Research Articles Base: Psychological Theories And Approaches

PSYCHOLOGY OF EMOTIONS ( FOLLOW UP )

Psychology of Emotions (follow-up)             Our emotions play an important role throughout the span of our lives for the reason that they enhance virtually all our waking moments with either a pleasant or an unpleasant quality.  According to . (2001), even our relationship with the physical world is emotional.  There is an emotional component to every sensual experience. Emotion seems to be in everything, but the advantage emotion gives us in survival may not be noticeable.  Almost every part of the nervous system is affected by a certain sudden and extreme change in the environment.  You are able to react emotionally to the situation faster than you are able to process an understanding of what is happening in the environment and understand the situation. The emotional reaction involves all of your systems at once.  This is what makes the three-day diary of emotions difficult to measure its natural-occurring emotions.  Most of what we call emotion is really a straw poll of what is going on in the many systems of the body at the same time. An emotion could be a register of activity in various areas of experience that have no relation to each other except through an emotional understanding.             It is obviously evident that the most recurrent emotion is anger which normally, in the diary, fell during the three consecutive nights (i.e. 9pm).   I just wanted things to be going my way in the last minute of the day since I get sensitive and irritable during those times.  A simple reason of a late dinner was not even acceptable to me.  I easily get annoyed with that and eventually turned into anger.  I know it isn’t a good behavior though I am working on it right now.  I had noticed that anger usually fall during the sleeping time simply because of exhaustion and burnt out from the job.  It is triggered with my sensitivity and irritable behavior when I get tired.  Learning to experience your feelings fully and expressing them in ways that are adaptive and healthy is not a simple process, but there are some key components that can help. In general, it is important to become a good observer of your feelings, to accept and value them, and to attend to what they signal to you. Pay attention to how your interpretations and thoughts affect how you feel and also how the lessons learned in your family about emotional expression continue to influence your behavior. When deciding how to express how you feel, give some thought to all of your options. And most importantly, be patient. Don’t become discouraged when you find yourself struggling with this process. Learning to experience and express your emotions is a life-long process.   REFERENCE Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

PSYCHOLOGY OF EMOTIONS ( FOLLOW UP )

Psychology of Emotions (follow-up) Our emotions play an important role throughout the span of our lives for the reason that th...

evaluate a psychological theory and method of intervention with reguard to eating disorders consider factors that affect the ability of the individual to maintain psychological equilibruim

Eating Disorders Studies on the incidence of eating disorders in the general population are lacking, and the incidence rates available have been based on cases presenting to health care. Very few studies have attempted to calculate the incidence rate of obesity. The criterion for obesity is a matter of deﬁnition on a gliding scale from low to high weight. It is difficult and probably not meaningful to deﬁne at what moment overweight becomes incident obesity. Overall family and twin studies provide evidence for a genetic contribution to the aetiology of eating disorders (,  &  2003). However the magnitude of the genetic effect remains uncertain because of problems with case ascertainment and the low statistical power of the studies to date. Non-shared environmental effects appear to play a substantial role in the liability to eating disorders. The development of eating disorders is likely to involve interactions between multiple environmental and genetic risk factors. Mental ill-health in a parent poses particular challenges for the relationship with the child and his or her psychological development (,  &  2003).   A parent who is anxious or fearful of the world may transmit such attitudes, while depressive mood will have an impact on emotional responsiveness and availability and may present a gloomy outlook on life. For an older child a negative effect on peer relationships may ensue, with the child being reluctant to bring friends home, he or she may suffer bullying. Eating disorders provide a good example of the effects of the interplay between parental attitudes and behaviors (,  &  2003).  The instance of eating disorders vary on the characteristic or background of the person engaged in it. The paper will discuss the behaviorist and psychodynamic view of eating disorder.   Behaviorist view of eating disorder Experimental psychologists who are interested in human behavior but work on animal models are beginning to recognize the many conceptual opportunities that the newly acquired brain and evolutionary knowledge provide. People can now conceptualize basic psychological processes in neurological terms that appeared terminally stuck in unproductive semantic realms only a few years ago. Neuroscientific riches are now so vast that all subfields of psychology must begin to integrate a new and strange landscape into their thinking if they want to stay on the forefront of scientific inquiry ( 1998) This new knowledge will have great power to affect human welfare, as well as human self-conceptions. It is finally possible to credibly infer the natural order of the inner causes of behavior, including the emotional processes that activate many of the coherent psycho behavioral tendencies animals and humans exhibit spontaneously without much prior learning. These natural brain processes help create the deeply felt value structures that govern much of people’s behavior, whether learned or unlearned. This new mode of thought is the intellectual force behind affective neuroscience. In the traditional behaviorist view, it was not essential to understand such natural instinctual tendencies of animals. Psychologist’s province was largely restricted to examining the laws of learning. The intrinsic limitations of the behaviorist approach became fatally apparent when it was found that the laws of behavior varied substantially, at least in fine detail, from one species to another ( 1998).    In other words, the general principles of learning were muddied by the vast evolutionary/instinctual variability that existed across species. To their initial chagrin and eventual delight, more and more investigators began to note that animals trained according to behaviorist principles would often regress to exhibiting their own natural behavioral tendencies when experimental demands became too severe ( 1998) For instance, raccoons that had been trained to put coins in piggy banks to obtain food would often fail to smoothly execute their outward demonstrations of learned thriftiness, instead reverting to rubbing the coins together and manipulating them in their hands as if they were food itself. Apparently, the instinctual, evolutionary baggage of each animal intruded into the well-ordered behaviorist view that only reinforcement contingencies could dictate what organisms do in the world. These observations were enshrined in the now famous article, The Misbehavior of Organisms, which led to the widespread recognition that there are biological constraints on learning ( 1998). Although the empirical wealth provided by the behaviorist paradigm was vast and continues to grow , so was the barrier it created to understanding the psychological and behavioral tendencies that evolution had created within the brains of animals ( 1998).  For a behaviorist, a person who has eating disorder has scientifically explainable attitudes that provide the reason for them to act in such a way. They believe that there is a science procedure that can be done to solve eating disorders.  Although the behaviorist view is a good method to use in determining the causes of eating disorders it does not make use the thought process as a means for learning. The behaviorist view did not intend to use thoughts and perceptions in determining behavior.    Psychodynamic view The idea that the internal tensions in one’s mind were representations of the tensions of early intimate relationships and social. For years, the seeds of mental illness were thought to be found in the fertile field of childhood family relationships. Schizophrenia, autism, and depression were all assumed to be manifestations of toxic early experiences in a person’s life ( 2001).  There have always been dissenters from this model of psychopathology, and they have promoted many different kinds of theories about and treatment for mental disorders. But the psychodynamic view created by  and modified by his later followers held dominion over the society ( 2001).  The psychodynamic person believes that a person having eating disorders may have problems with the mind.  They believe that to solve eating disorders, clients have to undergo psychodynamic psychotherapy. In psychodynamic psychotherapy different techniques and procedures that a client undergoes so that his mind related problems can be given solution.    References Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

evaluate a psychological theory and method of intervention with reguard to eating disorders consider factors that affect the ability of the individual to maintain psychological equilibruim

Eating Disorders Studies on the incidence of eating disorders in the general population are lacking, and the incidence rates available ha...

