Publisher's Synopsis
The psychology of health is a rapidly expanding field which draws its theoretical base from a number of other more established areas of psychology. Whilst the contribution of social and cognitive psychology is widely acknowledged, that of lifespan psychology has generally been less well recognized. This book attempts to rectify this situation by demonstrating what a health psychologist can gain by adopting a lifespan perspective.;The contributors from Europe, America and Australia explore the relevance of developmental and ageing processes to issues such as health and illness perception, illness prevention and health promotion, the experience of chronic illness, health and illness behaviour and the costs and consequences of illness. They do so by addressing specific health concerns within each of five stages in the lifecycle - childhood, adolescence, early adulthood, middle adulthood and old age. Thus, for example, the implications of emergent sexuality for health are addressed within the section of adolescence, psychological aspects of reproductive failure and the new technologies are considered within the section on early adulthood, whilst issues of social support, social control and health are explored in the section on old age. The book offers the reader an interesting and informative illustration of the ways in which a lifespan perspective can enhance our understanding of health and illness.
