Health research has begun to pay increasing attention to inactivity in its broadest sense as lack of meaningful activity and boredom. Few studies however have taken a critical look at this phenomenon. We explore (in)activity drawing on ethnographic data from observations in an acute stroke unit and post-discharge interviews with stroke survivors and their families. Four themes emerged that explain patients’ (in)activity: (i) planned activities; (ii) ‘doing nothing’, (iii) the material environment of the unit; (iv) interactions with staff. Considering these themes, we seek to problematise received conceptual and methodological approaches to understanding (in)activity. We argue that (in)activity is best conceived not as lack of action or meaning, but as a situated practice encompassing both bodily and mental activities that reflect and reproduce the way in which life is collectively organised within a specific healthcare setting.

健康研究已经开始越来越关注最广泛意义上的不活动，即缺乏有意义的活动和无聊。然而，很少有研究对这一现象进行批判性研究。我们从急性中风病房的观察和出院后对中风幸存者及其家人的访谈中，利用民族志数据探索（中）活动。出现了四个主题来解释患者的（不）活动：（i）计划的活动；(ii) “无为”，(iii) 单位的物质环境；(iv) 与工作人员的互动。考虑到这些主题，我们寻求将已接受的概念和方法论方法问题化以理解（不）活动。我们认为（不）活动最好不要被视为缺乏行动或意义，