L19 – Illness Cognition and Behaviour Flashcards
What is Illness cognition?
= patient’s own common sense beliefs about their illness
What does illness cognition serve as a frame work for?
Coping with and understanding their illness;
Telling them what to look out for if they are becoming ill
What are the five cognitive dimensions of illness beliefs?
PICCT
Identity Perceived cause of the illness Time line (duration) Consequences (expected outcomes) Curability and Controllability
What is identity (one of five cognitive dimension of illness beliefs) mean?
a) Label given to the illness (medical diagnosis, e.g. cold)
b) The symptom experienced (e.g. runny nose)
What is a social impact of identity/medical diagnosis on an individual? Give one example where renaming a condition can alleviate such social impact?
Schizophrenia 精神分裂 now referred to as psychosis 思覺失調: less stigmatizing
more willing to accept diagnosis and seek help
What are the two main perceived causes of illness?
a) Biological
b) Psycho-social
What are some examples of biological perceived cause of illness?
Virus
Lesion
Genetic/Heredity
What are some examples of psycho-social perceived cause of illness?
poor
dietary habit,
work stress,
personality
Are the two main causes of perceived causes of illness always exclusive?
No
e.g. “My cold was caused by a virus, as well as the result of being run down”
What does time line mean? (one of five cognitive dimensions of illness beliefs)
patients’ beliefs about how long the illness / symptoms will last:
a) Acute (short term)
b) Chronic (long term)
How can a patient’s personal belief contradict with the time line of illness? Give one example.
Breast cancer survivors: recovered for 10 years but still think they are at risk for another cancer
What does CONSEQUENCES (expected outcomes) mean? (one of five dimensions of cognitive dimensions of illness beliefs)
patient’s perceptions of the possible effects of the illness on their life
What types of effects could a patient perceive an illness has on his life?
a) Physical (e.g. pain, lack of mobility)
b) Emotional (e.g. loss of social contact (stigmatization), loneliness)
c) A combination of factors, e.g.:The anti-hypertensive medication makes me tired and thus affects my work performance
What is the inference of CONSEQUENCES (expected outcome) on patient care? What should doctors do to manage expected outcomes?
Inform well
help them make the optimal choice
What is Curability and controllability? (one of five dimensions of illness beliefs)
patients’ beliefs about whether the illness can be treated and cured
What are the types of perceived sense of control over the outcome of illness?
Internal and External
a) Internal, e.g. “If I rest, my cold will go away”
b) External, e.g. “If I get medicine from my doctor, my cold will go away”
What can doctors do to manage curability and controllability in chronic disease patients?
Chronic illness: need to improve their confidence for better sense of control
What follows illness cognition?
Illness behavior
What is Illness behavior?
actions taken in response to perceived illness
What is illness behavior strongly determined by?
strongly determined by symptom interpretation
What 4 actions are taken in response to perceived illness?
Responses to bodily signs, symptoms
Seek opinions, advice
Wait for symptoms to subside
Do nothing
What is the assumption stated in Leventhal’s self-regulatory model of illness behavior?
Given a problem / change in status quo, the individual will be motivated to solve the problem and re-establish their state of normality
What are the three stages of problem solving proposed by Leventhal’s self-regulating model of illness behavior?
- Interpretation of problem (making sense)
- Coping (dealing with problem aiming to regain state of equilibrium)
- Appraisal (assess the success of coping)
How can symptom perception, a stimuli of the first stage of Leventhal’s self-regulating illness behavior model, be influenced?
(3)
Mood
Cognitive State
