Health Psychology in Context

Over 25 years there has been a remarkable growth of theoretical and empirical studies in health psychology. Its theoretical underpinnings have been largely derivative, its focus primarily clinical, and its subject, the individual. Relatively little attention has been paid to the cultural, sociopolitical and economic conditions which set the context for individual health experience and behaviour. Theories which do not reflect the complex interaction of these variables are unlikely to provide a satisfactory account of individual health. Multidisciplinary efforts are needed at a community level to provide effective interventions which are relevant to the exposure groups being targeted. Health psychology needs measures which are valid and relevant to the general population regardless of culture, gender, social class or age. Putting health psychology into its cultural, sociopolitical and community context is a major priority for future development.

Physical Training Effects on Acute Exercise-induced Feeling States in HIV- 1-positive Individuals

Each year, more than one million new AIDS cases are reported worldwide, signaling an immediate need for intervention strategies to combat the physical, immunological, and psychological/emotional complications associated with the disease. In an effort to address this issue, our study contrasted an aerobic exercise intervention with a resistance weight-training intervention for a period of 12 weeks. Each week, participants seropositive for HIV-1 completed a short survey concerning their positive and negative feeling states and perceptions of fatigue immediately following exercise. Results indicated that participants in both exercise groups experienced significantly greater levels of positive well being and significantly lower levels of psychological distress and perceptions of fatigue following exercise sessions engaged in during the final week as compared to sessions engaged in during the initial week.

Coping with HIV: Caribbean people in the United Kingdom

Although Caribbean people in the United Kingdom are increasingly being affected by HIV/AIDS, there has been no examination of how they are coping with the illness. We investigate the coping strategies of HIV-positive Caribbean people using in-depth interviews with a purposively selected group of 25 residents of South London. The main coping strategies were more cognitive than behavioral: restricted disclosure, submersion, faith, and positive reappraisal. These strategies were intertwined in complex ways, and most were rooted in contextual factors, particularly cultural ones. Themes of loss, silence, and reinvention suffused respondents' narratives. Interventions should consider the high degree of stigmatization of HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean community, reluctance to disclose, the likelihood of an initial severe reaction to diagnosis, and external stressors. HIV-positive Caribbean people who are coping well could serve as mentors and role models for poor copers and newly diagnosed patients; establishing Caribbean-specific support groups might also assist coping.