Topics Social and economic research, including gender research

Introduction
TDR and social and economic research, including gender research

Introduction

A better understanding of social issues will help improve public health, health care delivery, and the design and uptake of new interventions and tools – whether by health and science professionals (e.g. use of a new diagnostic method) or by the community (e.g. use of bednets).

The social sciences applied to public health include a number of subdisciplines such as health economics, medical sociology, medical anthropology, social epidemiology and health geography. Gender has particular significance as a social issue with potential impact on health – society assigns different roles to men and women and, as a result, transmission dynamics of infectious diseases may disproportionately affect women or men, or lead to differential impact of disease according to gender.

TDR and social and economic research, including gender research

TDR has supported a wide range of social science research activities since 1979 – including research in:

health economics
health financing
health sector reform
gender-sensitive interventions
equity
social determinants of health
conflict research and human rights.

TDR-supported social research on infectious disease addresses critical economic, health policy, and social, (including gender-related) issues in tropical diseases and disease control; the Programme is particularly committed to addressing gender issues. TDR can play a pivotal role in ensuring that gender and social science issues are investigated as part of the overall ‘research for health’ agenda, particularly since we have many partnerships and collaborations in disease endemic countries.

Where possible, gender and equity issues have been considered in the strategic objectives of our research functions, and we continue to support workshops, meetings and other initiatives that focus on the social sciences applied to health. Our high quality publications can also draw attention to these issues, ensuring that gender and social science is considered in the design and evaluation of healthcare interventions.

We aim to address issues and priorities related to social, cultural, economic and policy-related issues in infectious diseases of poverty as well as the broader gender research issues through the Thematic Reference Group on Social Sciences and Gender (hosted by the WHO Country Office for Ghana). The knowledge network TropIKA.net (which we support) features social and gender research, and in the future will have dedicated web space for social science and gender research related to infectious diseases of poverty.

For more about some of our activities related to social and economic research, including gender, see:

Publications and resources

Gender and tuberculosis: cross-site analysis and implications of a multi-country study in Bangladesh, India, Malawi, and Colombia
TDR report on the relationship between gender and tuberculosis in Bangladesh, India, Malawi, and Colombia (downloadable)

The gender agenda in the control of tropical diseases: A review of current evidence
TDR review of gender issues in relation to tropical diseases (downloadable)

The behavioural and social aspects of malaria and its control
TDR monograph highlighting the importance of sociocultural factors in malaria control (downloadable)

Equitable access to health care and infectious disease control - Concepts, measurement and interventions
Report of an international symposium on equitable access to health care and infectious disease control (downloadable)

Strategic social, economic and behavioural research (SEB)
Brochure outlining TDR's priority areas in social, economic and behavioural research (downloadable)

The social context of schistosomiasis and its control: an introduction and annotated bibliography
TDR publication on the social context of schistosomiasis and its control (downloadable)

TDR history: Making a difference for over 3 decades
30 year history of TDR that outlines TDR’s gender and social science achievements (downloadable)