Lecture 1 - What is Health Psychology Flashcards
What is Health Psychology?
The study of how psychological influences contribute to health, illness, and reaction to illness
what is health psychology not
clinical psychology
What Might be Appealing about this
Discipline?
Applied discipline
• It’s really about BEHAVIOUR CHANGE!
• Can inform many real-life decisions
what is the WHO definition of health
WHO, 1948: “A complete state of physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity.”
This state of optimum health is called what
“wellness”.
What Health Psychologists Do
Health promotion and maintenance • Prevention and treatment of disease
• Research
• Analyze and improve health care system and health policies
• And many more possibilities
what do heath psychologists research
- Etiology
* Epidemiology
what is etiology
(causes of disease)
what is epidemiology
(frequency/distribution/determinants of disease in a population)
Are the mind and the body part of the same system? • Or are the mind and the body two separate systems?
We have come full circle in answering these questions.
it started with it as one unit, then separate and now again it is one unit
what was the prehistoric period view of the mind and body
Early cultures: prehistoric and ancient Egypt
• Mind and body one unit
• Illness caused by evil spirits and Gods
• E.g., trephination
what was the ancient greek view of the mind and body
Proposed “humoral theory of illness”
who Proposed “humoral theory of illness”
Hippocrates
what is the humoral theory of illness
An imbalance of bodily fluids in the body: blood, black bile, yellow
bile, and phlegm in the body
• Said that disease is related to bodily factors but can also impact the mind
• ”good diet and lifestyle” as cure
what was the middle ages (500-1450) view of the mind and body
- Return to supernatural and religious interpretations
- Illness was punishment for sins
- Priest was central to healing
what was the renaissance period known for
Beginning of the Biomedical Model
explain the view of the Renaissance Period: Beginning of the Biomedical Model
- Religious approach less accepted with advancement of science
- Disease usually viewed as result of natural causes
- Reemergence of scientific approach
- Mind-body became separate
with the Renaissance Period, the mind and body were separate– who looked after the body and who looked after the mind
Physicians looked after the body
Theologians, philosophers look after the mind
what is the biomedical model
Dualistic Approach – • Mind and body as separate
• Reliance on physical evidence as only basis for diagnosis and treatment
did Freud contribute to some breakdown of the pure biomedical model
yes
what did Freud’s Psychoanalytic Theory involve
Conversion Hysteria
what is Conversion Hysteria
unconscious conflicts can produce physical illness
• Unconscious conflict is converted into a symbolic physical symptom
• E.g. loss of vision
what is the current view of the mind and body
Moving Towards the Biopsychosocial
Model of Disease
explain the Biopsychosocial
Model of Disease
We now know (again) …
• Physical health is interwoven with psychological and social environment.
• The mind and the body cannot be separated in matters of health and illness.
• Treatment and prognosis are related to expectations and the patient-practitioner relationship
-> scientific methodologies to find evidence -> growing interest in holistic approach
what are the three parts of the Biopsychosocial
Model of Disease
biological, psychological, social
what is included in the biological part of the Biopsychosocial Model of Disease
- Genetic variability
- Anatomy
- Physiology
- Germs, viruses
- Toxins, etc.
what is included in the psychological part of the biopsychosocial Model of Disease
behavioural, emotional and cognitive systems
what is included in the social part of the biopsychosocial Model of Disease
- Family
- Society
- Social Networks
- etc.
what are the two models of health care
Biomedical vs.
Biopsychosocial
what is the The Biomedical Model
(focus on disease)
• All disease can be explained on the basis of aberrant somatic
processes.
• (Used to be) dominant model in medicine for the past 300 years
what is the The Biopsychosocial Model in Health Psychology
(focuses on the system)
• Health and disease are consequences of the interplay of biological, psychological, and social factors.
give a comparison of the biomedical model and the BPS model
Bio:
reductionistic, single causal factor considered, assumed mind-body dualism, emphasizes illness over health
BPS:
microlevel as well as microlevel, multiple causal factors considered, mind and body inseparable, emphasizes both health and illness
How do biological, social, and psychological variables interact?
Systems theory
what is the systems theory
• All levels of organization in any entity are linked to each other
• Change in any one level will affect change in all other levels
E.g., smoking
what are the Clinical Implications of the BPS Model
- Diagnosis and treatment must consider all three factors
* The patient-practitioner relationship is extremely important
The BPS Model in Action: Understanding addictive behaviours… explain how biological mechanisms, psychological processes and social influences influence alcohol abuse (behaviour)
bio: genetic predispositions, alcohol sensitivity
Social influences: stressful events, culture/environment that promotes excessive drinking, individualistic culture that encourages self blame for personal behaviour
Psychological processes: negative thinking, self-defeating beliefs
Why did Health Psychology Rise in Prominence? (3 reasons)
More Behaviour-Related Diseases and increased acceptance of psychologists, Psychological techniques fit new health consciousness trend and desire for participation.
INTERHEART study (2004): Nine risk factors account for 90% of the world’s cardiovascular disease:
- Smoking
- Bad cholesterol (LDL, triclycerides)
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Diabetes
- Size of waistline (abdominal obesity)
- Psychosocial factors (e.g. depression and stress)
- Lack of fruits and vegetables
- Lack of physical exercise
- Level of alcohol consumption
Increased recognition of the value of behaviour change experts’ insights and interventions how?
• Treatment effectiveness of CBT – lifestyle changes
• Stronger focus on psychological, social factors that contribute
to disease
• Preventability of diseases through lifestyle changes
• Shift from focus on cure to prevention
• Chronic diseases treatment requirements
• Help with adjustment
• Help with treatment/self-care
• Help families cope
-> Stronger integration of health psychology knowledge into medical practice
4 Key Issues - Recap
- By 1980s, better understanding of mind-body relationship.
- Behaviour stronger and stronger contributor to illness in developed countries.
- More and more techniques available to change behaviour and improve health.
- Fits with current trend on health consciousness and desire for participation.
Today - Recap
- What is health psychology?
- Historical development
- How did the view of the mind-body relationship change over time?
- Lead to discussion of:
- Biomedical vs. Biopsychosocial Model
- Why has health psychology risen in prominence over the past 30 years?