Psycotherapy Approaches Essay

As the theoretical and professional foundations of counseling have progressed, a natural evolution has been the development of ethical standards to help regulate the practice of multicultural counseling. Ibrahim and Arredondo (1986) authored a proposal to develop specific ethical standards regarding multicultural counseling in the areas of education, research, assessment, and practice. LaFromboise and Foster (1989) extended this discussion by bringing attention to other issues related to ethics in counseling that involved participants in research and right to treatment. The appropriate use of therapeutic strategies is still an evolving question. It is quite clear that their use is inappropriate in an acute crisis situation. Their use also is inappropriate in psychiatric disabilities where clients are not able or willing to question themselves or to take responsibility. Their appropriate use requires concomitant cognitive development and psychological intactness as well as fitting timing. Because these strategies are rather new to psychotherapy, the specifics of the analysis are often in neighbouring social science disciplines. Counsellors are considered as helping professionals. Learning to be a helping professional has been described as a complex and overwhelming process (Byrne, 1995; Kottler & Hazler, 1997; Martin & Moore, 1995; Young, 1998). Thus, their use of proper theoretical approaches in helping adolescents are imperative to their practice. There are three commonly employed practices, the cognitive-behavioural, the psychoanalytic, and the Humanistic approaches. Among the three, the cognitive-behavioural model is the most prevalently used. Cognitive-behavioral treatment has been applied to various disorders including anxiety, aggression, depression, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, pain, and learning disabilities. Research on the nature of these disorders, a description of related treatment strategies, and an illustrative review of treatment outcome data is provided. Discussion focuses on a consideration of familial involvement, developmental factors, and methodological issues that require research attention. Cognitive-behavioral therapy (CBT) uses performance-based and cognitive interventions to produce changes in thinking, feeling, and behavior (Kendall, 1991). It concerns itself with both the external environment and the individual’s internal processing of the world. In CBT, the therapist is a consultant, diagnostician, and educator. As a consultant, the therapist provides ideas for experimentation, helps sort through experiences, and promotes problem solving. As a diagnostician, the therapist gathers varied data and integrates them to determine what is best for the adolescent client based on the current situation. As an educator, the therapist participates with clients to influence them to think for him or herself, maximize personal strengths, and acquire cognitive skills and behavior control. Behavioral models focus on behavior; interventions work to change behavior and outcome evaluation is based on these changes. Cognitive therapy views changing behavior alone as too narrowly focused; however, in CBT the performance-based feature of behavioral treatment is not eliminated. CBT focuses on how people respond to their cognitive interpretations experiences rather than the environment or the experience itself, and how their thoughts and behaviors are related. It combines cognition change procedures with behavioral contingency management and learning experiences designed to help change distorted or deficient information processing (Kendall, 1991). Therapeutic experiences involve emotion and cognitive processing. Therapists guide teens through their cognitive processing before, during, and after the behavioral experiences, while attending to the emotional state of the teenagers. Cognitive skills are first taught in an emotionally safe situation, but it is not enough to teach cognitive processing in the absence of affective arousal: After skill acquisition there is need for practice in the use of cognitive skills under conditions of affective arousal. The new experiences broaden the way an adolescent can view his or her world — they do not remove unwanted prior history, but help develop healthier ways to make sense of future experiences. CBT does not seek to uncover unconscious early trauma or biological, neurological, and genetic contributions to psychological dysfunction, but instead strives to build a new, more adaptive way to process the world. CBT has been applied to normal teenagers under stress and to children diagnosed as anxiety-disordered. In reality-based stress from medical or dental procedures, teens were prepared with coping strategies — resulting in less anxiety (Peterson & Shigetomi, 1981; Siegel & Peterson, 1981). When the teens were taught coping strategies through the use of modeling, they were found to be even more capable of coping with the stressful procedures. Kane and Kendall (1989) provided four children diagnosed with over-anxious disorder with 16 to 20 individual, hour-long sessions. The CBT focused on recognizing feelings and cognitions associated with an anxiety-provoking situation, and developing and evaluating a plan to cope. Modeling, role-play, relaxation, and contingent reinforcement aided in the acquisition of these skills. Once learned, the skills were practiced in vivo (while affectively aroused) and encouraged through social reinforcement. Changes in anxiety were demonstrated in parent reports, independent clinician’s ratings, and teen’s self-reports. In addition, specific target behaviors were improved, and follow-up reports evidenced reasonable maintenance of gains. In general, CBT interventions have been and remain promising, with research findings suggesting applications for certain specific disorders. Nevertheless, more effort is required in the areas of treatment development, treatment integrity and duration, and treatment expansion. It is only after these efforts, and along with properly controlled randomized clinical trials, that one can examine and determine treatment effectiveness. Another approach is the humanistic theory. The said theory has undergone extensive developments to include culture systematically. The work of Bingswanger (1963) and Boss (1963) translated the existential premise of being-in-the-world into specific counseling and therapy strategies. Miller (1991) emphasized the concept of self-in-relation that focuses on the individual in context. In cognitive-behavioral theory, authors like Cheek (1976) and Kantrowics and Ballou (1992) have pioneered the inclusion of culturally relevant practices. Cheek adapted traditional assertiveness training for African American clients who view rights differently. Kantrowics and Ballou shifted their behavioral theory approach from an individualistic focus to one reflecting feministic reappraisals. A more recent proposition by Sue, Ivey, and Pedersen (1996) advocated for a culture-centered meta-theory that would preserve the integrity of different counseling approaches while organizing their theoretical and philosophical assumptions in one cultural framework. Moreover, Rogers, founder of client-centered therapy, a humanistic form of treatment, often used the scientific method to provide support for his approach to counseling (Rogers, Gendlin, Kiesler, & Truax, 1967), even though this system was originally rooted more in philosophy than science (Hansen, 1999). Moreover, becoming a counselor normally entails achieving a graduate-level university degree, which is usually displayed in the counselor’s office as a reminder of the supposed intellectual and scientific respectability of the counseling methods (Torrey, 1972). Being associated with science seems to be an important part of the persuasive narrative requirement in our society (Frank & Frank, 1991). And lastly, is the Freudian model of psychoanalytic counseling. As described by Patton and Meara (1992), four major principles of psychoanalytic counseling were taught to the counselors. These principles were helping the client to communicate freely using such techniques as counselor restraint; helping the client to communicate naturally; using counselor empathy and counter transference to understand and communicate to the client; and promoting client understanding (or insight) through techniques such as confrontation and interpretation. Counselors were expected to listen to their clients with a psychoanalytic perspective and identify maladaptive patterns of relating to the counselor and others in an effort to help the clients understand these patterns and seek to change them.   Reference: Bingswanger, L. (1963). Being-in-the world: Selected papers of Ludwig Binswanger. New York: Basic Books. Boss, M. (1963). Psychoanalysis and daseinsanalysis. New York: Basic Books. Byrne, R. H. (1995). Becoming a master counselor: An introduction to the profession. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Cheek, D. (1976). Assertive Black … puzzled White. San Luis Obispo, CA: Impact. Frank, J. D., & Frank, J. B. (1991). Persuasion and healing (3rd ed.). Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. Ibrahim, F. A., & Arredondo, P. M. (1986). Ethical standards for cross-cultural counseling: Counselor preparation, practice, assessment, and research. Journal of Counseling and Development, 64, 349-352. Kane, M. T., & Kendall, P. C. (1989). Anxiety disorders in children: A multiple-baseline evaluation of a cognitive-behavioral treatment. Behavior Therapy, 20, 499-508 Kantrowics, R., & Ballou, M. (1992). A feminist critique of cognitive-behavioral theory. In L. Brown & M. Ballou (Eds.), Theories of personality and psychopathology: Feminist reappraisals (pp. 70-87). New York: Guilford. Kendall, P. C. (1991). Guiding theory for treating children and adolescents. In P. C. Kendall (Ed. , Child and adolescent therapy: cognitive-behavioral procedures (pp. 3-22). New York: Guilford Press. Kottler, J. A., & Hazler, R. J. (1997). What you never learned in graduate school: A survival guide for therapists. New York: Norton. LaFromboise, T. D., & Foster, S. L. (1989). Ethics in multicultural counseling. In P. B. Pedersen, J. G. Draguns, J. Lonner, & J. E. Trimble (Eds.), Counseling across cultures (3rd ed., pp. 115-136). Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press. Martin, D. G., & Moore, A. D. (1995). Basics of clinical practice: A guidebook for trainees in the helping professions. Prospect Heights, IL: Waveland Press. Miller, J. B. (1991). The development of women’s sense of self. In J. V. Jordan, A. G. Kaplan, J. B. Miller, I. P. Stiver, & J. L. Surry (Eds.), Women’s growth in connection: Writings from the Stone Center (pp. 11-26). New York: Guilford. Patton , M. J., & Meara, N. M. ( 1992 ). Psychoanalytic counseling. Chichester, England: Wiley. Peterson, L., & Shigetomi, C. (1981). The use of coping techniques in minimizing anxiety in hospitalized children. Behavior Therapy, 12, 1-14. Rogers, C., Gendlin, G., Kiesler, D., & Truax, C. (Eds.). (1967). The therapeutic relationship and its impact: A study of psychotherapy with schizophrenics. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press. Siegel, L. J., & Peterson, L. (1981). Maintenance effects of coping skills and sensory information on young children’s response to repeated dental procedures. Behavior Therapy, 12, 530-535. Sue, D. W., Ivey, A. E., & Pedersen, P. B. (1996). Theory of multicultural counseling and therapy. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole. Torrey, E. (1972). The mind game; witchdoctors and psychiatrists. New York: Emerson Hall. Young, M. E. (1998). Learning the art of helping: Building blocks and techniques. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hail.   Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Psycotherapy Approaches Essay

