Apply the principles of the biopsychosocial model to a health behavior you are
interested in promoting or preventing. You can refresh yourself on these principles by revisiting Lecture
1: What is Health Psychology (around the 22:00 minute mark).
Part I: Identifying a Health Behavior (no more than 150 words)
Identify a health behavior you are interested in learning more about. Explain why this behavior is
important to the field of health psychology. This behavior could be something that you are interested in
promoting OR preventing. Examples of health behaviors include (but are not limited to):
Healthy diet Binge drinking Personal hygiene
Exercise Addiction Wearing sunscreen
Smoking Adhering to treatment Drinking enough water
Stress management Regularly attending
doctor’s appointments
Make sure whatever you select is a health behavior (something you actively do/do not do to stay
healthy/become ill) and not a health condition (a state or circumstance that predisposes you do health or
illness. For instance, unhealthy diet and sedentary lifestyle are both health behaviors. Obesity is a health
condition.
Part II: Applying the Biopsychosocial Model (no less than 300 words)
Apply the three dimensions of the biopsychosocial model to your selected health behavior.
What biological factors contribute to this behavior? Discuss at least two factors.
What psychological factors contribute to this behavior? Discuss at least two factors.
What social factors contribute to this behavior? Discuss at least two factors.
In your discussion, be sure to fully explain the relationship between the factors you have identified and
the behavior of interest. Incomplete discussions will result in a loss of points.
Health Psychology
Psychology 320
Summer 2018
Extra Credit Assignment #1
Grading Rubric
Content Points
Student clearly stated a health behavior of interest. /1
Student explains why the selected health behavior is relevant and important
to the field of health psychology.
/2
Student discusses at least two biological factors which contribute to the
selected health behavior.
/2
Student discusses at least two psychological factors which contribute to the
selected health behavior.
/2
Student discusses at least two social factors which contribute to the selected
health behavior.
/2
The assignment is grammatically correct with no spelling errors and
exhibits good sentence structure. The paper is within the length
requirements.
/1
Sample Solution
