Health Psychology: A Tradition of Integration of Clinical and Social Psychology

In this paper, we suggest that health psychology has provided a productive forum for the integration of social and clinical psychology. The very nature of the field has prompted researchers to break out of traditional roles and has stimulated the cross-fertilization of ideas. We provide examples from two research areas—health-specific denial and health locus of control—in order to illustrate the potential benefits and pitfalls of integrative research within health psychology.