As the theoretical and professional foundations of counseling have progressed, a natural evolution has been the development of ethical s...

critically assess the role of qualitative research methods in psychological research

OBJECTIVES As a person with knowledge of various qualitative research methodologies, the author has always brought up to his superiors the viability of strategy formation regarding the analysis of this topic and at times fails to understand the reasons or logic behind certain strategic implementations imposed on it. By delving into this project paper, the author intends to have better insights into how the various qualitative research methodologies are thought up, formulated and then implemented down into psychological research. The author hopes to have an in-depth understanding as to how the implementation of the various qualitative research methodologies enable researchers in psychology to compete effectively and profitably in this era of internationalization where competition is extremely intense. In order to reinforce the learning objectives, two key focal issues were focused upon, i.e. innovation and diversity. Innovation was discussed with regard to the various qualitative research methodologies where they were renowned for their developmental capabilities to constantly innovate. Diversity came under strategic thinking and formation as the author considered the diverse culture, political climate, economic surroundings, social environment, technological settings, social policies and legal systems in order to better understand the qualitative research methodologies being discussed.   INTRODUCTION Qualitative research methodologies used in psychological studies discuss the research methods available for the study and what is applicable for it to use in response for the statement of the problem. Likewise, qualitative research methodologies present the various procedures and strategies in identifying the sources for the needed information on the analysis and evaluation of the given data.             Qualitative research methodologies specify the method of research to be used, research design, respondents of the study, data collection, instruments to be used, validation and administration of the instruments to be used, conducting the experiments, data representative and reliability, locating the needed data to be used, statistical treatment of data and analyzing the gathered data. More often than not, ordinary researchers don’t really have the capabilities to implement various types of qualitative research methodologies. Instead, they engage in activities that various schools of management typically associate with using various types of qualitative research methodologies These activities include the identification of dependent variables, independent variables, monitoring and evaluation. However, qualitative research methodologies deal with all operations done within research studies. Activities such as the management of information, the control of variables, logistics and evaluations are often related with research methodologies. A great deal of emphasis lies on the efficiency and effectiveness of processes. Therefore, qualitative research methodologies include the analysis and management of internal processes. Types of Qualitative Psychological Research A. CASE STUDY   Psychological case studies typically use qualitative research methods. Qualitative research is a method used to elicit detailed verbal and written descriptions or accounts of characteristics, cases and situations. ( and , 1995; , 1998; , 1999) This approach is appropriate for case studies because the research objectives involves descriptions or accounts of the case, the issues involved in the process of integrating the facts and evidences, and suggested ways of addressing the issues, particularly the similarities and differences in the findings.     For psychological case studies, the descriptive method is more commonly utilized. In this method, it is possible that the case study would be cheap and quick. It could also suggest unanticipated hypotheses. Nonetheless, it would be very hard to rule out alternative explanations and especially infer causations. Thus, case studies use the descriptive approach. This descriptive type of research utilizes observations in the case study.  The purpose of employing this method is to describe the nature of a psychological situation or a case, as it exists at the time of the study and to explore the cause/s of particular phenomena. The researcher opts to use this kind of research considering the desire of the researcher to fully understand the situation so as to formulate rational and sound conclusions and recommendations for the psychological case study. The analysis of psychological case studies applies the positivist research approach. This is because psychological case studies normally involve the accomplishment of these stages of the positivist approach: 1) formulation of case problem; 2) testing the hypothesis; 3) showing the falsity of the hypothesis; and 4) formulating predictive principles (, 2006). The psychological case study also seeks to capture reliable data and the positivist approach focuses on data measurement precision and reliability ( and , 2003). Although the psychological case study also seeks to obtain suggestions from the research participants, indicating a phenomenological aspect, the bulk of data are characterized by measurability so that the primary research approach is positivist. In relation to research perspective, the psychological case study also utilizes the subjective approach. This is because the researcher is part of the case being studied in the present research. As part of the case, the researcher has knowledge of the entire situation. Through the subjective approach, the researcher recognizes the existence of bias but instead of eliminating this, the researcher seeks to develop a learning relationship with the participants in the case study so that the researcher becomes a part of the knowing process (, 1984; , 1990; , 1993; , 1993; , 1994)   B. EXISTING DATA To come up with pertinent findings and provide credible recommendations, psychological studies typically utilize two types of existing data sources of research: primary and secondary.  Primary research data can be obtained through the new research study. Questionnaire survey and in-depth interview can be conducted. On the other hand, the secondary research data can be obtained from previous studies on the same topic.   There can be many types of existing data. Secondary data include raw data and published summaries, as well as both quantitative and qualitative data.  (2003) deduced that secondary data fall into three main subgroups documentary data, interview-based data, and those compiled from different sources. Documentary secondary data, accordingly, are the ones often used in psychological research projects that also use primary data collection data methods, although such data can also be used on their own or be combined with other secondary data. Meanwhile, interview-based secondary data are those data collected by questionnaires that have already been analyzed for their original purpose; usually, such data refer to organizations, people or households and are made available as compiled data tables or as a computer-readable matrix of raw data. Existing data raise the question of the psychological research philosophy to adopt, the he subject of research approach that flows from the research philosophy, the research strategy most applicable, the time horizon a researcher applies to his research, and the data collection methods to be used. Furthermore, there is a three-stage process devised by  (2003) in order to evaluate the existing data. The first stage is assessing the overall suitability of the existing data to research questions and objectives. During this stage, the researcher will pay particular attention to measurement validity (measuring / estimating whether the existing data will result to a valid answer to the research questions and objectives) and coverage (this includes ensuring whether or not the existing data is wanted and can be included, as well as making sure that sufficient existing data remain for analyses to be undertaken once unwanted data have been excluded). The second stage is evaluating precisely the suitability of existing data for analyses needed to answer and meet the research questions and objectives. In this stage, the researcher must make sure of the validity and reliability of the existing data by assessing how it was previously gathered, who are its sources, and the likes. Also, the researcher must be cautious not to commit measurement bias (which can occur due to deliberate distortion of existing data or changes in the way data are collected) had been paid close attention. Finally, the researcher must judge whether to use existing data based on an assessment of costs and benefits in comparison with alternative sources.     CONCLUSION The results of the analysis carried out on the various qualitative psychological research methodologies indicated very significant effects. Therefore, we could conclude that the various qualitative psychological research methodologies could still be expected to improve faster than average. The review of various qualitative psychological research methodologies’ capabilities and strengths revealed very little inconsistencies regarding their research strategies. This is coherent with their traditional inside-out approach. However, the need to reconcile both the inside-out and outside-in approaches becomes imperative now for the researcher. The analysis among the environment as well as the various qualitative psychological research methodologies’ capabilities revealed certain gaps, most of which are biased towards the environment. However, these gaps paved the way towards determining a number of recommended strategic options to secure the competitiveness of the various qualitative psychological research methodologies. Also, the author has to find a balance between adherence to internal forces within the various qualitative psychological research methodologies and to the changing forces of the environment in order to implement such strategic options.   REFERENCES Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

critically assess the role of qualitative research methods in psychological research

OBJECTIVES As a person with knowledge of various qualitative research methodologies, the author has always brought up to his superiors t...

