Behaviors, Bias, and Decision-Making in Health

The prevalence of alcohol use, obesity, inadequate fruit and vegetable consumption, and insufficient physical activity has been increasing, exceeding the OECD average. During the recent covid 19 pandemic, a lack of protective health behaviors such as washing hands or wearing masks in crowded places was also identified both in general and in specific groups. While such evidence typically emerges from cross-sectional comparisons, other studies have identified mental health as a significant factor in determining behavior and changing behavior. In spite of this, there is a lack of specific research evaluating the impact of mental health on health behaviors within the literature. The determinants of unhealthy behaviors and their outcomes must be understood in order to formulate policies that address them.

Several factors will make the proposed research topic of significant interest to scholars and clinicians, and provide the impetus for future research: first, this is a research topic that can bring together papers from a variety of scientific fields (psychology, medicine, public health, sociology, health communication), as well as interdisciplinary research (e.g., psychology, medicine, public health, sociology, health communication). Moreover, it fits perfectly into the current discussion within Frontiers in Psychology Journal concerning health, cognitive factors, negative emotions, and motivations in health versus non-healthy behavior. The understanding of mental health's impact on health decision making could offer new perspectives on understanding human attitudes and knowledge and could lead to new policy guidelines and educational interventions.

Contributions that provide conceptual, review, methodological, qualitative, or quantitative insights are welcome. We also offer the opportunity to publish study protocols for interventions, observational or experimental studies.