For the idea that extraterrestrials have intervened in human history, see
Ancient astronauts.
In social studies and social policy, intervention theory is the analysis of the decision making problems of intervening effectively in a situation in order to secure desired outcomes. Intervention theory addresses the question of when it is desirable not to intervene and when it is appropriate to do so. It also examines the effectiveness of different types of intervention. The term is used across a range of social and medical practices, including health care, child protection and law enforcement. It is also used in business studies.
In the United States education system, social studies is the integrated study of multiple fields of social science and the humanities, including history, geography, and political science. The term was first coined by American educators around the turn of the twentieth century as a catch-all for these subjects, as well as others which did not fit into the traditional models of lower education in the United States, such as philosophy and psychology.
Social policy is policy usually within a governmental or political setting, such as the welfare state and study of social services.
Business Studies is an academic subject taught in schools and at university level in many countries. Its study combines elements of accountancy, finance, marketing, organizational studies and economics. Business Studies is a broad subject in the Social Sciences, allowing the in-depth study of a range of specialties such as accountancy, finance, organisation, human resources management and marketing.
Within the theory of nursing, intervention theory is included within a larger scope of practice theories. Burns and Grove point out that it directs the implementation of a specific nursing intervention and provides theoretical explanations of how and why the intervention is effective in addressing a particular patient care problem. These theories are tested through programs of research to validate the effectiveness of the intervention in addressing the problem. [1]
In Intervention Theory and Method Chris Argyris argues that in organization development, effective intervention depends on appropriate and useful knowledge that offers a range of clearly defined choices and that the target should be for as many people as possible to be committed to the option chosen and to feel responsibility for it. Overall, interventions should generate a situation in which actors believe that they are working to internal rather than external influences on decisions. [2]
Organization development (OD) is the study of successful organizational change and performance. OD emerged from human relations studies in the 1930s, during which psychologists realized that organizational structures and processes influence worker behavior and motivation. More recently, work on OD has expanded to focus on aligning organizations with their rapidly changing and complex environments through organizational learning, knowledge management and transformation of organizational norms and values. Key concepts of OD theory include: organizational climate, organizational culture and organizational strategies.
Psychotherapy is the use of psychological methods, particularly when based on regular personal interaction, to help a person change behavior and overcome problems in desired ways. Psychotherapy aims to improve an individual's well-being and mental health, to resolve or mitigate troublesome behaviors, beliefs, compulsions, thoughts, or emotions, and to improve relationships and social skills. Certain psychotherapies are considered evidence-based for treating some diagnosed mental disorders. Others have been criticized as pseudoscience.
Intervention may refer to:
Action research is either research initiated to solve an immediate problem or a reflective process of progressive problem solving led by individuals working with others in teams or as part of a "community of practice" to improve the way they address issues and solve problems. There are two types of action research: participatory and practical. Denscombe writes that an action research strategy's purpose is to solve a particular problem and to produce guidelines for effective practices.
Chris Argyris was a Greek business theorist, Professor Emeritus at Harvard Business School, and held the position of "Thought Leader" at Monitor Group. Argyris is next to Richard Beckhard, Edgar Schein and Warren Bennis known as co-founder of organization development, and known for seminal work of learning organizations.
Anti-social behaviours are actions that harm or lack consideration for the well-being of others. It has also been defined as any type of conduct that violates the basic rights of another person and any behaviour that is considered to be disruptive to others in society. This can be carried out in various ways, which includes but is not limited to intentional aggression, as well as covert and overt hostility. Anti-social behaviour also develops through social interaction within the family and community. It continuously affects a child's temperament, cognitive ability and their involvement with negative peers, dramatically affecting children's problem solving skills. Many people also label behaviour which is deemed contrary to prevailing norms for social conduct as anti-social behaviour. However, researchers have stated that it is a difficult term to define, particularly in the United Kingdom where there are an infinite number of acts that fall into its category. The term is especially used in British English.
Behavior change, in the context of public health, refers to efforts to change people's personal habits to prevent disease. Behavior change in public health is also known as social and behavior change communication (SBCC). More and more, efforts focus on prevention of disease to save healthcare care costs. This is particularly important in low and middle income countries, where health interventions have come under increased scrutiny because of the cost.
