Health Psychology at the University of Iowa Psychologists in recent years have initiated the study of behavioral factors involved in the causes, treatment, and prevention of physical illness. These efforts partly reflect a logical extension of psychology's long-standing interest in the relationship between mind and body. Recognition of the importance of life style and behavioral factors for physical disease, the search for ways to contain health care costs, and potential of health-oriented psychological interventions have additionally forged strong links between psychology and medicine both nationally and internationally. Health psychology represents the subdiscipline encompassing the concepts, theories, and methods of psychology as they apply to understanding and intervening in physical disease, health enhancement, illness prevention, and rehabilitation. Several members of the faculty in the Department of Psychology, as well as in other departments at the University of Iowa, teach and maintain active research programs on topics in health psychology. Close proximity and collaborative arrangements with the College of Medicine and the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics afford ample opportunities for health-related research and other relevant experiences. A specialization in health psychology provides graduate students with training and research experience in this growing area. Graduate students in any of the departmental training areas (Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, Clinical, Cognition and Perception, Developmental, and Personality and Social) may choose to pursue a specialization in health psychology. A student may obtain a doctorate in behavioral and cognitive neuroscience or clinical psychology, for example, with a health specialization. Students specializing in health psychology undertake relevant coursework and research within the department. Supplemental elective courses are offered by the College of Medicine and by other academic departments. Students are additionally expected to meet all standard requirements in their training area. The goals of health psychology training at the University of Iowa are (a) to provide the student with methodological skills for research at the interface between psychology and medicine; (b) to expose the student to knowledge about biopsychosocial processes and mechanisms which contribute to physical health and disease; (c) to educate the student about the nature and implementation of interventions for treatment or prevention of physical illness. Students in a particular training area may, however, emphasize different aspects of these aims. For example, a graduate student in behavioral and cognitive neuroscience may emphasize physiologic processes as they interface with behavioral principles by specializing in animal models of hypertension. A clinical psychology graduate student, on the other hand, may give more attention to behavioral interventions facilitating adaptation to physical disorders, such as chronic pain or disability, or to new medical procedures. Regardless of specific emphasis, the health psychology specialization incorporates broad-based training in psychology to provide all students extensive knowledge and appreciation of the dynamic interactions among biological, psychological, and social factors contributing to physical health and illness. Health Psychology Courses Students receiving a Ph.D. with a specialization in health psychology have a variety of career opportunities; projections suggest an increasing number of jobs for health psychologists in the future. Individuals who hold a Ph.D. in clinical psychology with a specialization in health, after serving a relevant internship, may work in hospitals or clinics where they may provide direct care to patients or take academic positions involving a combination of teaching, research, and practice. Individuals taking a doctorate in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, Cognition and Perception, Developmental, or Personality and Social Psychology with a specialization in health psychology may take academic positions in colleges, universities, or medical schools where they conduct research, teach, and consult on health issues. Six health psychology courses are taught regularly in the Psychology Department at the present time: Introduction to Health and Behavioral Science (31:250) Principles of Health and Behavioral Science: Psychobiology of Cardiovascular Disease (31:251) Psychology of Stress (31:209) Clinical Behavioral Medicine (31:252) Psychological Aspects of Women's Health (31:361) Seminar in Health and Behavioral Science (31:350) Health Psychology Interest Group meetings are held periodically for faculty and students to discuss ongoing research. Students are also encouraged to attend talks sponsored by the Cardiovascular Center and other departments in the College of Medicine. For clinical psychology students, practicum experience can be arranged in several of the departments at the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

