| Project/Area Number |
15K17209
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
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| Allocation Type | Multi-year Fund |
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| Research Field |
Sociology
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| Research Institution | Takasaki City University of Economics (2017)
Fukuoka Institute of Technology (2015-2016) |
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Principal Investigator |
Uda Kazuko 高崎経済大学, 地域政策学部, 准教授 (90733551)
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| Project Period (FY) |
2015-04-01 – 2018-03-31
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| Project Status |
Completed (Fiscal Year 2017)
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| Budget Amount *help |
¥2,210,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,700,000、Indirect Cost: ¥510,000)
Fiscal Year 2017: ¥650,000 (Direct Cost: ¥500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥150,000)
Fiscal Year 2016: ¥520,000 (Direct Cost: ¥400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥120,000)
Fiscal Year 2015: ¥1,040,000 (Direct Cost: ¥800,000、Indirect Cost: ¥240,000)
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| Keywords | 化学物質過敏症 / 社会的孤立 / 病いの経験 / 環境病 / contested illness / 環境社会学 / 医療社会学 / 環境被害 / 公害 / 共苦の困難性 |
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| Outline of Final Research Achievements |
Multiple Chemical Sensitivity (MCS) is a general term for unpleasant reactions from exposure to various micro-organic and chemical substances. Whether the illness is real or not is the subject of social and medical dispute. This study took the position that MCS exists and aimed to reveal the reality of MCS sufferers’ experiences, as well as discuss public policy to support them.
During field research, 24 interviews were conducted with MCS sufferers. Also, a database and chronology of MCS-related problems was compiled from 116 pages of documents.
In conclusion, the difficulty of living with MCS is that the illness lacks legitimacy in society, so patients adopt certain strategies for survival in their daily behavior. For instance, patients will claim that they have another illness such as asthma, which has higher legitimacy and is more easily accepted by society, to get people’s cooperation in avoiding exposure to chemicals, without them contesting the existence of MCS.
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