In the second in a series of articles addressing the current challenges and opportunities for the development of Health Policy and Systems Research (HPSR), Lucy Gilson of the University of Cape Town, South Africa, and colleagues argue that insights from the social sciences are vital for advancing the science of HPSR. Such insights include approaches to making generalisations from rich understanding of context, supporting policy learning, and enhancing research rigour and quality.
The authors say: "As health policies and systems are themselves social and political constructions, it is important to acknowledge the particular value of social science perspectives in the field."
Source: Public Library of Science