Health Psychologists at Iowa Robert S. Baron, Professor, (Ph.D. University of Minnesota, 1970). Dr. Baron is a social psychologist with research interests in how people cope with stress. Recent research, conducted in collaboration with the College of Dentistry, has identified individual differences that mediate the effect of stress in dental settings. He is also studying psychological manipulations that reduce maladaptive reactions to stressful settings, and the effects of stress on immune function and cognitive/social functioning. Alan J. Christensen, Associate Professor, (Ph.D. University of Utah, 1993) Dr. Christensen is a clinical psychologist whose major health interests involve psychological adjustment in chronic physical illness and patient adherence to medical treatment regimens. Research is currently underway in collaboration with several divisions in the College of Medicine including Nephrology, Endocrinology, Cardiac Rehabilitation, and Head and Neck Oncology. His research examines adjustment and adherence using a framework that considers the interactions of patient individual differences and treatment of disease-related factors. A related research interest involves the role of personality and social context as joint predictors of perceived stress, cardiovascular reactivity, and immunological functioning. Alan Kim Johnson, Professor, (Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, 1970). Dr. Johnson, a behavioral neuroscientist, conducts research on the role of the brain and behavior in the maintenance of body fluid and cardiovascular homeostasis. One line of investigation focuses on understanding how under certain physiological and pathophysiological states, such as hypertension, drinking behavior (thirst) and salt intake (sodium appetite) occur and contribute to long-term changes in body fluid balance and blood pressure regulation. A second line of investigation studies the ways by which environmental stressors, both psychosocial and dietary, become "translated" into cardiovascular pathology as hypertension. Work in this domain has focused on the role of the autonomic nervous system and circulating hormones in the generation of cardiovascular patterns such as the defense response. John F. Knutson, Professor, (Ph.D., Washington State University, 1969). Dr. Knutson is a clinical psychologist whose research has two foci relevant to health psychology. One concerns the investigation of psychological variables important for audiological outcomes of cochlear implants in deaf children and adults, and the assessment of psychological change following long-term implant use. This cochlear implant research is supported by a multidisciplinary program project grant involving extensive collaboration with investigators in the Department of Otolaryngology--Head and Neck Surgery of the College of Medicine and the Department of Speech Pathology and Audiology. The second research focus is in the area of physical abuse, sexual abuse, and neglect of children. In addition to investigating the long-term consequences of maltreatment, Dr. Knutson has been conducting research on the relationship between maltreatment and handicapping conditions, such as hearing impairment. Susan K. Lutgendorf, Assistant Professor, (Ph.D., University of Miami, 1994). Dr. Lutgendorf is a clinical psychologist with research interests in psychoneuroimmunology and psycho-oncology. She is currently studying effects of stress on immune functioning in older adults, in a collaborative study with the College of Nursing and the Department of Urology. She is also studying quality of life in gynecologic cancer patients in a collaborative study with the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Department of Medicine. A related research interest involves relationships between processing of traumas and physiological functioning. René Martin, Assistant Research Scientist, (Ph.D., University of Iowa, 1996). Dr. Martin is a social psychologist whose health interests include the impact of stereotypes in naïve theories of illness and medical self-referral behavior. She currently is investigating how gender stereotypes influence health care seeking among male and female victims of myocardial infarction and their support providers. She also is conducting research on the implications of somatization stereotypes of women. Michael W. O'Hara, Professor, (Ph.D., University of Pittsburgh, 1980). Dr. O'Hara is a clinical psychologist with interests in psychological aspects of women's reproductive health. In particular, he has conducted research on postpartum depression. For the past several years, he has been involved in a systematic evaluation of interpersonal psychotherapy for postpartum depression. Jerry Suls, Professor, (Ph.D., Temple University, 1973). Dr. Suls is a social psychologist whose recent work focuses on the roles of life stressors, personality, and physiologic reactivity in cardiovascular disease risk and recovery. Currently, he is studying how men and women heart attack patients and their spouses adjust after hospital discharge. In addition, Dr. Suls is researching how preventive health behaviors and medical referral are effected by social factors. Erling A. Anderson, Associate Professor, Department of Anesthesia (Ph.D., University of Iowa, 1984). Dr. Anderson is a clinical psychologist and human cardiovascular physiologist whose major interest is autonomic nervous system control of the circulation in normal and pathologic states. He is also interested in the management of chronic pain and staffs the Anesthesia Department's Multidisciplinary Pain Management Center. behaviors and medical referral are effected by social factors.