BEHAVIOURAL FOUNDATION OF HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

Abstract

Biological and medical factors are not the only reasons for the impact of human behaviour on health and well-being because of social environments, culture, and psychological processes. How people think, feel, and act in their daily experiences is a very important factor in their physical and mental well-being. Behavioural research enables us to know the reasons behind certain individuals adopting healthy behaviours, such as physical activity, balanced eating, and coping with stress and others indulging risky behaviours, such as smoking, drug use, or physical inactivity. It also describes how people react to sickness, adhere to the medical counselling and change lifestyles as time goes on. In this chapter, the researcher analyses health and well-being as behavioural research. It explains the major theories that underpin the development and change of health-related behaviours. Moreover, it also presents significant research strategies utilised in the health behaviour research, including surveys, interviews, experiments, and mixed methods. Modern health concerns such mental disorders, lifestyle illnesses and increased application of digital health technologies are also discussed. Lastly, the chapter illustrates the use of the results of behavioural research to develop useful health programmes, enhance clinical practice and policies of the people, ultimately fostering healthier and stronger populations.