MIT Libraries homeMIT Libraries logoDSpace@MIT

MIT
View Item 
  • DSpace@MIT Home
  • MIT Libraries
  • MIT Theses
  • Theses - Comparative Media Studies/Writing
  • Comparative Media Studies - Master's degree
  • View Item
  • DSpace@MIT Home
  • MIT Libraries
  • MIT Theses
  • Theses - Comparative Media Studies/Writing
  • Comparative Media Studies - Master's degree
  • View Item
JavaScript is disabled for your browser. Some features of this site may not work without it.

Health equity rituals : a case for the ritual view of communication in an era of precision medicine

Author(s)
Mendez, Samuel R.
Thumbnail
Download1192966522-MIT.pdf (9.462Mb)
Alternative title
Case for the ritual view of communication in an era of precision medicine
Other Contributors
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Comparative Media Studies.
Advisor
William Uricchio.
Terms of use
MIT theses may be protected by copyright. Please reuse MIT thesis content according to the MIT Libraries Permissions Policy, which is available through the URL provided. http://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/7582
Metadata
Show full item record
Abstract
This thesis explores the meaning and implications of a ritual view of communication in the field of public health. This thesis uses the budding field of precision medicine to frame arguments and discoveries, referring back to the Precision Medicine Initiative in chapter introductions, conclusions, and illustrative examples throughout. The introduction presents the script for an interactive online live stream performance summarizing this thesis. Chapter 1 highlights the dominance of a transmission view of communication in public health, which tends to focus on top-down transfer of knowledge from experts to general audiences. This chapter highlights the limitations of such a view, especially when it comes to meeting the needs of medically underserved communities. This chapter highlights the gaps that a ritual view of communication could fill in public health research and practice.
 
Chapter 2 further examines what a ritual view of communication entails in public health, and how to conceive of it in relation to participatory research frameworks. This chapter closes with the design of a conversational tool to help academic-community partnerships employ a ritual view of communication on a project-level scale. Chapter 3 describes the development of "A People's Guide" community engagement program, employing a ritual view of communication to reconfigure the social roles and power dynamics in public health community engagement. This community engagement program uses workshops and interviews with members of medically underserved communities to publish a zine, which is then the basis of conversation in academic journal club workshops. This chapter uses a developmental evaluation framework to inform the program development process and suggest next steps that can be taken to develop this program further.
 
Overall, this thesis employs a combination of theory, applied media practices, educational field work, and design to highlight the opportunities that a ritual view of communication presents to advance health equity.
 
Description
Thesis: S.M. in Comparative Media Studies, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Department of Comparative Media Studies/Writing, May, 2020
 
Cataloged from the official PDF of thesis.
 
Includes bibliographical references (pages 117-119).
 
Date issued
2020
URI
https://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/127452
Department
Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Department of Comparative Media Studies
Publisher
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Keywords
Comparative Media Studies.

Collections
  • Comparative Media Studies - Master's degree
  • Comparative Media Studies - Master's degree

Browse

All of DSpaceCommunities & CollectionsBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjectsThis CollectionBy Issue DateAuthorsTitlesSubjects

My Account

Login

Statistics

OA StatisticsStatistics by CountryStatistics by Department
MIT Libraries homeMIT Libraries logo

Find us on

Twitter Facebook Instagram YouTube RSS

MIT Libraries navigation

SearchHours & locationsBorrow & requestResearch supportAbout us
PrivacyPermissionsAccessibility
MIT
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Content created by the MIT Libraries, CC BY-NC unless otherwise noted. Notify us about copyright concerns.