The Behaviorist and Humanist Approach: Motivated Personality

The Behaviorist and Humanist Approach: Motivated Personality   Introduction The personality of an individual is one of the most crucial aspects to take note of in understanding human behavior in the field of psychology. In most common sense, personality is the sum total of all behaviors, values, actions, and perceptions of an individual, which distinctly differs a person from another individual. It is an important element in the development of an individual, being a social entity in the community. However, to further understand one’s personality, a number of theories in psychology can be used as basis. Depending on the perception of the individual, understanding one’s personality lies on the type of psychological approach to be used. This paper discusses two concepts related to the development of human behavior, namely, motivated and personality, with an emphasis on the definition, similarities, and differences of both terms. The concept of motivated personality would also be discussed, with reference to two theories, namely, behaviorist and humanist approach. Behaviorist theorist, , and Humanist theorist,  would also be referred to in the discussion. Conclusion of the essay would emphasize on what psychological approach would best describe the concepts involved.   Behaviorist Approach vs. Humanist Approach             It has been reported that the behaviorist approach, or behaviorism, the study of observable behavior (2006), involves looking at a person’s external behavior rather than attempting to discern the mental activity or mental models that a person has ( 2003). This approach relies on the science of behavior, and understands that mentalistic concepts could only be measured through subjective methods such as introspection (2006), or self-realization or contemplation, using cognitive processes, including examination, thinking, and reasoning. In addition, this approach strongly emphasizes that an individual is a mechanical organism, and holds little concern of an individual’s capacity or ability to think and judge independently of external stimuli, thus, not thinking and responding only to stimuli (1993).  attacked the predominant tendency to define psychology as the study of consciousness, and argued that psychology should be regarded as a purely objective experimental branch of natural science ( 2006). He adopted the concept of conditioning of Ivan Pavlov to explain that behavior is dependent on the relationship that exists between stimuli or events in the environment, and responses of animals or any muscular action, activity and behavior (2006). For , personality is an individual’s actual and potential assets (total assets) and actual and potential liabilities on the reaction side (1971). In this regard, the personality of a particular individual may be completely described in terms of one’s reactions. This definition of personality emphasizes the fact that it is not defined or described entirely by one’s responses to other individuals, but also by the responses of other individuals make, being the person as their stimulus ( 1971). As such, the totally of one’s characteristics, including physical characteristics, quality of voice, language, responses, and social reactions are being regarded as a stimulus for other individuals, and pertain to the person’s total personality. Aside from the definition of personality,  also provided his definition of the concept of motivation. It has been reported that since the study and the popularization of the term, it has been described both activation and direction were regarded as its key components. However, the study of  emphasized the unobservable facts must not be under the study of psychology. This had a significant effect in the study of motivation, being an unobservable behavior. This led to the study of rewards and reinforcements, and the view that motivation is an antecedent condition that instigates behavior (2003). Behavior was viewed as automatic or reflexive to a stimulus rather than cognitive or intentional; thus, the focus of the behaviorists was on learning rather than motivation (2007), and in this regard, behaviorists such as  came to study the nature of learning, which emphasizes on one’s response over a stimulus (2007). This view of  still emphasizes the view of the behaviorists of the behavior of human beings as animals, exhibiting animal instincts, rather than a thinking individual, being the argument of the humanists. Contrary to the argument of the behaviorists is the humanistic approach, which emphasizes that the school of behaviorism was insufficiently satisfying in human terms to explain personality and distinctly human motives, and argued that behaviorism and psychoanalysis emphasize the animal aspect of human behavior at the expense of human aspects (1999). For humanists, it is not the animalistic urges that explain personality, but it is the ability and capacity of humans for self-awareness, choice, responsibility, and growth. In this regard, an individual can control his or her animalistic urges, as each individual is unique, whole, and has an interpretation of reality (2006). For , the essence of personality is wrapped up in the self-concept, which is an organized set of perceptions about one’s abilities and characteristics. He believes that it comes primarily from social interactions, particularly the interactions of an individual with his or her parents, friends and community (2006). In this regard, emphasizes the development of personality through social interaction. In addition,  presents an unusual theory of personality, and establishes the person-centered theory of personality. According to , in understanding one’s personality, two aspects of the person must be taken note off, namely, the organism and the self. The organism refers to the focal point of all experiences, which are defined from the person’s own point of view and involves everything that could be experienced, while the self pertains to what a person is and wants to be, and one’s relationship with the environment. His theory of personality emphasizes the involvement of the organism and the self with self-actualization, which is defined as the single goal toward which a person strives. In this regard, the values of a person are attached only to the positive activities that the person believes to be used for his or her self-actualization ( 1985). In this regard, it can be perceived that in order to achieve self-actualization, different experiences, needs, and values must be given significance in the life of a specific individual. Aside from this theory of personality,  also provided a definition for the concept of motivation. For , the human species has one basic tendency and striving, and that is to actualize, maintain, and enhance the experiencing organism. This behavior promotes and preserves the life of an individual, and as well, as develop and transcend its previous limits ( 1998). From this definition of motivation, it can be understood that for , the motivation of an individual or any organism is to strive for its survival and sustenance. It emphasizes the fact that one’s motivation lies on his or her desire to preserve and sustain his or her life, with the use of any means. This serves to support his theory of personality that it is being shaped by the society, thus, one’s motivation may also be supported and fulfilled by the society he or she belongs to.   