Evolutionary health psychology

Mikayla D. M. Joslin, Arial S. Bloshinsky, Melissa A. Shepherd and Anastasia Makhanova

Chapter 9 in Handbook of Evolutionary Psychology, 2026, pp 146-163 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: Abstract: Health psychology aims to uncover interactive effects of biological, psychological, and sociological factors on people's health. Evolutionary perspectives complement this framework by emphasizing ultimate explanations for health-relevant behaviors. This chapter bridges these perspectives with a focus on four key theories: evolutionary mismatch, life history theory, fundamental social motives, and functional perspectives in psychoneuroendocrinology and immunology. We showcase research informed by these four theories in domains relevant to survival and reproduction. Survival-relevant health behaviors are covered both in the context of immediate responses to acute health threats and health promotion behaviors that can delay the onset of chronic health threats. For both chronic health threats and reproductive health, we highlight research on eating, physical activity, sleep, and stress management. Overall, evolutionary perspectives can contribute to deeper understanding of the roots of health problems, uncover the influences of unique biopsychosocial factors, and inform innovative health interventions to tackle modern health challenges.

Keywords: Evolutionary Medicine; Evolutionary Mismatch; Life History Theory; Fundamental Social Motives; Psychoneuroendocrinology; Psychoneuroimmunology (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2026
ISBN: 9781035332496
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.elgaronline.com/doi/10.4337/9781035332502.00018 (application/pdf)
Our link check indicates that this URL is bad, the error code is: 403 Forbidden

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:elg:eechap:23314_10

Ordering information: This item can be ordered from
http://www.e-elgar.com

Access Statistics for this chapter

More chapters in Chapters from Edward Elgar Publishing
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Jack Sweeney ().