Health Key question

Question 1

What is our health key question?

Answer 1

How can knowledge from health psychology be used to encourage the cessation of smoking?

Question 2

Health key question - AO1

Answer 2

• In 2023, 12.9% of the UK population smoked - about 1 in every 8 people
• Smoking is the biggest cause of preventable illness and premature death in the UK, accounting for approximately 74,600 deaths per year
• The cost of smoking in to the National Health Service in England is estimated to be £2.5 billion a year
• The govt. spends £5.3 billion on mass media campaigns and £33.2 million on stop smoking medication

Therefore it is in the government’s interest to encourage people to quit and psychology may be able to help

Question 3

Health key question - AO2 (health campaigns)

Question 4

Health key question - AO3 (health campaigns)

Answer 4

P: It is effective it is based on well-established and scientifically supported theories of Learning (SLT, CC and OC)

E: For example there have been one and a half million quit attempts since 2012. In 2013, 250000 people in England and Wales took part, 65% made it to 28 days, with an estimated 50000 remaining smoke free after 12 months.

T: Therefore psychology can encourage people to quit smoking

However

P: It isn’t effective for all/ it has limited effectiveness as it is reductionist

E: For example they don’t consider individual differences, such as personality or consider the complexity of cognition and ignore biological factors in addiction, such as tolerance and withdrawal (headaches, anxiety) which make giving up difficult.

T: Therefore psychology doesn’t encourage everyone to quit smoking

Question 5

health key question - ao2 NRT

Answer 5

Treatments such as NRT can get people to quit

• Nicotine replacement theory aims to bind to receptors at synapses and influence neurotransmission.
• It works by giving the client an inhaler/ patches/ gum, this delivers clean, controlled dose of nicotine without smoking. These bind to acetylcholine receptors in mesolimbic pathway, stimulates dopamine release in NA. The amount is reduced over time, which stabilises the addict.
• The theory behind it is that NRT is an agonist, which binds to receptors and activates dopa activity

Question 6

health key question - ao3 NRT

Answer 6

P: It is effective as it has supporting evidence

E: For example research shows that all forms of NRT are more effective for stopping smoking compared to placebos

T: Therefore psychology can encourage people to quit smoking

However

P: It isn’t effective for all/ it has limited effectiveness as is that it doesn’t address why the person developed a nicotine addiction in the first place.

E: For example patients may smoke to cope with stressors because nicotine can help them relax since it decreases level of noradrenaline, and so relapse after treatment.

T: Therefore psychology doesn’t encourage everyone to quit smoking.