Similarity and Differences of the Concepts             The previous discussion emphasizes on the different definition and perception of the concept of personality on the two approaches. For the behaviorist approach, the behavior or personality of an individual is seen as an animalistic response to stimuli, thus, not having the ability or capacity to think, but only to react. For the behaviorists, the personality and behavior of human beings can be observed using positive reinforcements or rewards and negative reinforcements or punishments. Through such reinforcements, the personality of an individual is being shaped or molded, thus, determining its response in the environment.  suggests that one’s personality can be observed through stimuli and responses, as it envelops one’s ability and capacity to exhibit responses and obtain responses from other individuals. On the other hand, for the humanists, the personality and behavior of human beings emphasize on one’s ability or capacity to become aware of ones’ self, of making choices, of fulfilling responsibilities and needs, and of growth and development. For the humanists, such as , one’s personality is being developed through social interactions, including the family, friends, the community, and the society. The difference between the definitions of personality emphasize the fact that the behaviorist approach focuses on the animalistic characteristic of human beings, while the humanist approach focuses on the uniqueness of human beings, which emphasizes on one’s intellectual, psychological, emotional and social capacity. Another difference is that  emphasizes on the different reactions individuals may express, while  stresses on the internal realization of individuals, which may be based from their experiences. However, similarities can also be recognized for both approaches.  One similarity is the fact that both theorists of personality recognize the nature of human beings to respond, whether internally or externally.  recognizes the ability of human beings to respond to stimuli (external), while  recognizes the ability of human beings to fulfill internal needs (internal stimuli) through becoming a social person. Another similarity of the two theories of personality is the emphasis on the involvement of other individuals in the process of personality development.  emphasized the involvement of other individuals in expressing responses, while  stressed the involvement of other individuals to be contributory to the experiences of human beings. Nevertheless, the differences of the two concepts are evident, and view the concept of personality in two different lights.             Aside from the concept of personality, both  and  have different definitions and explanations regarding motivation. The main difference of the theory of motivation of  over the theory of motivation of  is that  emphasizes on the existence of rewards and punishments, being the primary motivation of individuals, as being the primary characteristic of animals of being driven entirely by stimuli. This is entirely different with the argument of , who stressed that the motivation of an individual comes from his or her intention to achieve self-actualization through survival. Another difference of the two theories of motivation is that  failed to recognize the ability and capacity of individuals to use cognitive processes in order to become motivated.  only recognized the ability of individuals to respond to stimuli, as they are motivated to respond to a specific stimulus. On the other hand,  recognized the ability and capacity of individuals to use cognitive processes, as an individual becomes motivated based on the different experiences he or she was able to obtain from the environment. Self-actualization in this regard is an important concept, as ’ theory of motivation emphasizes the ability of individuals to assess and evaluate their capability to respond to stimuli based on necessity and experience. From such differences lies the similarity of both theories of motivation, which is becoming motivated through internal and external factors.  emphasized that human beings are being stimulated by a stimuli, which are necessarily both internal and external the individual. Internal stimuli include hunger, thirst and sex, while external stimuli include food, water, and mate. For , a person is motivated to exhibit a response, as it is triggered by a stimulus. Similarly, self-actualization, as being argued by  can be achieved through the accumulation of experiences of the individual, which can be done with the support and involvement of other individuals. This means that indirectly,  points out that both internal and external factors affect the motivation of individuals, as internal factors refer to the fulfillment and the actualization of the person, while external factors refer to the experiences one is able to have through social interactions. In this regard, both theories of motivation stress the characteristic of human beings to be social individuals.         Conclusion             From the discussion, it can be deduced that significant differences in terms of explanation and perception of human behavior are being expressed based on the two psychological approaches referred to, namely, behaviorist and humanist approach. The behaviorist approach sees personality and motivation as based on animal instincts of individuals, thus, both personality and motivation are influenced and observed using positive and negative reinforcements. On the other hand, the humanist approach emphasizes on the fact that human beings are social beings, and one’s personality and motivation are dependent on one’s uniqueness, experiences and social responses.                In this regard, I believe that the best definitions for both concepts, motivation and personality, were emphasized by the humanists, specifically by . This is because  recognized the ability of individuals to focus not only their ability to respond to stimuli, but he recognized the ability of individuals to respond to stimuli using mental, psychological, and emotional processes. Such responses are based on our ability to assess different experiences and situations, using our biological, psychological, physical, and emotional constructs. I believe that human beings must not be regarded and perceived as having animal instincts alone, because what makes one unique and distinct from the rest of the society is one’s ability and capacity to think, reason out and feel depending on the situation at hand. Each individual is different from the rest of the society, not only in terms of biological and physical construct, looks, and preferences, but also in terms of psychological, mental, and emotional constructs. As such, I believe that the ’ theories of personality and motivation were able to emphasize on such differences, thus, recognizing that one individual is unique from the other.         Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

