ABSTRACT
The past two decades have witnessed the rapid growth of health-promotion activities, programs, and related providers as a major force in the American health-care system (Kaplan, 1985). We have become an extraordinarily health-conscious society, expending huge amounts of time, money, and effort in attempts to preserve our health (Barsky, 1988). While the overall conceptual strategy (i.e., altering individuals’ lifestyles with a view to preventing premature morbidity and mortality) seems clearly laudable, serious questions have arisen about many of the operational tactics recommended for achieving this goal. I will discuss some problematic aspects of the health-promotion movement in three major areas: soundness of our knowledge base; untoward consequences of well-intentioned changes in behavior; and health promotion’s focus on the individual.
