Public Health

Workshop: 102 Social and Behavioral Aspects of Public Health 

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Who is this Workshop for?

High school students interested in learning about health and social sciences. This is also an excellent course to prepare for college writing and the kinds of literary analyses performed in college classrooms.  

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Workshop Description

This course explores social influences on behavior and health and what research and experience in public health practice can tell us about how to affect social and structural change to improve the health of the public. Drawing on theoretical, epidemiological, and case study evidence, the course uses specific health issues such as alcohol and tobacco use, HIV, and stigma to explore and illustrate the effects of social structures and practices on individual health status and behaviors. The course draws on participants' experience to inform and broaden their perspectives on the significant antecedents of ill-health and injury. Students will leave the program with a deeper understanding of the key concepts that inform a social and structural perspective on health, including race, class, gender, sexuality, socio-economic status, environments, social networks, and social capital. Students will also be instructed and challenged to think about structural and policy interventions that can influence these factors toward improved health outcomes.

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Sample Research Topics

• COVID and mental health

• Health and humanitarian aid

• COVID and Travel 

• COVID and Airline 

• COVID and the Future of Remote Work 

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Past Students' Research Projects