Community Health

As I read and evaluated articles that related to my two emphases, biology and psychology, I discovered that there are a wide range of issues that can relate to community. I have already displayed the role of genetic disposition in determining social altruism. I have also talked about different heuristics that psychologists use in showing trends in collective efficacy. Another fact is that Sampson himself is a social psychologist and is using his work in Chicago to better understand social order and how to fix social problems. I believe that almost any aspect of community could fit into either the field of psychology or biology in a round about way. Thus the challenge is to discover what phenomenon of community life are best described by which emphasis area, keeping in mind that different theories in multiple disciplines will shed light onto the subject.

While studying biology I have noticed the growing epidemic of obesity. As I look around I see millions of Americans attending the millions of Burger Doodles (the sum total of all fast food burger joints) all across the world. As Obesity rises, all the negative consequences such as hypertension, high cholesterol and type two diabetes rise with it. Problems that were once very rare are now more common than ever before. Two articles I found are addressing the problem of obesity. First, as the government is trying to gain awareness of the potential harm  obtained at Burger Doodle, they have established the idea of making on Online Health-Promoting Community or OHPC. With the establishment of these OHPC's, we have found that almost all the needs of the users can be met by opening forums where people can ask questions and answers will be given by following guidelines. Another study found that many people are open to testing to discover problems that have been caused by Burger Doodle with the top disorders being hypertension, diabetes, cancer, obesity and heart problems. If people are willing to engage in such studies, then we should have data recorder to show trends in these communities.

On the other spectrum of psychology, we find that many of the same biological trends that are happening in communities are co-existing with many psychological problems. People that live in remote places tend to avoid getting help with the problem.. A study done in Australia found that the more serious the problem and  the further one might have to travel to obtain help, the less likely to receive help. On the other hand the closer the person to a major metropolitan area, the more likely he or she would seek attention. Another study showed that substance abuse and mental health problems put disadvantaged communities at a greater risk for being infected by disease in South Africa. Even though this study was done in south Africa, the results have been shown to be valid in America.

As we look at these different problems in the communities I believe that we will find shocking trends. In some cultures certain practices have become normal such as the American tradition of eating at Burger Doodle because we have become lazy and wan to take the easy way around things. As we become more complacent with our habits, we will find not only health problems in our communities but mental health problems. It has been proven that physical exercises stimulates the brain, so as Burger Doodle becomes more popular, exercise will become less popular resulting in the decline of overall community health!


REFERENCES

Cottler, L. B., McCloskey, D., Aguilar-Gaxiola, S., Bennett, N. M., Strelnick, H., Dwyer-White, M., & ... Evanoff, B. (2013). Community Needs, Concerns, and Perceptions About Health Research: Findings From the Clinical and Translational Science Award Sentinel Network. American Journal Of Public Health, 103(4), 717-726.

Ekberg, J., Timpka, T., Angbratt, M., Frank, L., Norn, A., Hedin, L., & ... Gre, B. (2013). Design of an online health-promoting community: negotiating user community needs with public health goals and service capabilities. BMC Health Services Research, 13(1), 258-263

Havenaar, J. M., Geerlings, M. I., Vivian, L., Collinson, M., & Robertson, B. (2008). Common mental health problems in historically disadvantaged urban and rural communities in South Africa: prevalence and risk factors. Social Psychiatry & Psychiatric Epidemiology, 43(3), 209-215

Perkins, D., Fuller, J., Kelly, B. J., Lewin, T. J., Fitzgerald, M., Coleman, C., & ... Buss, R. (2013). Factors associated with reported service use for mental health problems by residents of rural and remote communities: cross-sectional findings from a baseline survey. BMC Health Services Research, 13(1), 1-13.