The chapters in this volume represent the psychological and sociological perspectives of health and illness. The text is broadly divided into four sections: Health cognitions; Health care and health initiatives; Mental health and mental illness and Health challenges. The chapters in the first section discuss aspects related to illness severity, health beliefs and illness representations. The second section focusses on alternative health care systems, health finance and sociological and psychological aspects of health care. The third section deals with mental health care and social representation of mental health and illness. The last section presents health challenges of specific groups. This volume thus covers a wide spectrum of health issues, theoretical standpoints and practical concerns. It is expected that this volume will prove to be a good research resource for academics and health professionals who are interested in an interdisciplinary social scientific perspective.

By Shikha Dixit and Arun Kumar Sharma