Module 7: Key Terms

ambivalence: simultaneously experiencing competing motivations both to and not to make behavioral changes; a normative aspect of the change process that interferes with a person’s ability to achieve their change goals.

behavioral health: promoting mental health by preventing or intervening in behaviors and processes that interfere or contribute to mental disorders; this includes substance use and misuse processes and addiction as a mental disorder, but also how they factor into other mental disorders.

continuum of care: a system of intervention approaches that comprehensively covers the entire range of need from prevention through recovery, health maintenance, rehabilitation, and relapse prevention.

developmental framework: a perspective about prevention and intervention guided by an understanding of and evidence related to human developmental periods and processes; in its broadest sense, this framework covers preconception through end of life (lifespan).

indicated prevention: prevention efforts delivered to individuals identified as having early signs or symptoms of the target problem though have not yet met the clinical criteria for that problem.

motivational interviewing (MI): a collaborative, client-centered approach directed around helping individuals identify and resolve ambivalence about making a behavioral change; MI is based on principles of expressing empathy, developing discrepancy, supporting self-efficacy, and rolling with resistance.

prevention: how we planfully intercede to keep something from happening, hindering its emergence.

protective factors: extrinsic factors in the environment that decrease the probability of individuals developing a specific problem, disorder, or disease; note that this term is often used to also include intrinsic resilience factors (as in your reading, but not in your lecture)

relapse prevention: process by which individuals learn to identify and interrupt their own specific triggers, old ways of thinking and behaving, and other factors that might induce cravings and urges to again use alcohol or other substances they have been working to quit using.

resilience factors: intrinsic factors within individuals (biological, psychological, and experience) that decrease the probability of individuals developing a specific problem, disorder, or disease; note that this term is often incorporated into the concept of protective factors (as in your reading, but not in your lecture).

resistance: a person’s opposition or refusal to participate in treatment/treatment activities, often includes a strong element of ambivalence.

risk factors: extrinsic factors in the environment that increase the probability of individuals developing a specific problem, disorder, or disease; note that this term is often used to also include intrinsic vulnerability factors (as in your reading, but not in your lecture).

selective prevention: prevention efforts delivered to a targeted subgroup of a population, that subgroup being identified as having a higher risk or vulnerability than the remainder of the population.

stages of change: an element of the transtheoretical model of behavior change providing a theoretical framework for understanding the nonlinear (cycling) processes involved in behavioral change, particularly the stage-progression aspect of precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, and maintenance; may include relapse and relapse prevention.

transtheoretical model (TTM) of behavior change: an integrative biopsychosocial model of intentional behavior change that transcends theories underlying various therapies; combines the stages of change, decisional balance, and self-efficacy components to understand how people change.

universal prevention: prevention efforts delivered to an entire population regardless of differences in risk or vulnerability, for example to everyone in an entire community of individuals.

vulnerability factors: intrinsic factors within individuals (biological, psychological, and experience) that increase the probability of individuals developing a specific problem, disorder, or disease; note that this term is often incorporated into the concept of risk factors (as in your reading, but not in your lecture)