Behavioral science aims to understand human behavior through disciplines like psychology, sociology, anthropology, and biology. It studies how factors like culture, attitudes, emotions, relationships, and genetics influence our thoughts, decisions, interactions, and actions. Understanding behavioral science is important for health professionals, as it can help explain health behaviors, risks, mental illnesses, and how to motivate positive behavior changes.

1. INTRODUCTION TO BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES IN MEDICAL PRACTICE

2. • Behavioral science aims to better understand human behavior
and the driving forces behind it.
• Behavioral science is the study of how human behavior impacts
personal thoughts, decisions, interactions, and actions.

3. Behaviour
• Refers to all the actions or reactions of an organism (person or
animal) in response to external or internal stimuli.
• According to Leagans (1961), behaviour refers to what an individual
knows (Knowledge), what he or she can do (skill – mental or physical),
what he or she thinks (attitude), and what he or she actually does.
• Behavior is everything a person does.

4. • Human behaviour may be overt (expressed outside) or covert
(expressed inside).
• Covert behaviours-these are inward behavioural characteristics and
activities such as emotions and feelings, they are not easily noticed,
and they are hidden.
• Overt behaviour-these are activities that are easily noticed especially
through the sense of sight and hearing, such as walking and singing.
• Both overt and covert behaviour can be measured.

5. Behaviour can be:
• Simple or complex
• Short or enduring
• Conscious or unconscious
• Voluntary or involuntary

6. VALUES – STANDARDS – JUDGMENTS
ATTITUDE
MOTIVES – ETHICS - BELIEFS
BEHAVIOR
KNOWN
TO OTHERS
UNKNOWN
TO OTHERS

7. Human behaviour falls within a range of:
-Common X unusual
-Acceptable X outside acceptability
The acceptability of behaviour and normativity is evaluated relative to
social and moral norms and regulated by various means of social
control.
Social behaviour is behavior specifically directed at other people.

8. Human behavior is influenced by:
Culture Attitudes
Emotions Values
Ethics Authority
Relationship Encouragement
Coercion(force) Genetics
Biological composition Religion

9. Four Categories of Human Behaviour:
1. Behavior Detectability:
Behaviour we can detect with our senses (e.g, see or hear).
Behaviour that can not be detected by our senses (e.g., thinking).
2. Behaviour Purposive vs. goal-driven (involves action).

10. 3. Behaviour involving performance (or skilled behavior ).
Behavior that demonstrates skills of various kinds from work to sports.
4. Category of instinctual behaviour, having to do with the structural or
physiological nature of the organism.
Behavior in this category is determined by the need or desire to
avoid pain and gain pleasure.

11. FROM THE BEHAVIOURAL PERSPECTIVE:
• Almost all human behavior is learned.
• All behaviors occur for a reason.
• No behaviors occur “out of blue.”
• Behaviors continue to occur because they are effective.
• Behaviors stop happening because they are ineffective.

12. • Reinforcement:
Consequences increase the probability of the behavior.
• Punishment:
Consequences decrease the probability of the behavior.

13. FROM THE COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL PERSPECTIVE:
CBT argues that thoughts feelings and behaviours usually are not
independent from each other.
CBT emphasizes the relationship between our thoughts, our feelings,
and our behaviours.
More specifically, how our thoughts change the way that we feel,
subsequently changing the way that we act, which again influences our
thoughts.

14. • The interaction between thoughts, feelings and behaviours happens
every day.
• Emotions have physiological and cognitive elements and influence
behaviour.

15. Disciplines Included in the Field of Behavioral Science:
• Behavioural sciences encompass all the disciplines that explore
the activities of and interactions among the world.
• It involves the systematic analysis and investigation of human and
animal behaviour through controlled experimental observations and
rigorous formulations.

16. • Behavioral science is a broad field, with many disciplines under its
umbrella that all address human actions in some way.
• Regardless of the discipline, any area that seeks to understand the
connection between the human mind and behavior relies on the
study of behavioral science.

