JOAQUIM REIS (*)

FERNANDO FRADIQUE (**)

RESUMO

As pessoas leigas em Medicina apresentam explicações alternativas, ou significações subjectivas, acerca dos processos de saúde e de doença, que coexistem e competem com as dos profissionais de saúde. O resultado desta competição pode concretizar-se através de um conflito epistemológico, mais ou menos tácito, entre o profissional e o indivíduo. A perspectiva construtivista-desenvolvimentista aqui trabalhada sugere que as significações subjectivas acerca da saúde e da doença apresentam diferentes níveis de desenvolvimento quanto à sua abertura, flexibilidade, inclusividade e autonomia. Neste enquadramento, foi delineado e concretizado um projecto cujos objectivos principais foram: 1) identificar as significações subjectivas acerca da saúde e da doença em pessoas leigas, e verificar se essas mesmas significações podem ser ordenadas em diferentes níveis de desenvolvimento sociocognitivo; e 2) analisar quais as implicações para a Psicologia da Saúde de uma perspectiva desenvolvimentista.

Palavras-chave: Psicologia da Saúde, significações subjectivas, desenvolvimento sociocognitivo.

ABSTRACT

Lay persons in Medicine present alternative explanations, or subjective meanings, on health and illness processes. These explanations coexist and compete with those of endorsed by health professionals. Such competition may consist in an epistemological conflict, more or less tacit, between the professional and the individual. The constructivist-developmental perspective proposed in this article suggests that subjective meanings about health and illness present different developmental levels concerning their openness, flexibility, inclusiveness and autonomy. Within this framework two main objectives were pursued: 1) to identify subjective meanings endorsed by lay persons, and to examine if those meanings can be ordered into different sociocognitive developmental levels; and 2) to analyze what may be the implications of this developmental perspective in Health Psychology.

Key words: Health psychology, subjective meanings, sociocognitive development.

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(*)Universidade Independente, Av. Marechal Gomes da Costa, 9, 1800-275 Lisboa, e-mail: joaquimreis@uni.pt