Then, identify a public health issue that is of most interest to you. Explain both why the issue interests you and why it is a critical public health issue. Determine the social and behavioral theory you could use to address the selected public health issue.
Then, in your responses to peers, critique the theory that they determined appropriate to address their selected public health issue. Recommend additional theoretical approaches that could be used to address the public health issue.
Please comment on someone’s post who has not yet received a response before posting to others.
Respond to peers
Ariana Thom
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Hi, my name is Ariana, and this is still the beginning stage of my degree since I transferred over. I am enjoying myself and learning a lot about public health. The public health issue that has the most interest is emotional well-being, or mental health. This topic is interesting for it can lead to various public health problems that need and still need to be addressed, such as obesity or gun violence. The social and behavioral theories I can use to address this issue are social cognitive theory (SCT) and self-determination theory (SDT). Accordingly, there are three foundations of thought and action: personal factors, behaviors, and environmental influences, where each has an effect on the other. Another influence would be ones internal and external motivation (Simons-Morton & Lodyga,2022, p. 67). The social and behavioral theory behind it would be that one’s mental health could have an impact on making decisions that can end in tragedy, regret, and consequences. Instead of looking at them separately, it would be good to look at the problem from a cause-and-effect perspective.
Reference
Simons-Morton, B., & Lodyga, M.G. (2022). Theories of motivation and behavior: A public health primer. In B. Simons-Morton & M.G. Lodyga (Eds.), Behavior theory in public health practice and research (pp. 53-72). Jones & Bartlett Learning.
Brianna Shepherd
My name is Brianna Shepherd. I am originally from Reno, Nevada but am currently living in Boise Idaho. I graduated with my bachelors in Community and Public Health from Idaho State University last May, and am currently getting my masters in Public Health. My experience in public health in the work force is limited, but I am hoping to build my experience in the next couple years. I took an internship in my undergraduate program working at Southeastern Idaho Public Health, where I learned many different specialties and the inner workings of being a health educator. I am currently working as a behavioral therapist working with individuals with autism. I am hoping to land a job in a hospital in the next couple months to be able to get experience in a more “healthcare based” company.
One public health topic that interests me is “sleep and sleep disorders”. This issue is of interest to me, because in the last year I have struggled with getting a good amount of sleep and developing a healthy sleeping pattern. I have seen the effects it has on my school and work life, and I find it very interesting to learn about how it is so important as well as its connection to the rest of an individuals physical well – being. This is a critical public health issue for many reasons. There are significant statistics that show that this problem, is experienced among one third of Americans, and that it has a connection to more serious disorders such as chronic diseases, and mental health problems (CDC, 2022). The link between lack of sleep and more permanent disorders and higher risks that someone is put in is crucial to know and is a public health topic that many people do not talk about enough.
I think there are two significant social and behavioral theories that could be used to address the public health issue of lack of sleep and sleep disorders. The first one being the “Health Belief Model”. The HBM theorizes that “people’s beliefs about whether or not they are at risk for a disease or health problem, and their perceptions of the benefits of taking action to avoid it, influence their readiness to take action” (Glanz, 2005). This theory would connect to the issue of lack of sleep because many people do not think that there is a link between sleep and higher risk of chronic disease. Sleep patterns can be hard to maintain and if someone is not well informed, they may not be ready to implement change.
The second theory that I think could be used to address the problem is the socioecological model. “The social ecological model helps to understand factors affecting behavior and also provides guidance for developing successful programs through social environments” (Glanz, 2005). There are so many significant factors that can go into someones sleep schedule. These can include, work schedule, having children, what they eat, medications, caffeine intake, exercise, stress, anxiety, etc. There are five levels of influence that go into the reasoning behind someones behaviors, and I think this theory is perfectly fitting for explaining why someone may be losing sleep and how they can change or impact their sleep pattern.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2022, September 7). Sleep and sleep disorders. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved April 16, 2023, from https://www.cdc.gov/sleep/index.html
Glanz, K. (2005). Social and behavioral theories – office of behavioral and social … Retrieved April 16, 2023, from https://obssr.od.nih.gov/sites/obssr/files/Social-and-Behavioral-Theories.pdf