17. Sociology: Involves studying the interactions between the people
within a society and the processes which maintain and change society.
 Institutions
 Populations
 Gender groups
 Communities
 Age groups
 Social status
 Social movements
 Social problems

18. Social and Cultural Anthropology: explore the many aspects of
culture, including:
 Rules of behavior
 Language
 Customs
 Belief system
 Social structures
• This branch of anthropology considers how such aspects, along with
principles that organize a culture’s social life, can influence people’s
behavior.

19. DISCUSSION
Cultural Influence on Perceptions, feelings and behaviour

20. Criminology
• Criminology seeks to understand crime. Specifically, it analyzes how,
why, and when crime happens.
• Focus areas in criminology include:
 Types of crimes
 Location of crimes
 Governmental, individual, and societal reactions to crime
 Frequency of crimes

21. Biology
• Biology is the study of living things and the processes that keep them
alive.
• The discipline examines the structure, growth, reproduction, and
behavior of people, animals, plants, and organisms.
• Biology also looks closely at how genetics, adaptation, and
environment affect living things.
• In the next topic, we shall look at the biological influences of
behaviour.

22. Political Science
• Political science analyzes the systematic methods used by
governments at all levels.
• The discipline explores what influences the relationship between a
government and the people it governs by considering the following.
 Societal factors
 Psychological factors
 Cultural factors

23. Psychiatry
• Psychiatry involves the prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of
mental disorders.
• This discipline studies the connections between the mind and the
brain i.e., the connection between thoughts, feelings, and actions
(behaviour) and neural functioning.
• Psychiatry also examines the effect of the environment on people
with mental illnesses.

24. Psychology: the scientific study of the mind and behavior, according to
the American Psychological Association, explores human development,
health, cognition, and social behavior.
Psychology strives to achieve four principle goals.
 Describe people’s behaviors to identify normal and abnormal behavior.
 Explain why people think and react as they do.
 Predict how behaviors will appear in the future by observing past
behaviors, and better understand why, when, and how behaviors might
appear in the future
 Change or positively influence people’s behaviors to improve their lives

25. RELEVANCE OF BEHAVIOURAL SCIENCES TO HEALTH & MEDICINE:
Behavioral scientists search for a better understanding of many
problems that are particularly relevant to health professionals,
including:
Health risks. Anxiety disorders.
Substance abuse. Violence.
Trauma. Stress.
Personality disorders. Depression.

26. • A developed understanding of human behavior can serve as a powerful
tool for those who wish to influence people’s health choices.
• For example, many chronic diseases are the result of personal
behaviors.
• By addressing those behaviors, many leading risk factors for illnesses
can be prevented or controlled.
Relevance is demonstrated in the:
Presentation of illnesses,
Delivery of health care,
Aspects of social and psychological treatment,

27. • Important questions like who will trust the science behind a vaccine and
under what circumstances, also matter.
• Social science can deliver some of the answers to such questions.
• For example, in the COVID-19 pandemic, social scientists are researching
questions that are key to the work of health experts, such as:
What motivates people to wear or not wear masks during a pandemic?
How does COVID-19 affect people differently based on their socioeconomic
backgrounds?

28. Influences on Behavior:
Many factors influence people’s choices. Social and behavioral
scientists study factors such as the following.
Psychological Influences. Factors such as motivation can determine
what a person chooses to do or not do.
• Unmet needs tend to motivate people into action and affect their
behavior.
• A belief in one’s ability to achieve a task also plays a role in
influencing choices and behavior.

29. Biological Influences. Factors such as age, sex, and genetics can
influence people’s behavior and emotions.
• For example, people inherit characteristics that influence behavior
traits such as impulsiveness or reticence.
Societal Influences. People may change their behavior and ideas to fit
into a social group.
• People may also shift their decisions or attitudes to meet the
demands of their own social roles or perceived authority.

30. • People’s values,
• Their assessment of risk,
• The extent to which a choice conflicts with their beliefs or attitudes,
• Their culture
can all play a role in how people behave and the choices they make.

31. Determinants of Behaviour
1. Biological determinants
 Genetic Influences
 Growth and developmental Influences
 Biochemical Influences
 Psycho physiological factors
2. Learning (conditioning) influences
3. Sociocultural factors
4. Psychosocial factors