Summarize the multifactorial model and how it relates to the diagnosis of illnesses?

Answer 1

The multifactorial model in health psychology is a leading paradigm that recognizes the multi-faceted nature of illnesses. It is not a clear-cut, simple case that a disease is caused by a singular factor. The fact is that decades if not over a century of modern research has led to the recognition that a host of factors, as well as their interactions, function in illness and health determination.

These varied factors that the multifactorial model indicates to be the range of possible influences or causes of diseases cover the psychological, sociocultural, environmental, and stressors. This broad range of factors, which include both those within and without one's control, determine an individual's health and his/her level of susceptibility to health problems.

Psychological or personality and behavior factors figure in quite a large number of health problems. Such is seen in the large number of preventable deaths that occur yearly in the United States. For one, smoking leads to way over 400,000 annual deaths from cancer, diseases of the heart and lungs, and stroke. Some 300,000 year deaths stroke, Heart disease, cancer, and Diabetes can actually be prevented with good diet and proper exercise. Immunizations, moderation or control of alcohol drinking, and abstinence or safe sex practices could also help prevent deaths from Infectious Diseases, vehicular and other accidents/injuries, and sexually transmitted diseases, respectively. It should be well noted that depression and other negative psychological states could actually render an impaired immune system functioning. The reason for this is that, contrary to popular thinking, the mental and the physical are not entirely separate domains but, rather intertwined.