Books published by Open University Press

The book introduces the non-specialist to key concepts like health inequalities and health inequities, social class and socioeconomic position, social determinants and life course, as well as to the key indicators of health and socioeconomic position.

This practical book helps coaches to improve their practice through reflection and professional support in their work. It explains how these developments can be made alone, with colleagues or with a supervisor, utilising a range of tried and tested frameworks.

Key Debates in Healthcare explores the answers to these and many more topical questions in healthcare. The book considers eight main debates in healthcare, ranging from the role of the state in the provision of health care to the rights of patients, and the responsibilities each of us have for our own health.

This book provides a holistic overview of contemporary play and playwork.

This introductory text outlines what is meant by excellence in practice and explores the core contemporary issues used to illustrate excellence, including evidence-based practice, clinical governance, and health and social care standards.

This groundbreaking book offers critical perspectives on the teaching of reading and phonics, openly challenging contemporary policy in both England and the US.

This valuable text offers a range of practical, person centred and evidence based approaches to tackling challenges faced by professionals working with people with learning disabilities.

Written by two experienced researchers and lecturers Researching Criminology is a comprehensive introduction to the aims, principles and methods of doing criminological research.

Cult movies are emerging as a distinct subject of film and media theory. This book brings together various works in the field on the structure, form, status, and reception of cult cinema traditions. It is divided into four areas of study - the conceptions of cult; cult case studies; national and international Cults; and cult consumption.

This book provides a practical step-by-step guide to community profiling, invaluable for anyone involved in community-based research.

Essential Readings in Health Psychology is a new collection of key papers brought together in one place.

Throughout this book, the authors analyse and reflect upon the influence of history, research and procedures upon contemporary public health practice. The text explores the debates surrounding the meaning of public health and looks at the policy changes that are reshaping its context.

The book argues that, for 'every school a great school' to become a reality, requires a move from individual school improvement efforts and short term objectives to a sustainable system-wide response that seeks to re-establish a balance between national prescription and schools leading reform.

Based on their many years of experience, this book aims to build students' confidence in their own writing ability whilst at the same time respecting conventional ideas of what is, and what is not, acceptable in the academic domain.

Addresses female offenders (why is the behaviour of female offenders considered to be derivative of men?), female victims, control of women and girls, masculinity and crime and international perspectives.

In response to these rapid developments, this book rethinks the notion of documentary, in terms of theory, practice and object/s of study.

Understanding Health Inequalities second edition provides an accessible and engaging exploration of why the opportunity to live a long and healthy life remains profoundly unequal.

Focusing on how the Government has traditionally controlled the media through censorship, financial involvement, and relations between media moguls and the State, the book analyses to what extent the Russian media has become 'free' since the fall of Communism.

This book examines the nature of successful school leadership: what it is, what it looks like in practice & what are the consequences for schools & pupils.

Organised by drug type and presented in an easy-to-use reference format, this book outlines the implications for practice of 20 drug groups.

The book features a model which helps to create successful mentoring-coaching activity in education and sets out a clear path along which to proceed. It describes appropriate behaviours and includes examples of questions that might be used.

The book examines the development of criminological theory over the past twenty five years, with detailed analysis of the relationship between criminological theorizing, criminal justice, social justice, and politics.

This book provides a comprehensive overview of the range of approaches and methods available for synthesising qualitative and quantitative evidence and a detailed explanation of why this is important.

This compelling book examines what theory means for both student and researcher and questions whether the confidence in educational theory is justified.

This book provides business coaches and management consultants with the framework for a psychological approach to executive coaching.

Offering your clients more than just therapy, this work gives you the know-how to bring elements of a coaching approach into your counseling process - adding increased benefits to your clients' experience as well as your practice.

Mental Health Promotion is the first textbook to provide an accessible guide to applied mental health promotion across all age groups, and demonstrates how both principles and theory can be used to underpin mental health promotion.

This book assesses current research and practice in the area of effective health communication and provides some practical guidance for those involved in communicating health information.

Written in the post 9/11 context this book considers the efficacy of theory and policy relating to questions of victimhood to accommodate the current political and cultural climate and offers a critical understanding of both. It adopts an explicitly cross-cultural position on these questions.