Section outline

  • Lecture: Multi-level etiologies of health in diverse populations, Part 2: Behavioral mechanisms

    Human behavior – from what we eat, to whether we exercise, to who are friends are- has a clear, and often measurable, impact on health. Research on differences in health across groups often points to differences in behaviors as underlying causes. In this lecture, we will review what is known about the role of behavior in producing differences in health across groups and relate these differences to the social determinants of health.

    Faculty:  Scarlett Gomez

    Location:      Mission Hall 1400

    • Session Slides:

    • Lecture 3 behavioral Jan 2019 Gomez 01192019 File

    • Session Audio/Video Recording (Access restricted to registered students):

    • Required Reading:

    • Optional Reading:

    • Pampel FG et al. Socioeconomic Disparities in Health Behaviors. Annu Rev Sociol. 36: 349-370. 2010 File
      Not available unless: Your ID number contains 02
    • Adverse Childhood Experiences and adult health behaviors File
      Not available unless: Your ID number contains 02
    • self control 2000 File
      Not available unless: Your ID number contains 02

    • Assignment:

      Please post to the forum by 1pm on the day of class

      1. State your health outcome of interest. (It could be the one you used for week #2 or another one.) Pick two key behaviors that are important factors leading to your health outcome. Explain the importance of these behaviors either for etiology, prevention, or intervention. (If none of the behaviors in the readings are important for your health outcome, suggest another behavior that is.)

      2. Describe how you would study the role of one of the behaviors described for question #1 and your health outcome of interest. Incorporate a social factor (e.g. race/ethnicity, social exclusion, stress) in the study approach.

      3. If key health behaviors (e.g. smoking, exercise, nutritious diet) are strongly influenced by neighborhood, income, and/or education, do we need to continue to study how these behaviors influence health outcomes? Why or why not?