Self-medication and related terms: a conceptual reflection

Introduction: self-medication has become a growing practice in the world population. This phenomenon has been promoted as a form of self-care, with a positive impact on reducing spending in health systems, however there is concern about the potential negative effects related to inadequate diagnosis and treatment, which can affect health of individuals. This dual perception of the phenomenon is partly related to a variety of terms and concepts used, that make difficult its theoretical and empirical approach. Harmonization of the definitions involved is required in order to make adequate epidemiological comparisons. Objectives: analyze the concept of self medication and related terms from the definitions in the literature of the subject. Conclusions: in the last four decades it has been an evolution of both the wording and the definitions related to self-medication, from a very simple concept that implies the absence of prescription, to more complex ones that encompass very diverse behaviors, even those mediated by an act of prescription but not followed or not completed by the patient. Additionally the conceptual proliferation seen, justify the ordering of the terms related to self-medication. This paper presents a proposal for classification in four groups: a. self-medication, b. self care, c. pharmaceutical preparations and medicines, and d. prescription. This proposal should facilitate the exploration and analysis of the phenomenon and allow future theoretical approaches.

Al – Qaeda and the international politics: a teorical Reflection

Through the study of the relationship between non-state actors and states, is pretended to analyze the role of Al-Qaeda in international politics. It is argued that Al-Qaeda tries or has the ability to promote or accelerate changes in the power  structure, where stands the American hegemony and the pursuit of balance by  various actors, implementing asymmetric strategies as counter-hegemonic responses.

Beyond the mincer equation: the internal rate of return to higher education in Colombia

In order to present an estimation of the Internal Rate of Return (IRR) to higher education in Colombia we take advantage of the methodological approach provided by Heckman, Lochner and Todd (2005). Trying to overcome the criticism that surrounds interpretations of the education coefficient of Mincer equations as being the rate of return to investments in education we develop a more structured approach of estimation, which controls for selection bias, includes more accurate measures of labor income and the role of education costs and income taxes. Our results implied a lower rate of return than the ones found in the Colombian literature and show that the Internal Rate of Return for higher education in Colombia lies somewhere between 0.074 and 0.128. The results vary according to the year analyzed and individual’s gender. This last result reinforces considerations regarding gender discrimination in the Colombian labor market.