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Behavioral medicine is an interdisciplinary field of research and practice that integrates behavioral and biomedical knowledge about health and illness and applies it to prevention, health promotion, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and care. This page explains what the field is, how its official definition changed between 1978 and 2020, and how to cite it correctly. It is an explanation of a research field, not medical advice.
What is behavioral medicine?
The current consensus definition comes from an international Delphi study run for the International Society of Behavioral Medicine (ISBM), published by Dekker and colleagues (2021). It states that behavioral medicine “is a field of research and practice that builds on collaboration among multiple disciplines.” Those disciplines develop and integrate two kinds of knowledge:
- Behavioral knowledge: psychosocial, societal, economic, cultural, existential and environmental processes, including health- and disease-related behavior.
- Biomedical knowledge: physiological, pathological and medical processes.
The definition says this knowledge is applied to prevention, health promotion, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and care, and that the field is broadly inclusive of behavioral and biomedical science and of clinical and public health practice.
The 1978 Yale definition compared with the 2020 Delphi update
The field was formally named at the Yale Conference on Behavioral Medicine (4-6 February 1977), and Schwartz and Weiss (1978) published its proposed definition and statement of goals. The 2021 article quotes that original wording, which makes a side-by-side reading possible.
| Feature | Schwartz and Weiss (1978) | Dekker et al. (2021) |
|---|---|---|
| Core idea | “the interdisciplinary field concerned with the development and integration of behavioral and biomedical science knowledge” | “a field of research and practice that builds on collaboration among multiple disciplines” |
| Application | Prevention, diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation | Prevention, health promotion, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and care |
| Behavioral knowledge | Described as behavioral science knowledge | Spelled out as psychosocial, societal, economic, cultural, existential and environmental processes |
The practical change is breadth: health promotion, care and public health now appear explicitly, and behavioral knowledge is no longer described only as behavioral science.
How the definition was updated: a Delphi study
The 2021 definition was reached by a structured consensus method rather than a single author’s proposal. According to Dekker et al., the panel had 29 people (a 6-member core group, 22 organizational representatives and one non-voting moderator), worked through four rounds, and used a consensus threshold of 70% agreement set in advance. Response rates were 82% to 93% across rounds. For the method itself, see our guide to the Delphi method.
Scope: research, practice and public health
The same article lists the main tasks and goals of the ISBM, which show what the field treats as its remit:
- Communication, collaboration and liaison among behavioral and biomedical disciplines.
- Stimulating behavioral medicine research, with emphasis on international collaboration.
- Education and training, including curricula, workshops and courses.
- Practice: serving as an international platform for clinical and public health practice, and developing standards, guidelines and practice or policy briefs.
- Supporting national and regional behavioral medicine organizations and recognizing scientists, especially early-career professionals.
Where behavioral medicine meets research methods
Because the field combines behavioral and biomedical evidence, studies in it routinely pair validated psychological measures with clinical or physiological outcomes. Two related CASRAI pages show how that looks in practice: the COM-B model of behaviour change is a framework for analysing behavior, and the PHQ-9 is an example of a self-report instrument. When you compare groups on such outcomes, report an effect size as well as significance. For the difference between two neighboring professions, see psychology vs psychiatry.
Common confusions
- A definition, not a treatment. The sources define a field of research and practice; they do not prescribe any treatment, and nothing here is individual medical advice.
- Which definition to quote. The 1978 text is the historical origin; the 2021 Delphi text is the current ISBM definition. Name which one you are quoting.
How to cite the definition (APA 7th edition)
In text, cite the definition you quote: (Schwartz & Weiss, 1978) for the original and (Dekker et al., 2021) for the current one. A reference-list entry for the original, following APA 7th edition journal-article format:
Schwartz, G. E., & Weiss, S. M. (1978). Yale Conference on Behavioral Medicine: A proposed definition and statement of goals. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 1(1), 3-12. https://doi.org/10.1007/bf00846582
For Dekker et al. (2021), International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 28(3), 268-276, take the full author list from the article page and list authors as APA 7th edition requires.
Frequently asked questions
What is the definition of behavioral medicine?
It is a field of research and practice built on collaboration among multiple disciplines, integrating behavioral and biomedical knowledge about health and illness and applying it to prevention, health promotion, diagnosis, treatment, rehabilitation and care (Dekker et al., 2021).
When did behavioral medicine begin?
The term was formalized at the Yale Conference on Behavioral Medicine in February 1977, supported by Yale’s psychology and psychiatry departments and the NHLBI, with the proposed definition published in 1978 (Schwartz & Weiss, 1978).
Who maintains the current definition?
The 2021 definition was developed for the International Society of Behavioral Medicine, which the article describes as a federation of national societies.
Sources (read 2026-11-12)
- Dekker, J., Amitami, M., Berman, A. H., et al. (2021). Definition and characteristics of behavioral medicine, and main tasks and goals of the International Society of Behavioral Medicine: An international Delphi study. International Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 28(3), 268-276. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8121730
- Schwartz, G. E., & Weiss, S. M. (1978). Yale Conference on Behavioral Medicine: A proposed definition and statement of goals. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 1(1), 3-12. link.springer.com/doi/10.1007/bf00846582
