Health Psychology
Health psychology plays a crucial role in understanding how our behaviors, emotions, and thoughts directly influence our physical health. This section delves into the intricate relationship between mental health and overall well-being, examining topics like the impact of stress, the complexities of depression, and the ways we cope with life’s challenges.
By the end of this section, you should know about:
- What is Health Psychology and How Does Behavior Affect Health?
- What is depression, and what determines its severity?
- Frustration—Blind Alleys and Lead Balloons
Let’s Take a closer look at them.
Test Your Knowledge
At the end of this section, take a fast and free pop quiz to see how much you know about Health, Stress, and Coping.
What is Health Psychology and How Does Behavior Affect Health?
Health psychology focuses on understanding how behavior affects health, with the goal of applying behavioral theories to prevent disease and promote overall health. Many diseases of which half of all deaths in North America can be attributed to unhealthy behaviors such as smoking, poor diet, lack of exercise etc. In behavioral medicine, psychologists help manage medical issues such as diabetes and asthma, provide support for pain management, stress management and coping with chronic illness.
Behavioral Risk Factors and Their Impact on Health
In the past, infectious diseases and accidents were the main causes of death. Most deaths today are due to lifestyle diseases, with health-damaging habits such as smoking, unhealthy eating habits and lack of physical activity playing a major role Diseases such as heart disease, stroke, HIV/AIDS and pneumonia cancer can be largely prevented by changing behaviors.
Behavioral risk factors are activities that increase the likelihood of illness, injury, or premature death. Smoking, for example, kills about 443,000 people a year in the U.S., and 65% of American adults are overweight or obese, significantly reducing life expectancy. Other risk factors include severe stress, untreated hypertension, alcohol abuse overdose, unsafe sex, and poor nutrition. Many of these practices also contribute to higher medical costs.
The Influence of Personality and Mental Health on Health
In addition to common behaviors, some individuals are prone to health issues due to their “disease-prone” personalities. People who are anxious, depressed, or hostile tend to have very poor health. Depression is particularly harmful, as it often leads to poor eating habits, lack of exercise, smoking, and other unhealthy behaviors, leading to long-term health problems.
The Cumulative Effect of Risk Factors
Unethical behaviors are related, and people who engage in one risky behavior tend to adopt others. For example, smokers tend to overindulge and overeaters tend to avoid exercise. Pneumonia and other infectious diseases can also be worsened by these lifestyle choices. Thus, a combination of poor lifestyle choices and pre-existing conditions can lead to premature death.
Health-Promoting Behaviors and Their Benefits
To improve health, health psychologists focus on encouraging health-promoting behaviors, including regular exercise, a balanced diet, smoking and alcohol control, and stress addressing Studies have shown healthy lifestyle habits such as eating a balanced diet, exercising regularly and avoiding smoking can be reduced.
Health-promoting behaviors don’t have to be very limited either. For example, a healthy diet does not require extreme food intake; The Mediterranean diet, which emphasizes fruits, vegetables and fish, is healthy and appealing. Similarly, regular moderate levels of physical activity, such as 30 minutes of brisk walking several times a week, can have significant health benefits.
Health Psychology: Moderation in Alcohol Consumption
When it comes to alcohol, using the right ingredients is key. One or two drinks a day is generally considered safe and can provide a number of health benefits, such as reducing the risk of heart disease. But heavy drinking (three or more drinks a day) significantly increases the risk of health problems such as high blood pressure, liver disease, gallstones and cancer.
Conclusion: Small Behavioral Changes for Long-Term Health
Few lifestyle habits cause more health problems. By adopting healthy habits and reducing risky behaviors, individuals can significantly improve their long-term health. Simple changes—such as exercising regularly, eating a balanced diet, and avoiding smoking—can significantly reduce the risk of developing chronic diseases and improve overall survival.
Health Psychology: Early Prevention of Behavioral Risks
One of the most important preventable causes of death is smoking, which is the biggest behavioral risk factor for health problems. Health psychologists emphasize the importance of early prevention to avoid long-term smoking habits, as quitting smoking is notoriously difficult. Mark Twain jokingly said that quitting smoking is easy—because most smokers try to quit several times before they succeed. It is important to stop smoking before it becomes a habit.
