Health Psychology

Author: Shi Lin (Compiler)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2001-02-01
Features: Health psychology has been emerging in the West for over 20 years. Currently, health psychology divisions have been established in psychological societies in many countries worldwide, and journals as well as various editions of textbooks on health psychology have been published. This discipline is dedicated to understanding the causes and patterns of health and disease from a psychological perspective, helping people to live in a way that promotes health, and effectively participating in treatment and rehabilitation activities. Extensive research has demonstrated that psychological and social factors play a significant role in both the prevention and treatment of diseases. A comprehensive understanding of health and disease can only be achieved through interdisciplinary research. In the coming years, we will see a stronger trend of interdisciplinary research on health issues. In China, both the psychological and medical communities have begun conducting research in health psychology, such as studies on the psychological and social factors of stress and various diseases. However, China still lacks systematic textbooks that introduce health psychology. Based on references to numerous Western health psychology textbooks and research literature, the author of this book provides a detailed introduction to the issues and achievements studied in the field of health psychology in the West, as well as some theories and research conducted in China in this area. It particularly emphasizes the impact of psychological factors, such as stress, lifestyle, and beliefs, on health and disease. The book also boldly and cautiously introduces the psychological and social factors of high-risk diseases such as pain, hypertension, heart disease, and cancer. This book can serve as a textbook for health psychology courses in higher education institutions and also as a general reading for readers interested in the psychological factors that affect health.