Christian Science : an ethnographic look at perceptions of health and health care

Abstract

Christian Science: An Ethnographic Look at Perceptions of Health and Health Care addresses the questions: 1. What do Christian Scientists believe about health and health care? and 2. What is the Christian Scientist's perception about illness? These questions were answered by using participant observation and ethnographic interviews. Participant observation took place in several different settings and three informants participated individually through ethnographic interviews. Seven domains of meaning and six cultural themes were identified from the data collected. Examples of domains include: Individual Beliefs About Being Healthy, and Culture of Health in the Christian Science Church. One of the cultural themes was: Staying healthy requires Spiritual nourishment. The Christian Scientist's connectedness to God through their spiritual beliefs contribute to their overall health. Recommendations for health care workers as well as recommendations for future, more in depth study about Christian Science and health are presented.