Jurgen Habermas is a leading social theorist of his generation, many of whose contributions have considerable relevance to medical sociology and areas of concern in the health arena. This volume not only provides a substantial introduction to the work of Habermas, but shows how his theories provide opportunites for new thinking on many health topics. These include: lay health knowledge, doctor-patient interaction, health care decision-making, health inequalities, health care rationing, self-help movements, medicalization, and the role of the critical sociologist. This text provides a resource for medical sociologists committed to the discipline and for those with more direct practical interests in health promotion and in good quality services and care.