Life with type 2 diabetes from a gendered and classed perspective

Epidemiological studies point to a frequent and obvious causality between men, particularly men in vulnerable positions, and lack of adherence and self-management skills, thus calling for health professionals to address this non-adherence or deficiency. A prevailing discourse on men's health is emphasizing the differences in relation to the binary opposite (women) and often explains this with inappropriate health choices which are linked to norms of masculinity. This contributes to a stereotyped approach to men as disadvantaged patients.

In this paper, we aim to move beyond these normative understandings of so-called non-adherence by inquiring into the complexities of everyday life and by exploring the lived experience of positions offered in medical encounters. We explore how gender intersects with class as social constructs and potentially reproduce positions of inequality which affect the demanding challenges of life with a chronic disease. The study includes 12 men who are receiving diabetes treatment and who, by the healthcare system are characterized as vulnerable based on socioeconomic parameters. Based on qualitative interviews, which all were conducted after observations of healthcare encounters, this analysis points to the following challenges: The men embody a script where gendered and classed relations are reproduced where among other findings (female) health professionals are offered particular feminized positions associated with other authoritative positions of care encountered earlier in life (mothers, educators, teachers, social workers). These findings highlight the difficulty of transgressing stereotyped boundaries of class and gender.