How to Revise Health and Well-Being — Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment A-Level Health & Social Care
Identify factors that affect health and well-being: biological, environmental, lifestyle, socioeconomic, psychological
Examiner Tips for Health and Well-Being
- In extended responses, structure your answer using the five categories (biological, environmental, etc.) to ensure comprehensive coverage and demonstrate synoptic links.
- Always substantiate claims with specific, realistic examples—for instance, reference a named condition or a relevant case study to show applied understanding.
- For distinction-level analysis, evaluate how a single factor can act as both a risk and protective element depending on context (e.g., social networks can provide support but also induce stress).
Common Mistakes in Health and Well-Being
- Confusing correlation with causation when linking factors, e.g., assuming all low-income individuals automatically have poor health without considering protective factors.
- Overlooking the interplay between factors, such as presenting lifestyle choices in isolation from socioeconomic or environmental constraints.
- Using generic or overly simplistic explanations for psychological factors, like attributing mental ill-health to personal weakness rather than applying biopsychosocial frameworks.
Key Marking Points
- Award credit for clearly linking specific biological factors (e.g., genetic predispositions, age-related changes) to their direct impact on physical health outcomes.
- Award credit for demonstrating how socioeconomic factors like income and education influence access to healthcare and health literacy.
- Award credit for analysing psychological factors with reference to recognised models (e.g., stress-vulnerability) and their effect on mental well-being.
- Award credit for distinguishing between modifiable lifestyle factors (e.g., diet, exercise) and non-modifiable determinants (e.g., age, heredity) in a case study.
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