HPHD Health Related Behaviour and Substance Misuse Flashcards
What is health related behaviour?
Any activity that may promote good health or leads to illness eg exercise, smoking, safer sex behaviour, adhering to treatment
Why is health related behaviour important?
At least 1/3 of all disease in developed countries is due to tobacco, alcohol, blood pressure, cholesterol and obesity
List the learning theories
- classical conditioning
- operant conditioning
- social learning theory
What is classical conditioning?
Describes the way learning happens through unconscious association. Conditioned behaviours become habit.
eg anticipatory nausea in chemotherapy
smoking/drinking can become paired with emotions such as anxiety
How can classical conditioning be used to change health behaviour?
Have to break unconscious response by changing habits
Adverse techniques can be used for smoking/alcohol misuse by pairing the behaviour with an unpleasant response eg medication to induce nausea when drinking alcohol eg disulfarim
What is operant conditioning?
People act on the environment and their behaviour is shaped by consequences such as reward or punishment. (needs to be almost immediate)
Eg behaviour increases if it is rewarded or a punishment is removed and visa versa
How can operant conditioning be used to change health behaviour?
Behaviour needs to be shaped by rewards eg the money used to buy a packet of cigs can go towards a holiday
The problem is unhealthy behaviours are immediately rewarding and humans are driven by short term rewards
What is the social learning theory?
People learn via observation and modelling and are motivated to perform behaviours if the behaviour is valued and they have self efficacy.
We learn what behaviours are valued from observing others
Modelling is more effective if they are high status or similar to us
How can the social learning theory be used to change health related behaviour?
- the use of celebrities in health promotion campaigns
- peer modelling and education eg safer sex
List the social cognition models
- The health belief model
- The theory of planned behaviour
What is the health belief model?
Beliefs about a health threat (how likely it is and how bad it would be if it actually happened)
Beliefs about health related behaviour (perceived benefits and barriers)
Cue to action (reminders)
All lead to likeliness of ACTION
What is the theory of planned behaviour?
It is a tool to predict someones intentions
Looks at attitude towards the behaviour, the subjective norm eg what other think, and perceived control
Although it is a good tool to predict intentions it doesnt mean they actually will change their behaviour
How can intentions be translated into behaviour?
- make concrete plans of action eg what i will do and where
- writing things down makes us more likely to do them
What is the stages of change model?
People opinions and willingness to change their behaviour are not static, the stages of change model has 5 stages people pass through over time when making a decision or making the change
Precontemplation –> contemplation –> preparation –> action –> maintenance –> relapse –>
Why do people use drugs and alcohol?
The reasons are very complex
- social factors eg deprivation
- emotional factors
- environement eg the people you are with
- psychological factors
