Deconstructing fatalism: ethnographic perspectives on women's decision making about cancer prevention and treatment. Med Anthropol Q 2011 Jun;25(2):164-82
Date
08/13/2011Pubmed ID
21834356Pubmed Central ID
PMC3156035DOI
10.1111/j.1548-1387.2010.01136.xScopus ID
2-s2.0-79957954928 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 98 CitationsAbstract
Researchers have long held that fatalism (the belief in a lack of personal power or control over destiny or fate) constitutes a major barrier to participation in positive health behaviors and, subsequently, adversely affects health outcomes. In this article, we present two in-depth, ethnographic studies of rural women's health decisions surrounding cancer treatments to illustrate the complexity and contestability of the long-established fatalism construct. Narrative analyses suggest that for these women, numerous and complex factors--including inadequate access to health services, a legacy of self-reliance, insufficient privacy, combined with a culturally acceptable idiom of fatalism--foster the use of, but not necessarily a rigid conviction in, the notion of fatalism.
Author List
Drew EM, Schoenberg NEMESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdultAged
Anthropology, Cultural
Appalachian Region
Attitude to Health
Decision Making
Female
Humans
Hysterectomy
Middle Aged
Neoplasms
Personal Autonomy
United States
Vaginal Smears
