ArticleSociology of health & illness2021
Integrating fundamental cause theory and Bourdieu to explain pathways between socioeconomic status and health: the case of health insurance denials for genetic testing.
Article in Sociology of health & illness, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed, 10 citations in OpenAlex.
- When Covering and Discovering Are at Odds: How the Logic of US Health Insurance Undercuts the Promise and Equity of Precision Medicine for People with Hereditary Cancer Risks.Journal of health politics, policy and law · 2026Article
- Financial assistance programs for genetic testing: Effective, ethical, and sustainable pathways to improving access disparities?Genetics in medicine : official journal of the American College of Medical Genetics · 2025Article
- The Shadow Price of Uncertainty: Consequences of Unpredictable Insurance Coverage for Access, Care, and Financial Security.The Milbank quarterly · 2025Article
- From Straight Lines to Twists and Turns: Finding Patterns Between Socio-Economics and Unequal Health Outcomes in the Life Course.Sociology of health & illness · 2025Article
- Extending the case for a "health disparities research industrial complex": A response to Ezell.Social science & medicine (1982) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Fundamental cause theory (FCT) is among the most widely recognised and accepted social science frameworks used to examine the processes driving health inequalities. Despite the wide influence of the theory, it remains largely underutilised in practical and applied research on health disparities. This paper proposes that Pierre Bourdieu's theories of capital and symbolic power can be integrated with FCT to address limitations in the latter theory, making it more useful in health disparities research. Using a case study of U.S. health insurance claim denials for genetic testing among women with a breast cancer diagnosis, this work illustrates how the theoretical constructs of FCT and Bourdieu's work articulate, and consequently deepens our appreciation for the durable relationship between socioeconomic status and health. Study results reveal the multiple and complex mechanisms that play a role in access to healthcare services, which has significant implications for how we think about the role of health policy in addressing health disparities.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.