University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.
HealthPartners Institute, Bloomington, MN, USA.
Health Educ Behav. 2020 Apr;47(2):185-190. doi: 10.1177/1090198119876239. Epub 2020 Feb 24.
Systems science can help public health professionals to better understand the complex dynamics between factors affecting health behaviors and outcomes and to identify intervention opportunities. Despite their demonstrated utility in addressing health topics such influenza, tobacco control, and obesity, the associated methods continue to be underutilized by researchers and practitioners addressing health behaviors. This article discusses the growth of systems science methods (e.g., system dynamics, social network analysis, and agent-based modeling) in health research, provides a frame for the articles included in this themed issue, and closes with recommendations for enhancing the future of systems science and health behavior research. We argue that integrating systems sciences methods into health behavior research and practice is essential for improved population health and look forward to supporting the evolution of the field.
系统科学可以帮助公共卫生专业人员更好地理解影响健康行为和结果的因素之间的复杂动态，并确定干预机会。尽管系统科学方法在解决流感、烟草控制和肥胖等健康问题方面已经得到了证明，但在研究和实践中，这些方法仍然没有得到充分利用。本文讨论了系统科学方法（如系统动力学、社会网络分析和基于代理的建模）在健康研究中的发展，为本期特刊中的文章提供了一个框架，并为增强系统科学和健康行为研究的未来提出了建议。我们认为，将系统科学方法整合到健康行为研究和实践中对于改善人口健康至关重要，并期待支持该领域的发展。
