Health Psychology

What is Health Psychologist?

Health psychologists apply psychological theories and methods in order to understand those factors which help people to remain healthy, cope with their illnesses or recover from them. Instead of adopting a strictly biological view of illness, health psychologists recognize that many forms of illnesses, such as cardiovascular diseases, HIV/AIDS, and cancer, are triggered and/or exacerbated by psychological and social factors. They therefore embrace a biopsychosocial view of illness – biological factors include inherited conditions, personality characteristics and physiological make-up; psychological factors involve one’s thoughts, feelings and behaviours;  and social factors may include one’s level of social support as well as family and cultural values.

Health psychologists engage in a wide range of activities related to their overall aim.  They may assist in reducing stress and risky sexual behaviour, developing and implementing weight management programmes, improving one’s diet, managing pain, preventing injuries, overcoming drug addictions and improving adherence to medical advice. Health psychologists may practice in healthcare settings, serve as lecturers in psychology programs or work as researchers in universities or government agencies.[1]

What Do Health Psychologists Do?

Health psychologists engage in many different job-related tasks. The specific type of work that a health psychologist does on a daily basis may depend on work setting or specialty area.

Many health psychologists work directly in clinical settings to help individuals or groups prevent illness and promote healthy behaviors. Others conduct research on health-related issues or influence public policy on health care issues.

• ·        Clinical Work: In clinical and medical settings, health psychologists often conduct behavioral assessments, clinical interviews and personality tests. Other tasks often involve participating in interventions with individuals or groups. Such interventions may involve educating people about stress reduction techniques, offering smoking cessation tips and teaching people how to avoid unhealthy behaviors.

• ·        Research: Many health psychologists also conduct research on a variety of health-related issues. For example, researchers may focus such things as the causes of health problems, effective preventative measures, the best health promotion techniques, how to best help people cope with pain or illness and how to get people to seek treatment for medical conditions.

• ·         Public Policy Work: Some health psychologists work in government or private agency settings to influence public policy on health issues. This work might involve lobbying government agencies, addressing inequalities in health care or advising governmental bodies on health care reform.[2]

Where do Health Psychologists Work?

Health psychologists are employed at universities, private businesses, health clinics, non-profit groups, government agencies, and hospitals. Specialists typically work at private clinics. Health psychology specialties include smoking cessation, women’s health, pain management, oncology, pediatrics, addiction prevention, and substance abuse recovery. Some health psychologists work at community health centers organizing community health initiatives and assisting the underprivileged.[3]

Sources; [1] [2] [3]

Categories: Psychologist