health psych - patient-practitioner interactions and illness representations and cognitions

illness behaviors

the various ways individuals monitor their bodies, define and interpret physical or somatic symptoms, take remedial action, and utilize health care systems

hypochondriac

someone who experiences an intense, persistent fear of having or developing a serious, life-threatening medical condition, despite having few, mild, or no actual physical symptoms and normal medical test results

behavioral involvement

how an individual’s active participation, lifestyle habits, and daily actions influence their physical health, mental, well-being, and recovery from disease

informational involvement

the degree to which a patient wants to know and understand the specific details of their illness, diagnosis, and treatment options

private body consciousness

an individual’s degree of focus on and sensitivity to internal, non-observable bodily sensations and physiological processes

appraisal delay

the time it takes for a person to interpret a physical symptom as a sign of illness or a potential health threat

illness delay

the time that passes between a person realizing that a physical or mental symptom implies an illness and making the decision to seek professional medical care

triggers

an external or internal stimulus that activates a strong, often painful emotional, physical, or behavioral reaction - frequently linked to past trauma, stress, or a mental health condition

lay-referral system

an informal network of non-professionals - such as family members, friends, neighbors, and coworkers - that an individual consults when experiencing physical or psychological symptoms before or instead of seeking formal medical care

explanatory model

the personal, cultural framework a patient or clinician uses to make sense of an illness, its causes, its timeline, and its expected treatment (patients can view illness through different lenses than the doctor)

theory of supportive design

the physical and social architecture of a healthcare setting directly impacts patient well-being and stress recovery

sense of control

giving patients a measure of autonomy over their immediate surroundings

social support

designing spaces that facilitate connection with loved ones and support networks - comfortable family seating, overnight accommodations, communal social areas, etc.

positive distraction

providing sensory elements that capture attention in a calming, restorative way rather than an overstimulating one

biomedical communication

the practice of creating visual, digital, and interactive media to translate complex medical and psychological science into accessible knowledge

consumerist communication

a style of interaction within the patient-provider relationship where the patient takes an active, dominant role as an autonomous purchaser of healthcare services, while the provider acts primarily as a technical consultant or service provider

stereotypes

beliefs about particular groups, used as a shortcut to interaction

self presentation

altering one’s behavior to shape others’ impression of them

racial congruence

when a patient and their healthcare or mental health provider share the same racial or ethnic identity

cultural competency

a structure, knowledge-based process where providers acquire specific skills, attitudes, and information about various cultural groups

cultural awareness

the clinician acknowledges group similarities and differences - as well as their own personal background and potential blind spots - without imposing their own values onto the patient

cultural sensitivity

validating a patient’s personal health beliefs, traditional healing practices, and emotional expression - actively respecting differences and adapting communication or treatment approaches to avoid causing offense or alienation

cultural humility

a lifelong, dynamic process of critical self-reflection and personal critique that addresses power imbalances in the clinician-patient relationship

adherence

extent to which patients’ behavior matches practitioners’ advice

nonadherence

patient’s failure to follow an agreed-upon medical treatment plan, lifestyle recommendation, or prescription guideline

creative nonadherence

patient intentionally modifies or supplements a prescribed medical treatment plan based on their own private theories, beliefs, or personal experiences with an illness

cognition

the mental processes the brain uses to acquire, store, retrieve, and evaluate information - and how those thought patterns influence pfhysical health, illness, and health-related behaviors

prediction schemas

a mental framework or blueprint that the brain uses to anticipate, interpret, and react to physical and emotional states

prediction errors

the mismatch between what the brain expects to happen and what actually occurs in reality

ideas

the overarching, pervasive, and historical ideologies, values, beliefs, and definitions that a society or group holds about health, well-being, and accountability

institutions

the formalization of societal ideas into concrete structures, policies, legalities, and systems

interactions

the local societal norms, habits, conversations, and interpersonal dynamics that individuals experience routinely

individuals

the internal psychology of the person - thoughts, emotions, physiological responses, perceived self-efficacy, and personal health behaviors

common sense model

a theoretical framework that explains how individuals perceive, understand, and cope with health threats and illnesses - treats patients as active problem solvers who create personal understandings of their health condition

illness representations

the personal, organized beliefs and cognitive-emotional models that an individual constructs when faced with a health threat or diagnosis

identity

the label or name a person gives to the illness and the specific physical symptoms they attribute to it (ex. associating headache and and fatigue with high blood pressure)

causal beliefs

personal ideas about the origin of the illness (ex. genetic factors, stress, etc.)

locus of causality

internal - cause perceived as originating from within the individual; external - originating from outside factors beyond the individual’s inherent self

stability

whether the cause is permanent or temporary over time - stable = permanent and likely to happen again; unstable = temporary and fluctuating

timeline

beliefs about how long the condition will last - whether it is acute, chronic, or cyclical

controllability

beliefs about whether the illness can be cured or kept under control through personal actions or medical treatments

consequences

perceptions regarding the expected physical, emotional, social, and financial impact of the illness on a person’s life

coherence

measures an individual’s global orientation to life and their capacity to stay healthy despite severe stress

confirmation bias

the tendency of patients or healthcare providers to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information that confirms their pre-existing health beliefs, diagnoses, or expectations while ignoring or dismissing contradictory evidence

illusory correlation

cognitive bias where a person mistakenly perceives a relationship between two health-related variables when no actual medical or statistical connection exists

attributions

the process by which individuals perceive, explain, and assign causes to health-related events, such as illness, injury, treatment outcomes, or recovery

misattribution

when a person incorrectly identifies the source, cause, or meaning of a physical or emotional symptom

self-fulfilling prophecy

when a person’s expectations, beliefs, or fears about their physical or mental health change their behavior or physiological state, causing the predicted otucome to actually occur

implicit bias

unconscious attitudes, beliefs, or internalized stereotypes that affect a provider’s perceptions, clinical decisions, and behaviors without their conscious awareness