- Current section: Introduction
- Learning outcomes
- 1 The MMR controversy
- 2 Background to the controversy
- 3 Risk perception
- 4 Single vaccines – the middle way?
- 5 MMR and the media
- 6 Everyone's interests
- 7 Concluding remarks
- 8 Reading 1: The Lancet Paper
- 9 Reading 2: Communication and miscommunication of risk: understanding UK parents' attitudes to combined MMR vaccination
- 10 Reading 3: Towards a better map: Science, the public and the media
- 10.1 Media coverage of the MMR controversy
- 10.2 Media coverage of cloning and genetic medical research
- 10.3 The media and the public understanding of science
- 10.4 Trust
- 10.5 Overall levels of scientific understanding
- 10.6 What did we learn from media coverage between April and October?
- 10.7 The media and public understanding of climate change
- 10.8 The media and public understanding of the MMR controversy
- 10.9 The media and public understanding of cloning and genetic medical research
- 10.10 Conclusions
- 11 Reading 4: The lessons of MMR
- References
- Acknowledgements
The home of free learning
from The Open University
from The Open University
Alternatively you can skip the navigation by pressing 'Enter'.
The MMR vaccine: Public health, private fears
Hide summary
A decade ago, the possibility of a link between the MMR vaccine...
A decade ago, the possibility of a link between the MMR vaccine and autism hit the media. Fear of the vaccine spread rapidly and, despite an almost unanimous consensus that the claim was unfounded, still persists today. In this unit, we’ll examine why this controversy took on such a life of its own and why parents still agonise about the vaccine.
By the end of this unit you should be able to:
- understand more of the scientific factors that relate to the dispute about the safety of the MMR vaccine in the UK;
- assess the strength of arguments for and against the use of the MMR vaccine;
- show how issues of risk, trust, communication and media representation of science and medicine have a strong bearing on public perception of the MMR vaccine;
- explain why there is such a strong consensus amongst the medical profession testifying to the safety of the MMR vaccine.
- Duration: 20 hours
- Published on: Thursday 24th March 2011
- Level: Advanced
- Posted under: Health Sciences
The MMR vaccine: Public health, private fears
Introduction
The MMR dispute is of enormous public significance and this unit helps unravel why this has been an area of such dispute.
This unit is from our archive and it is an adapted extract from Science and the public S802 which is no longer in presentation. If you wish to study formally at The Open University, you may wish to explore the courses we offer in this curriculum area [Tip: hold Ctrl and click a link to open it in a new tab. (Hide tip)] .
Archive content
This is an extract from an Open University course which is no longer available to new students. If you found this interesting you could explore more free Health Sciences course units or view the range of currently available OU Health Sciences courses.
Other pages You might like
Try: Introducing Health Sciences: The Pain...
We are all likely to experience pain at some stage in our lives. But, how do you deal...
Try: Science promotion
This unit will look at how public engagement in science and technology might be achieved...
Study: Human biology
Explore human biology in relation to health and disease, how systems of the body interact,...
Try: Introducing Health Sciences: COPD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disorder (COPD) is an extremely debilitating disease. For...
Try: Issues in complementary and alternative...
Why are so many people now turning to complementary and alternative medicine and why do...
Study: Topics in science
Combine the study of molecules, medicines and drugs with an introduction to microbes, and...
Try: Introducing Health Sciences: Paramedics
Traumatic injury causes millions of deaths and disabilities globally and cases are rising...
Try: Health and environment
To be able to understand the importance of the environment for our health, we need to...
Study: Science in context
This course covers interesting, contemporary issues with a scientific dimension: BSE/vCJD;...
Try: Introducing Health Sciences: Breast...
Most women share a common fear - breast cancer. From the age of 53, they are invited by...
Try: Forensic science and fingerprints
This unit covers how science can make fingerprints easier to study, how they are used in...
Study: Understanding health
Explore the term ‘health’ and what shapes our experience of it through an exploration...
Comments
Be the first to post a comment
Copyright & revisions
No significant updates yet
Copyright information
- Creative-Commons: The Open University is proud to release this free course under a Creative Commons licence. However, any third-party materials featured within it are used with permission and are not ours to give away. These materials are not subject to the Creative Commons licence. See terms and conditions. Full details can be found in the Acknowledgements section.
Feeds
If you enjoyed this, why not follow a feed to find out when we have new things like it? Choose an RSS feed from the list below. (Don't know what to do with RSS feeds?)
Remember, you can also make your own, personal feed by combining tags from around OpenLearn.
Alternative Formats
Tags, Ratings and Social Bookmarking
S802_2
About this site
Views
Votes
Comments
Tags
- climate change (373)
- business (278)
- diaries (194)
- bottom line (169)
- food (168)
- Rough Science (162)
- internet (146)
- BBC Two (145)
- BBC Radio 4 (141)
- BBC (134)
- listings (121)
- Scotland (121)
- points for debate (120)
- Bang goes the Theory (116)
- children (116)
- Creative Climate (116)
- English Civil War (115)
- astronomy (108)
- Thinking Allowed (105)
- religion (98)
- marketing (94)
- 20th century (94)
- Charles I (93)
- communication (92)
- evolution (91)
- sustainability (89)
- research (88)
- architecture (85)
- energy (83)
- Charles Darwin (78)
OpenLearn Links
