INTERNAL CAPABILITY 4: HEALTH VALUES AND GOALS

Valuing health

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Overview

Agency 1. Value of health

Agency 2. Value of health-related goals (e.g., cholesterol levels)

Agency 3. Value of lifestyle choices and behaviors (e.g., moderate versus excessive drinking)

Agency 4. Ability to recognize and counter damaging social norms

What is it?

Health values and goals is the internal capability of valuing one's health, including health-related goals and health-promoting behaviors. Health-related goals refer to objectives one has for one’s health, like healthy cholesterol levels and weight. An example of health-promoting behaviors and lifestyle choices and behaviors is regular exercise, a healthy diet, and an active lifestyle. The capability also includes the ability to recognize and counter damaging social norms that undermine the value of health, or to persist in one's values despite negative social messaging.

Why is it important?

Health values and goals are important because we live in a world of finite resources, including your own resources of time, attention, and energy. Health will not be achieved if it is not prioritized, accordingly, health values and goals allow us to understand that health is central to a good life and should be treated as such. Health values and goals ensure that we see what is truly important in life and we pursue it.

What does it look like?

Someone with a high internal health values and goals capability expresses their values through both words and actions. They may speak positively of health, health-related goals, and healthy lifestyle choices and behaviors, as well as explicitly counter social norms that damage health. Health values and goals will have a high priority in their life, including in how they structure their other pursuits, free time, daily schedule, and short-term and long-term priorities and plans.

How do I do it?

Health values and goals can be continuously developed. Questions to ask yourself may include: why is my health important to me? How do I practice and honor that in my daily life? What resources am I committing to my health? What are some goals I can set that will help me become healthier? What is my lifestyle saying about what matters to me? How might I change some of my lifestyle habits to have health as a top priority? What are some social norms that detract from my health? How might I respond to them? How might I put myself in a position to benefit from social norms?

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