The construction of participants, causes and responses in ‘problematic’ health literacy situations

Authors

  • Margaret Franken University of Waikato
  • Judy Hunter University of Waikato

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/japl.v8i2.145

Keywords:

health literacy, representations, primary healthcare practitioners, othering

Abstract

The present study set out to explore primary healthcare practitioners’ views of health literacy. As an initial scoping exercise for a larger project, it sampled a relatively small number of practitioners. It did so by asking them to recount a specific event or situation where language, literacy or numeracy appeared to play a part in a patient’s ability to access and use healthcare services. What emerged in the recounts were representations of patients, literacy-related events and responses that were affective, evaluative and which, in some cases, appeared suggestive of strong attitudes and stereotyping. While a small number appeared to fully understand that health literacy is context and content dependent, other practitioners typically presented a view of health literacy that was narrow in focus and which represented health literacy as primarily drawing on reading skills. These findings suggest that any intervention focusing on health literacy and targeted at primary healthcare practitioners needs to consider the ways in which attitudinal and affective factors may mediate practitioners’ interactions with patients and interactions around healthcare texts; and ways to help practitioners understand the situated and complex nature of health literacy.

Author Biographies

  • Margaret Franken, University of Waikato

    Margaret Franken and Judy Hunter are Co-Directors of the Health Literacy Project being conducted for, and in collaboration with, the Midlands Health Network, a not-for-profit health management organisation. They both teach literacy and language education undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the Faculty of Education at the University of Waikato and are involved in supervising a number of doctoral students in this area.

  • Judy Hunter, University of Waikato

    Margaret Franken and Judy Hunter are Co-Directors of the Health Literacy Project being conducted for, and in collaboration with, the Midlands Health Network, a not-for-profit health management organisation. They both teach literacy and language education undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the Faculty of Education at the University of Waikato and are involved in supervising a number of doctoral students in this area.

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Published

2013-09-23

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Franken, M., & Hunter, J. (2013). The construction of participants, causes and responses in ‘problematic’ health literacy situations. Journal of Applied Linguistics and Professional Practice, 8(2), 145-164. https://doi.org/10.1558/japl.v8i2.145

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