Addressing individual behaviours and living conditions: Four Nordic public health policies
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Addressing individual behaviours and living conditions: Four Nordic public health policies. / Vallgårda, Signild.
In: Scandinavian Journal of Public Health, Vol. 39, No. 6 Suppl., 2011, p. 6-10.Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
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TY - JOUR
T1 - Addressing individual behaviours and living conditions: Four Nordic public health policies
AU - Vallgårda, Signild
PY - 2011
Y1 - 2011
N2 - Aims: To identify characteristics of the public health policies of four Nordic countries concerning how they present the causesof ill health, the best ways to deal with these causes, and where to place responsibility; additionally, to investigate whetherthere is a common Nordic policy. Methods: Analyses of recent public health programmes in Denmark, Finland, Norway, andSweden. Results: Focus is on either, or both, individual behaviour and living conditions as causes of ill health; the remedies areclassical liberal as well as social democratic policies. None of the programmes is consistent with either ideological strand; eachhas its peculiar combination of interpretations and policies. The Danish programme is the most liberal focusing onbehaviours and individual’s choices; the Norwegian programme is the most social democratic or social liberal focusing mostlyon the social and physical environment and the politicians’ responsibility to improve the population’s health. The Swedishand the Finnish programmes lie between those of Denmark and Norway. The Finnish and Norwegian governments stresstheir responsibility for the health of the population. Conclusions: No common Nordic political approach to publichealth exists. All programmes contain contradictory policies and ideological statements with differencesregarding the emphasis on individual behaviour versus choice and living conditions and political responsibility.The policies are not entirely predictable from the political stance of the government; national differences seem toplay a role.
AB - Aims: To identify characteristics of the public health policies of four Nordic countries concerning how they present the causesof ill health, the best ways to deal with these causes, and where to place responsibility; additionally, to investigate whetherthere is a common Nordic policy. Methods: Analyses of recent public health programmes in Denmark, Finland, Norway, andSweden. Results: Focus is on either, or both, individual behaviour and living conditions as causes of ill health; the remedies areclassical liberal as well as social democratic policies. None of the programmes is consistent with either ideological strand; eachhas its peculiar combination of interpretations and policies. The Danish programme is the most liberal focusing onbehaviours and individual’s choices; the Norwegian programme is the most social democratic or social liberal focusing mostlyon the social and physical environment and the politicians’ responsibility to improve the population’s health. The Swedishand the Finnish programmes lie between those of Denmark and Norway. The Finnish and Norwegian governments stresstheir responsibility for the health of the population. Conclusions: No common Nordic political approach to publichealth exists. All programmes contain contradictory policies and ideological statements with differencesregarding the emphasis on individual behaviour versus choice and living conditions and political responsibility.The policies are not entirely predictable from the political stance of the government; national differences seem toplay a role.
KW - Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences
KW - folkesundhedspolitik
KW - Norden
U2 - 10.1177/1403494810378922
DO - 10.1177/1403494810378922
M3 - Journal article
VL - 39
SP - 6
EP - 10
JO - Acta socio-medica Scandinavica
JF - Acta socio-medica Scandinavica
SN - 1403-4948
IS - 6 Suppl.
ER -
ID: 33233138