Week 2: Social Cure Flashcards
Mental Health Burden Statistics
20% of Australians report experiencing mental health issues in any 12 month period
Estimated that over 40% of Australians experience mental health issues at least once in their lifetime
BIOPSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL OF HEALTH - BIOLOGICAL FACTORS
Family History
Genetic Mutations
Brain Chemistry
BIOPSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL OF HEALTH - INDIVIDUAL DIFFERENCES
Cognitive Style
Personality
Life Stressors
BIOPSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL OF HEALTH - SOCIOCULTURAL
Nationality
Age Group
Profession
BIOPSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL OF HEALTH - Levels
Social Identities are at the interplay of macro- and micro-level factors
Macro Level
Micro Level
BIOPSYCHOLOGICAL MODEL OF HEALTH
Our analyses of mental health need not to be limited to the biomedical levels of analysis
Rather than addressing common problems only with standard (clinical) approaches to health, we can provide social solutions that…
> are more cost-effective
> are less stigmatizing
> allow for better access to treatment
> enhance compliance (while reducing relapse)
> are based on increasing body of evidence
The Social Cure?
A growing body of evidence suggests that social identity plays a key role in health and well-being
The Social Cure Factors
- Social identity is a determinant of symptom appraisals and responses
- Social identity is a determinant of health-related norms and behaviour
- Social identity is a basis for social support
- Social identity is a coping resource
- Social identity is a determinant of clinical outcomes
Social Groups Inform who we are
In society, we live, and have evolved to function, in social groups
As a result, a substantial part of our self/identity (who we think we are) derives from those group memberships - our sense of social identity
Incorporating principles from social identity theory and self-categorization theory
The self is a context-dependent category and can be defined at different levels of abstraction
Self Categorisation and Well-Being
When do we define ourselves as group members rather than as individuals?
What determines which group memberships define our sense of self in any given context?
What are consequences of self-definition in group- based terms
Self-Categorisation and Wellbeing - symptom appraisal
Social identity salience affects perceptions of illness or ‘symptom appraisal’
> The social identity that defines my sense of self determines what a given symptom means and what I do about it
Levine * Reicher (1996) - Self-Categorisation and Well-Being
PE students rated the severity of different scenarios (e.g., facial scare; knee injury) after either their gender identity or PE student identity had been made salient
> Female PE students perceived a facial scar to be more serious than a knee injury is their gender identity was salient
Common Approaches to Stress - Transactional Model of Stress
Lazarus & Folkman, 1984
> Points to importance of perceptions and interpretation
> Suggests stress depends on appraisal of stressors
Transactional Model of Stress - Lazarus and Folkman, 1984
Primary Appraisal: is this stressful? Depends on construal
Secondary Appraisal: Can I cope? Depends on resources (e.g., support)
Hypotheses derived from social identity approach - secondary
When a shared social identity is salient, this should impact on both primary and secondary appraisal
> Secondary appraisal: is this possible to cope?
To the extent that a social identity is salient, appraisal will be determined by resources and condition of the group (and its capacity to provide support) rather than personal self
Transactional Approaches are very Influential, but…
- They are individualistic and do not deal very well with social dimensions of stress
- Primary appraisal does not just depend on information (sometimes information has ‘boomerang’ effects - e.g., ‘don’t panic’!)
- Secondary appraisal does not just depend on support (sometimes support has no limited or negative impact)
There is a need for a more social psychological theory
The Social Identity Approach
Hypotheses derived from social identity approach:
> When a shared social identity is salient, this should impact on both primary and secondary appraisal
Primary appraisal - is this stressful?
To the extent that a social identity is salient, appraisal will be determined by implications for group rather than personal self
Does self-categorisation affect appraisal?
Yes.
> Modification of classic transactional study
-> students exposed to message that maths task is challenging or stressful
-> message came from an ingroup or outgroup member
measured self-reported stress while performing task
Appraisal (and associated reactions to a potential stressor) is only shaped by informational support to the extent that this comes from an ingroup source
The Social Curse
While a social group membership can influence health in positive ways, it can also have negative effects
> When one’s old age or the memory component of a task is salient, memory performance seems to decline
> Effects of underperformance linger long after people have left a negatively stereotyped environment
> Underperformance can lead to misdiagnosis with signficant negative consequences
Age-related self-categorisation Experiment
Participants: adults between 60-70 years of age; no history of significant trauma or illness mood disturbance, or diagnosed progressive condition
Design:
Participants randomly assignmed to one of four conditions (2 x 2):
1. induced self-categorisation: younger vs. older person
2. Beliefs about cognitive effects of aging: general abilities vs. specific (memory)
Experiment - Age-related self-categorisation Findings
Cognitive health is determined by:
> Self-categorisation (e.g., whether I self-categorise myself as older vs. younger person)
> Associated expectations about social identity content (i.e., what is means to be one of ‘us’)
Self-Categorisation and Appraisal - Implications
Cognitive performance is not fixed but highly variable
Cognitive performance is contingent on group-related beliefs and expectations
Self-categorisation has significant practical implications (e.g., concerning the evaluation of performance such as in the case of diagnosis of dementia)
Pitfalls of Group Membership
When social identity is salient, individuals’ desire to contribute to the group and to live up to, and enforce group norms may mean they are willing to jeopardize personal well-being (e.g., leading to exhaustion) and the well-being of others who don’t embody group norms (e.g., bullying of outgroup members)
If groups fail to achieve ingroup-defining goals, this may also be particularly stressful for those who identify strongly with them
Groups may be very stigmatised, e.g., the homeless