The Behaviorist and Humanist Approach: Motivated Personality

The Behaviorist and Humanist Approach: Motivated Personality Introduction The personality of an individual is one of the most crucia...

Freud’s Legacy in Understanding Individual Development

Freud’s Legacy in Understanding Individual Development               Sigmund Freud is among the most controversial personalities and holds the frequently influential yet debatable contributions in the field of psychology. Indeed, Freud’s significant theories and ideas on individual and personality development are mainly focused on the sexual aspect. The concept of psychosexual development consists of five (5) separate yet interrelated phases including oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital. According to Freud’s ideas, personality develops beyond five (5) years of age where sexual desire is a fundamental feature, thus, involving formative drives, instincts and appetites resulting to the formation of adult personality as part of the entire individual development (Bateman & Holmes 1995). Looking on the overall stages of development of every individual, I argue that Freud’s psychosexual development theory is limited and just a part of the overall package of human development.             This paper discusses the limitations of Freud’s psychosexual development theory in contrast to some theories of human development particularly on the aspect of personality (e.g. Erikson’s psychosocial development theory). However, it also addresses the important contributions to the general understanding of individual development.   Freud’s Psychosocial Development Theory             The psychosexual development theory introduces five (5) separate yet interrelated phases of human sexual development including oral, anal, phallic, latency, and genital (Myre 1974; Bateman & Holmes 1995). In brief terms, oral phase starts at 0-8 months of an individual through the mouth as the erogenous zone and results to orally aggressive or orally passive fixation. The next phase – anal, commences at the period of 18-36 months, works on bowel and bladder elimination, and results to anal-retentive or anal-expulsive fixation. Next, the phallic phase begins at 3-6 years, involves the genitals and results to Oedipus complex (male) and Electra complex (females) as fixation. Latency phase comes next from 6 years up to puberty, focuses on dormant sexual feelings and results to no fixations but in some special cases, fixation may come in form of extreme sexual discontentment. Lastly, the genital phase continues from puberty and beyond, focuses on sexual interests and maturity and results to insufficient libidinal energy and inability to maintain relationships as types of fixation.             In argument, Freud’s psychosexual development theory is a part of the overall package of human development. Frued’s key concepts on his theory of development, (i.e. the id, ego, and superego, and the infantile sexuality) is broadly acceptable but the idea that personality is dependent on the basis of sexuality was rejected, particularly by Erik Erikson’s psychosocial development (Erikson 1950; 1964; 1963; 1968). Erikson, an American psychoanalyst, came up with his theory of psychosocial development as an expansion and adaptation of Sigmund Freud’s theory of development (psychosexual stages). Erikson also disapproved of Freud’s concept of originology that carries the idea that all mental illness is marked out by early experiences during childhood (Hoare 2005). The issue of childhood and its development rests Erikson’s belief that a human’s early days is a key aspect of personality development. This is in contrast to Freud’s ideas that personality develops beyond five years of age; more so, Erikson extends it beyond the entire lifespan of an individual. Aside from the perceived limitation of Freud’s theory, many feminist advocates disprove the idea of psychosexual development (Torrey 1992). Yet, Freud is amenable in saying that he lacks understanding on female sexuality in general.   Freud’s Significant Contributions             Sexuality is a body-mind experience (Ridley 2006, p. 322) and a fundamental aspect of the individual development. The concept of psychosexual development as attributed to Freud is the foundation in the understanding of the development of human sexuality. Perhaps, this could be the most basic yet important manifestation of the value the theory. It is because adequate understanding of sexuality is important at any age (Metz & Miner 1998). According to most literatures (Green 1974; Hines 2004), human psychosexual development involves three (3) major components, which includes the following: core gender identity and the sense of self as male or female; sexual orientation and erotic interest of the opposite and/or same sex; and gender role behaviors and the myriad characteristics that are associated with being male or female or that differ on average for males and females (Hines et al. 2004). Through Freud’s psychosexual development theory, each individual is enlightened on the basis of understanding sex and sexuality as an important feature of overall human development. In conclusion, Freud’s psychosexual development theory is indeed focused on human sexuality yet the extent of this belief is argued to be limited and plainly a part or feature of the overall human development if linked on other theories of development (i.e. Erikson’s psychosocial development theory). Its importance rests on the fact that it serves as the prime basis in understanding the concept of sex and sexual development. Freud and its contributions to psychology, no matter how controversial they maybe, are great leaps to the eventual unveiling of mysterious nature of every individuals.   References Bateman, A & Holmes, J 1995, Introduction to Psychoanalysis: Contemporary Theory & Practice, Routledge, London.   Erikson, EH 1950, Childhood and Society, W. W. Norton, New York.   Erikson, EH 1964, Insight and Responsibility, W. W. Norton, New York.   Erikson, EH 1965, “Youth: fidelity and diversity,” in Erikson, EH (ed) The Challenge of Youth, Anchor Books, Garden City, NY, pp. 1-28.   Erikson, EH 1968, Identity: youth and crisis, W. W. Norton, New York.   Green, R 1974, Sexual identity conflict in children and adults, Basic Books, New York   Hines, M 2004, Brain gender, Oxford University Press, New York.   Hines, M, Brook, C, & Conway, GS 2004, “Androgen and Psychosexual Development: Core Gender Identity, Sexual Orientation, and Recalled Childhood Gender Role Behavior in Women and Men with Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia,” The Journal of Sex Research, Vol. 41, No. 1, pp. 75+.   Hoare, CH 2005, “Erikson’s general and adult developmental revisions of Freudian thought: “Outward, forward, upward”,” Journal of Adult Development, 12, pp. 19-31. Metz, ME & Miner, MH 1998, “Psychosexual and Psychosocial Aspects of Male Aging and Sexual Health,” The Canadian Journal of Human Sexuality, Vol. 7, No. 3, pp. 245.   Myre, S 1974, Guide to Psychiatry, 3rd edition, Churchill Livingstone, Edinburgh and London.   Ridley, J 2006, “The subjectivity of the clinician in psychosexual therapy training,” Sexual and Relationship Therapy, Vol. 21, No. 3 (August), pp. 319-331.   Torrey, EF 1992, Freudian Fraud: The Malignant Effect of Freud’s Theory on American Thought and Culture, HarperCollins, New York.   Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

Freud’s Legacy in Understanding Individual Development

Freud’s Legacy in Understanding Individual Development Sigmund Freud is among the most controversial personalities and hol...