Smoking prevention programs, especially in schools, aim to discourage smoking by educating young people about its dangers. These events typically include quizzes, multimedia presentations, art contests, and informational brochures distributed to parents. The focus is on helping students understand the dangers of smoking and encouraging them to see that it is dangerous and “not cool”. Research shows that negative attitudes towards smoking have increased over the past few decades, indicating that these prevention efforts are working.
Some programs also teach refusal skills, helping teens resist peer pressure to smoke or use other drugs. For example, students play games to practice saying no to smoking or other risky behaviors. This knowledge can also be applied to topics such as sexual health and teen pregnancy. In addition to specific behavior modifications, many prevention programs focus on teaching general life skills, such as stress reduction, decision-making, goal setting, self-control, and social skills, to help students cope better with challenges and reduce the temptation to engage in destructive behaviors.
Health Psychology: Community Health and Public Health Campaigns
In addition to preventive schooling, health psychologists also contribute to community health efforts. All community-based health campaigns aim to reduce major behavioral risk factors by educating the public about stress, alcohol consumption, smoking, hypertension, sexually transmitted diseases, etc. Such campaigns these often use mass media, health fairs, schools, workplaces, and other channels to inform and motivate behavior change
These campaigns can be very effective in providing role models who show others how they can improve their health. Individuals are encouraged to participate in health screenings, seek counseling and seek treatment. By spreading awareness of health risks and promoting best practices, these campaigns contribute to the well-being of communities as a whole.
Positive Psychology: Wellness and Well-Being
The concept of health involves not only the prevention of disease, but also the promotion of well-being and well-being. True health is more than the absence of disease—it includes a good state of physical and mental well-being. Well-being is a lifelong pursuit that includes emotional resilience, happiness, hope, and the ability to recover from adversity.
People who achieve optimal wellness tend to be emotionally healthy, self-confident, and possess supportive relationships. They also engage in meaningful work and live in clean, safe environments. These factors contribute to overall well-being, and health psychologists recognize that wellness is just as important as preventing or treating illness. One crucial aspect of wellness is stress management, which has a direct impact on both mental and physical health. By understanding stress and learning how to manage it, individuals can improve both their health and the quality of their lives.
What is depression, and what determines its severity?
Stress is an inherent part of life, and although it can cause long-term or serious harm, it is not inherently bad. Stress is defined as a psychological and physical phenomenon that arises when we adjust or adapt to our environment. These changes can occur in response to negative events (such as work stress, financial problems, or relationship difficulties) and positive experiences (such as travel, sports, or socializing) Eustress (positive stress) or adversity May manifest as (bad stress), where eustress is associated with rewarding and energizing challenges.
Whether stress is triggered by positive or negative news, it begins by stimulating the autonomic nervous system (ANS). This is the same physiological response experienced in an emotional response, characterized by significant increases in heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration Although short-term stress is generally harmless, stress chronic or prolonged can be very harmful.
Health Psychology: General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS)
Selye introduced the concept of General Adaptation Syndrome (GAS), which describes the body’s response to prolonged stress. According to the GAS, the body’s response to stress has three stages:
Alarm response: This first stage occurs when the body mobilizes responses to stress. The pituitary gland signals the adrenal glands to release adrenaline, noradrenaline, and cortisol. These hormones prepare the body for emergency response by increasing heart rate, blood pressure and energy levels. This phase can include symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, digestive issues which are common in other stressful situations such as travel or exams as well
Countermeasures: During this stage, the body begins to adapt to the ongoing stress, reducing the symptoms from the alarm response phase. Although the body appears to be functioning normally, it is operating in a more alert state. Current stress resistance is effective, but the body becomes more sensitive to other stressors or health challenges.
Fatigue: When stress is prolonged, the body runs out of resources, creating a state of fatigue. It manifests itself in emotional, behavioral, and physical symptoms such as anxiety, anger, fatigue, mood swings, chronic illness, self-destructive behaviors, and more.
