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Szegal, Borisz
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 Professor
and Chair, Department of Social Sciences
Dunaujvaros Polytechnic
Quality of Life of Roma: Cultural and Social Determinants
of Health
Hungary
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Borisz A. Szegal (Hungary) was educated at the Moscow
State University and Eotvos Lorand University of Budapest.
Currently he is Professor and Chair of the Department of
Social Sciences, College of Dunaujvaros. Previous positions
included Budapest Children Homes, Hungarian Academy of Sciences
(senior researcher), and National Institute of Public Health
(project director), as well as numerous visiting research
and teaching positions in Hungary (Universities of Budapest,
Debrecen, Miskolc and Pecs), Russia (Perm College of Education,
Moscow State University), Canada (McMaster University),
and US (Temple University). Dr. Szegal had served at the
boards of Hungarian and international societies, and foundations.
He had also advised a number of NGOs and the Office of Ethnic
and National Minorities, Republic of Hungary.
Most of Dr. Szegal's research projects prior to 1990 were
devoted to a single broad topic: the sociobiological development
of the child, both normal and abnormal. Social changes of
the last decade, however, stimulated an increasing interest
in the cultural facets of human development in general,
and in one ethnic group in particular, the Roma (Gypsies).
Dr. Szegal has received a number of scholarships and awards,
including the Fulbright Award, Overseas Visiting Scholarship
(St.John's College, Cambridge), IREX Scholarship, and the
Soros Foundation research scholarships.
Selected Publications:
· Szegal, Boris (1999) A cigányság
szociális érettségérol és
szociális kompetenciájáról.
In: Gépgyártástechnológia. 11,
115-120 (Social maturity and social competence of Roma.)
· Szegal, Boris (2000) Hygiene and public health
in Poland and Russian Federation in 2000. Study Report.
M&H Communications. Budapest
· Szegal, Boris (2000) A roma gyermekek értelmi
és érzelmi fejlodésének elosegítése
az óvodában (M-R Program). Alex Typo Könyvkiadó,
Budapest (Enhancement of cognitive and emotional development
of Roma children)
· Szegal, Boris, Forray, Katalin R. (2000) A cigány
gyermek az iskolában és iskolán kívül
a Közép és Kelet-európai régióban.
Educatio, 9, 2, 291-303. (Roma children in and out of the
school in Central and East Europe)
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Quality of Life of Roma: Social and Cultural Determinants
of Health
The project would be devoted to the study of various aspects
of the quality of life, health in the first place of a very
peculiar population - Roma (Gypsies) families with especial
emphasize on children.
Roma is the largest ethnic minority in Europe (about 8.5
millions live in all European states with the exception
of Iceland. There are about 600,000 Roma in Hungary (6 %
of the population). According to all major biomedical and
psychosocial criteria - mortality, morbidity, distribution
of the diseases, patterns of drug abuse, development and
rearing of children, family practices, nutrition, attitudes
to the health care, lifestyle - Roma seem to differ considerably
from the Hungarian majority.
While there are several works dealing with statistical,
demographic, and sociological facets of Roma, most of the
issues have not been explored yet including perhaps the
most important: the background of the differences between
Roma and non-Roma. Most Roma live in the conditions of poverty,
the latter might be viewed as one of the determinants of
poor health conditions of the minority. While most Roma
have reasonable access to quality health care in Hungary,
nevertheless, the mothers-to-be rarely attend obstetric
clinics, most Roma infants are not vaccinated, teenage pregnancy
is a common phenomena, obesity is frequent. The role of
cultural factors has never been established. While importance
of early development is unquestionable, development of Roma
children belongs to the least studied facets of ethnic studies.
The aims of this project are:
1. To receive reliable information on various facets of
quality of life of Roma families.
2. To collect data on child development.
3. To compare Roma, and non-Roma samples.
4. To analyze, evaluate, and interpret the data from multidisciplinary,
and interethnic perspectives.
The project has been designed as a cross sectional study
of a large sample, about 300 families (i.e. about 1,500
individuals), which would be recruited in three Hungarian
regions with high proportion of Roma: Counties Szabolcs-Szatmar,
Baranya, and Budapest. About 300 Hungarian (non-Roma) families,
recruited in the same regions would serve as a control sample.
The families would be visited by well trained members of
the research team. The data would be collected by means
of questionnaires, interviews, and observations according
to accepted standards of validity and reliability.
This project's aims seem to correspond directly to such
objectives of the NCS Program as analysis of the role of
major social and economic determinants of health: cultural
patterns, changing vs. traditional lifestyles, inequality
and poverty as well access to health care. Extreme differences
between many facets of Roma and European cultures might
contribute to understanding of the role of many social and
cultural factors otherwise obscured by traditions, conventions
and taboos.
Perhaps one of the tragedies of the end of the XX century's
research is a firm grip of scientific traditions on what,
and how should be studied. Diversity and wide range of scientific
interests and backgrounds of the Program participants will
help the author to address the problems and challenges of
his own field in a less traditional, and hopefully more
original and creative way.
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| NCS Scholars, Midterm Meeting, Mexico. |
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NCS Scholars Lori Leonard and Seggane Musisi during first Global Health Summer Course Meeting.
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| Conferences & Workshops Calendar |
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