As a vital subfield of the interdisciplinary enterprise of behavioral medicine, health psychology has placed cognitive-behavioral theory and practice at the forefront of contemporary health care. Recognizing that all medical conditions may be influenced by psychological factors, the American Psychiatric Association (
2000) no longer lists specific psychophysiological disorders in its Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and acknowledges that behavioral, cognitive, and biological processes co-exist and interact. Compelling examples of this mind–body interaction abound. For example, medical imaging studies demonstrate that individuals with obsessive–compulsive disorder and other anxiety syndromes show reliable changes in brain activity following treatment by medication. Similar changes in brain activity are also seen after cognitive-behavior therapy programs that do not include medication (Thorpe and Olson
1997). The serotonin drugs lead to neurochemical changes associated with improvement in depression. Cognitive-behavioral interventions such as behavioral activation or cognitive therapy also promote such physical changes (Hecker and Thorpe
2005). People who have developed posttraumatic stress disorder after experiencing harrowing and unremitting stressors may show “psychophysiological, neurohormonal, neuroanatomical, and immunological changes” (Jaycox and Foa
2001, p. 342). The contributors to this Special Issue all focus on such intriguing cognitive-physiological interactions in describing contemporary approaches to the management of chronic pain, cognitive decline following cancer chemotherapy, and the relationship of activity level and enjoyment of activity on seasonal and nonseasonal depression. …