How useful are social-psychological theories for explaining health-related behaviour change to the ‘Choosing Health’ delivery effort? Critically discuss.

INTRODUCTION             Ideally, it can be that certain psychological theories would integrate to such health processes such as those socially inclined health related programs as geared towards the providing of such ample solutions to issues and certain problems relating to health in such behavior implications that can amiably execute and realize such health goals and its respected approaches through careful choosing and recognition of such promotion programs pertaining to health delivery and its efforts. These psychological theories signifies the awareness of its functions and such applications as directed towards a more precise and comprehensive understanding of such health mechanisms offering wide understanding of certain health promotion program design.             Thus, such psychological theories such as the health belief model, theory of reasoned action and others are subject to assessment of its related strengths and weaknesses as reflected in such modern health promotion paradigms as such theory can imply to individual needs but in a way, there can be attempts to bring about such changes that are socially motivated by the cycle means of change particularly pointing to such community, organization groups and the wider social level in respect to health values and principles from within such ideal psychological assumptions.   DISCUSSION POINTS   The following psychological theories will be discussed and explained in such appropriate assessment of its strengths and weaknesses in support to such information and knowledge driven ideas relating to health promotion and delivery programs   The health belief model           The Health Belief Model or the HBM has been greatly used as a conceptual framework for the understanding health behavior as catering to the promotion of such medical compliance and health screening use in aspect of such behavior notion. The core strength of the model can be found within the understanding that certain individual will take such health-related action if he feels for instance that negative health condition can be avoided with positive expectation that by taking planned action, the person will shun negative health condition. Another strength is that, Health Belief Model adheres for motivating people to take positive health actions that uses the desire to avoid a negative health consequence as the prime motivation.  (Cited from, Becker, 1974 p. 411; Strecher and Rosenstock, 1997)           Generally, the HBM can be an effective framework to use when developing health education strategies and can be used alone as the theoretical basis of a health education program or it can be used in combination with other models, learning theories and approaches. Since no model or learning theory can explain or predict all aspects of health behavior, combining compatible theories and models can create stronger health education programs. Then, there combines with such social learning theory (Cited from, Bandura in Eisen, et.al., 1992 p. 221) desired for health education programs in such a way of understanding the curriculum in use as well as for developing innovative programs and such adaptation of certain health related program by means of adding key elements of the model.                 Thus, there can also be weaknesses and or challenges pertaining to the health belief model for one, the model stresses personal responsibility, which may lead people to feel it is their fault if they cannot solve their own health problems. Aside, the providing of such meaningful cues to action can be challenging, especially as time passes. The HBM focuses on beliefs and attitudes and may be less appropriate for dealing with habitual behaviors like smoking, dieting, or other emotionally motivated health behaviors as these types of behaviors have to be addressed separately.           The HBM is good fit for prevention-focused programs because these programs generally promote specific actions, and the HBM helps participants to take action. However, HBM is not always good fit for comprehensive family life education programs which tend to be more information-based and wider in scope of topics. Truly it can be that, the model is much more effective for multiple layer intervention in such combination of the interventions like, educational ad campaign as it is more effective than any single intervention and achieve specific change.           Afterwards, the model soon changed shape when applied to another set of problems concerning immunization and more broadly to people’s different responses to public health measures and their uses of health services. The Health Belief Model relates largely to the cognitive factors predisposing person to health behavior, concluding with a belief in one’s self-efficacy for the behavior. (Cited from, Kreuter, Farrell, Olevitch and Brennan, 2000) The model leaves something to be explained by factors enabling and reinforcing one’s behavior and these factors become increasingly important when the model is used to explain and predict more complex lifestyle behaviors that needs to be maintained over lifetime. Nevertheless, the model was displaced in frequency of application by stages of change model and remain valuable guide to practitioners in planning the communication component of health education programs. Theory of reasoned action/planned behavior             Moreover, speaking of theory of reasoned action it can be that there is acquisition of detailed health process in such delivery of programs that adheres to such behavior issues emancipating the essence of core values and principles of health in the whole aspect. Thus, there shows the recognition of such thorough understanding of the underlying reasoned phenomena as for example in support to such through initial health decisions and continued behavior display of norms and patterns. Then, integral to the theory of reasoned action is instrument development that consists of scales to measure intention, and the direct and belief-based measures of attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control. Measures of intention, attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control are developed according to standard procedures for designing and testing such instruments. Beliefs about what outcomes would occur from cheating, identified in the first stage of this study, were related to compliance intentions. (Cited from, Weinstein, Lyon, Sandman and Cuite, 1998 p. 118)           The Theory of Reasoned Action suggest that such person’s behavior is determined by his intention to perform the behavior and that this intention is a function of his attitude toward the behavior and his/her subjective norm. The approaches and the supportive findings are important given the original conceptualization of argumentativeness as trait that determines argument intentions depending on the individual’s assessment of the situation. For instance, a high argumentative might sometimes be disinclined to argue, whereas a low argumentative might sometimes be strongly moved to argue. The theory maintains that person’s decision to engage in purposeful activity is a function of several factors, some of which are highly situational bound and all of which may be mediated by personal dispositions or traits. Conversely, the approach tendency overrides the avoidance tendency for those persons who have positive expectations for and excitement about arguing controversial issues. (Cited from, Weinstein, Lyon, Sandman and Cuite, 1998 p. 118) Furthermore, in promoting health with regards to the theory in utilization there can be that such delivery of health outcomes would provide valuable information for development and delivery of such related education and training towards better understanding of the process and its skills formation as well as related application of health strategies applied directly to actual social, personal behavior problems as an imperative health promotion goal. Model of social influence           The social influence models recognise that social factors play a major role in the initiation and early stages of drug use. Social influences may arise from the media, peers and the family. The models are significant because they were the first approaches in prevention designed to essentially change behaviours. (Cited from, Weinstein, Lyon and Sandman, 1998 p. 118) The social influence model presents an alternative to other approaches such as information dissemination and affective education, and is the predecessor of ‘competence enhancement’. Social influence models make up several of the core components still used in the most successful prevention approaches.           