Health Psychology: Stress, disease, and the immune system
Chronic stress can weaken the immune system, leaving the body more susceptible to disease. Stress increases the release of inflammatory chemicals from the body, which, as part of the body’s defense mechanism, can slow healing and prolong infection Stress can lower the immune system , as seen in the studies where the students’ immune systems were dysfunctional in exams or divorces related to grief and others personal problems
The relationship between stress and the immune system is studied in psychoeuroimmunology, which examines how stress and emotional well-being affect the immune system In response to chronic stress, the body’s body the immune system is not able to fight disease. However, positive emotions such as happiness, laughter, and joy can strengthen the immune system, suggesting that positive thoughts can improve health.
There is also evidence that managing stress through strategies such as relaxation exercises, support groups and stress management training can help build the immune system work great and prevent disease Meditation has also been shown to improve survival in people with life-threatening conditions such as cancer, heart disease and HIV in /AIDS.
Health Psychology: When Is Stress a Strain?
Some events can trigger tension more than others. Stress is an event or situation that challenges or threatens an individual, such as work stress or personal conflict. For example, police officers who face constant threats of injury or death experience high levels of stress due to the unpredictable nature of their job
Studies of students exposed to varying levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) have shown that stress levels increase as CO2 exposure becomes unpredictable This highlights the role of unpredictability never intentionally emphasize in stress: people feel more stressed when they don’t know what’s going to happen in the future What’s going to happen in the future?
In addition, pressure—the need to meet external demands or expectations—can increase stress levels. For example, job pressures such as deadlines, long hours, or other responsibilities can be stressful. However, stress tends to increase when a person feels that they have little or no control over the situation. Nurses who had more control over their workplace, such as their work commitments and facilities management, were less stressed and less likely to be physically or mentally ill
In summary, stress is stress when it is intense, chronic, unpredictable, uncontrollable, and associated with intense stress. These factors are often in the workplace, where chronic stress can lead to burnout—emotional, mental, and physical exhaustion.
Health Psychology: Burnout
Burnout is a condition characterized by physical, emotional, and mental exhaustion. It typically affects individuals who work in emotionally demanding professions, such as nursing, teaching, social work, and police work. The main components of burnout include:
- Emotional Exhaustion: Feeling drained and unable to give any more of yourself.
- Cynicism or Detachment: Developing a negative or detached attitude toward the job or people involved.
- Reduced Personal Accomplishment: Feeling ineffective or like you are not achieving anything in your role.
Burnout is more likely in people who are passionate about their work, as they may push themselves too hard without adequate breaks. Those working in emotionally taxing jobs are particularly vulnerable, as they often deal with constant high levels of stress.
Burnout in College Students
College students are also at risk for burnout, especially if they feel overwhelmed by their workload or develop a negative attitude toward their studies. Students with heavy academic loads and poor coping strategies may experience burnout. On the other hand, students who maintain a positive attitude, engage in extracurricular activities, and have good social support systems are less vulnerable to burnout.
Health Psychology: Appraising Stressors
Stressors are events or conditions that challenge or threaten a person, and our reaction to them largely depends on how we appraise them. Richard Lazarus proposed that stress is influenced by two types of appraisals:
- Primary Appraisal: The initial evaluation of a situation—whether it is irrelevant, positive, or threatening. For example, giving a speech could be appraised as either a challenge or a threat.
- Secondary Appraisal: After determining the situation is threatening, this involves evaluating resources and deciding how to cope. This can include assessing what can be done to meet the challenge or mitigate the threat.
For example, when facing a stressful situation like public speaking, someone might appraise it as a threat (leading to anxiety) or as an opportunity to perform (leading to a positive approach). This appraisal influences the emotional and physical stress response.
Health Psychology: The Nature of Threat
The perception of stress is often tied to a sense of control. When we believe we lack control over a situation, we are more likely to experience stress. For example, college students may feel stressed about their workload even if it isn’t objectively more demanding than their peers, simply because they perceive it as unmanageable.
