Cookies?
Library Header Image
LSE Research Online LSE Library Services

What do we know about the strengths and weakness of different policy mechanisms to influence health behaviour in the population?

McDaid, David ORCID: 0000-0003-0744-2664, Oliver, Adam and Merkur, Sherry (2014) What do we know about the strengths and weakness of different policy mechanisms to influence health behaviour in the population? Policy summary (15). World Health Organization Regional Office for Europe, Copenhagen, Denmark.

[img]
Preview
PDF - Published Version
Download (633kB) | Preview

Abstract

With health care systems under increasing pressure the development of a well defined and effective public health strategy has never been more important. Many health problems are potentially avoidable and governments have long had tools at their disposal to influence population health and change individual behaviours, directed both ‘upstream’ at some of the underlying causes of poor health, as well as at ‘downstream’ challenges when poor health behaviours are already manifest. But how effective are these different actions? This policy summary briefly maps out what is known about some of these mechanisms, including approaches that have come to recent prominence from behavioural economics and psychology. Combinations of taxation, legislation and health information remain the core components of any strategy to influence behavioural change. There remain many unanswered questions on how best to design new innovative interventions that can complement, and in some instances augment, these well-established mechanisms.

Item Type: Monograph (Report)
Official URL: http://www.euro.who.int/en/home
Additional Information: © 2014 World Health Organization
Divisions: Social Policy
Personal Social Services Research Unit
LSE Health
Subjects: R Medicine > RA Public aspects of medicine > RA0421 Public health. Hygiene. Preventive Medicine
Date Deposited: 24 Jun 2015 13:01
Last Modified: 15 Sep 2023 22:25
URI: http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/62442

Actions (login required)

View Item View Item

Downloads

Downloads per month over past year

View more statistics