NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard for appropriate balance.

Support for this project was provided by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Contract No. 030324 and National Institutes of Health and Center for Disease Control, Contract No. N01-OD-4-2139, TO #38. The views presented in this report are those of the Institute of Medicine Committee on Health and Behavior: Research, Practice and Policy and are not necessarily those of the funding agencies.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Health and behavior: the interplay of biological, behavioral, and societal influences/Committee on Health and Behavior, Research, Practice, and Policy, Board on Neuroscience and Behavioral Health, Institute of Medicine.

p.; cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

1. Medicine and psychology. 2. Social medicine. [DNLM: 1. Health Behavior. 2. Attitude to Health. 3. Preventive Health Services. 4. Socioeconomic Factors. W 85 H4338 2001] I. Institute of Medicine (U.S.). Committee on Health and Behavior: Research, Practice, and Policy.

R726.5 .H43225 2001

613'.01'9–dc21

2001003541

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The serpent has been a symbol of long life, healing, and knowledge among almost all cultures and religions since the beginning of recorded history. The serpent adopted as a logotype by the Institute of Medicine is a relief carving from ancient Greece, now held by the Staatliche Museen in Berlin.