Why and How Political Science Can Contribute to Public Health? Proposals for Collaborative Research Avenues.

France Gagnon,Patrick Fafard,Elisabeth Martin,Chantal Blouin,Carole Clavier,Pierre Bergeron

doi:10.15171/ijhpm.2017.38

Abstract

Written by a group of political science researchers, this commentary focuses on the contributions of political science to public health and proposes research avenues to increase those contributions. Despite progress, the links between researchers from these two fields develop only slowly. Divergences between the approach of political science to public policy and the expectations that public health can have about the role of political science, are often seen as an obstacle to collaboration between experts in these two areas. Thus, promising and practical research avenues are proposed along with strategies to strengthen and develop them. Considering the interdisciplinary and intersectoral nature of population health, it is important to create a critical mass of researchers interested in the health of populations and in healthy public policy that can thrive working at the junction of political science and public health.

Highlights

In recent years, an increasing number of scientific papers,[1,2,3,4,5,6,7] books,[8,9] essays, commentaries,[10,11,12,13] guides and tools[14,15,16] have been exploring different facets of public health policy
Divergences between the approach of political science to public policy and the expectations that public health can have about the role of political science, are often seen as an obstacle to collaboration between experts in these two areas
Considering the interdisciplinary and intersectoral nature of population health, it is important to create a critical mass of researchers interested in the health of populations and in healthy public policy that can thrive working at the junction of political science and public health

Summary

Introduction

An increasing number of scientific papers,[1,2,3,4,5,6,7] books,[8,9] essays, commentaries,[10,11,12,13] guides and tools[14,15,16] have been exploring different facets of public health policy. In a context where the value of inter-disciplinarity and intersectoriality is increasingly recognised, there is a considerable room for improvement The objective of this commentary is to outline why, and in what ways, political science can contribute to public health both as a field of inquiry, policy and practice. We will first examine the main characteristics of public health and political science in order to highlight how they diverge regarding their interpretation of public policy, and how they converge in terms of their common interest in understanding how healthy public policies are put into place. We will propose avenues for research that deserve more attention if we are to advance our collective understanding of public health

Objectives

Conclusion