Rhetoric of Health and Medicine May 2018 Open Access

When Patients Question Vaccines: Considering Vaccine Communication through a Material Rhetorical Approach

Heidi Y. Lawrence George Mason University

Abstract

Vaccinations are a notoriously difficult topic to discuss with patients, and efforts to persuade those who are most hesitant often fail. In this persuasion brief, common vaccination concerns and skepticisms are reexamined through the perspectives offered by rhetorical studies. This analysis demonstrates why current counter-arguments to vaccine skepticisms often fall short. As an alternative, this article encourages practitioners to consider how the material qualities of vaccinations contribute to their instability and make them difficult for patients to accept. This perspective suggests relationship-building and coalition-building as routes for improving doctor-patient communication about vaccines.

Journal
Rhetoric of Health and Medicine
Published
2018-05-24
DOI
10.5744/rhm.2018.1010
CompPile
Search in CompPile ↗
Open Access
OA PDF Gold
Topics
rhetorical criticism argument body and rhetoric
Export
BibTeX RIS

Citation Context

Cited by in this index (2)

  1. Wolfe et al. (2023)
    Written Arguments About Vaccination: Experimental Studies in the United States …
    Written Communication
  2. Campeau (2023)
    Unofficial Vaccine Advocates: Technical Communication, Localization, and Care b…
    Technical Communication Quarterly

References (0)

No references on file for this article.

CrossRef global citation count: 5 View in citation network → Build reading path →

Related Articles

  1. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Dec 2024
    American Kairos: Washington National Cathedral and the New Civil Religion ↗
    Randall Fowler
    rhetorical criticism discourse analysis argument archival research race and writing gender and writing public rhetoric body and rhetoric place and space editorial matter
  2. Philosophy & Rhetoric Sep 2024
    Where’s the Rhetoric? Imagining a Unified Field ↗
    Joshua Hanan
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism composition theory genre theory discourse analysis cultural rhetorics argument qualitative research quantitative research digital rhetoric social media grammar and mechanics gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric affect and writing body and rhetoric editorial matter
  3. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Jun 2024
    The Evolution of Pragmatism in India: Ambedkar, Dewey, and the Rhetoric of Reconstruction ↗
    Isaac James Richards
    modern rhetorical theory rhetorical criticism discourse analysis argument archival research empirical research race and writing affect and writing body and rhetoric book reviews
  4. Rhetoric & Public Affairs Jun 2024
    Rhetorical Leadership ↗
    Catherine L. Langford
    rhetorical criticism genre theory discourse analysis feminist rhetorics cultural rhetorics decolonial rhetorics graduate education argument empirical research qualitative research race and writing gender and writing disability studies public rhetoric affect and writing body and rhetoric editorial matter
  5. Rhetoric Society Quarterly Jan 2024
    Reconsidering Kairos through the Gendered History of Weaving ↗
    Jordynn Jack; Emma M. Duvall
    classical rhetoric rhetorical criticism argument body and rhetoric