Models of Health Psychology

INTRODUCTION TO
HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY
BY:
MISS MINAHIL SHAHID
Topics to be covered
• Model of Health Psychology:

• Biomedical Model Vs Biopsychosocial Model
MODELS OF HEALTH PSYCHOLOGY
Models of health are ‘conceptual frameworks’ or ways of thinking
about health.
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL OF HEALTH.
BIOMEDICAL MODEL OF HEALTH.
BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL OF
HEALTH Biological
• Age, Gender,
• Interactions between Genetics
individual genetic makeup • Physiologic
(biology), mental health Reactions
• Tissue Health
and personality
(psychology), and Psychological
sociocultural environment • Mental Health Sociological
(social world) contribute to • Emotional Health • Interpersonal
their experience of health • Beliefs and Relationships
Expectations • Social Support
or illness.
Dynamics
• Socioeconomics
HEALTH
• History
• It was theorized by Psychiatrist George L. Engel.
• According to him, clinicians must attends simultaneously to the biological, psychological, and
social dimensions of illness.
• Later on, Theodore Millon has extensively researched the biopsychosocial model and has
developed a systematic approach to understand the clinical presentation found in many treatment
settings.
HEALTH
Biological Influences on Health
The biological influences on mental health and mental illness are varied, and include genetics,
infections, physical trauma, nutrition, hormones, and toxins. For example, If one monozygotic twin
develops schizophrenia, there is at least a 60% chance that the co- twin will also develop that
disorder. From the prevalence in general population, it is clear that genetic factors play an important
role in the development of this disorder.
Psychological factors
The psychological component looks for potential psychological explanations for a health
problem, such as lack of self-control, emotional, or negative thinking. For example, depression on
its own may not cause liver problems, but a person with depression may be more likely to abuse
alcohol, and therefore, develop liver damage.
HEALTH
• Social factors
Social and cultural factors are conceptualized as a particular set of stressful events (being laid off,
for example) that can differentially impact health depending on the individual and his or her social
context. For example in mental disorders like anorexia nervosa (a disorder in which excessive and
purposeful weight loss despite evidence of low body weight). The fashion industry and the media
promote an unhealthy standard of beauty that emphasizes thinness over health. This exerts social
pressure to attain this “ideal” body image despite the obvious health risks.
APPLICATIONS OF BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
MODEL
• Clinical practice
• Recognize that relationships are central to providing health care.
• Use self-awareness as a diagnostic tool.
• Elicit the patient’s history in the context of life circumstances.
• Decide which aspects of biological, psychological, and social domains are most important to understand
and promoting the patient’s health.
• Provide multidimensional treatment.
• Medicine: A way of looking at the mind and body of patient as two important systems that are
interlinked so the workings of the body can affect the mind and the workings of mind can affect the
body. Interview process should encourage the patient to give as much information not about the physical
symptoms, but how illness affects the patients.
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
OF BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL MODEL
ADVANTAGES
• More patient- centric DISADVANTAGES
• Model suggests that to become healthier • Confusing in terms of providing equality or equity
you need to improve or grow on all three of healthcare.
components. • Not clear or consistent in determining what
• Suggests to looks to the cause of the components is more important in comparison to
others with each patient.
symptoms and to issues of wider • Inclusion of social matters mean there are just too
wellbeing. many variables and they would prefer to reduce
• Helps to connect the dots between matters to increase certainty.
healthcare and non-healthcare practices.
HOW TO APPLY BIOPSYCHOSOCIAL
MODEL IN CLINICAL PRACTICE
• Recognize that relationships are central to providing health care.
• Use self-awareness as a diagnostic tool.
• Elicit the patient’s history in the context of life circumstances.
• Decide which aspects of biological, psychological, and social domains are most
important to understand and promoting the patient’s health.
• Provide multidimensional treatment.
BIOMEDICAL MODEL OF HEALTH
• Focuses is on physical or biological aspects of disease and illness.
• Medical model of care practiced by doctors and/or health professional and is
associated with the diagnosis, cure and treatment of disease.
• Has been evolving for many years leading to improvements in medical science,
technology, increase in cures and treatments i.e : increase in vaccinations /
immunizations.
• Emphasis on diagnosis and treating individuals separately from their
lifestyle/living conditions- this model of health concentrates on the disease,
illness, or disability and attempts to (cure) return the physical health of the person
to a pre-illness state.
• Reasons for the illness are not at the center of the biomedical model.
• Tends to be the first thing people think of when they think of health care.
• Receives the majority of government healthcare funding (over 90%).
• Doctors and hospitals are the real focus of medicine or health.
• Expectation being that the Doctor will be able to fix the condition and the patient
will take on a passive role.
Biomedical approach
Diagnosis:
Identification of the disease or illness through Dr’s observations of symptoms or
through diagnostic tests e.g. X rays, scans, blood tests.
Intervention:
Action taken to improve health e.g. Via medical treatment, hospitalization,
prescriptions, surgery etc.
BIOMEDICAL MODEL ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
DISADVANTAGES
• Relies on professional health workers and
ADVANTAGES technology and is therefore costly.
• It creates advances in technology and • Professionals with specialist knowledge needed are
research. expensive to train.
• Can be successful in returning someone • Technology, equipment and technological
back to good health. developments expensive.
• The focus is on the condition and not the
• Extends life expectancy. determinants that caused it.
• Improves quality of life. • Not every condition can be treated.
• Without this model of health there • Not all countries can afford the medical
would be little knowledge about how to technologies and resources that are part of the
treat and diagnose illnesses. biomedical model of health- an important factor
contributing to differences experienced in health
status.

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INTRODUCTION TO

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