Lecture 7 Personalty & Wellbeing Flashcards
(18 cards)
What is Health Psychology?
Study of how psychological factors affect health and illness
Health psychology integrates biological, psychological, and social factors in understanding health behaviors and outcomes.
What are the key goals of health psychology?
- Prevent health problems before they start
- Shorten the time spent living with disease
These goals emphasize the importance of prevention and early intervention.
Define ‘Compression of Morbidity’.
Extending the healthspan while minimizing the time spent with disease. Morbididty: is the presence of disease.
Compression of morbidity aims to reduce the duration of illness in old age.
What are the three types of prevention in health psychology?
- Primary prevention (ex. wearing suncreen)
- Secondary prevention (ex. annual skin checks at the dermatologist)
- Tertiary prevention (ex. surgergy to remove skin cancer)
Each type of prevention targets different stages of disease management.
What is primary prevention? Give an example.
Prevention undertaken before disease occurs, e.g., wearing sunscreen
Primary prevention aims to reduce risk factors and promote health.
What is secondary prevention? Give an example.
Prevention undertaken during the early stages of disease, e.g., annual skin checks
Secondary prevention focuses on early detection and intervention.
What is tertiary prevention? Give an example.
Prevention undertaken after a disease has occurred, e.g., surgery to remove skin cancer
Tertiary prevention aims to manage and reduce the impact of ongoing illness.
What are health behaviors?
Actions that can improve, maintain, or harm health
Health behaviors include exercise, diet, substance use, and preventive measures.
How can health behaviors impact health?
- Positive impacts (e.g., exercise)
- Negative impacts (e.g., smoking)
- Short-term, long-term, and interactive effects
Health behaviors can have varying effects based on frequency and context.
What factors influence the establishment of health behaviors?
- Individual-level factors (personality, biology)
- Social factors (family, peers)
- Sociocultural factors (culture, health education)
These factors play a significant role in shaping health habits.
Define personality in the context of health psychology.
Consistent patterns of thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that influence health outcomes
Personality traits can predict various life outcomes, including health.
What are the Big Five dimensions of personality?
- Openness to Experience
- Conscientiousness
- Extraversion
- Agreeableness
- Neuroticism
The Big Five model is widely used to assess personality traits.
How does conscientiousness relate to health?
High conscientiousness is associated with lower inflammation, healthier behaviors, and reduced disease risk
Conscientious individuals tend to engage in more health-promoting activities.
What is the relationship between neuroticism and health?
High neuroticism is linked to higher inflammation, fewer healthy behaviors, and increased disease risk
Neurotic individuals may struggle with health-promoting behaviors.
What are the two types of wellbeing?
- Hedonic wellbeing: happiness and positive affect
- Eudaimonic wellbeing: sense of meaning and purpose
Both types of wellbeing significantly influence health outcomes.
How does wellbeing affect physical health?
Wellbeing is both a health outcome and a predictor of longevity and chronic health conditions
Higher wellbeing correlates with better health and resilience.
What is the Health Belief Model?
A model that explains health behavior decisions based on perceived threat factors
Factors include perceived susceptibility, severity, benefits, and cues to action.
What are the components of the Theory of Planned Behavior?
- Attitude toward behavior
- Subjective norm
- Perceived behavioral control
This theory focuses on predicting health behavior based on individual intentions.
