Shifting Mindsets: Health Individualism and Systemic Understanding
By: Jenna Olson
There’s some fascinating new research out about two key mindsets that we’re all familiar with in public health:
Health individualism views health as a result of personal choices, influenced by diet, exercise, and habits.
A systemic understanding of health recognizes that health is shaped by external factors—the social determinants of health (SDOH).
Since early 2020, the FrameWorks Institute has tracked public opinion on these mindsets, particularly through the upheaval of COVID-19.
Take a guess.
Since 2020, when given the choice between health individualism and a systemic understanding of health, how has public thinking changed?
A) Health individualism has increased.
B) Health individualism has decreased.
C) It has not changed.
Image source: FrameWorks' Culture Change Project
I would have guessed B. (I wanted it to be B!) But surprisingly, health individualism is on the rise. We don’t know exactly why, but FrameWorks offers some theories in their article.
So what?
Well, we know that health individualism often leads to blame and stigma. It makes it easy to assume that disparities are the result of groups of people making the same bad choices. But as public health professionals, we know that disparities stem from barriers put up by systems that place more value on some people than others. And we can help change this narrative. Here’s how:
Try not to repeat individualistic health ideas. These ideas already get an overabundance of airtime, and every time we restate one, we reinforce it in our audience’s mind.
Talk more about the social determinants of health, and do it with evidence-based practices:
Use plain language like “the essential conditions for health” or “the places where we live, work, and play shape our health.”
Choose one or two examples of SDOH that are relevant to your audience and explain their link to health. (Don’t just list them off!)
Keep doing it. People need to hear the same message many times, from many sources, for it to sink in and have an effect.
Know your audience and what they value. Speak to those values and use research to plan what you’ll say. FrameWorks offers research-based guidance on how to talk about many specific public health topics, including youth mental health, alcohol use and equity, and rural health disparities.
If you need help shaping your narrative for a systemic understanding of health, reach out!
Jenna Olson
Public Health Communications Coordinator
olsonj1@communityhealthboard.org