As for instance, Bandura (Cited from, Bandura in Eisen, et.al., 1992 p. 221) developed certain theory which establish personality as interaction of the environment in such health related behavior change in such ideal psychological processes. Thus, also called observational learning, social learning theory emphasises the importance of observing and modelling the behaviours, attitudes and emotional reaction of others. The modelling process is made up of the processes of attention, retention, reproduction and motivation. For example, if someone with psychological disorder observes someone else dealing with the same problem in a more productive fashion, then the first person will learn by modelling the behaviour of the second person. (Cited from, Glanz, Lewis and Rimer, 1997)             There is also the application and realization of life skills approach as built around creating opportunities for young people to acquire skills that enable them to avoid manipulation by outside influences. It aims to help young people to achieve control over their behaviour while taking informed decisions that can lead to positive behaviour and values. Therefore, efforts to modify substance use must focus on changing the person’s environment rather than the person. The stages of change model           The advent of stages of change model assume that there can be changes within the entrenched behavior addressing such overeating, addiction to alcohol and diverse of health problems affecting people’s lives. The model then, recognizes that relapse is common. For example, many smokers have to make several attempts before they quit for good. But instead of viewing relapse as failure, the Stages of Change model sees relapse as an opportunity to learn how to sustain change more effectively in the future. There can be such strength and or weakness in lieu to such tailored health messages build on information about people and their behavior change situations. By learning about certain particular stage of change and how that person views the pros and cons of changing behavior, designers of tailored health messages can craft information that pushes the right buttons because it is relevant and useful to that individual at that particular stage in the change process. (Cited from, Glanz, Lewis and Rimer, 1997)           There is creation of positive and realistic climate and be able to turn relapses and setbacks into learning opportunities which translate progress down the road. The helping of program participants stay motivated and watch them make innovative, healthy habits in making permanent part of their daily lives. (Cited from, Miller and Rollnick, 1991; Prochaska, Johnson and Lee, 1998) However, incorporating stages of change into health delivery or other program requires some investments of time and other resources. Other weakness or challenges can be the figuring out instruments and other tools that accurately assess participants’ stages of change as well as adapting programs to incorporate the stages of change model in beneficial ways for evaluating and assessing fresh efforts respectively.           The modelshows that change in behavior occurs with the patient moving from being uninterested, unaware to make change, to considering change, to deciding and preparing to make change. The model is useful for selecting appropriate interventions. (Cited from, Miller and Rollnick, 1991; Prochaska, Johnson and Lee, 1998) By identifying patient’s position in the change process, physicians can tailor the intervention, usually with skills they already possess. Thus, the focus is not to convince the patient to change behavior but to help the patient move along the stages of change. Using the framework of the model the goal for single encounter is shift from the grandiose, realistic move to the next. (Cited from, Samuelson, 1998 p. 422) CONCLUSION           Therefore, those psychological theories in focus above do amicably provides a clear picture of such value and significance of how useful these theories are for explaining health efforts in such choice of delivery as reflected to such health related behavior change from within. Basically, true to its functionality, Health Belief Model has been designed for the understanding health behavior as catering to the promotion of such medical compliance and health screening use in aspect of such behavior notion and can be considered as effective framework to use when developing health education strategies and can be used alone as the theoretical basis of health education program, or it can be used in combination with other models, learning theories and approaches. Next, the theory of reasoned action it can be that there is acquisition of detailed health process in such delivery of programs that adheres to such behavior issues emancipating the essence of core values and principles of health in the whole aspect.           In addition, there is promotion from within the theory in utilization there can be that such delivery of health outcomes would provide valuable data for development and delivery of such related education and training towards better understanding of the process and its skills formation as well as related application of health strategies as imperative health promotion goal. There is social influence model that recognize social factors playing good role in the initiation and early stages of drug use presenting alternative means to approaches.           For example, if someone with a psychological disorder observes someone else dealing with the same problem in a more productive fashion, then the first person will learn by modelling the behaviour of the second person. The stages of change model assume that there can be changes within the entrenched behavior addressing such overeating, addiction to alcohol and diverse of health problems affecting people’s lives. The model then, recognizes that relapse is common. Behavior change is discrete, single event; the patient moves gradually from being uninterested to considering change to deciding and preparing to make ample change.   REFERENCES Becker, M. H., ed. (1974), “The Health Belief Model and Personal Health Behavior”. Health Education Monographs 2:324–473. Eisen, Marvin et.al. (1992), “A Health Belief Model Social Learning Theory Approach to Adolescents’ Fertility Control: Findings from a Controlled Field Trial”. Health Education Quarterly. Vol. 19 Glanz, K.; Lewis, F. M. and Rimer, B. K. (1997), “Linking Theory, Research, and Practice.” In Health Behavior and Health Education: Theory, Research, and Practice, eds. K. Glanz, F. M. Lewis, and B. K. Rimer. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Kreuter, M., Farrell, D., Olevitch, L., and Brennan, L. (2000), “Tailoring Health Messages: Customizing Communication With Computer Technology”. Mahway, New Jersey: LEA Publishers. Miller WR, Rollnick S. (1991), “Motivational interviewing: preparing people to change addictive behavior”. New York: Guilford Prochaska, J.O., Johnson, S., and Lee, P. (1998), “The Transtheoretical Model of Behavior Change”. In: Shumaker, S.A., Schron, E.B., Ockene, J.K., and McBee, W.L. [Editors]. 1998. The Handbook of Health Behavior Change, 2nd Ed. Springer Publishing Company. Samuelson, M. (1998), “Stages of Change: From Theory to Practice. The Art of Health Promotion”, newsletter. Vol. 2, No. 5     Strecher, V. J., and Rosenstock, I. M. (1997), “The Health Belief Model.” In Health Behavior and Health Education: Theory, Research, and Practice, eds. K. Glanz, F. M. Lewis, and B. K. Rimer. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Weinstein ND, Lyon JE, Sandman PM, Cuite CL. (1998), “Experimental evidence for stages of health behavior change: the precaution adoption process model applied to home radon testing”. Health Psychol 17:445-53. Credit:ivythesis.typepad.com

How useful are social-psychological theories for explaining health-related behaviour change to the ‘Choosing Health’ delivery effort? Critically discuss.

INTRODUCTION Ideally, it can be that certain psychological theories would integrate to such health processes such as tho...