Behavior therapy is a broad term referring to clinical psychotherapy that uses techniques derived from behaviorism. Those who practice behavior therapy tend to look at specific, learned behaviors and how the environment influences those behaviors. Those who practice behavior therapy are called behaviourists, or behavior analysts. They tend to look for treatment outcomes that are objectively measurable. Behavior therapy does not involve one specific method but it has a wide range of techniques that can be used to treat a person's psychological problems.
Suicide prevention, as an umbrella term, involves the collective efforts of local citizen organizations, of health professionals and of related professionals to reduce the incidence of suicide. Beyond direct interventions to stop an impending suicide, methods may also involve:
Evidence-based practice (EBP) is an interdisciplinary approach to clinical practice that has been gaining ground following its formal introduction in 1992. It started in medicine as evidence-based medicine (EBM) and spread to allied health professions, educational fields, and others. EBP is traditionally defined in terms of a "three legged stool" integrating three basic principles: (1) the best available research evidence bearing on whether and why a treatment works, (2) clinical expertise to rapidly identify each patient's unique health state and diagnosis, their individual risks and benefits of potential interventions, and (3) client preferences and values.
Crisis intervention is an immediate and short-term psychological care aimed at assisting individuals in a crisis situation in order to restore equilibrium to their bio-psycho-social functioning and to minimize the potential of long-term psychological trauma.
Reminiscence therapy is used to counsel and support older people, and is an intervention technique with brain-injured patients and those who appear to have "Alzheimer's and other forms of cognitive disease."
As sexual violence affects all parts of society, the responses that arise to combat it are comprehensive, taking place on the individual, administrative, legal, and social levels. These responses can be categorized as:
In psychology, the I-change model or the Integrated Model for explaining motivational and behavioral change derives from the Attitude – Social Influence – Self-Efficacy Model, integrates ideas of Ajzen's Theory of Planned Behavior, Bandura's Social Cognitive Theory, Prochaska's Transtheoretical Model, the Health Belief Model, and Goal setting theories. Previous versions of this model have been used to explain a variety of types of health behavior.
Peer education is an approach to health promotion, in which community members are supported to promote health-enhancing change among their peers. Peer education is the teaching or sharing of health information, values and behavior in educating others who may share similar social backgrounds or life experiences.
Social and behavior change communication (SBCC), often also only "BCC" or "Communication for Development (C4D)" is an interactive process of any intervention with individuals, communities and/or societies to develop communication strategies to promote positive behaviors which are appropriate to their settings and there by solve world's most pressing health problems. This in turn provides a supportive environment which will enable people to initiate, sustain and maintain positive and desirable behavior outcomes.
Targeting is a commonly used technique in the areas of international health and public health which focuses on the development of specialized health intervention approaches for a specific group of people. These groups of people may be identified by geography, race/ethnicity, age, and health issues, among others.
A behavior change method, or behavior change technique, is a theory-based method for changing one or several psychological determinants of behavior such as a person's attitude or self-efficacy. Such behavior change methods are used in behavior change interventions. Although of course attempts to influence people's attitude and other psychological determinants were much older, especially the definition developed in the late nineties yielded useful insights, in particular four important benefits:
- It developed a generic, abstract vocabulary that facilitated discussion of the active ingredients of an intervention
- It emphasized the distinction between behavior change methods and practical applications of these methods
- It included the concept of 'parameters for effectiveness', important conditions for effectiveness often neglected
- It drew attention to the fact that behavior change methods are influence specific determinants.
Design for behaviour change is a sub-category of design, which is concerned with how design can shape, or be used to influence human behaviour. All approaches of design for behaviour change acknowledge that artefacts have an important influence on human behaviour and/or behavioural decisions. They strongly draw on theories of behavioural change, including the division into personal, behavioural, and environmental characteristics as drivers for behaviour change. Areas in which design for behaviour change has been most commonly applied include health and wellbeing, sustainability, safety and social context, as well as crime prevention.
Kolcaba's theory of comfort explains comfort as a fundamental need of all human beings for relief, ease, or transcendence arising from health care situations that are stressful. Comfort can enhance health-seeking behaviors for patients, family members, and nurses. The major concept within Katharine Kolcaba's theory is the comfort. The other related concepts include caring, comfort measures, holistic care, health seeking behaviors, institutional integrity, and intervening variables.
