The Socio-Ecological Model (SEM): A Framework for Understanding the Determinants of Health Behaviour

It is often believed that people are in control of their own actions, behaviours, and ultimately their health status, but what if it’s not that simple. What if someone wants to eat healthier but the nearest grocery store is 30 minutes away, they don’t have a car, their area does not have reliable public transportation, and if buying fast food is cheaper to feed their family. The Ottawa Charter defines health promotion as “the process of enabling people to increase control over, and to improve, their health. Unlike medical models for individual-level health, population health models allow for an examination of the broader context that influence health outcomes. In this episode of the Public Health Insight Podcast, we’ll be taking a look at the socioecological model.

References for Our Discussion

• Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC): The Social-Ecological Model: Violence Prevention
• Jill F. Kilanowski (2017): Breadth of the Socio-Ecological Model
• COVID-19 Curriculum: Social-Ecological Model of Understanding Differential Impact of COVID-19
• Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Women and Children’s Health Policy Center: An Introduction to the Ecological Model in Public Health

Podcast Co-Hosts

• Gordon Thane, BMSc, MPH, PMP®
• Leshawn Benedict, MPH, MSc, CAPM®
• Sulaiman Alhalbouni, BMSc, MPH
• William Wang, BA, MPH
• Linda Holdbrook, BSc, MPH

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Music Credits

The following tracks used in this episode were all produced by Lukrembo:

• Daily • Bread • Biscuit • Bored • Chocolate • Onion • Holiday

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