Influences on Health and Wellbeing
What you must understand
Health and wellbeing is multidimensional: physical, mental, emotional, social and spiritual. Influences are commonly grouped as determinants - biological (genetics, age, sex), behavioural (diet, activity, sleep, substance use), social (family, peers, education, income), environmental (housing, water, air quality, climate) and cultural (beliefs, norms, stigma). These determinants interact rather than act alone, so a candidate should be able to explain a pathway (cause → mechanism → outcome) rather than list factors.
Separate modifiable from non-modifiable influences, and risk factors from protective factors. The social gradient of health is a key idea: people with lower income, education or status generally experience worse health, and the gap is not simply about individual choice.
Traps in questions
- Confusing influence with outcome: unemployment is an influence, poor mental health is an outcome.
- Treating correlation as causation; be cautious with phrases like “proves” or “causes” unless the question asks you to argue.
- Ignoring equity - a question asking about “some groups” usually wants you to discuss advantage and disadvantage, not individual blame.
- Overlooking timing: early life, adolescence and ageing shape how determinants act.
Rule of thumb
For any influence, name the level (individual, family, community, society), say whether it is protective or risky, and describe one plausible mechanism. This three-part structure earns marks in extended answers.
Worked example
Question: Explain how housing can influence wellbeing. Strong answer: “Housing affects physical health through damp and overcrowding, which increase respiratory illness; it affects mental health through stress and insecurity; and it affects social wellbeing through location and access to services - showing interacting determinants.”