Using theory to guide policy relevant health promotion research

The concept of health promotion has evolved into a strategy for improving health that goes beyond individual behaviour to include the physical, social and economic environments in which health and behaviour are shaped. The core of the strategy is to stimulate action against the root causes of ill health in communities. A prerequisite for effective health promotion action is valid knowledge about how forces protect or damage health in daily life. Developing and using theory to guide the collection, analysis and evaluation of empirical evidence is a neglected aspect of obtaining the knowledge needed for promoting health. Population interventions to reduce cholesterol provide an example that illustrates the consequences of basing community health policy and programmes on findings from empirical research without developing a logically sound theoretical basis for identifying inconsistencies and contradictions in the findings. The use of theory to guide research to support health promotion action is discussed.