title: Increasing psychology's role in health research and health care.
abstract: The reductionistic, exclusionary, and dualistic tenets of the biomedical model have profoundly affected U.S. health care and health research as well as psychology practice, psychological science, and graduate education in psychology. Although the biomedical model was a success story in many ways, by the end of the 20th century its limitations had become increasingly apparent. These limitations included the biomedical model's failure to adequately address the changing nature of disease facing the U.S. health care system, escalating health care costs, the role of behavior in health and illness, and patients' mental health concerns. Medicine's recent paradigm shift from the biomedical to the biopsychosocial model is occurring in U.S. health care, professional medical education, and health research, with significant implications for psychology. This paradigm shift provides psychology with both opportunities and challenges. Psychology must proactively and deliberately embrace the biopsychosocial model if it is to take full advantage of the opportunities this paradigm shift presents. The American Psychological Association can play an important leadership role in this effort.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medical Humanities & Social Sciences, College of Medicine, 1115 West Call Street, Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL 32306-4300, USA. suzanne.johnson@med.fsu.edu
authors.forename: Suzanne Bennett
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D011584:Psychology; D012958:Societies, Scientific; D014481:United States