Class notes
Intro to psychology Part 1: Health Psychology
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- University Of Cape Town (UCT)
this is a summary of a lecture series that covered Health Psychology.
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Health PsychologyLecture 1:
Lecture series:
Lecture 1: The Focus of Health Psychology; Stress and coping with stress
Lecture 2: Adherence to treatment
Lecture 3: Health Behaviour Models (Continuum theories)
Lecture 4: Health Behaviour Models (Stage theories)
Lecture 1:
What is Health?
The Biopsychosocial perspective
What is the focus of Health Psychology?
What is stress?
Is stress good or bad for you?
Sources of stress
Selye’s General Adaptation Syndrome
Lazarus’ Cognitive Appraisal Model
Coping with stress
What is health?
Western Medicine’s Traditional Biomedical View
Disease is conceptualised as a biological process that results from exposure to
a specific pathogen; removing the pathogen restores health
Health Psychology’s Alternative, Holistic View
“Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not
merely the absence of disease or infirmity” (WHO, 2012)
It’s important to understand health and illness or disease from a
biopsychosocial perspective
,The Biopsychosocial Perspective:
What is the focus of Health Psychology?
Application of mainstream psychological principles to physical health
with the aim of:
• Promoting health e.g., coping with stress
• Preventing and treating disease
• Identifying health risk factors
• Modifying health behaviours
• Improving the health care system
Shaping public opinion and social norms
What is stress?
- Environmental stimulus
- Physical response
- Interaction between an environmental stimulus and the person
Is stress good or bad for you?
Eustress vs. Distress
Eustress: Optimal level, beneficial, enhances performance
, Distress: Demands outweigh resources, performance is inhibited
Sources of stress:
Cataclysmic events: Sudden, unique and powerful single life events;
Require major adaptive responses; E.g. natural disasters, acts of war,
Xenophobic attacks
Life events: Personal events that place major demands on a person and
require change E.g., divorce, unemployment, illness, marriage, moving
Daily hassles: Part of everyday life; E.g. public transport, loadshedding,
conflict with a neighbour
Selye’s General Adaption Syndrome:
This model looks at how people respond t stress- this model says everyone
responds in the same way- respond physiologically
Stressors vary but our bodies respond to stress in the same way (focuses on
physiological responses)
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