical and empirical tools of economics. We assess economic models of health behaviors and market structures inclusive of insurance, physician, and hospital services, and consider the implications of these models for the formation of policy. Examples from both developed and developing countries are considered.
• 150. Economic Analysis for Development Policy
  Uses economic tools to analyze economic policies in LDCs and in transition economies, with some focus on international issues. Topics include domestic taxation, international trade and industrialization policies, privatization, fiscal and monetary policy, balance of payments and exchange rate policy, and policies for long-run growth. Theory and applications both covered. Emphasis on tools rather than on case studies.
• 151. Economic Development
  The economic problems of less developed countries and the theory of economic development, with emphasis on the roles played by agriculture, industry, and foreign trade. Also: education, health, employment, and migration; capital accumulation; income distribution; institutional aspects; the role of price distortions; trade policies; social discount rates, investment criteria, and the general issue of state intervention.
• 152. Health, Hunger and the Household in Developing Countries
  Microeconomic analysis of household behavior in low income societies emphasizing the economic determinants of health and nutrition and the evaluation of policy. The relationship among health, nutrition, fertility, savings, schooling, labor productivity, wage determination, and gender-based inequality. Emphasizes theoretically-based empirical research.

ENGINEERING

• 93 Technology and Society Course Series: Intermediate Technology
  Is small beautiful? Do developing countries need full-scale modern industry or something elseÑan intermediate technology? Some examples of intermediate technology are handmade windmills, earth dams, solar ovens, tricycle carriages, and fish ponds. Students design and build a device or a project. We discuss the implications of intermediate technology for developing countries and our own society.

ETHICS

• 156. The Aims of Medicine
  An introduction to the philosophy of medicine. Definitions of health, disease, rational diagnosis, treatment and cure are discussed.

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

• 51. Problems in International Environmental Policy
  This course examines general principles of environmental management, including: the basis for international and sovereign jurisdiction over natural resources and environmental protection, governance of common property and trans-boundry resources, and alternative theories of environmental regulation.

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

• 180. Sec. 40. Globalization and the Welfare State
  This course is concerned with the relationship between welfare state institutions and economic globalization. It focuses on the peculiar ways in which welfare state institutions adapt to changing economic environments, and ways in which welfare systems shape private economic transactions and economic policy-making. Enrollment limited to 20.

POLITICAL SCIENCE

• 142. International Political Economy of Development
  This course examines alternative perspectives on the most important international issues in the political economy of Third World development. Part I considers basic theoretical approaches to the subject; part II examines historical development of specific issues and controversies in North-South relations during the postwar era.
• 144. Theories of Economic Development
  Why do some countries become wealthy over time while others remain poor? What role do government and politics play in speeding or slowing economic growth? We look at social science theories that have attempted to answer these questions and the historical events that inspired the theories. We begin with Adam Smith and include modernization theory, dependency theory, and the theory of the developmental state, among others.
• 148. Theories in International Relations in the Twentieth Century
  Places the major intellectual contributions to international relations during the 20th century in their appropriate historical context and considers the development of challenges and new theoretical syntheses.
• 160. Political Research Methods
  An introduction to basic research methods in political science. Topics include descriptive and inferential statistics, measurement, and survey design. Emphasis placed on understanding concepts of statistics and its relevance to the "real world."

SOCIOLOGY

• 15. Economic Development and Social Change
  Emphasis on understanding the interrelations among economic, political, and cultural aspects of change in developing countries. The experience of currently developing nations will be contrasted to that of nations which industrialized in the 19th century. Will also compare the different development strategies which have been adopted by currently developing nations and their consequences for social change.
• 20. Population and Society
  A treatment of the causes and consequences of major population trends throughout the world; of changes in birth and death rates, and in the mobility and migration of persons.
• 110. Introductory Statistics for Social Research
  Introduction to descriptive and inferential statistics: measures of central tendencies and variability, probability, binomial and normal distributions, tests of significance, chi square, correlation and regression. Also included is the use of computers in data analysis. Knowledge of elementary algebra is assumed.
• 131. Social Change in Latin America
  This coursse will explore the main theories of development in Latin America, focusing on their approach to social change. Modernization theory, structuralism, marginality, internal colonization, and dependency theory will be reviewed. In the second part of the course, new sociological developments regarding contemporary social issues in the region, such as social movements and new forms of collective action will be analyzed to draw an overall panorama of present debates on regional social change.
• 155. Sociology of Medicine
  The sociopolitical context within which health, illness, and medical care are defined. Sociological materials are used to examine current developments in the health care field. Emphasis on identifying social and political forces which impinge upon the delivery systems and tracing their impact on the roles of practitioners and the health of their clients.
• 160. Comparative Development
  A review of theories and research in the social sciences that offer answers to the following three questions: Why have some less developed societies had more rapid rates of economic development than others? Why do developing nations differ in their degrees of socioeconomic inequality? and Why did many, but not all, developing nations adopt military and other forms of authoritarian regimes.
• 187, Sec. 19. African Development and Demography
  Focuses on he relationship between socioeconomic developments in Africa and their demographic transitions. Particular emphasis is placed on cultural issues in the analysis of population changes (mortality, morbidity, migration, family, and fertility) in the context of economic growth and dependency. Theories of development will be evaluated in the context of African demography.
• 187. Sec. 12. Households, Work, and Gender
  Household membership commonly entails sharing resources. How does this sharing intersect with work and gender? We explore the determinants and consequences of existing divisions of labor drawing on readings from multiple disciplines. The approach is sociological and comparative. Considerable time is devoted to less developed settings.
• 223. Techniques of Demographic Analysis
  Procedures and techniques for the collection, evaluation, and analysis of demographic data; census and vital registration systems; measures of population composition and of fertility, mortality, and migration; construction of life tables, population estimates and projections.
• 236. Fertility
  An introduction to the study of the determinants and consequences of human fertility. Competing analytical approaches are examined. Evidence from developed and developing societies on social and economic differentials is reviewed.

UNIVERSITY COURSE

• 105. Culture and Health
  Will focus on definitions of health and illness within their cultural contexts. Some of the topics will include charismatic medicine, cross-cultural perspectives on health behavior, folk medicine, and international medical systems.
• 107 . Burden of Disease in Developing Countries
  Course will critically define and weigh the role which infectious and nutritional diseases and problems in the health care system and environment play and have played in the individual and community health populations of the developing countries of Asia, Africa, and South and Central America. Particular attention will be paid to the influence of malnutrition, AIDS, and parasitic diseases on disease incidence and mortality rates, the role of population and expansion and family planning efforts in developing countries disease and health planning, and the role of primary health care in the cost-effective and sustainable development of developing country health services.
• 145. Human Rights and the Ethics of Cultures
  This course involves a critical examination of the interaction between cultural-moral traditions and international human rights, focusing special attention on modern developments in human rights, selected encounters between regional cultural traditions and human rights, and specific human rights that are regarded as problematic by some traditions. Readings are drawn from human rights theory, international law, comparative ethics, and regional and cultural case studies.