Social Ecological Model

Cervical cancer in the United States is growing to become an alarming public health issue among all women, yet there is a gap in research that looks at correlations between cervical cancer and lesbian women to provide adequate prevention strategies and interventions within the population. This paper will define the lesbian populations, describe the scope of cervical cancer public health issue in the US, and illustrate the extent to which cervical cancer is a public health problem for lesbian women. Lastly, I will choose a health behavioral theory, explain its constructs, and 5) use it to address the public health problem that exists between lesbians and cervical cancer.

The term for same gender loving individuals dates back the 1800s; however,

Therefore, the Social Ecological Model (SEM) will be used to address this issue. The Social Ecological Model stresses dynamic levels of influence and it proposes that behaviors mold and are molded by a person’s social environment (McLeroy et al., 1988). The Social Ecological Model consists of two major concepts “multiple levels of influence” and “reciprocal causation” which assist to create space for health promotion interventions (NCI,

al, explained the first concept of “multiple levels of influence” by breaking it down into 5 different parts: “1) interpersonal or individual factors, 2) intrapersonal factors, 3) institutional or organizational factors, 4) community factors, and 5) public policy factors” (McLeroy et al., 1988; NCI, 2005). The interpersonal or individual level entails the various things that influence health behavior such as our attitudes, knowledge, belief systems, self-esteem, skills and self-perceptions and this includes the developmental history of people from infant through adulthood (McLeroy, Bibeau, Steckler, & Glanz, December 1988). The second level are intrapersonal factors are our social networks that influence our behaviors, which can be either formal like work, school, healthcare providers, business partners, or informal such as partners, parents, children, friends, and associates (McLeroy et al., December 1988). The last three levels are often collapsed into one category called community. The third level of influence are institutional and organizations that through their rules, regulations, policies, practices, and guidelines strict or influence certain behaviors (McLeroy et al., December 1988). The fourth level of influence are the community factors such as community and societal social norms, code of ethics with a racial community, or our gender roles and inform the performance of gendered behavior (McLeroy et al., December 1988). The final level of