A Metaphor
“To appreciate how neo-material conditions can influence health, it may be useful to consider the metaphor of airline travel. Differences in neo-material conditions between first and economy class may produce health inequalities after a long flight. First class passengers get, among other advantages such as better food and service, more space and a wider, more comfortable seat that reclines into a bed. First class passengers arrive refreshed and rested, while many in economy arrive feeling a bit rough. Under a psychosocial interpretation, these health inequalities are due to negative emotions engendered by perceptions of relative disadvantage. Under a neo-material interpretation, people in economy have worse health because they sat in a cramped space and an uncomfortable seat, and they were not able to sleep. The fact that they can see the bigger seats as they walk off the plane is not the cause of their poorer health. Under a psychosocial interpretation, these health inequalities would be reduced by abolishing first class, or perhaps by mass psychotherapy to alter perceptions of relative disadvantage. From the neo-material viewpoint, health inequalities can be reduced by upgrading conditions in economy class. Of course, this simplistic metaphor assumes that conditions in first class and economy class are independent—in the real world, improvements in economy are often resisted by those able to travel first class.”
(Lynch et al, 2000).
This has been a tough week. On the Stats front, we were working on multiple regression diagnostics, using Stata for detecting outliers, heteroskedasticity, and multicollinearity. On the research front, this restless mind came up with a new idea to incorporate (a byproduct of a Skype conversation) which I am concerned might take me closer to a well-funneled piece, or further – requires further consideration and conceptualisation. At Week 6, everyone is tired (you see it in faculty members as well), and I constantly have to remind myself that I’ve been more tired than this before, stop saying jag är så trött – though I have learnt how to say it – skärp dig!
And then I come across this metaphor from my stacks of reading. No tables to refer to, no figures or coefficients – just a metaphorical thought. We could discuss forever the perils of metaphors but, the gist of what it says about differentials and the way this argument is structured reminds me once more why I am here. To be trained to become confident in tearing apart such arguments; to know how to diagnose what is cause, effect, intervening, interacting, confounding, and to know how to say it when you can’t. To do all this without losing hope in the world, to do all this while being clear and constructive in a messy and destructive time.
So now that I have given myself a bit of a pep talk, I shall return to another night of work. Dansa fastan.