A perceived lack of control is just as threatening as an actual lack of control. Having a sense of competence and believing that you can manage a situation significantly reduces stress levels.
Coping with Stress
Once a stressor is appraised as threatening, there are two main coping strategies:
- Emotion-Focused Coping: This strategy focuses on managing emotional responses to stress. Examples include engaging in relaxing activities, seeking emotional support, or distracting oneself.
- Problem-Focused Coping: This approach focuses on addressing and managing the stressor itself. For instance, creating an action plan to resolve the issue or breaking it down into manageable steps.
These strategies can work together. For example, managing anxiety through emotion-focused coping (e.g., deep breathing) can help a person better use problem-focused coping (e.g., reviewing notes for a presentation). However, these coping methods can sometimes conflict, especially if an individual seeks emotional relief by making hasty decisions without considering the long-term consequences.
In general, problem-focused coping is more effective when the stressor is controllable, while emotion-focused coping is useful for stressors that are beyond one’s control.
Frustration—Blind Alleys and Lead Balloons
Frustration is a negative emotional state that arises when people are held back from achieving their goals. In Mi Jung’s example, another car blocked her goal of finding a parking space, leading to frustration.
The causes of frustration
Frustrations can be barriers to goal attainment, and these can be categorized as external or personal.
External discouragement: This is due to factors outside the person’s control that impede progress towards the goal. Examples are:
Mechanical failures (e.g., flat tires, broken vending machines) .
Social aggression (e.g. aggressive driver, disorderly conduct) .
Environmental challenges (e.g. bad weather, long queues) .
Disappointing social factors, such as injustice or prejudice, are especially influential, with examples such as racism causing disillusionment and stress for minority groups
Personal frustration: This type stems from internal constraints or characteristics, such as physical limitations (e.g., the height of a basketball player) or academic deficiencies (e.g., poor grades that prevent admission to medical school).
Health Psychology: Frustration often increases when:
Prevented goals are very important, urgent, or critical (e.g., missing an exam due to parking problems).
The goal is close, because the closer you get to their goal, the stronger the motivation.
Many frustrations accumulate, culminating in an intense episode, often referred to as “the straw that broke the camel’s back.”
Health Psychology: Typical Reactions to Frustration
The most common reactions to frustration include:
Aggression:
Aggression can be a direct or indirect response to frustration. While frustration often leads to aggression, it doesn’t always. Violence generally refers to an attempt to cause harm or resistance with the goal of removing an obstacle. However, because direct attacks can be inappropriate or dangerous, they can be moved (relocated) to safer or less harmful areas. For example, it may upset a friend or family member rather than the person or situation causing the frustration.
Perseverance:
Many people react to disappointment by trying harder to overcome the obstacle, such as trying harder or trying different techniques Perseverance can be transformative, as it allows the person to keep trying until they reach it a goal, or the frustration subsides. But if the patient is inflexible, like a mouse choosing the same closed door repeatedly, it can backfire
Escape Or Withdrawal:
Some individuals may try to escape or withdraw from a frustrating situation. This may include physically leaving a source of frustration (e.g. quitting a job) or withdrawing mentally, such as pretending not to care or using alcohol or drugs to cope.
Coping with Frustration
A thorough analysis of the situation is essential in dealing with frustration. Here are ways to cope:
Identify the cause of frustration:
Understand whether the frustration is due to external factors (such as the behavior of others or the environment) or personal limitations (such as lack of experience or skills).
Determine if the frustration can be changed:
Determine if the obstacle can be removed or changed, and determine how much effort will be required. Does the situation affect you?
Make sure the effort is worth it:
If frustration comes from a change, ask yourself if the effort you put in to overcome the obstacle is worth it. If not, it may be best to accept the situation as it is.
Avoid perceived obstacles:
Sometimes we create unnecessary obstacles in our minds. For example, if someone like Corazon feels unable to find a job due to inexperience, he or she may quit after one rejection. But by applying for more jobs or considering other ways to gain experience, such as volunteering, she may find a way to overcome this perceived barrier.